Stay ConnectedBenson Hsu and Nadine Hsu interview guests who changed USA drifting culture. Listen as we attempt to document their stories in American drifting history.
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Copyright: © Benson Hsu
Nikolay Konstantinov started drifting in the early 2000s and even competed in Formula D. He built a tribute car paying homage to his hero Yoshinori Koguchi. He explains the challenges of building a green s13 hatch inspired by a car that no longer exists in that form. He also recounts a recent magical trip to Japan where he got to hang out with Drift Zamurai and The Emperor Koguchi. He even got to see and sit in 189sx that inspired his build. Follow Nikolay on IG: https://www.instagram.com/konstantinov_nikolay_/ Follow our Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/sileightymania/ #drifting #driftinghistory #driftingpodcast #nissan #180sx #rps13 #nissans13 #nissan240sx #240sx #nissan180sx #tributecar #koguchi
Lindsay Ross is an OG US drifter, starting in the early 2000s. He has always been big on Japanese drifting style and Japanese drift car styling.
One day he met up with Aaron Suarez aka Dousan and the two of them decided to form a drift team called Pink Godzira. The two were one of the earliest US drift teams to properly color coordinate the way drift teams do in Japan and they did it with style.
Take a listen as Lindsay tells us about the origins of Pink Godzira drift team, his experiences as a young drift guy in the 2000s and what he's been up to more recently, including his time at Hoonigan and now RTR with Vaughn Gittin Jr.
Follow Lindsay on IG at @supersick_
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Benson Hsu won 1st place at Falken Drift Showoff in Irwindale Speedway on March 02, 2003. It was the first time we'd ever seen a pro drifter on US soil doing drifting demos. Yoshinori Koguchi, Seigo Yamamoto, Fumiaki Komatsu and Kazuya Bai, very famous and influential drivers from Japan, flew in with their cars for demos and judging. It was a day that introduced so many to drifting and inspired a generation of future drifters.
Host Nadine Hsu interviews Benson about the day, asking questions he didn't remember answers to (and some that he did.) He talks about his first time seeing Rhys Millen drift, some drama he had with JIC, being in awe of Koguchi's skill, and how it changed his life.
For some behind the scenes content related to this event, please take a listen to the S1E3 interview featuring Nick Fousekis, the founder of Falken Tire's drifting program and one of the masterminds behind Falken Drift Showoff.
Thank you Falken, Import Showoff, Drift Association and everybody who made this such an amazing event!
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Mark Arcenal, from the Bay Area in California, is an artist and a trailblazer in fashion and car culture. He is a major reason for what is widely known today as "stanced cars".
We talk about his love for both industries and how they influenced his journey to create his website Fatlace and Illest brand. He is an inspirational person to many and this interview will show you why.
For this episode of Storytime, Mark takes us through his ambitious plan to hold a Hellaflush event in the place that inspired his love for his drifting style of cars - Japan. His Hellaflush event at Fuji Speedway was huge and he filled the event with 400+ cars with street cars, drift cars, D1 cars and even the Cyber Evo. He also tells us a little about an incident where he went drifting in a D1 car, causing mayhem with Fuji Speedway management.
Follow Mark on IG: @mrk.rcnl
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Nadine wrote a kid's drifting book! You may know our beloved co-host Nadine Hsu as one of the first female drifters in the USA, or as one of the first women to compete in Formula Drift. Maybe you know her as the co-founder of Drifting Pretty, the first all female drifting program and eventually all female drifting team in the USA. She is now a children's drifting book author!
She's here to announce that she's now a children's book author! Her book Sachiko Goes Racing is inspired from her experience as a person learning to take a leap of faith to pursue her passion for drifting. Listen as she talks about what drove her to write a book, her many social causes she hopes to support through this book and how she plans on inspiring the youngest generation of future drifters.
Jump ahead to 31:24 if you want to listen to a complete book reading by Nadine!
To purchase the book or Sachiko Goes Racing merchandise, please go to https://www.sachikogoesracing.com Follow her on IG: @sachikogoesracing
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Javier Paramo has experienced 15 minutes of fame many times. You might know him from his beautiful white MA60 Celica Supra or appearance on Wheeler Dealers, Netflix's Fastest Car, his cameo in Fast and the Furious 1, his annual hosting of Supras in Vegas, or his features in Import Tuner and MotorMavens.
What you might not know is that there's a good chance he was the very first Mexican drifter. Javier is Benson's old friend, and they spent a lot of time together in the junkyards, wrenching on their cars and just being young guys who loved Japanese style cars. They later learned how to drift together.
Javier eventually went on to win 2nd place at the 2nd Option Ikaten ever held on US soil in early 2003 at Irwindale Speedway. Take a stroll down memory lane with us as we talk about early import car culture and how it eventually lead Javier to being on the podium next to Andy Yen and Alex Pfeiffer at an event that became a major turning point for American drifting.
For more info on Javier, please follow him on IG at @javparada
Cole Chalmers was your typical car boy who didn't want anything in life but to drift all day, everyday. After a breakup, he told himself, "no girls." He chose the lonely driver life, but did the lonely driver life choose him?
Listen in as Cole discusses early drift life in Kamloops, British Columbia, his snow drifting adventures on logging roads, and how drifting changed his life in many ways, but mostly through finding love during a disastrous road trip all the way to All-Star Bash in Southern California.
Follow Cole on IG: @thislifeintransit
When they become available, make sure to purchase a "Bring Back Pop-Ups" tee: https://intransit.bigcartel.com
Make sure to follow us on Instagram for additional content and giveaways! We will be doing a "Bring Back Pop-Ups" tee giveaway next week! @sileightymania
Lance Feliciano is the son of a professional rally driver. His father introduced him to cars and motorsports at a very young age, and as a child he would rather watch Option Video instead of cartoons. At the age of 8, he got to experience something very special - he attended Option Video's very first Ikaten ever held on American soil. He was in the presence of drifting icons Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya and Nomuken, got a ride-a-long and it forever changed his life.
You can follow Lance on IG: @lfvsupreme
Ryohei Takahashi from Team Lowbrain, Japan joins us to tell us about Sportsland Yamanashi (SLY), why it's important for Japanese drifting history and what his experience has been like hosting events there and dealing with its unique track owner. Make sure to follow us on IG because Ryohei sent me a bunch of Team Lowbrain stuff and we're giving it away! Announcement will happen on 7/18 on @sileightymania Ryohei on IG: @lowbrain_yohey
Adam Goodman, aka Understeerking, has a very popular IG account and YouTube account where he posts all the Japanese car nostalgia that your heart desires.
For this Storytime episode, he tells us about his early years with drifting in Atlanta to his trips to Japan. During one of his trips, he gets to meet D1 Driver Kaneko Naoya, who offers Adam to drive his 380hp competition car!
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