Ah… Gatebil Rudskogen. There is no such thing as a different automotive occasion in Scandinavia that may fill my lungs with tire smoke and go away my physique damaged like this one can. That is the place it’s at, however if you happen to missed it, I’m right here to assist.

Now that I can lastly breathe contemporary air once more, it’s time to share my expertise of summer time 2023’s greatest Gatebil social gathering.

Driving 5 hours from my residence in Linköping (roughly two hours from Sweden’s capital, Stockholm) to wherever isn’t that a lot of a thrill, however when it’s a competition with quick automobiles, loopy automobiles and much more automobiles, you possibly can’t assist however really feel excited the entire manner. That’s till you you attain your location – on this case Rudskogen Motorsenter in Norway, and the skies open up like a scene from The Day After Tomorrow.

From the circuit’s previous race management constructing – now its media heart and our humble abode for the three-day occasion – we may see the primary automobiles rolling out onto the monitor. Some wasted completely no time sliding their manner into what can be an unimaginable weekend.

Given how moist it was out, I spent an excellent chunk of Thursday afternoon watching the Tremendous 3 three-car crew drift follow and qualifying classes by the media heart home windows.

Final 12 months’s Tremendous 3 winner, Staff Datsun, seemed like that they had the whole lot beneath management; the moist circumstances actually appeared to favour the lower-powered automobiles. Excessive-powered trios like Staff Toyota, nevertheless, wanted to be a little bit lighter on the throttle.

The rain stopped fully as soon as the qualifying classes got here to an finish, so I took the chance to stroll round and preview what had turned up for the festivities.

Present attendees, drifters and time attackers all had their automobiles wanting high-quality, ready to strike come very first thing Friday.

And because the solar set issues acquired quiet, and for a quick second I felt at peace. However as I stood there admiring the view earlier than heading again to our makeshift accomodation to catch some shut-eye, a thought hit me like a freight practice: Sleep? What sleep? The following time I’ll sleep will probably be on Sunday night time, after I’m again in Linköping.

Solar’s Out, Weapons Out. It’s Friday!

It’s not like I may have slept in anyway, even when I needed to. The collective sound of a full subject of Gatebil Time Assault Xtreme automobiles woke me up like an adrenaline shot. Then, at 8:00am sharp, the monitor went dwell for Gatebil Rudskogen 2023.

Among the finest issues about Gatebil occasions is that you may rock up and participate in no matter you drive. For those who simply need to have an excellent time on monitor, the Open Line classes are the right alternative to take action.

As soon as the Gatebil yellow cabs are out on monitor, you recognize issues are about to get loopy.

White smoke rapidly engulfed Rudskogen, and mixed with some insane warmth we had ourselves the equal of Burning Man. Minus the sandstorms, in fact.

With so many automobiles on monitor without delay, accidents are going to occur. However with rescue and restoration employees round each nook, crashes and breakdowns have been rapidly cleaned up so the shenanigans may resume.

A few Tremendous 3 groups used the whole day to follow for the finals, which have been held later within the night. As that they had initially practiced and certified within the moist on Thursday – however Friday was fully dry and highly regarded with monitor temps within the excessive 40°Cs – a unique strategy was wanted. This was very noticeable as soon as the finals began, however extra on that quickly.

Monitor clear up occurred from time to time, which offered a possibility to go all the way down to the paddocks. As I made my manner over on one event, I snapped this image which hit me greater than I’d prefer to admit. This was precisely me 25+ years in the past after I started to comprehend that automobiles are life. Who is aware of, perhaps the child within the image will turn into a next-generation Speedhunter…

The paddocks have been all the time packed, which is an effective factor. It undoubtedly felt like extra folks attended the occasion this 12 months than they did in 2022, and whereas I can’t personally touch upon an extended time interval, most Gatebil Rudskogen regulars I spoke to stated it undoubtedly appeared so much busier than years previous.

There is no such thing as a scarcity of the bizarre, wacky and downright insane relating to Gatebil engine swaps, and I’ll be looking at a few loopy builds in some upcoming posts. However simply to present you a sneak peek…

I’m fairly certain this was the largest turbo setup at Gatebil Rudskogen this 12 months.

A brand new addition to the venue is the AutoTech Sport workshop, the primary and solely one in all its variety in Norway. Right here, you possibly can lease out a spot to service, repair up or modify your automotive utilizing the most recent tools.

Inside, the shiny new flooring was already getting accustomed to its new occupants, one in all them a crimson Ford GT40 duplicate.

By this time within the day the Tremendous 3 finals have been shut, so I began the lengthy trek to the photographers pit in the course of the T14 flip, nicknamed Storsvingen. This spot put me proper within the thick of the motion.

The gang have been hyped for the battles. Some wrestled for leisure whereas others introduced their stuffed animal alongside. The spectators by no means disappoint at Rudskogen, very like the Tremendous 3.

The foundations for this competitors are easy: Every crew of three drift as shut as doable to at least one one other whereas sustaining the most effective drift line by the judged part. The primary nook is commonly the trickiest and may be the decider for the rest of the run.

Those that get left behind within the first nook keep left behind. Pace is clearly one of many most important elements of an excellent line, and with the monitor being fully dry the low-powered automobiles didn’t stand an opportunity.

Solely 12 groups out of 24 entered certified for a spot within the Tremendous 3 ultimate, so the drifting was of a excessive normal. FD driver Simen Olsen was in Staff Rymax along with his A90 Toyota Supra, and as soon as this trio crossed the end line I believed for certain they’d take the crown. However that was till I noticed who else was again in motion.

Fredric Aasbø’s Staff Toyota returned quicker and stronger than ever, and as they entered the ultimate part of the nook the gang went nuts.

As soon as the mud settled and the smoke cleared, the drivers parked their battle machines in entrance of the gang to attend for the Tremendous 3 profitable crew to be introduced.

In the end, Staff Toyota took again the crown. Staff Rymax positioned second and Staff Fullfinans third.

As I made my manner again to the media room to seize some contemporary digicam batteries, within the distance, the trumpets of victory echoed and Gatebil Rudskogen’s Friday afterparty was formally underway.

The stroll to the primary stage is all the time enjoyable. As I used to be sporting a ‘Gatebil Media’ vest, I used to be continuously requested to take photographs. When this occurs you take an image of a gaggle whether or not you need to or not.

The Gatebil Zoo is the place the animals effectively and really let unfastened. There was extra folks, extra flying beers and extra enjoyable than final 12 months’s Friday night time, so it was a good way to complete up the primary day of Gatebil Rudskogen 2023.

There’s heaps extra to return, so stick round…

Alen Haseta
Instagram: hazetaa

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