Drift Matsuri 2017: The Report

The 5th annual Drift Matsuri was held recently at the picturesque Anglesey Circuit, this event has become the place to be for the end of season party over the last few years.

The event saw over a hundred drivers on three separate tracks over the two days with a huge variety of cars, from the usual S-Chassis’….

Skylines….

and BMW’s,

Rarer cars like a Daihatsu Charmant….

Jaguar E-Type…

The Driftworks freshly built 1972 Toyota Hilux, dubbed the DWHi5.

As usual the Toyota AE86 was well represented at the event with at least 5 on track over the weekend.

The three layouts included a touge style course that ran up and over the top half the track in the opposite direction to the way that the circuit runs during race weekends.

The fast track used the first three corners of the circuit, this had many drivers using third or fourth gear throughout each run as they tried to link the track with just a quick manji down each straight.

The third track was the single hairpin, this had a long run up to the corner to give drivers a chance to practice backward entries without the risk of hitting anything.

The event had something for every level of driver, from grassroots to BDC Pro drivers, everyone was welcome and often the grassroots drivers would come around the corner with a BDC driver following closely.

Saturday night featured the third showdown between the UK & Irish drivers, in the past this has been won by James Deane and Richard Grindrod.

The crowds gathered around the outside of the track to see who would take the trophy this year.

As the battles went on a few people were shining through as strong contenders including Martin Richards, Matt Carter and William Rose.

In the finals Matt Carter threw the car in with a huge backwards entry, impressing the crowd and taking the win from William Rose.

Now it was time to party through to the early hours before another full day of drifting.

By the end of the weekend there were many exhausted drivers, broken cars and shredded tyres throughout the paddock.

It was another successful weekend and a great way to end the season. We will leave you with some more photos from the event, until next time…..

Golden Ticket

As you might have seen on social media today, we have an offer you will not want to miss.

Details to be announce on Sunday at 8pm on our Facebook and Instagram @driftmatsuri

Discounted spectator tickets

We are delighted to tell you some great news!

ALL spectator tickets will be discounted if bought in advance.

If you wish to come on Saturday only, not a problem. You will get to see drifting all day long on all three of the tracks. The fun begins when the sun sets. British VS Ireland and YOU are the judges!

You the spectators will decide which driver goes through from each battle, the commentary team will build you the hype and you make the call.

Once the winner has been presented with his or her trophy, the party really gets started with the ‘Party in the pits.’ Mike Lewis returns to throw some dance floor fillers in to the small hours.

If you just want to come and see some fantastic cars in action on Sunday, then we have a MASSIVE diversity of cars attending as always. From the old school to some of the latest cars on the market.

Ticket prices are as follows.

Advance tickets

Saturday only £20  *£30 payable, your wristband removed and a refund of £10 before 10pm*

Weekend ticket £30

Sunday Ticket £16.50

On the gate prices

Saturday only £25  *£35 payable, your wristband removed and a refund of £10 before 10pm*

Weekend ticket £35

Sunday ticket £20

On line ticket sales will close on Wednesday the 25th October at 8pm

*** Please note that spectator tickets are none refundable ***

Drift Matsuri 2017 details

Ladies and gents

The details you have all been waiting for are here.

Tickets for the event will go on sale on Sunday October the 1st at 2000 (8pm).

They will go live on the ‘Tickets’ page.

We will be operating an open pit lane policy on all three tracks.

A single day driver ticket £179

A weekend driver ticket £340

All drivers tickets will include a plus one.

All drivers will be able to attend the event for the weekend whether driving Saturday, Sunday or both days.

A garage which holds a four cars £200

Spectator tickets in advance are

Saturday £25
Sunday £20
Weekend £35

Passenger wristbands will be £25 per day and available from 0930 on Saturday and Sunday.

Camping is free of charge for both Friday and Saturday night.

As at all previous events, we will be limiting numbers to ensure plenty of seat time.

The mix of cars will include retro, modern, classic and current IDC and BDC championship drivers.

There is a track for every level of drifter, from the ‘Backwards entry track’, to the ULTRA high speed ‘National Track’. If you fancy plenty of twinning the “Touge Track’

There will be round 3 of Britain vs Ireland. Who will take round 3? James Deane won round 1, Richard Grindrod round 2, who will win round 3?

Once the ‘Night Fight has finished, the party gets started in the pits. Mike Lewis will be dropping the tunes and playing until the small hours.

The on site cafe will be open for refreshments all day everyday and the bar will be open until late.

Set your reminders to be at THE event to end the 2017 drift season in the UK.

*** Please note that all spectator tickets are none refundable ***

The official film from the Spring Drift Matsuri 2017

If you haven’t seen this on our Facebook page, you are in for a great 5 minutes of your life!

Jason Laroza took on the challenge of making a film in a different style.

Once you’ve watched this i think you will agree he has done the event proud.

Take sit, turn up the volume and enjoy!

Spring Matsuri 2017: The Report

The 2017 kicked off with Spring Matsuri at Rockingham Motor Speedway, it’s the second time that this event has started the season following on from the success of Drift Matsuri at the end of each season.

Four separate tracks across a single venue awaited the drivers, two fast layouts featuring sections of the oval complete with banking complemented the fast twists and turns of the infield.

The final track was a new layout in the outer paddock which was open for all of the drifters to use on Saturday, Driftcup round 1 would then use this track on Sunday.

One of the highlights at these events is the wide selection of cars that drivers choose, from RX7s, AE86s, 350Zs and a whole host of R and S bodies.

Marc Huxley’s Celica is always a crowd favourite and driving a rare car doesn’t change his all out driving style at all, running the wall around the top of the banking.

This event brings together drivers of all skills from amateurs to BDC Pros, all with the aim of having the most amount of fun possible out on track and in the pits with their friends.

On Saturday night if a full day of drifting hadn’t been enough entertainment, the night battles would solve that. This year teams of three drivers would have to impress the crowd if they wanted to take the win.

Plenty of action followed over the next couple of hours before Team NoChill took the victory.

Away from all of the track action there was plenty to do including an RC track, skate park and the party through to the early hours of Sunday.

Another day of drifting awaited on the main tracks whilst Driftcup attracted the crowds to the outer paddock.

By the end of the weekend many tyres had been shredded & many smiles and laughs were had. It was another successful start to the season that looks to be one of the best that Britain has seen!

We will leave you with more photos from the event, until next time…

Throw back Thursday! A look back at the Spring Matsuri 2016

We couldn’t look forward to the #SpringMatsuri without taking a look back at the action last year!

Sit back, turn up the volume and enjoy!

Bring on a weekend of epic proportions!

Whats going on!

As the event gets closer and closer, we can let you know what is going on at what times.

There will be drifting ALL day on both Saturday and Sunday!

RC drifting in garage 25/26/27

Mark Webb and his crew on a half pipe in the inner paddock area

The Team Triple Drift competition on Saturday evening

THE drift party in the Welcome Centre

On Sunday its more drifting on the Oval and Infield

Round one of HEL DriftCup in the outer paddock, who will make the grade and be eligible to take part in the British Drift Championship later in the month

Its going to be a weekend to remember!

Get your discounted tickets from the shop before they are removed on Thursday!

Tickets will be available on the gate. 

SPRING MATSURI TEAM EVENT

The Spring Matsuri 2017 will feature a Team Triple Drift competition that will take place in the Outer Paddock on Saturday evening.

The competition is open to an drivers who are taking part in the event, this include DriftCup drivers.

If there is an overwhelming demand, there will be a Facebook live session to pick the teams that will take part in the event.

The competition will have a judge over seeing the competition, however the CROWD will be the main judges! We expect people to bring airhorns, whistles and anything else that will make lots of noise to cheer on their favorite team.

If you are driving at the event, the application form can be found here > Spring Matsuri Team Event application form.

Will your team be crowned Spring Matsuri Team Event Champions 2017?

Spring Matsuri 2017 details

With the date now set in your diary, time for some information.

The details you all need for the event are as follows:

Tickets will go on sale on Sunday the 12th February 2017 at 8pm.

There will be a two types of driver tickets for Saturday;

• The first will be for the Outer Paddock area ONLY. This will be the same track as used for round one of DriftCup on Sunday. A bespoke layout which will encourage proximity drifting. Places will be limited to ensure plenty of seat time for all – £99
• The second driver ticket will be for the Infield and Oval layouts – £179

Sunday and weekend tickets;

• You will be able to buy a driver ticket for Sunday – £179
• A discounted driver ticket for the weekend – £340
• Garages (24 available) that holds two cars for the weekend with access from Friday £100
• A weekend spectator tickets will be £30 if bought in advance from the website.  £35 on the gate
• A Sunday spectator ticket will be £16.50 if bought in advance from the website. £20 on the gate
• Passenger wristbands will be available for sale at £25 per day
• Additional drivers will be charged £50 per day

Camping is free of charge for all

Drivers, if you buy two tickets or someone else pays for your ticket, you MUST tell us the drivers name. Tickets WILL BE REFUNDED if we are not told within 14 days!

Driver tickets are not to be sold or transferred. The person named must be the driver on the day. There will be a reserve list set up for those who miss out on buying a ticket.

*** RESERVE LIST ***

If you fail to secure a ticket, we will be operating a reserve list, to be placed on the reserve list you must send a message to us via the Drift Matsuri facebook page. Drivers will be placed on the list in the order of request.

The reserve list will not be started until all places have been sold.

Refunds

All driver and garage tickets:

A 75% refund will be granted up to and including Sunday the 5th March 2017.

No refunds will be offered after Sunday the 5th March 2017.

All spectator tickets are none refundable.

The event will run an open pit lane policy on all tracks.

There will be a radio controlled drift track operating within one of the garages. If you have a radio controlled drift car then make sure you bring it with you.

Refreshments will be available on site in the cafe.

The event is for EVERYONE, whether you are drifting or not, this is the event to be at!

Cars do not need to be caged and drivers of any level are welcome due to the nature of four different tracks.

Helmets and seat belts are mandatory.

Car specification:

• No oil or fluid leaks will be tolerated.
• All vehicles must have front and rear functional tow hooks or straps present. BMW OEM screw-in tow hooks are not acceptable as they shear when pulled at an angle. If towing hooks/straps are not fitted, cars will be recovered by whatever means necessary and RDDAYS cannot be held liable for any damage caused.
• All vehicles must be maintained to a satisfactory standard.
• The noise limit is 105 DB at three-quarters throttle in a static test.
• Cars must have at least 2 working rear brake lights.
• Cars must start the day with both front and rear bumpers fitted.
• Cars must have headlights or headlight covers and tail lights fitted into the factory positions and in reasonable condition.
• Cars must have all factory glass or Perspex replacement windows (driver and passenger window glass can be replaced by approved netting).
• Cars must have all panels present (including bonnet) and in reasonable condition without any sharp edges.
• Rude or offensive stickers/number plates must not be fitted.
• Cars may be subject to checks by RDDAYS staff at any point during an event and may be prohibited from using the track until any faults are rectified.
• All decisions by RDDAYS staff are final.
• Have a 1kg hand held fire extinguisher fitted

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