I grew up on the Gold Coast and there’s a really big car scene up there. Everyone owned a car because there wasn’t a lot of public transport – you’d drive to see your friends, you’d drive to see the beautiful surroundings. You fit into your circles by what sort of car you have, and how you modify it and what your friends are doing with their cars.

Dean NewcombAdelaide Symphony Orchestra Principal Clarinet Dean Newcomb with his drift car. Photo supplied

I always liked driving things fast, even my toy cars, you know, just racing around. But with drifting it’s not so much racing, it’s more of a style thing. You don’t compete early on, you just learn how to do it to be good at it, so that you can do it without hurting yourself. I joined a car club early on which was focused on drifting, and they hired the track out to do practice days. I wasn’t competitive, I wasn’t racing or anything, it was just more throwing the car around and having fun and trying to control it while it slides.

Drifting is a judged sport. There are often...