Ken Gushi's Essential Guide to Drifting

Few experiences are as gratifying as executing a drift at precisely the right moment. It demands a deep understanding of how to coordinate the handbrake, steering wheel and pedals at once; there is plenty of scope for things to go wrong, but only a narrow moment in which they go right. When it comes together, though, it really comes together.

Ken Gushi understands this better than most. At just sixteen, he became the youngest driver ever to take part in the official drift championships in both America and Japan. That makes him the perfect person to explain the art of going sideways.

TopGear.com: At what age did you begin drifting?

KG: I began entering local drift events in Southern California when I was 13, although my father had put me behind the wheel long before then. He was a racing driver himself, competing in plenty of grassroots events in his native Japan.

He enjoys rally driving and making cars slide through confined spaces, so I naturally followed his lead. At first, I had no plans to pursue drifting; I simply wanted to be as cool as my dad. Drifting was becoming popular around that time, however, and it caught my attention.

I thought it looked brilliant and asked my dad whether I could have a go. His answer was to take me to El Mirage, a dry lake bed, every weekend for nearly two years so I could practise. The best thing was that nobody could say we were not allowed to do it, which is hugely important while you are still learning.

Was learning how to drift difficult?

Honestly, not particularly. That is mainly because of the place where I learned. El Mirage is a popular location for filming automotive content because the public can use it. Naturally, cars move around very freely on a surface like that.

Even at that age, it was easy to get the car sideways at relatively low speeds. Being out in the open gives you all the room and time you could need to make errors, learn how to correct them and work out what you must change to achieve your aim.

Not everybody has that sort of freedom. What are the best alternatives?

There are plenty of restrictions on where drifting is permitted. Many race circuits will not even allow deliberate sliding. These days, though, numerous grassroots organisations hold drift-specific events. In California, for instance, Apple Valley Speedway is a dedicated circuit where enthusiasts and local drivers can go almost every day at a low cost.

Where do the biggest costs actually come from?

Car upkeep, especially tyres and fuel, as well as simply transporting the car to the circuit. The only genuine answer is finding sponsorship, which means becoming a professional driver.

Right, the professional leagues. How can someone get a chance?

There are a couple of routes into competitive drifting. The first is having plenty of money. It is far more expensive now than when I started, because the cars are purpose-built. We use many costly components that do not necessarily last, so spare parts are vital when you compete. To put that into context, we can sometimes destroy a fresh set of tyres in less than 45 seconds, and they can cost as much as 300 dollars each. They are gone in scarcely two runs.

The second route is having excellent networking skills while also being a very capable driver who can put themselves out there. It was easier when I began because there were not many professional drivers. It was also a period when lots of companies wanted to get involved with the drifting hype, about 25 years ago, as drifting was taking off. Today, there are so many drivers but so few companies willing to offer backing that it is tough for unestablished drivers.

Back to the skills: what is your strongest advice for improving at drifting?

The biggest error beginners make in drifting is looking in the wrong direction. Before worrying about steering control or throttle input, remember that the car will travel towards wherever your eyes are focused.

If I put down a cone and ask someone to drive a tight circle around it, they will head entirely the wrong way as soon as they stop looking at the cone. Equally, if there is a wall and I tell them not to look at it, but they do, the car will naturally move towards it. Your visual focus is connected to your physical inputs.

Once you have grasped and learned that, your body will start adapting naturally to where you are looking. Then we can concentrate on using more throttle or reducing steering input to discover how to make the car slide naturally.

Otherwise, as with many things in life, consistency matters most. Get out and practise: work on doughnuts until you have mastered them, then progress to figure eights, before experimenting with the handbrake to understand what the car does. When you depress the clutch and pull the handbrake, or kick the clutch, you unsettle the drivetrain slightly. Add more power at that point and observe the car's response.

All of those little lessons eventually lead to consistency and, more importantly, a consistent run. Understanding the handbrake and clutch, throttle kicks and faint steering inputs are basic skills, but they transfer extremely well into competitive drifting.

What are some things that you should not do?

I used to pull the handbrake without pressing the clutch. If the car is in gear and you are not on the clutch when you pull the handbrake, you lock the wheels while they are directly connected to the transmission. The result? You stall. At other times, you might lose power or power steering, and it becomes a complete mess. So always remember: if you are going to pull the handbrake, keep your foot on the clutch.

Let us talk cars. Which have been your favourite drifting cars over the years?

Rather ironically, I learned how to drift in a 1986 Toyota Corolla GTS, better known as the ‘AE86’. I am sure many car enthusiasts know the anime series featuring the car, about a young lad delivering tofu through the mountains at night. It is funny because my father used to rally a Subaru Impreza, the same car driven by the father in the anime. There seem to be so many similarities between my own story and Initial D, which is why the AE86 remains one of my favourites.

Next is the Lexus IS300, one of my all-time favourite four-door cars. I own one, and after fitting a different engine and a racing transmission, I added a larger turbo, bigger wheels and a far more substantial body kit. It is not necessarily an ideal car in which to practise, but I think it looks so damn cool.

My third pick is my present competition car, the Toyota GR86. They are incredibly nimble and straightforward to drive. Mine uses a Greddy Performance-tuned 2JZ engine producing more than 1,000bhp, yet it steers exceptionally well. Modern cars can enter a corner almost backwards, tail-first, and still make it through; that is exactly what my GR86 was built to do.

We understand you are a huge Pokémon fan. Could you power-slide a Charizard if you had the opportunity?

I am not sure about power-sliding, but I would love to get hold of one and take to the skies. After all, who needs power-sliding when you can fly?