As the day winded down crews began swapping tires, relaxing, and preparing to leave as the sun started to set over one of the best days I’ve had. The Fuji Speedway Drift event was coming to a close. I had wished that the sun remain where it was forever and that this day wouldn’t end. This wasn’t just a golden hour of the day for photos, it was one of the golden moments of my life.
Drivers make laps around the track was mesmerizing. With their driving ability, stickers, and chassis adorned with aggressive upgrades you could see the hours poured in. The jealousy bug bit me hard because I knew there were people who made a living from driving cars, meanwhile I couldn’t make money off of anything I tried. I imagined myself in the driver’s seat of one of the cars as it made its way around the small track.
I had missed the rain and arrived to the pleasing sound of engines roaring, tires squealing, and turbos hissing. In the parking area were people relaxing, chatting, and cooling down their cars after their time on the track. The atmosphere calmed me despite the loud noises of all the cars. I’m glad Japanese Drift Events are Chill.
Tokyo Auto Salon so I was a reluctant to want to go to the drift event the following day. Money is getting to be a little tight. Low pay and my growing list of expenses made me hesitate to say yes. The continual debt that I owe my parents hung over me like a shadow as I put gas in my car. Stress stopped me dead in my tracks when I had to pay a tolls. Hungry I was hesitant to feed myself after watching the bills from my pocket drain.
I’ll be more stressed about money moving through the rest of the month. Feeling truly happy was worth it. At the same time it was also emotionally painful to be so close to a dream and constrained to the sidelines. In that way one of the most pleasurable moments in my life cut deep with a poisoned blade.
When I was invited to go to Tokyo Auto Salon, it was an offer I couldn’t refuse. Not a fan of big crowds of people, or really leaving the comfort of my own home on the weekends, it was my love of cars that made me leave my shell.
In my pursuit to make a living from creative work, I often hit walls where it feels like I’m failing to improve at a certain thing. I’m glad I went to tokyo auto salon because I really got my ass kicked.
There are moments in life where you get destroyed so badly that it sparks a paradigm shift. That day made me realize that I had so much to grow as a photographer as the crowds of people forced me to work my Camera’s controls more rapidly than I had ever before.(I shoot in manual mode) The lack of time,space, and the random strangers who apparently don’t care that you’re taking a put me in a position where I had to come up with more creative compositions.
These are some of my best shots, stay tuned for part two where I’ll write about my mistakes!!
I watched a movie because my first car, a $5000 automatic 1995 240sx, lost to a slow hatchback in an anime made in the nineties. If you know anything about anime, you already know what Movie that was, the movie told the story of a young boy who delivers tofu in the wee hours of the night. Only to find himself unwilling improving as a driver and enjoying the thrill of racing. After the movie I watched the show, which is much better than the movie. Watching the show late at night with my friends sent me on a journey that eventually had me sitting in a car driving the very roads that were made legendary not just by the show, but the real drivers that inspired it.
I learned about the history of drifting through best motoring international and became a sponge. I researched so much information on cars(although I’m still shitty at working on them). Things like model numbers, specs, and even the history of why a car was made was so much fun to absorb. In the library at school I used my free time to look at cars I couldn’t possibly afford. For the first time I enjoyed racing games drifting in Forza, even picking up a simulator wheel to play the games the way they were meant to be enjoyed. As sad as it sounds one of my proudest achievements is remaining undefeated in Initial D and making a group of asians at the bowling alley rage quit.
Well I pulled the engine and gutted it. . . how do I put it back
After the s14 there was a red ae86, a gray one(still in the garage ripped apart), another late model s14 240sx, the Blue WRX(still in the garage at home). After 8 years of dreaming, failed japanese courses, and working my ass off to get here I finally made it to the legendary touge. Through the luck of being placed in matsumoto, meeting Chris at the storyhouse cafe, and then meeting Moacir I was able to participate in the Initial D tour and finally meet people who had this shared love of cars.
The Initial D Pose
It was a straight Trade for my s14
When My AE86 Was Deemed Too Much of a Pain in the ass my dad didn’t want to keep helping me fix it so thanks to the old man I had another 240sx.
This car got me over the pass and back safely I went to college in a town where it snowed a lot.
The Car I Currently Whip In
When My AE86 Was Deemed Too Much of a Pain in the ass my dad didn’t want to keep helping me fix it so thanks to the old man I had another carThis is a culmination of all the photo editing skills I’ve picked up over the years, I started when I tore my acl 7 years ago and became a yearbook photographer. Since then I’ve pursued photography forgoing parties and social events to edit photos on my computer. Using the skills I’ve learned doing art, color theory, and studying the fundamentals of design has helped me see the world in a new light.
