Archive for the ‘Drifting Pretty’ Category

Authentically Drifting Pretty

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

In 2003, I founded Drifting Pretty.  We had many moments in the media in our first few years, but lately we’ve been pretty private.  You don’t need to be trolling for magazine covers or features to go places in this world.  All you need to be is authentic.  I think that has been one of our secrets to success.  We’ve circled back to our main purpose over the past few years: to encourage and teach women about all things automotive-racing related.

Last weekend was a testament to this when ACT so graciously hosted the 2011 Drifting Pretty Field Trip.  The founder & President Dirk Starkensen, along with Daniel Starkensen & Chris Martin, opened up ACT’s doors on a Saturday afternoon and hosted a private clutch workshop & factory tour for Drifting Pretty.  They don’t get a magazine article or tv feature out of this, they did it simply because they believe in our purpose.  Now tell me if that isn’t authentic!?

We were honored to have this opportunity to come and learn at ACT.  We marketed this field trip to our students as a once-in-a-life time opportunity.  It was.  You can’t get this education from your traditional school.  From the bottom of my heart, again, thank you Dirk, Daniel and Chris.  Your support speaks volumes.

Here are some photos from the exciting field trip:

 

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Part II of Best Worst Day at the track

Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

As I said in my last entry, I have a lot to say about my return to the drift track! Time stops for no one. Benson is coming home late tonight, which gives me exactly 20 minutes to write this entry. Whew.

Background
Two weeks ago I finally made it back to the drift track. Its been shamefully, almost 4 years since my eyes have been hit with tires and dirt. Between getting my life together after having Elise, raising a teenager, working on my accounting career, running Drifting Pretty, buying a new house and keeping the family happy…where is there time for drifting? There isn’t. But as my old buddy Yoshie preached a long time ago, “if its that important to you, you will find a way to find money and make time for driving.”

The biggest hurdle was getting my car to the track. I can’t drive it and I have no truck and trailer. I am very lucky to have friends that will bend over backwards to tow the Drift Queen to the track. Thank you Chris.  He lives near the track and made 2 trips back and forth from Lancaster to Temple City.  THAT is friendship.


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When the ladies fix my car

Wednesday, May 4th, 2011

This past weekend, some of the Drifting Pretty ladies gathered in my garage to log more hours working on cars.  Just a few weeks ago the ladies were at Temple City Auto Repair installing new coilovers on Cathy’s S14 & learning how to use power tools!  This time, the guinea pig was my race car.  A brake system install & wheel re-facing were on the agenda.

Each of my students showed up right on time and ready to work.  With the increasing popularity of our twitter account, I tweeted the play-by-play of our tech day.  For you, here are the play-by-plays (taken with my iPhone):

10AM: we take an inventory of the Stop Tech big brake kit we’ll be installing, elect project managers and go over functions of each part

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Revival

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011

Sad sight in my garage

Dear Diary,
I write you today to take note that the car revival starts tomorrow.  The pink dusty drift machine in the garage needs some attention and it starts tomorrow.

Week 1 To Do List:

Step 1 – Order a new battery! – Do this tomorrow

Step 2 – Order the rest of the parts for the ebrake upgrade – Do this by Friday

Step 3 – Open up StopTech brakes and make sure you have all the parts. – Do this by Monday

The start of my official “to do” list.  I’m drifting again in May.  I can’t tell you how much I’ve missed drifting.  My heart hurts…that’s how much.  Finally the days return where I can think about what’s for dinner while I’m kicking the clutch in 3rd gear.

The DP gals are coming to help set up my car next month.  This is so exciting!!!

Stay tuned.  Drift Queen Revival!!!!

 

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Time Elapse

Tuesday, February 1st, 2011

There isn’t enough time…or maybe I’m just not using my time wisely!?

As I work my full-time accounting job, run Drifting Pretty, be a mommy to my gals, be a wife, enjoy my hobbies, help take care of both my grandmas who are having health issues and somehow find time to write blogs and brush my teeth…I realize time is so scarce and so valuable.  Its been so difficult choosing what to spend my time on.  Right now its everything!  I think something has to give.  It certainly won’t be easy.  Maybe I’ll just stop brushing my teeth or doing laundry?!

One of the loves in my life…Drifting Pretty kicked off its 8th year of operation this past weekend.  Its truly amazing.   Tons of gals rumbling in with their noisy cars,  running around my culdesac screaming, laughing, flipping photos while carrying textbooks on car racing…all joining together for a good cause: learning how to race.  Its a pretty magical sight!  Congratulations to our 2011 students.  Can’t wait to race with you this year!!!


She Drifts Again…
I finally have plans to take my 240 back to the drift track.  Oh how I have missed you pink drift car.  As I slated up the 2011 Drifting Pretty schedule, I committed to driving a drift event with the DP gals.  My deadline will be May 1st to get the car back to working condition.  There aren’t major problems with the car, just faulty intercooler pipes that I warped when I drove last and ran over my own front bumper.   I’m going to have Elton @ Raceline fab me some new piping.  The only challenge is to get my car there…she has no tags or intercooler pipes.  So she needs to be towed.

After that, I need to work on the brakes.  I’m hosting a Drifting Pretty tech day to finally put on some StopTech brakes and Z32 rear calipers.  That feeling of having brand new parts sitting around un-installed is depressing!  I hope I can do that job in a day.  I also got a beautiful new Veilside hood (thank you to Benson, I love you :), so I need to install the hoodpins for that.  And I need a new battery and a fluid change and I ::hope:: that is all I’ll need to be ready for the track.  That’s all?!  Wow that list sure got long.   Here we go!!!

Photog
All the time I usually spend blogging has been dedicated to my new hobby of photography.  Benson & my friends got together and got me an SLR for my birthday last October.  I got a Canon T2i.  Friends have been so generous to lend me all sorts of lenses.  6,000 shots in, I’m possibly getting the hang of it!  This weekend when it was about to rain, I took Elise out for a quick Birthday photo shoot in the backyard with a borrowed 50mm 1.4 lens.   There is this beautiful magnolia tree in my backyard just covered in flowers!!!  Talk about photo opp.

Elise turns 3 later this month.  There are a few more fantastic photos, but you’ll see those if you’re lucky enough to be on her guestlist haha.

Happy Girl Scout cookie month and Happy Chinese New Year this Saturday.

See you soon!

Posted in Car Entries, Drifting Pretty, Hsu Kids, I am a photog | 4 Comments »

Doko doko

Thursday, August 5th, 2010

As I say in Japanese “Doko Doko” oh where oh where does the time go?

Taking Kristy Karting
Finally I took my daughter Kristy karting at K1.  I threw her into the DP Ladies karting league last week.  Its tough love.  But hey, you have to learn sometime.

Kristy coming up right along side of me <3

Kristy finished the tiring 14 lap race.  She was SO exhausted!  I’m so proud of her.  I just hope she isn’t too mad at me for not warning her how tiring driving those karts can be!!  I’m so used to teaching women how to race that I forget Kristy is only 13 and has never driven a  car before.  This was the first time she’s controlled a vehicle with her own two feet & hands.  And not to mention, the first time she’s driven something on her own and went 40+mph.  That’s a lot to take in!  I think I’ll take a step back and buy her a kart to practice with.  After all, that’s how a lot of racers get their start…on karts!  Danica Patrick did!

At first glance, this thing looks silly, but I’ve been doing my research.  Its made by Razor and its specifically for drifting.  The good news is that its rated for up to 140 lbs…so I can drive it lol!  Amazon has it for $250ish.  Seeing that I live on a culdesac (no traffic and a perfect space for a jturn or fig 8 layout) and Kristy got on the principal’s honor roll this past semester…I should probably get it right?  Drifting 101 in the Hsu Fam culdesac!  Step 2 is getting her an S14.  I don’t know who is more lucky, me or Kristy.

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XPRIZE & more GirlDrifting in JP

Friday, May 28th, 2010

So I work at Idealab in their Finance division.  Idealab incubates start-up companies.  One of the accounts I handle is Aptera.  They’re a car manufacturer building an EV (electric vehicle) that will get 250mpg equivalent.  They have 4000 people waiting in line to buy one when it comes out.  Its a hot new auto manufacturer and I’m lucky enough to work on that account.  I’ve been helping their procurement division, which means, I’ve been buying all the stuff they need to make the cars and paying all the bills for them.  Being an accountant is boring sometimes, but when you have a fun account like this you learn so much about what goes into building a car from the ground up.

Aptera entered the Progressive Automotive XPRIZE Competition, which boasts a $10mil prize purse.  The object of the competition is to build the most fuel efficient vehicle that still is practical enough to mass produce and sell.

Check out Aptera’s interview with Progressive Insurance’s Flo below and check out their profile page on the XPRIZE Site.  Good luck to Aptera!

Gal Drifting
You wanted it and you got it. More girl drifting in Japan from NoriYaro.

Here is a pic of Sachiko’s car in Japan.  I feel some connection with her because my Japanese name is Sachiko and my car is pink too lol.  She wins though on interior…how does she pass tech inspection!?   My pink dildo shifter and 3 beanie babies is nothing compared to this insane drift car interior.  I’m inspired.  Go Team Sachiko!!!!

SATC2
I was one of the many hundreds of thousands of women who saw Sex & the City 2 last night (Thursday).  Perez is posting that it brought in $14.2mil Thursday alone!   It was great for a sequel.  The drama wasn’t as insane like the first one, but it was funnier and its awesome that the characters are evolving.  They’re like pokemon!

Enjoy your long BBQ weekend!

Posted in Aptera, Car Entries, Car Entries, Drifting Pretty | No Comments »

Japan Ladies League

Friday, May 21st, 2010

D1 Street League just released a ladies drift league called “Venus Challenge.”  Pretty cool. Thank Benson for the link.  Check out the pics!  Yay for Japan Drift Gals.  We should do that here.  Hmmmmmm….

Posted in Car Entries, Car Entries, Drifting Pretty | 2 Comments »