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After his car plummeted from a cliff last year, the 21-year-old PCC student took only a quick moment to shake off the shock before he thought of continuing the race.Illustrating the unexpected detour he took in his 2000 Subaru Impreza, Ken Gushi recalled how he plunged off of a turn called Engineer’s Corner with the car hitting a tree in mid-air. It snapped and broke the fall, dropping him and his navigator unscathed at the base of the mountain.

Nonchalantly, as though he was describing a trip around the block, he recalled the life-threatening moment at the 2007 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with a grin on his face.

“I honestly wanted to go in reverse and see if I could reverse all the way back onto the road,” he said. “When you’re racing, you don’t think of fear. You just have to go all out.”

As a D1 Professional Series driver for the motor sport of drifting, Gushi has returned to the hectic routine of juggling both school and his profession with the start of the new season. He competed in Round 1 of the Formula DRIFT Pro Championships at Long Beach on April 12.

“In drifting, you’re doing what normal race car drivers would try to prevent because we’re sliding around. You’re in total control of a car that looks like it’s out of control,” Gushi explained.

“It’s just the biggest rush when you’re driving and you’re sliding the car around. Everything is out of your head except the walls that are ahead of you and how you have to maneuver your car on the course,” he added. “It’s crazy. It’s chaos.”

Gushi has participated in the Formula DRIFT Championships since its start five years ago. The young driver was exposed to drifting at the age of 13 by his father Tsukasa Gushi, a former rally racer from Japan.

While drifting was a relatively new sport in the United States, Gushi and his father started holding events, known as “Drift Days,” at El Mirage Dry Lake in San Bernardino County. In its first year, the competition welcomed about 15 locals, but gained so much popularity in the second year that people were turned down because the event reached maximum capacity.

The duo would also hold competitions against each other at the dry lake, which eventually transferred onto the race track as they competed professionally. Tsukasa Gushi retired in 2005 and now owns Asari Auto Repair in Los Angeles.

What started out as a father teaching his son the basics of rally racing for amusement transformed into Ken Gushi’s present-day passion and livelihood for his profession.

His love for drifting was apparent on race day as he was all smiles moments before having to compete.

Even amid car problems that forced Gushi to go without track time prior to the qualifying round at Long Beach, he hid his worries and frustrations from his pit crew and placed 11th before being beaten by Mitsuru Haruguchi.

“With everything that was happening, his morale was still up. He was still upbeat even with all of the pressure,” said pit crew member Len Higa of the Rogue Status Drift Team. “I’ve worked with a bunch of drivers and they’ll stress out, but he handled it very well, especially with the team.”

Having run in the same circle for four years, Higa worked with Gushi for the last four months on Gushi’s newest car, a rear-wheel drive RS-R Scion tC, which made its debut at Round 1.

In his eight-year career, Higa has dealt with many drivers who did not handle the stressful circumstances as poised and calmly as Gushi.

“He’s not really serious where he’ll shut everyone out before a race, but when the door shuts, that’s when he’s focused,” added Higa.

Higa pointed out the D1 driver’s good humor as he explained the extent of fun Gushi had with a label maker in decorating the interior of the car. Positioned on the shifter was a sticker that Gushi was especially proud of, labeling it as “The Magic Stick.”

Gushi’s lighthearted attitude and humility, which gained Higa’s respect, have kept him grounded, despite being a professional drifter for more than half of a decade.

“There’s more to racing than just driving. You gotta have the right attitude, you gotta have the confidence, the right personality. Everything matters,” Gushi said.

Moments after the race, 21-year-old fan Justin Davis approached the blue Toyo Tires tent to meet the D1 driver.

“People like him push the sport so people like me can get into it,” said Davis, a first-time attendee at a Formula DRIFT event. The Chicago-native has followed Gushi’s career through videos posted online and has come to admire his “cool” personality.

With a humble bow and nods of appreciation, Gushi, who is known to his fans as “The Goosh,” welcomed Davis enthusiastically while the two exchanged words of encouragement and gratitude.

Although Gushi became the youngest D1 driver at the age of 16, the professional world, with its fan-base and press coverage, is still a surreal occurrence to him. Feeling as though he has yet to reach excellence, Gushi said, “I may be competing in the pro world, but I still have a lot more room to improve.”

Instead, he has used competing against other professionals as a chance to better his driving and techniques.

Despite Gushi’s desire to sustain a career in the avant-garde motor sport, he has made the decision to continue his education at PCC.

Although being a professional has been a valuable source of income for Gushi, he did not get into drifting because of fame or money.

“Of course money comes in and it’s nice to make money doing what you do, but it’s more for the fun of it,” he said.

Hoping to transfer to Cal Poly Pomona, the business major understood the importance of having a back-up plan.

“You don’t know what’s going to happen. Every race you’ve got to prepare yourself [for] anything [that] might happen,” he said. “I need something to lean back on and that’s why I choose to go to school still.”

However, the race season has launched into full swing, which has prevented him from being the full-time student he is during the off-season.

Being on call at all hours of the day for interviews, fittings and the likes, and having to attend matters relating to his profession have made it difficult for him to take on any more activities.

Now that the “Streets of Long Beach” race is one worry behind him, his focus is on Round 2: “Road Atlanta,” which will be held from May 9 to May 10 in Braselton, Georgia, the location of the first Formula DRIFT Championships.

While standing under the shade of the blue tent expressing confidence in his team and optimism for the near future, Gushi ensured a fan about the upcoming event: “Next time will be good, I promise.

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