After the 4 rounds of competition we were leading the competition in points! So it was a battle between myself and Bryce Chapman in the final for first place. But unfortunately a spin on the 2nd last corner of the last run cost us the win.

So with 2nd place over all for the day its another good result for the Drift 4 Christ team ! Congrats to Bryce on winning the day! Thanks again to Maxxis Tyres, RPM performance, Northside Embroidery! Also thanks to Reuben for organizing a tow car for the weekend! and also thanks to everyone else who supported us in getting us to the event! couldn’t have done it without your help!

When he finally arrived at my house we realized  his car didn’t have the right trailer plug or anywhere to attach the safety chain. So after welding a D-shackle to the bottom of his tow bar and stopping in to buy a trailer plug adaptor and fueling up both cars with fuel, we finally made it to Archerfield about 20 minutes late, but in just enough time to drive the Silvia strait from the trailer onto the track for practise!

Just like last weekend the car still had cooling issues and over heated in less then 1 lap of the track! So with the decision to remove the bonnet and with Pete on the side of the track with 4 water bottles ready to spray down the engine, we managed to keep it cool enough to get it through the event! We ended up coming to the conclusion that all the coolant leaking out from the bottom of the water pump might have been our problem!

So despite over heating problems and a few mistakes under the pressure from Josh Boettcher and Rob Whyte in the top 4 battles, we ended up finishing the day in 4th place! Another good result following the 5th place in the Stadium Drift Round the week before! Congrats to Rob Whyte for the Series Win! and Big Thanks to Pete from PH-Neutral for the tow to the event, Maxxis Tyres, RPM Performance, and  Northside Embroidery for your support so far this year!  Check out the Stadium Drift and Archerfield Highlight Video for all the action of these two events!

Eugene Arendsen, Rob Whyte, Josh Boettcher, Leighton Smith

A week earlier, we had pretty much decided that Drift 4 Christ wouldn’t be able to compete in the 2011 Pro Tour. The car needed a new computer, re-wiring, and a tune. We didn’t have a tow car. we didn’t have the cash to enter the event. And didn’t have time in the week to organise any of it!

About 6 months earlier at the 2010 PowerCruise #25, our old faithful SR20 which had been faultless for the past 4 years, decided to blow a piston and a valve. So what was supposed to be a 2 week rebuild with a replacement engine, turned into a 6 month nightmare trying to organize a new engine and rebuilding the car, as well as making the move from Port Macquarie in NSW, to Brisbane QLD!

So feeling discouraged and down about it all, and feeling that God was now closing the doors on Drift 4 Christ, I decided that I needed to re-focus on what God was wanting for my life. The Bible has spoken to me and given me direction many times before, so I decided thats where I needed to go. I also watched every DVD I had of Herb Larsen over a period of a week looking for some kind of inspiration, as it was listening to Herb that inspired me to start Drift 4 Christ 3 and a half years ago.

So it was a week until the Pro Tour. I had come to the realization that my Drifting had become totally focused on trying to win events, trying to make a name for my self, and spending large amounts of time chasing sponsorship. What had happened to the ‘ministry’ side of Drift 4 Christ? Sure, we had spoken to thousands of kids at schools and youth events, but where was the one on one sharing with people, and going out in faith praying and relying on God that he would get us to each event, like He did all through 2009 ?

So Basically I decided that I didn’t need a drift car to tell people about God. So putting the worries and stress of the drift car aside, I through together a little dvd of my drifting and testimony videos as well as some Herb Larsen dvds, and decided that if this is what God wants then he would give me the opportunity to give them to my mates at work or who ever else I meet. So after a couple of days I finally got the courage to give the dvds to a couple of the guys at work as I was leaving early that day. They looked a bit funny about getting a dvd about God and stuff, but they took it anyway to see the drift videos. So from there I rode my push bike down the road to RMP performance where my car was getting fixed up. When I got there I noticed the car was sitting up on the dyno and I started to get a bit excited! The Silvia was fixed and ready to be picked up the next day, and it turned out to be only the cam timing that was out, so I didnt need to buy a new computer or get it re-wired saving me heaps of dollars!

It was literally 15 minutes from finally building up the courage to give those dvds, to when I found out that Drift 4 Christ was going to be back in action for 2011 ! Also later that day I received  an email which sorted out all my financial problems in regards to getting the Pro Tour entry paid in time!

So is this just a nice coincidence or luck ?  Or is there a higher power looking out for those that are seeking to serve Him first ? I believe God was just waiting for me to get my focus back on Him!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose!” (Romans 8:28)

When Christ becomes a marketing tool for Drift, things don’t happen. But when Drift becomes a marketing tool for Christ, everything just works out perfectly !!

Give God a go and see if He works for you also!

Leighton.

Thanks again to all the sponsors that get us to the track: Avondale College, Maxxis Tyres, Rota Wheels, Jax Quickfit Tyres Port Macquarie, and Autobarn Port Macquarie.