Behind The Scenes With Gardella Racing - Formula Drift

A set of rear tires after only two passes at Evergreen Speedway. Because Evergreen Speedway is a large oval track (host for many types of racing, including NASCAR events) the back bank used as the first section in the configuration run in the Formula DRIFT series is situated at a very extreme angle. Inertia causes one corner of the car to be pressed against the pavement much harder than the opposite side, which in turn leads to drivers chewing through tires quite rapidly on the outside while the inner tire retains most of its tread. Despite the tire-shredding character of the track, Evergreen seems to be a favorite among many drivers because of its technical difficulty and beautiful scenery.

Gary Gardella is a family man. He's quick to speak with fans and spectators, and with no inflated ego to be found, Gary likes to reminisce about his humble beginnings. Starting off his racing career with FF Honda drag cars, Gardella has come a long way and achieved a lot in his young age. When asked about what the future holds for Gardella Racing, Gary smiles wide and says, "You'll see."

By looking to venture out further into other types of racing (he even mentioned rallycross at one point) and by breeding young drivers like Steve Angerman, Gary certainly knows what he's doing. If you've ever noticed how nice and shiny Gardella cars always look, that's because Gary also owns one of the best and most well known body shops on the East Coast.

Ryan Tuerck is a hands-on kind of guy. Not only does he pilot the Solstice, you can often find him doing work himself. Having started his racing career with motocross in his high school years, Tuerck has drifted professionally in Formula DRIFT since 2005.

Ryan told me about how he got started with drifting: "I used to own a Mustang, and I was driving it around like a maniac - I was 'drifting' in parking lots without even knowing what drifting was," he says with a laugh. "One day a couple of my friends showed me some Initial D videos on YouTube, and from there it was all over. I sold the Mustang, bought a 240SX and the rest is history!"

Practice makes perfect. After an unfortunate and untimely collision on the very first run on the first day of practice, Ryan had a long day ahead of him during qualifying. When asked how he felt about the accident, which essentially took away his entire practice day, Ryan isn't phased. "You can't get mad or take it personally when someone wrecks you," Tuerck says. "It's the nature of drifting." And right he is.

When the sport involves careening around corners at high speeds trying to get as sideways as possible, you can't start losing sleep when things go wrong. The offender made a peace offering in the form of Miller Light (and a somber apology), and thankfully, the Gardella pit crew was able to fix the Solstice to almost new condition by day's end, making the best of a less-than-ideal start to the weekend.

Ryan qualified in third place after a long day of getting used to the course. Not bad at all considering he had far less time to practice than most of his competitors. Qualifying high is important for several reasons. By qualifying in a higher standing, drivers get scheduled to run later in the day for the elimination rounds. This is advantageous for teams because they get to observe other drivers' behavior and plan strategies accordingly.

Also, the point system by which Formula DRIFT is judged awards extra points for top qualifying drivers. Qualifying in third place earned Tuerck 10 series points, which may not seem like much, but you need to consider the big picture. The final standings of the 2009 season were very close; Tuerck came out with a total of 521 points for second place and Chris Forsberg took first with 527, a mere 6-point gap.