The list of watershed events in this scene is short but sweet-the first import drag race; the first Hot Import Nights; the first US D1; and most importantly, the eruption of Nads' first moob (the left one in case you were wondering). Will the inaugural Gymkhana USA event join this hallowed list or will it be cast asunder in the annals of history much like the dropping of Nads' right tittie? In other words, will gymkhana be the next big thing, or just the next thing?
For those of you without the proclivity for obscure YouTubage, gymkhana is essentially autocross on steroids. At first glance, a gymkhana and an autocross course may look identical, with cones strewn about a parking lot or other such paved area. However, the gymkhana course kicks things up a notch with even tighter turns sometimes requiring competitors to complete figure eights, slide into parking boxes, or reverse through specially marked gates. Because of such automotive acrobatics, gymkhana is also known as car rodeo, but we think a more appropriate comparison would be to ballet or figure skating given how the cars rotate on their axis and glide gracefully from forward to backward, threading nimbly through the cones. But then figure skating is not the manliest pursuit (Chazz Michael Michaels not withstanding) and at least rodeo riders don't have to wear tights. Whatever your favored comparison, gymkhana is much more technical than your average autocross.
Southern California's El Toro field-deep in the heart of Real Housewives country-was the site of this kickoff event. The Christmas tree start and a pair of mirrored courses gave everything a ProSolo feel, albeit without the ProSolo pressure as the entire day had a relaxed grassroots vibe to it. There was also a wide variety of cars like an old school air-cooled bug, a C5 Corvette Z06 and just about everything in between. A large contingent of drifters came out, with 240s and Hachi's being the most prevalent, as well as a surprising amount of subcompact rides with more than a few Fits and even a Yaris hatch dancing delicately between the cones.
The Super Street Project fleet...
The Super Street Project fleet looked good, too bad the drivers sucked so hard.
Because a great gymkhanaist (gymkhanaer?) should be able to make their car pirouette around the pylons, those of the drifting ilk are seemingly genetically engineered for such antics. D1 great Toshiki Yoshioka as well as Dai Yoshihara, Stephane Verdier and Wes Hamachi all oversteered their way around the gymkhana course. Alex Pfeiffer went minimalist with his turbo 4AG-powered Lotus Super Seven and Chris Forsberg may not have been fastest in his Titan V-8-infused Z33, but he looked perfect enough as every one of his passes was punctuated with plenty of opposite lock and even more tire smoke. Rally rockstar and DC Shoes co-founder Ken Block even took time from his globetrotting schedule to whip the Crawford Performance STI Time Attacker through the gymkhana cone field. Ken's 54.18 was one of the fastest of the day. Many of the pros dipped beneath the 55-second mark and Verdier's 50.98 was nothing short of amazing. But what of the Super Street bunch? Nads cone-crushed Project STI to a pathetic 58.78 and Rikdaddy's NT (for no time) was only because our SRT4's Sprinter van-like turning radius wouldn't allow him even one clean lap. Well, at least we have our health... Okay, Ricky has his health, Nads is lucky he can still go to the bathroom unassisted.
Pundits may argue that gymkhana is no more than a "style" of autocross doomed to the same fringe status. We say, who cares if this motorsport never rivals that of drifting and Time Attack, it's exciting to watch and requires little effort to participate. Besides, if gymkhana doesn't go big it just means more sessions for us.