Drag-racing, drifting on Wednesdays at Sonoma Raceway

The squeal of tires, the smell of rubber, the smoke of the burn. It’s time for the return of Sonoma Drags & Drift for another season of sideways drifting and quarter-mile action at Sonoma Raceway, starting this week.

The popular the Wednesday Night Drags, amateur drag racing on the drag strip, and Sonoma Drift behind the main grandstands and on the road course, take place most Wednesday nights through November 14. The events are presented by Universal Technical Institute (UTI).

For more than 30 years, the Wednesday Night Drags program has given local drivers a safe, legal and controlled environment to race their cars on the raceway’s quarter-mile drag strip. Wednesday Night Drags begin at 3:30 p.m. with eliminations starting at 6:30 p.m.

Anyone with a driver license and a car that passes a simple tech inspection is invited to compete at Wednesday Night Drags. The cost for students with a valid high school ID is only $15; $25 for adult competitors.

While the drag strip rumbles with racing, Sonoma Drift brings white smoke and sideways cars onto the skid pad just yards away. Drifting is a driving competition held worldwide, judged on speed, angle, showmanship and line taken through a set course, rather than who finishes first.

Sonoma Drift runs from 6-10 p.m. Each Sonoma Drift event is limited to 40 competitors per week and usually sells out. Drivers should pre-register online; entry fee is $40. There is no on-site registration available. For more information, visit www.sonomaraceway.com/events/sonoma-drift/

Wednesday Night Drags and Sonoma Drift are great spectator events. Spectator admission is just $10, while kids 12 and under get in free. Parking is also free.

For more information, call the drag racing hotline at 800-870-7223 ext. 209. Ddrag racing is weather permitting; drifting runs rain or shine.

Visit sonomaraceway.com/schedule for full schedules.