Local Sports

Drifting takes Quaker City by storm

SALEM -- Motorsports fans in the area are catching the drift of a new venture.

On Saturday as part of the Quaker City Summer Jam, Club Loose II, an area organization dedicated to grassroots drifting held its first event at the Quaker City Motorsports Park’s new kart circuit.

The event attracted drivers and spectators from throughout Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Among the featured drivers was Salem’s own Dirk Stratton of Stratton Chevrolet, a former Formula Drift pro driver. Stratton demonstrated the precision, car control and high-speed skill that made him one of the sport’s top competitors, giving fans an opportunity to watch professional-caliber drifting in their own backyard.

The event also marked another chapter in the Stratton family’s long history at Quaker City Motorsports Park. Dirk’s father, Don Stratton, spent years competing at Quaker before becoming one of the nation’s top NHRA Sportsman racers. A 2001 NHRA Competition Eliminator World Champion, Don built a championship career that began on the same grounds where Dirk is now showcasing a different form of motorsports, making the weekend a fitting continuation of a family racing tradition.

The Club Loose II series has helped introduce drifting to a new audience at Quaker City Motorsports Park, further expanding the facility’s offerings beyond its long-standing drag racing tradition. The next scheduled Club Loose II event at Quaker City is scheduled for Sept. 12.