Chris Forsberg is a US drifting pioneer from Doylestown, PA. He has a 20 year long career as a professional driver in Formula D, and is well-known as a Nissan Z drifting icon.

His love for drifting started in the early 2000s with his Mazda FC RX-7 after meeting Tony Angelo. The two would eventually run DGTA, an organization hosting events that would provide a legal alternative to street drifting. Chris towed his car all the way to Los Angeles for the D1 Grand Prix driver search in 2003, and eventually made the decision to buy a brand new Nissan Z as his new drift car.

He built the right relationships in LA and worked for Signal Auto as a mechanic and became a sponsored driver, even driving the Signal Twins cars at local drift day events.

In this podcast episode, Chris recalls old stories, talks about his journey as a professional drifter, his love of building cars, reflecting on how much drifting has changed in the last 20 years, the lessons he's learned as a 20 year old drifting veteran and what he sees in his future.

This episode and all episodes of Season 2 are brought to you by Falken, a supporter of drifting since 2003 and a major reason drifting is where it is today. Check out their ultra-high-performance (UHP) Azenis RT660, Azenis RT615K+ and their UHP Azenis FK460 at https://www.falkentire.com.

#drifting #driftingpodcast #driftinghistory #chrisforsberg #nissanz #350z #nissan350z #z33 #z34 #driftingpioneer #nissan #chrisforsbergracing

05:51 Growing up in Doylestown, PA

07:45 Meeting Tony Angelo

09:00 Buying his FC Mazda RX-7

13:10 Discovering drifting

19:42 DGTA and meeting Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Ryan Tuerck

23:23 Cross-country trip to Irwindale, CA to try out for D1 Driver Search

27:24 Decision to buy a brand new Nissan 350z

30:52 Establishing a relationship with Signal Auto

36:57 Driving the Signal Twins 180sx and what he learned from it

43:57 Working with Motorex and his journey into Formula D

51:30 Drift Alliance Bad as Hell DVD

52:50 Driving the Falken S15 Silvia

1:01:50 Swapping a V8 into his Z33

1:09:00 Problems with the current state of car builds in Formula Drift

1:18:23 Thoughts on introducing a tire size limit to improve pro drifting

1:26:09 What's next for Chris Forsberg Racing

1:34:00 Losing a chase run because of tire smoke

1:36:05 Does age affect your ability to compete as a pro drifter?

1:37:17 Making a living as a professional drifter

1:39:04 Japan vs. USA - who is better at drifting today?

1:44:09 What skills are you working on as a driver?

1:48:17 Benson Hsu Meets Chris Forsberg at D1 Driver Search in 2003

1:53:08 Car setup advice for new drifters

1:58:10 What do you think your legacy is with drifting?

2:00:47 Appreciating and fostering your business relationships, and investing in yourself

2:05:30 Closing and thank yous