Jack Shanahan: 2015 Irish Drift Championship Review

Our second article this week on Jack Shanahan is a round by round review of his Irish Drift Championship season.

IDC Round 1 – Mondello Park

The first round held at Mondello Park was a faster track than the previous British Drift Championship round so it was key to setup the car for the track.

We didn’t have enough time to dial it in as well as I would have liked but it was still running well but I managed to qualify in 10th place.

In the battles I made it through to the Top 8 before getting knocked out by Nigel Colfer.

All in all a good weekend that gave me more seat time to get used to the car and put some points on the board early in the championship.

IDC Round 2 – Green Glens Arena

This was probably my favourite round of the year with the track being indoors and setup with the fans so close to the action.

During practice it was clear that everyone was on form and that a good result would be difficult here.

My first qualifying run was a bit poor so I was determined to push hard on the second run, aiming to beat James Deane. I managed a perfect run with a score of 100, I was so happy and the crowd clearly enjoyed it too. I had some close battles on my way to the final with James Deane, he is the guy I look up to in drifting so it was great to be able to give him a run for his money.

It took three battles for the judges to be able to decide on a winner, a standing ovation awaited us as we stepped out of the cars for the final time, it was a feeling that I will always remember.

IDC Round 3 – Mondello Park

This was the Global Warfare layout with a lot of invited drivers from around the world so I knew it was going to be a tough weekend. I scored another perfect 100 in qualifying and was delighted with that.

The battles were memorable here as I went up against some strong competition on the way to the final. Luke Fink was my Top 8 battle which went OMT before he hit the wall whilst chasing me.

Dean Kearney was next before I met Tomas Kiely in the final, Tomas took the win on this occasion.

IDC Round 4 – Fermoy

This was a tight technical track which suited the lower powered cars and five of us drivers were competing to gain a lead in the championship points. I qualified second to Tomas Kiely but in the battles both of us struggled and were knocked out in the top 16.

I thought that James would then take a big lead in the championship but he was unusually knocked out in the Top 8. Overall it wasn’t a good weekend for me but everyone else in the championship hunt also struggled, it would go down to the wire at the final round.

IDC Round 5 – Mondello Park

I was getting excited as we arrived to Mondello Park after a week of working on the car.

By the end of practice on Saturday we realised that the car had to be parked, mechanical issues would mean that I had to borrow a car.

Ryan Caldwell’s S13 would be the car that I drove for the rest of the weekend, it wasn’t up to the power of the rest of the championship rivals but I still managed to pedal it to second place in qualifying.

I thought that I still have a chance at the championship until nerves got to me in the Top 32 battle against Anthony Galvin. I missed a gear and was knocked out, ending my championship chances.

I was still happy to finish fourth overall in the 2015 Irish Drift Championship.