Texas Drift Academy FAQs

Where are you located?

Our primary track is Alamo City Motorplex (map), 20 min north of San Antonio and 1 hour from downtown Austin. Occasionally we also host classes at MSR Houston (map).  The courses and dates will show you where we’ll be when.

How do I buy and/or redeem gift cards?

Go to any course. From the Date and Time drop down menu select “Use for Gift Card”. Then below the drop down menus click the “Gift This Product” button. You’ll be able to put in your name, the recipient’s name and email, and date of arrival. On that date they will receive an email with a Gift Card code. When the recipient is ready to book their track date they can “buy” and book that course date from our site and use the code to pay for it in the cart. We usually put dates up going out 2-3 months).

Are the “Advanced” and “Pro” courses only for experienced drivers?

Absolutely not! All experience levels welcome! One of the unique benefits at Texas Drift Academy is you start wherever you are, and can progress as fast as you learn. The point of Advanced and Pro courses is to expand your circle of competence with new techniques, skills and practice. With Drift Advanced and Pro Courses you just get more seat time for your money and enough time to learn advanced- and pro-level skills.

What is the car I’ll drive?

You will drive a modified Nissan 350z with 300 rear wheel horsepower that is a competition-ready drift car. Our instructors regularly compete and podium with them in local drift events. You can see all the modifications in the cars section of this website.

How can I prepare for my first-course day?

There are many YouTube videos on learning to drift for the first time, including a “Learning to Drift” class by our own pro, Josh Robinson. For new students, if you can close your eyes and visualize “clutch, turn, e-brake”, that may help you prepare for the first lesson. Once we get this down we’ll move on to throttle control, letting go of the wheel, track vision, and transitions. And then, depending on your course, you’ll learn clutch kicks, feints, left foot braking, stunts and more! We have several other videos you can watch to prepare.

What are the biggest mistakes new students make?

Every student will make mistakes. Please do. Each mistake is a small milestone towards learning to control a sliding car. You will bring many actions together, sometimes all at once, and sometimes in rapid succession. This will require breaking habits and learning new ones. We want you to have seat time to develop new muscle memory. The top 5 mistakes in the beginning include:

1. Not pulling the e-brake hard enough to lock up the back tires
2. Not letting go of the steering wheel (or letting go too late) to initiate the drift
3. Accelerating too hard or too long
4. Holding the e-brake too long
5. Not looking where you want the car to go (track vision)

You will spinout, and so do the pros. The challenge is part of the fun. At some point in class your skills skill will suddenly appear. You will get it, like riding a bike! Watch these videos to be able to progress more quickly in our classes.

Is it safe?

In five years of operation, we’re happy to report we’ve NEVER had an accident or injury. We are on 5+ acres of blacktop with few obstructions. We design the courses to allow plenty of room for all the mistakes we’ve seen (so far).

What is the minimum age?

Minimum age for students (driving) is 16 years old with a drivers license and our parental waiver signed. Ideally you know how to drive manual, though we can add time to a course to teach you in 30 minutes. Minimum age for Drift Experience hot laps is 12 years old with our parental waiver signed.

What should I wear?

Dress for the weather outside and for getting warmer in the car. Shorts are allowed. Shoes are the most important. Wear your most comfortable running or walking shoes. The more you can ‘feel’ the pedals the better. For example, Vans, Converse (Chuck Taylor) All Stars, and Puma sneakers are popular shoes worn by drifting professionals. Wear a shirt that covers your shoulders so that the harness doesn’t chafe you.

What’s the cancellation / refund policy?

There’s a lot that goes in committing to a track day: car prep, insurance, track reservation, coach scheduling, etc. As such we refund 50% within 30 days of track date, and no refund within 7 days of event. If you can’t make it, your booking is transferrable, so if you can sell or gift it to someone else. Gift certificates are non-refundable but are transferrable. Also, weather rarely causes a class to cancel. Classes take place rain (rain is good!) or shine. In case of dangerous weather, students will be rescheduled to an open track day of their choice.

How do I redeem a gift card (code)?

If you received a gift code you can simply purchase a course from the site and enter it at checkout. If someone bought you a gift card but you don’t have a card, just email the details of your order (purchaser name, order number) to drive@texasdriftacademy.com and we’ll book your course date for you.

When it’s cold…

We have a waiting area that has a hard blowing propane heater. Many cars have heaters. But bring hats, gloves and a warm jacket nonetheless.

Do you need to be able to drive manual transmission?

It is very highly recommended, though not required, you have some experience driving manual (stick shift). If you can only drive automatic, you can choose the Cop Car Course. Or, we can usually teach you in 30 minutes at the beginning of an Advanced or Pro course. Here’s a video instruction for preventing your car from stalling (the #1 frustration).

How or when do I get to dry track?

Most Drift Pro Course students get to dry track. Each student’s course through exercises and from wet to dry is customized to their skills progression. It is frustrating for the student and damaging to the car to initiate on the dry track too early. When a student can achieve 70% consistency of drift initiation, donuts, figure 8s and a mini drift course on wet they will immediately progress to the dry track where things are 4x as fast and intense. In our experience most students get through this in half a day. Some faster, some slower. In short, our goal is students can complete each exercise triumphantly with a smile.

Do I tip my instructor?

If you’ve had fun and think your instructor did a great job, tips are greatly appreciated. They are there to keep their (expensive) drifting dreams alive! You can tip them directly, they each have Venmo. Oh, and you may also notice our coaches have access to give you free merch on your departure!

Can I bring a friend to watch (and film)?

Absolutely. We welcome friends and family to watch, film, and photographs from the sidelines. Chairs and shade are provided. And in the end, if there’s time, they can purchase high-speed passenger laps with our pro drivers.

Can I film my class? Can I bring a GoPro?

We allow filming / GoPros for the Drift Pro course students towards the end of the day. There are usually mounts inside and on the roof of the cars. For other classes (Skills, Advanced) we don’t allow student filming during class because the distraction slows the progression in shorter classes. Our goal is to get you as much seat time as possible. However, your guests can film from the side. And all students are allowed to film the passenger lap with our pro drivers at the end of the day.

Do I need to bring anything? Is there food and water?

For all courses, bottled water is provided. For Advanced and Drift Pro full-day classes that cross over the lunch hour, lunch (sandwich / wraps) are provided. Sanitizing wipes and/or hand sanitizer will also be provided. And yes, there are bathrooms on site.

It costs a lot of money.

No doubt, this is not a cheap experience. This is a completely different thing than go karting! There’s a lot that goes into making Texas Drift Academy a premiere driving school, and yet prices are comparable to others. These are performance cars with racing parts that break down a lot, and professional 1×1 coaches. Our costs include break fix parts, wraps/paint, mechanic time, coaches, insurance(s), track rental, gas (!), tires, water, electricity, trash, wifi, advertising, web site maintenance, food, merch, customer service, etc. We keep costs as low as we can. And you will find that you will get more seat time per dollar than other driving schools. This is a driving experience you or your loved one will never forget. Students get joy, adrenaline, skills, driving confidence, and memories. In five years in business, no one regrets investing in a day at Texas Drift Academy!

Can I drive my own car?

To maintain the consistent quality of our training program, we only instruct in Texas Drift Academy cars, set up with steering kits, eBrake and welded differential. If you have your own drift car we recommend signing up for a local drift club event like Club Loose or Lone Star Drift to get seat time.

Can a friend be in the car with me?

Students are not permitted to drive guests, however, guests can purchase passenger hot laps driven by a pro at the end of class. The exception to this is if you book a Drift Day Duo course with a friend or colleague, where you share a car.

Airport / Hotels / Restaurants near the track?

San Antonio International Airport is 31 minutes from the track, and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is 60 minutes from the track. If you make a trip out of it we recommend spending a day in San Antonio or Austin. But if you want to stay close, here’s a google map of airports, hotels and restaurants near the track. 

 

Question not answered? Email drive@texasdriftacademy.com or text (512) 831-6547