Crail Raceway welcomes all things Japanese this Sunday (3rd April 2005), as ‘Banzai’ car magazine returns to Scotland in a bid to photograph some of the finest ‘Rice Rockets’ that Scotland has to offer.
As the sun rises over the airfield on Sunday morning, hundreds of Japanese motors are expected to turn up in an effort to make it into the magazine, which makes its first visit north of the border for 2005.
‘Banzai’ deals exclusively with Japanese imported cars, many of which are modified by their UK owners. Amongst those appearing will be a selection of Nissan Skylines, which can be tweaked to increase the break horse power from less than 300 to a staggering 1000 bhp. These Samurai superstars can pull in times of a staggering 9 seconds on the track - a real improvement from the average 13 seconds on the 1/4-mile.
The highly tuned Toyotas, Hondas, Nissans, Mitsubishis and Mazda's will not only flex their muscles on Scotland's 1/4 mile, but will also compete on the special drift track, consisting of a sprint like format - with all drivers required to complete a circuit followed by a figure of eight round the extended drifting oval.
With the growing success of the drifting scene, many participants are now modifying the popular rear wheel drive car suspension geometry to obtain a ‘Banzai black belt’ in the art of sliding. With harder compound tyres and increased pressure, the car can slide with more ease than standard car set-ups.
Organiser William Robertson is confident that this Sunday’s ‘Show and Shine’ competition will be one of the day’s highlights. “Japanese tuning companies not only produce some of the best aftermarket parts for engines, but also create some of the world’s most striking body kits. But these cars don’t just look the part, with carbon fibre parts for lightweight doors, bonnets and wings, they shed pounds quicker than going to weight watchers, enabling them to out perform almost everything else on the strip.
“For those without a Rice Rocket, don’t worry, as the show will be open to all makes and models. In fact, we will see a variety of vehicles go head to head, such as the 10 second Ford Escort, which regularly attends Crail Thrashes and could be a close contender for the ‘Yokozuna master’ of the 2005 ¼ mile Banzai Thrash.”
Car owners entered into the competition will judge the ‘Show and Shine’. The winners will receive their own feature in Banzai magazine.
The only requirement to take part at Crail is a valid UK driving licence, £7 for admission and a £15 signing-on fee, which entitles participants to unlimited runs. At the end of the day personal performance print-outs showing reaction times to the start lights, 60', 1/4 mile times, and top speed will be given out – personal times can also be easily accessed through crailraceway.co.uk
Gates open 9:30am, the strip at 10am. The drag strip will remain open till 4.30pm. Adults £7:00, children £3:00
