I posted this in the appearance thread but I thought I'd make it its own special topic too... I think it's fanfreakingtastic so I'm making sure everyone knows about it lol.

The tickets are general admission and you can just print them out at home, which I did and now I'm hoping I don't lose them...

I'm looking forward to who else gets added to this... Though I'm really looking forward to which driver thinks he's the hottest and goes out there and wrecks the car first lol.

It's the Thursday before the Fontana race and Irwindale is about 20-30 minutes depending on traffic and your driving skills from the track.




TICKETS ARE ON SALE FOR AUGUST 31 MOPAR NASCAR D1 ALL-STAR DRIFTING DUEL AT IRWINDALE SPEEDWAY


IRWINDALE, Calif. (August 1, 2006) – Irwindale Speedway officials announced today that tickets are available for purchase for the Thursday, August 31 Mopar NASCAR D1 All-Star Drifting Duel Presented by ShiftIntoGear. The event is the first ever competition pitting drivers from two of the most popular motorsports disciplines, NASCAR and Drifting, in a head-to-head battle.

Kasey Kahne will lead the NASCAR Nextel Cup driver contingent that includes several of his NASCAR friends including Greg Biffle, Bill Elliott, Robby Gordon and Casey Mears.

They will take on the top drifters from Japan and the United States including former D1 Grand Prix Drifting champion Samuel Hubinette, Tanner Foust, Vaughn Gitten, Yasuyuki Kazama, Rhys Millen and Ken Nomura. Additional NASCAR and D1 drivers who intend to participate will be announced in the near future.

The head-to-head competition will take place on courses set up on Irwindale Speedway’s one-half mile and one-third mile oval tracks and on the infield area. in full view of the Speedway’s main grandstand. The Speedway has hosted several drifting events in recent years, is a favorite venue for drifting competitors and fans and has been coined by drifting aficionados as the ‘House of Drift’.

Gates will open at 4 p.m. with an on track driver autograph session at 7 p.m. Competition is scheduled to begin at 7:45 p.m.

Tickets are $20.00 and children 5 years of age and under are admitted for free. They can be purchased at Irwindale Speedway’s ticket office, by calling (626) 358-1100 and online at www.irwindalespeedway.com. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Kasey Kahne Foundation, which donates funds to charitable organizations that care for chronically ill children and their families.

Irwindale Speedway is located on 500 Speedway Drive off of Live Oak Ave. and the I-605 freeway between the 10 and 210 freeways in Irwindale, California.

I think I remember Kasey saying something about Bill at the picnic......does anyone else remember who all he said at the picnic?

Trust me if I won the lottery that would be something I'd so love to fly out to see.....I could see Kasey having way to much fun, but he says he hasn't practiced and doesn't plan too

Sweet! wish i could go, but since I can't take lots of pics!

really smart Kasey.

But if you look at it, its kinda like sprint cars on dirt. They sorta slide through the turns

I live like 2 & 1/2 hours away from there but I have a school event and work!!! It suck so much cause it's not every day these drivers come for a specila even close to me!

Whoever goes take lots of pics and tell us how it goes!!

There's a good chance me and my best friend are going and my dad just got a kick ass digi camera! So if we do go, I'll be sure to post pics...

I wish I could...road trip anyone? Nicole, the ghetto 'stang? Will it make it? lol

Have fun to whomever goes! Can't wait to hear about it :) .

I will take like a bazillion pictures for everyone! I'm the queen of taking an insane amount of pictures... My only problem is editing them, I still have 400 to edit from Infineon, oops... I'm excited to see who else is going to get added!

LOL... we'll I know she can make it to Eugene... Don't know how much she'll enjoy the mountian she'd have to climb over to get to cali though... let's try it :lmao

Do we know what kind of Dodge car Kasey will be driving?

LMAO! I say its a risk worth taking! LMAO!


But seriously, have fun everyone! I wonder how well he's going to do, since he said at the picnic that he hasn't even practiced yet...oh boy...LMAO

not real sure...........

but for some reason I think I remember the sponsor being Mopar on the car

Neat!!

I was at Irwindale this past weekend for the Nascar Southwest tour . They also mentioned that Matt kenseth and Dale jr would be at this event. Wish i could make it down to see the drifting. I guess i'll just have to settle with kasy and tony ripping it up on the dirt at Skagit speedway the night before this event.

I hope they broadcast this. I'd love to see how this all pans out.

This one is my favorite driver for the event. Add "THE ICEMAN TEXAS TERRY LABONTE" to the list of drivers . Now i wish i could really make this event. I been a fan club member of Terry's for many many years.

The cars they will be driving are identically prepared Dodge Charger drift cars:





Does anyone know if it will be on TV??

I want that car. :thud

OMG yeah me too!

runs out to buy another lottery ticket so I can win and afford to come........

sigh, to everyone that is going......have a blast!

That car is awesome! This is going to be interesting for sure... I can't believe it's less than a week, time is flying... I have no idea if it is going to be televised, but I promise to take video, just in case!

girl, you so know we are all counting on you.........

the days before we are gonna be going

got plenty of batteries, extra cameras in case one messes up, etc, etc LOL

Oh girl, I'm bring two cameras, multiple packs of batteries, and my best friend will have my back just in case, lol. Gotta be prepared, right? I was a girl scout after all..

We're heading down south that morning, get in some last minute shopping before the race... Before I know it, it will be Thursday morning... Is anyone else going?

yay you prepare for things like me!

I'm glad to know I'm not the only crazy one, LOL

have so dang much fun!

I was going to go - but my trip to Cali got postponed. Damnit!

Aww, I'm sorry to hear that....

I'm leaving in like, nine hours and I'm barely packing, oops... Monday evening I shall return with HOPEFULLY some super fantabulous things for everyone!

I hope the others who are going have a great time :)

lol, girl do you have a cell you can call one of us and let us know some details.......its gonna kill us to wait till Monday

But seriously have an absolute blast, take tons of pictures and cheer our boy on!

Ditto that lol Or you'll just have to speed all the way home after the Cup race

Have an awesome time!!

have a ton of fun. Take a lot of awesome pictures

I was planning on going until I got a cold. :(

anyone heard anything?

I haven't but the viewer's guide on NASCAR.com says the highlights will be one of the features on the pre-race show Sunday. (The pre-race is an HOUR-way too long!)

Here's an article with a little bit of what happened (no pics, though):
http://www.sgvtribune.com/sports/ci_4270818
NASCAR stars feel the drift
By Keith Lair Staff Writer

IRWINDALE - NASCAR's Robbie Gordon put Rhys Millen into the wall :rolleyes: NASCAR drivers drifted in tandem and the D1 Grand Prix pros drifted in unison, showing off their throttle-control skills.

On Thursday night at the charity Mopar All-Star Drift vs. Grip, the 7,500 at Irwindale Speedway stood the entire 2 hours, cheering on eight NASCAR drivers and eight drifting drivers. The 16 drifted both the oval and D1 courses. Gordon, Kasey Kahne and Busch driver Chris Cook drifted the entire D1 course and Scott Wimmer continually spun the Nissan he was driving.

The event was sponsored by Kahne's charity foundation, raising $30,000 for Ronald McDonald Houses in Southern California.

"It was a blast," Kahne said. "I know the NASCAR guys had a blast, and I think the D1 guys did, too. I was getting a little better out there, but when you watch the D1 guys, you could tell it wasn't close."

NASCAR's Matt Kenseth, Bill Elliott, Casey Mears and Greg Biffle also took part.

The NASCAR drivers did three solo passes, to huge cheers from the mostly NASCAR-oriented crowd.

"NASCAR guys practically live in their car," Cook said. "They'll quickly adapt."
____________________________________________
Here's a pre-race article with Kasey quotes:
http://sgvtribune.com/sports/ci_4264662
NASCAR drifts its way into Irwindale
Kenseth to compete in X Games-style event
By Keith Lair Staff Writer

NASCAR fans finally can get the drift.

For the first time, America's favorite motorsport is being melded with drifting, an up-and-coming X Games-style motorsport, in tonight's Mopar All-Star Drift vs. Grip at Irwindale Speedway. The event is being hosted by Nextel Cup driver Kasey Kahne with all proceeds benefiting the Ronald McDonald House through the Kasey Kahne Foundation.

Seven Cup regulars - including 2003 champion Matt Kenseth, who already has qualified for this year's Chase for the Championship and 1988 champion Bill Elliott - and one part-time Busch driver will take on nine drifting regulars from Japan's D1 Grand Prix series and America's Formula D series.

"From my perspective, we were thinking of things that we could do that have been different to get fans, NASCAR fans, drifting fans, just people involved and really have run with it, and also raise money for kids at the same time," Kahne said. "Everybody was excited about it and wants to do it."

The object of drifting is to do a controlled slide of the car at top speed through a prescribed course. After qu alifying, competitors compete in tandem drifts, in which drivers to out-drift their competitor without hitting each other. Each driver gets to lead once and the winner is determined by three judges.

In addition to Kahne, Kenseth and Elliott, also scheduled to compete on the NASCAR side are Greg Biffle, Robby Gordon, Casey Mears, Scott Wimmer and Busch irregular Chris Cook, who was instrumental through Shift Into Gear in getting the two groups together. Most will be racing at California Spee dway this weekend With two Cup races remaining, Kahne and Biffle are 11th and 12th, respectively, just out of the Chase.

For the D1 team, from Japan will be Ken Nomura, Tatsuya Sakuma, Takahiru Ueno and Hideo Hiraoka. From the U.S. will be Rhys Millen, Samuel Hubinette, Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Tanner Foust. Nomura is known for his monkey jokes and finished sixth in the D1GP last year.

Sakuma was eighth in D1 last year. Millen won last year's Formula D title and Hubinette won the '04 crown. Gittin was the first American-based driver to win an event against the top Japanese drivers, an all-star event at Irwindale in 2005.

Drivers will drift the oval. NASCAR drivers will go solo on the regular D1 drift course, which includes using Turns 3 and 4 of the half-mile banked oval and a hairpin turn created on the track's Turns 1 and 2 on the third-mile oval.

The D1 drivers then will face the NASCAR drivers on the D1 course.

"I think bri nging this together is brilliant,"

Formula D's Millen said. "Drifting and D1 fans will love it. NASCAR fans will love it. I think we'll have a lot of fun and the exposure will be good."

Kahne said Cook has given him a few lessons. Wimmer said he won't try it until he arrives at the speedway today.

"From what I understand, it's throttle control," Wimmer said. "We definitely do drifting in NASCAR a lot. in turns. It's going to be fun, but I think the (NASCAR) drivers de finitely have a chance. I think it just depends on luck. There is a lot of luck in our sport."

Kahne is a bit more gracious.

"I don't expect to go in there and beat them just like I don't think they'd expect to come in and beat us at a NASCAR race," he said. "They're the best at what they do, and it should be fun to just go out there and really fly around and have fun with those guys.

"All I know is I've watched it on TV; I have some DVDs they sent me, and I went out and practiced a little bit. It's just cool. I mean, it's about speed, it's about style, and I guess it's kind of about screwing the person up behind you. When you are racing somebody, it's just doing different things with your car to make them mess up and lose some of their style. It should be pretty fun sliding around for a couple of hours with all the NASCAR guys and also the D1 guys."

Thanks for the articles.

I agree that the hour pre race show is too long, I just want the race.
But if they show lots and lots of hightlights from the D1 event, then it's ok. lol

ooo! Sounds like it was fun and I will have to definitely tape all the pre-race stuff as well as the race Sunday since I got forced to work Sunday. With the pre-race being an hour long, that also gives me a chance at getting off work and making it home before the race is over so I might actually get to catch the last couple of laps.

sweet that they are going to show some during the prerace.........but I'm like all of you BLAH to an hour long prerace, we just want to go racing. Especially after waiting ALL day Sunday

and geez don't even get me started on the fact that the Busch race starts at my normal bedtime practically

I'd much rather have to get up an hour earlier to see a race than have to stay up 3 hours late to watch it

That's cool that they're showing it during the pre-race!

At least we have something interesting to watch, instead of the shit talking out of their asses.

I just realized that the race is on NBC so I can actually get to watch the prerace show. YEAH! I'm so happy

On another board, someone posted a link to her (I guess it's a her, not sure) site with video of Kenseth and Biffle drifting and a bunch of pics of the cars.
http://www.driftlive.com/

There are a zillion pics of the cars in the gallery but no captions, so I clicked on a few of the thumbnails but couldn't see which car was Kasey's. But the last two thumbnails on page 4 are very cute pictures of Kasey posing with the drifting guys.

hehe, he looks so small in those pics..........

but yay for some pictures!

Why shouldn't they start it then? They should start it at a time that makes sense for the drivers and teams in the time zone that they're in, as well as for the fans at the actual race.