Semi Truck Drift Gymkhana Might Not Be the First, but It Is Big Fun

10 years, 9 months ago - 5 July 2013, Autoblog
Semi Truck Drift Gymkhana Might Not Be the First, but It Is Big Fun
Everybody enjoys an entertaining drift gymkhana video, especially when it involves broken glass, exploding tires and crazy stunts.

And who can fault such vehicular theatrics when the driver is piloting a 10,000-pound big rig with 1,100 horsepower? On that level, this six-minutes of tire carnage is pure eye candy.

But don't think for even a moment that Michiel Becx, behind the wheel of a Becx-TDS Racing semi, is the first to pull off this destruction.

Professional stunt driver Mike Ryan corded Michelin tires in his version of Ken Block's Gymkhana more than two years ago with his own 1,950-horsepower Freightliner. And just last month, Ryan upped the ante and took us for a spin in his Freightliner Cascadia Pikes Peak Special as he tuned for a Pikes Peak International Hill Climb attack. That purpose-built truck boasted a whopping 2,400-horsepower supercharged and turbocharged engine tuned by Banks Engineering. Needless to say, it only took seconds to effortlessly disappear behind a cloud of vaporized rubber.

So, Mr. Ryan, when shall we expect your video rebuttal?