VEGAS DRIFT NIGHT EVENT JULY 2024

Of all grassroots motorsports events in Las Vegas, one event that always stands out is Vegas Drift. They’ve been a staple organizer hosting drift events every so often at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and they showcase a variety of cars and drivers with different skill levels from beginners to professionals who compete in Formula D. They have generated a huge drift community in Las Vegas and drivers from surrounding states tend to appear from time to time. And of course, the Las Vegas locals come out to play.

This specific event was hosted at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway North Drag Lot and hosted two major drift areas for people to try. On one side, they had an open skid pad where drivers can practice sliding their cars without committing too long on the main track. On the other side, the main drift track was laid out in a huge area of the parking lot marked by cones. The course featured a long straight at the entrance all leading to a variety of sweeping corners towards the exit in which they have an option to loop around back to the straight. They also hosted drift ride-alongs in which spectators were able to sign up for a sideways experience.

As check-in and tech inspections were happening, I took the opportunity to check out cars in the pits as drivers were preparing to start. There were many familiar faces in the LV drift community such as Gatsby Racing, Modified Performance, Running Parlays, Stuart Fam, Mr. Gates, and many more that I’m sure I’ve missed.

Once the event started, a few cars went out one by one to test the track conditions. Some of the drivers went to the skid pad first. The heat was pretty rough while the sun was out so drivers were most likely waiting it out until sunset. They had plenty of time as this was a night event ending at 10pm.

Since this was my first time as media, I was observing the do’s and don’ts of what we were allowed to do and where we were allowed on track. I slowly made my way following other members of the media team and found myself in the middle of all the action. It was the best seat in the house. As night fell, headlights came on and underglow was plenty.

There were two areas where the media team could stay in the middle of the track. The main area was where I currently was, and there was another in the distance close to the track exit. I wanted to switch actively between the two to get different angles but due to how continuous they release drivers, we were not allowed to swap unless there’s downtime such as if a car broke down and they had to clear the cars off the track.

One great thing about being in Las Vegas Motor Speedway is that it is located on the northeastern side of the Las Vegas valley. With lots of open space, it gets pretty windy. It helped cool down the temperatures a lot and the weather was almost perfect. In turn, the drivers started driving faster and more aggressively, which resulted in awesome photos.

Near the end of the night, the rest of the pit area looked like a scene from Fast & Furious. Spectators were flooding around the drift cars. There was good music, engine lids propped up, headlights & underglow, and the smell of burnt tires.

This was overall a great event hosted by Vegas Drift. What they do for the grassroots drifting community in Las Vegas is very much appreciated.

Rexon Arquiza @rexonrekz

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