What were the challenges?
Well, since the 2004 season was practically the first full season of events, it was really hard to get out to all the events because it was just very tight financially, and I was getting used to the fact that I came from driving a Corolla to a whole new setup in the Autolink S13. I also thought it was fun trying to keep up with all the new up-and-coming drivers that came out during the 2004 season.
What is the ultimate goal for 2005?
The Ultimate goal for the 2005 season ... hmmmm ... just get out there do the best we can and see what comes out of it.
I really want to stay competitive and if I'm not on top it's okay, just as long as I am still able to know I did the best I can. I want to compete and go against the top U.S. and Japanese drivers.
Turbo: What is your overall impression of the evolution of the sport at this point in time?
It's great to know that drifting is a spectator's sport and I hope that as a spectator people won't think it's just a trend that will fade, but understand that even though it is a great show to watch it is still a competition for us drivers.
I love the fact that there are more and more events and drivers coming out pretty often and that I can get on the racetrack practically every weekend this year. I just hope that all the drivers and promoters can come together and put on good events so that we can all create a better future for drifting in the long run.
You used the World Drifting Championship (WDC) demo day to test some tires. Tell us what you tested, how and what you learned from the day on the track?
I was testing wider-sized tires to see if it would help me improve my driving and driving style. Being a Yokohama-sponsored driver gave me the opportunity to grab a set of 275/35-18s over my normal 265/35-18s and see how the day went.
It really helped to improve the grip and traction of the car and gave me more control throughout the drift, which also helped to gain more speed. The wider-sized tires gave me a better feel of how the car takes a set.
All in all it was a good day on the track, and the fact that I had the opportunity to practice with Team Orange was also an added bonus. I got to do ride-alongs with Tanaka and do a few tandems with Kumakubo. Both of them gave me a better perspective of their driving abilities that day and I really look forward to competing with them this year.
Drifter
Andrew Yen, Team JIC
Date Of Birth
March, 1980
Chinese Zodiac
Year of the Monkey
Hometown
Taipei, Taiwan
Day Job: self employed
Daily Driver
2004 Acura RSX Type-S - how much more stock can it be ... It even has the safety tags on the glove box and windows still.
Drift Car
1991 Nissan 240SX
Team
JIC Magic USA Drift Team, but have always kept myself a part of SWING BATTLE & ROUTE 74.
Team Manager
Sharon Luv Dominguez
Series to be Contested in 2005
We will definitely be competing at all the Formula D and D1 events. Along with those, we would love to be able to go to the WDC, drift showoffs and other options left open to us. If you really look into it we are going to have a tight schedule, especially since we are trying to do the Time Attacks and hit up more road-racing events this year.