Sunday driving, GAZOO-style.

Jumping in the car, the drive to Calder Park was an easy one; local suburbanites seemed to be enjoying a Sunday sleep-in. Entering the Raceway however, meant crossing the Thunderdome, an asphalt jungle of open pits filled with marquees, spare tyres, trolley jacks, half-empty bottles of coolant and of course, drift cars (many of them JDM classics) getting a tune from their respective owners. Behind it all, weathered hoarding displayed outdated ads for Coca Cola and tyre king Bob Jane, four-time Australian Touring Car Champion and Calder Park Raceway’s former owner.

Once clear of the pits, I passed a lineup of twenty or more gleaming GR Yaris and GR Yaris Rallye vehicles in glacier white and feverish red. They belonged to proud GAZOO RACING CLUB members; many would be entered into the Show & Shine later in the day.

Trackside at the Drift Cadet stand, I met Linh and Cindy who were already filling brown paper bags with Noriyaro (a.k.a Alexi Smith) merchandise for a steady stream of fans. Many of them had come especially to watch the YouTube ‘drift-fluencer’ whose name combines two Japanese words (‘nori’ meaning ‘ride’ and ‘yaro’ meaning ‘guy').

Cindy gave me a wrist band and a high-vis vest to match our photographer Brett, who was already snapping away alongside the other photographers and drone videographers. I later found out the media lineup contained no less than 39 creators – the online drifting community wouldn't miss a skid. I swapped my sukajan for the vest, and made my way to the GAZOO RACING CLUB members’ marquee for the first event of the day.

Clockwise drifting

Located immediately trackside, the GRC tent offered a prime view of the road circuit – a looping track with a dozen or so turns and a drag strip. Behind it, rolling hills made for a picturesque backdrop; the Raceway was originally a dirt track carved into a paddock by local farmers with a love of motorsports.

Around fifty intermediate to advanced drivers had registered to drift, and I quickly spotted Noriyaro’s black and white AE86 (nicknamed ‘the Beans86’) with its unmistakable ‘Alexi’ decal already ripping around the track.

Inside the members’ area, I found myself shoulder-to-shoulder with GAZOO RACING CLUB members like Paulie, a proud GR Yaris owner and longtime enthusiast from Berwick. I introduced myself and explained that I was doing a write-up on the event.

‘I love the Journal, it’s great to see what the rest of the country is getting into,’ Paulie said.

Together we picked out a few of the Toyotas flying past – a black Cressida, a badged Crown, at least one Chaser, a Camry Altise, a red KE20 Corolla, Drift Cadet’s supercharged 86 and the team’s brand new GR86. Owners Peter Pham and Linh Dang had kept the stock wheels on the front for clearance, with Enkei RPF 1 wheels on the rear to keep it light.

Like very aggressive birds of prey, each of these track weapons let out a different cry as they slipped into their corner exits. A high-pitched screech, satisfying exhaust crackle, a droning buzz. As they slid sideways around the circuit, one thing was certain – they were all here to make noise. A lot of it.

Over the cacophony, I struck up a conversation with another member, Harsha, who was attending his first club meet-up. I asked him what he loved about his White Metallic GR Supra. ‘The handling, the stability, the control… everything. It’s a really tuned car. Perfect to drive.’ I told him about my recent visit to Winton Motor Raceway near Wangaratta, the town where I grew up. It turns out Harsha and his wife lived in ‘Wang’ (as the locals call it) for five or six years – and we reminisced about the area before finding Brett to grab a photo.

Around mid-morning, I took myself back down to the pits to meet Australian Rally Champion and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing ambassador Harry Bates. Harry had been reigning ARC champion since 2017, until last year when a crash at Coffs Harbour put him and co-driver John McCarthy in hospital. He told me his ribs were still a bit tender but he was well enough to drive, and proud of his little brother Lewis for taking out the 2022 ARC trophy in his absence. Given the rib situation, and the fact he had just driven up from Canberra after flying in from Perth the previous day, Harry was in great spirits. He told me he was excited to meet lots of GAZOO RACING CLUB members, and was in his element with ‘an amazing lineup of GR Yaris vehicles all in the one place.’

Show and shine

We’re interrupted by an announcement over the PA system calling for participating club members to move their cars onto the drag strip for the Show and Shine, and Jarrod excused himself to go and help coordinate. As the vehicles in the carpark began to dissipate, I was impressed with how courteous the drivers were, carefully minding pedestrians and giving one another’s vehicles a wide berth.

Down on the drag strip, the Drift Cadet team waved them into an orderly lineup where they gathered to chat, browse, photograph and compliment one another’s vehicles – many of them cut and polished for the occasion. It was clear the enthusiasts were proud of their cars, and curious how others in the community were expressing their passion for motorsport.

After the Show and Shine, the Drift Cadet team began the giveaways. The overall winners were pumped to receive hot laps, and for those who missed out there were boxes of instant noodles from one of the event sponsors. As Cindy and Noriyaro tossed the colourful packets to members of the crowd, I imagined Oprah chanting ‘you get a mi-goreng, you get a mi-goreng!’

After the giveaways, Brett and I went to grab lunch from the tucker trailer. On the way, we spotted a Barbie-pink Toyota 86 GTS and I asked Linh to help me track down the owner. Her name was Rachel and I found her atop a grassy hill overlooking the drag strip – the perfect vantage point. ‘I’ve also got a GR Yaris as my daily,’ she told me, while she and her partner Danny posed for a quick portrait with the car.

Another vehicle that caught our eyes was a 1998 Toyota Cressida Mx73, a shining navy sedan with blue upholstery and a fully functioning crystal chandelier over the interior ceiling light. ‘I love classic Toyotas’, its owner Anthony told us. ‘I also have a Toyota Crown JZS171W… but when I saw this one on Marketplace, I had to have it.’ It’s not an impractical purchase either – two kiddie seats in the back mean the Cressida functions as a family car, too.

Hot laps in the 86

After lunch, the drift direction was switched to anti-clockwise, and the crowd had grown in size. Spectators formed a solid line along the guardrails, leaning forwards so as not to miss any of the action. There were families, couples, groups of young people and even more photographers (trackarazzi, I thought to myself). Rodney the DJ was spinning a remix of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘All Along The Watchtower’, and one of the cars stalled on the track and had to be towed.

As the action wound down and I went to thank the Drift Cadet team for an amazing day, Linh offered me the ultimate highlight – hot laps in their supercharged 86.

Kumar was my driver, a friendly Brisbanite (and GR Yaris owner) with over a decade of drifting experience. After triple-checking I was safely kitted out and buckled in, he put pedal to the metal and we were off, skidding in and out of corners – the steering wheel writhing like a wild beast with Kumar its only master.