"Ebisu Circuit" in Nihonmatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, which is famous as a world-famous place for drifting. I've known about it for a long time and wanted to go there once. Even if you have no experience, there was an experience pack that allows you to drive by yourself with a full rental, so I made a reservation and participated. It was so much fun. I was able to drift more than I expected, and it was an experience that made me want to practice the next one immediately.
Drift School [Drift School] Drift Experience Pack
Public transport access for Ebisu Circuit. go by bus.
If you go to Ebisu Circuit by public transportation, take a bus from Nihonmatsu Station to Tohoku Safari Park. Tohoku Safari Park and Ebisu Circuit are attached. Usually, everyone arrives by private car, so it seems that it is quite rare for people to come to Ebisu Circuit by bus.
There is a 7-Eleven in front of Nihonmatsu Station. There are practically no commercial facilities. About one train per hour. Buses are scheduled to match the trains to some extent, but if the bus is delayed, there is a risk that you will not be able to make it in time.
The bus going to Ebisu Circuit does not stop at the bus stop in front of the station. There is the Nihonmatsu training center of JICA Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers. When I was dispatched to the Federated States of Micronesia, it was Komagane Training Center.
The bus heading to Ebisu Circuit is bound for Shiozawa. Head to the bus stop next to Nihonmatsu Shrine, which is a short walk from the station.
There are only four trains a day to Shiozawa. Get off at Tohoku Safari Park, which is attached to Ebisu Circuit.
http://tohoku-safaripark.co.jp/about
Three Saturdays and Sundays. even less.
Because the number is small, I checked in advance and booked a drift experience. As a result of thinking about the weekday bus schedule to go to the drift experience for 1 hour and come back,
- 11:23 Nihonmatsu bus to Tohoku Safari Park
- 12:00 arrival
- 12:30 Drift Experience Start
- 13:30 End of drift experience
- 14:31 Take bus from Tohoku Safari Park to Nihonmatsu Station
It became a schedule.
I recommend buying drinks and snacks in front of the station and bringing them with you. I drank Aneron around here so that I wouldn't get drunk on the drift.
Bus is cash only. Currency can be exchanged on the bus.
The Ebisu Circuit and Tohoku Safari Park signboards came into view.
Tohoku Safari Park is 500 yen one way from Nihonmatsu Station.
Arrive at Tohoku Safari Park. There are restrooms and vending machines. Vending machines are often closed during the winter season and you can't buy anything, so it's better not to buy too much. You can eat, drink and shop at the shops and restaurants in the Safari Park.
The bus I took. The passengers were locals and a few people heading to the Tohoku Safari Park. Make sure to check the timetable for the return bus. You can also check on the site.
About safari | Tohoku Safari Park - Various animals from all over the world gather!
Arrive at Ebisu Circuit (with Tohoku Safari Park)
After arriving, the Ebisu Circuit staff came to pick us up at the bus stop at the entrance of Tohoku Safari Park. There is Ebisu Circuit in the back of Tohoku Safari Park, and there are many slopes in the mountains, so it is difficult to walk. It was very helpful to have you pick me up.
I arrived early, so I waited for a while at the restaurant shop in Tohoku Safari Park. You can buy snacks, meals and drinks.
I laughed at the funny hotel ad.
Tohoku Safari Park and Ebisu Circuit share the same owner, and at first it was only Tohoku Safari Park. After that, the owner who loves cars created a circuit and expanded it to become the current Ebisu Circuit. It's amazing because it's a hobby and it's become a sacred place for drifting. It was surreal and interesting to hear the engine sound of the circuit even when I was looking at the animals.
Visitors to Ebisu Circuit can see some of the Tohoku Safari Park exhibits for free. We saw tigers, lions, camels, red pandas and more. You can see rare white lions at Tohoku Safari Park.
A gymkhana practice area next to the restaurant. This is the venue for today's drift experience practice.
Drift experience private lesson 1 hour pack reception
It's time, so the staff will pick you up and head to the Ebisu Circuit East Course office. Here you will receive reception, payment (cash only), explanation of precautions, etc.
You can experience drifting with Mark 2, the classic drift car.
The Toyota Mark 2 I'm driving today. It seems to be a standard drift. Wikipedia also wrote that it was popular as a base for drifting cars.
Cars that tend to drift are rear-wheel drive. Many of the cars currently being produced are four-wheel drive or electronically controlled cars, and it seems that older cars tend to drift more easily. Cars suitable for drifting are becoming vintage, and the price is soaring.
There is a smoking area. In March, the vending machines had not yet reopened.
Experience drifting for the first time
Take your luggage and drive to the gymkhana practice field. He is a very friendly staff who happily tells us stories about cars and motor sports. After listening to the explanation, first experience the instructor's drift driving in the passenger seat. very. I was scared because it was my first time drifting, but it was really fun. Even though I wasn't really speeding in low gear, the centrifugal force was applied to my body, so the speed and pressure I felt was strong and irresistible. The sound and smell of tire rubbing is amazing! cool! terrible!
You can experience drifting yourself!
Today is the first time to experience 1 hour, so I will focus on steady circle turning, which is the most basic of drift. The first goal is to be able to make a simple clockwise turn where the cone is easy to see from the driver's seat.
First of all, my first drift run. It slips for a moment but fails.
The Mark 2 I drove was modified for drifting, and the clutch was reinforced and heavy, and other structures such as the side brake were customized, but the basics are the same as a normal manual car. I got my driver's license manually, so I'm excited about the MT car for the first time in a while.
By the way, you can experience drifting without a license because you are driving on private property. A 16-year-old high school student with a father who loves drifting came to try it out, and apparently went round and round.
Turn the steering wheel to the right one turn, put it in low gear, step on the accelerator while stepping on the clutch, and stabilize the number of revolutions at about 6000. Release the clutch at once and step on the accelerator further. When the rear wheel starts to slide, release the steering wheel and slightly loosen the accelerator. Maintain the drift state by returning the steering wheel and stepping on the accelerator, and drift around the cone. That's the flow. It's easy to write, but hard to actually do!
After that, there were times when I was able to complete a lap after trying quite a few times, but it was difficult to stabilize. On the way, I had the instructor do the drifting again and practiced again.
It's a lot of fun to have an instructor who is happy with me when I do well.
For almost an hour, I was able to practice steady circle drifting. I was able to drive a lot more than I expected, and I thought I would never be able to do it.
My best drift was about 2 laps.
Tyres after running for 1 hour. The tires were brand new, but the tread had worn down considerably after just an hour of drifting.
Finally, a brief review and a tour of Ebisu Circuit
Once I returned to the East Course office, the drift experience ended. Have them drop you off at the Tohoku Safari Park bus stop.
On the way, I was guided to other Ebisu Circuit courses. Drift driving is done on every course, and you can see how amazing it is after actually experiencing it yourself.
I heard that there are many people who load their cars with tires, run for a day, change the tires, and then go home.
There was a customer doing a figure 8 drift at the drift practice area "Kurukuru Land". cool!
Price, reservation, content, lesson plan for drift experience
Ebisu Circuit has several drift experience packs. Since there are many plans at Ebisu Circuit, I will only introduce packs for complete beginners, empty-handed participants, and inexperienced people like myself.
This time I applied for the 1 hour drift experience pack. 30,000 yen per hour including rental car, tires, gasoline, lesson fee, etc. Due to scheduling reasons, reservations must be made 10 days prior to the reservation date. Fax is also OK, but even if you send a PDF by e-mail, the reservation will be handled. Once you have decided on a date, you can make a reservation for one hour between 10:00 and 15:00. In my case, it was access by bus, so it was helpful to be able to make a reservation according to the time of the bus.
Drift School [Drift School] Drift Experience Pack
There is also a half-day experience for 65,000 yen and a full-day experience for 130,000 yen. I think I can get the hang of it with a little more practice, and I'm disappointed that I wasn't able to do a steady circular drift, so next time I'd like to participate in the half-day course.
There are various motorcycles and other packs at Ebisu Circuit, so please refer to the site. If you are going to participate in your own car, there is also a plan that allows you to participate with only the lesson fee or course fee.
Even if you have no experience, you can do a little drifting in an hour!
It's like a dream to be able to drive and drift with a full rental. It was so much fun! The video conveys more fun, so come on.
