Codes of street racing??

Hi,

For school (I know..) I’ve chosen to tell something about (illigal) streetracing.

What I would like to know is:
How do streetracers set up meetings?What communication?
The culture? The phenomenon?
Are there any special signs/codes you guys use? (i.e. warning for the cops.)
Other lingo and car talk, code talk.
How are races structured: Semi-finales? Finales?
How are streets kept clean from other cars?

Thanks!
M.D
Belgium, Europe.

Links are welcome too.

it all depends on where you live, if you know the people, how big of a group is racing, if it is domestic, import, or import vs. domestic.... basically it varies very much from place to place. i've expreienced both ends of the spectrum.

This is what i do when i'm just chilling with a few friends, and we're bored- around where i live, it's a throwback about 25 years because most of the cars where i live are domestic muscle, mainly older stuff (70's).... the way you do it is you cruise around the main strip, looking for action, there are a bunch of places that people with cars park. gas stations are the most popular. anyways, we just cruise from spot to spot, parking, talking about cars with other people, maybe getting a race or two, smoke a cigarette, (bad habit, i picked it up from this crap..... bad, bad, bad), and then cruise to the next spot.

When i want to intimidate, this is what i do- about 1/2 hour away from me, it's a totally different scene. there are more imports than i can count. the funny thing is, though, is that they're all ricers- stock motor, big exhaust tip, and crazy graphics/wings etc.... we'll pull up to the main spot taching out at about 3500 rpms in 1st gear, park, and get out. (one time i pulled in to a long straight, clear stretch right in front of them, yanked the front wheels, and laid out a generous 50 feet of sticky, black rubber- no one seemed to want to race that night for some reason.) it's funny to see their confused/shocked looks when they see a musclecar pull in. sometimes they'll ask me to pop the hood. i'll tell them what i've done to the motor, and i just gotta laugh because they have NO idea what the hell i'm talking about. LOL.

about 1/2 hour in the opposite direction, is where the serious racing is. i'll only go there by myself or with one other friend to keep me company. there is a decent mix of doms. and imps. the cars out there are serious. one of my buddies cruises with a real 9 second chevelle. 468 big block, Dart intake and heads, race demon carb, 3" exhaust exiting in front of each rear tire, rear seat removed, full cage, kill switch on the rear bumper, fiberglass nose. (just to give you an idea.) fast frigging cars.

anyways, as far as the culture itself goes, you basically learn where the spots are from someone you know that got it from someone he/she knew. word of mouth. the lingo is just car talk. i can't describe it any other way. the best way to keep the roads clean from other cars is to go on a back road where there aren't any other cars to begin with. as far, as knowing when cops are coming, and any signs/codes we use, i'm not gonna say right here, as there has been a big surgence in anti-streetracing undercover stuff from the police. it sucks, and it would suck even more if there was a cop cruising this board.

One thing you might want to include, i would like to see people made aware of anyway, is that streetracing isnt a new 90's deal. It isnt something sparked by the movie The Fast and The Furious. Streetracing has been going on ever since the hotrod age. Im sure it even predates that, ever since one car was faster than another and both chums werent near a track. Most racers learned this way, im too lazy to look up any specifics though.

Its usually done on a long straight road, off in the middle of nowhere (correct me if im wrong, thats how its done here) Yeah, everyone usually meets up at a gas station, or cleared out parking lot, usually pretty late enough for most traffic to be gone to bed. I live on the east coast, so what we get around here is usually detroit muscle, but imports are on the rise.

Another type of streetracing is unorganized, and its from stoplight to stoplight. Somebody pulls up at a stoplight where by chance another race willing car is sitting. When the light turns green they take off. This type is more dangerous, obviously because its unorganized.

Ive only participated in stoplight racing, mostly because my slow arse cavalier errr.....likes to "sit and watch" the big kids.

As for culture, theres distinctive trends, the "riceboy" (or...poseur) style consists of people who put big wings, stickers, eurotails, etc. They're in it for the look mostly, theyre also stereotypically the type to get someone hurt due to their, well, attitude.

If you find the right crowd, you can find some good people, these people usually get some kind of "team" going, and get together and do their stuff. Streetracers arent all bad like the media portrays them to be, it just happens that the ones caught on camera are the bad apples in the basket.

Id go by what FasterThanU said, thats pretty much how it goes, but of course each region will have certain specific things about it.

Ok, enough rambling.....

I think another steriotypcal idea that needs to be cleared up (thanks to Fast and the Furious) is that street racers arnt sectioned off into gangs. Obviously there are going to be groups and clicks that have the normal people come around. But most places are pretty laid back and if someone is laid back and not a know nothing ricer you can chill. Thats what its like here in Colorado. Hope this helps.

Yeah, in the movie they were sectioned off by race too :rolleyes:

And, yeah thats pretty much like i said, some people may have teams or groups they hang out with more regularly than others, but they accept most anyone.

Depending on where you hang street racers normally meet around midnight at gas stations, parking lots, fast food places and sometimes discreetly at hidden corners...

obviously commercial places start calling cops when they see a group forming, this is especially if they go to a fast food place and don't buy anything... you can get cited for loitering....

also a lot of kids have radio scanners now and a lot of them use light signals to find out if cops are coming... they have peeps hanging out just to watch for the cops.

this affected police officers a lot in their way of pursuing... they changed from using caprice cars to chase racers into the Ford SUV's... just because it's safer for them just in case a racer hits them... but it is also slow as heck so a lot of racers get away.

most of the time cops only like to break up the meets... and believe me, they already know where the racers hang... specially if they're stupid enough to meet at the same places every time.

what pisses cops the most is that the racers waste their time instead of them doing their job of chasing the criminals...

people call in the middle of the night to report the races happening in their backyards.... or even at industrial complex where they have old guys patroling the buildings ....

so its a really crazy scene. i hope this helped you. peace!

Wow, never expected so many replies! Thanks guys!

Think I need a green card. Anyone who loves Europe and would like to trade places??

Thanks.
MD.
Belgium, Europe.

Yeah actually, Belgium doesnt sound too bad :)

The scene here in Colorado is pretty off da hook. All kinds of cars, imports and domestics, anything from hotrods to ricers. We usually have one guy that sets the stuff up. Meet up with him, let him know if you want in, if so pay your way. He'll tell you where to meet and when. Get your race on, maybe win some cash. There aren't really any gangs, like in the Fast & the Furious. Just a bunch of people doing what they love, because it's fun. We've pretty much been on lockdown for the past couple of weeks though. Stupid people wanting to race their mom's cars, messing things up for the true racers. All the stuff you're asking really depends on where you live. The cops have been all over our asses here in Colorado lately, so there hasn't been too much racing being done. When the races are on though, its the greatest thing.

Yeah, i cant think of anywhere where the cops HAVENT been all over streetracing, its pretty gay, but then again they do catch a lot of irresponsible posers

Originally posted by DigitalRacer
The scene here in Colorado is pretty off da hook. All kinds of cars, imports and domestics, anything from hotrods to ricers. We usually have one guy that sets the stuff up. Meet up with him, let him know if you want in, if so pay your way. He'll tell you where to meet and when. Get your race on, maybe win some cash. There aren't really any gangs, like in the Fast & the Furious. Just a bunch of people doing what they love, because it's fun. We've pretty much been on lockdown for the past couple of weeks though. Stupid people wanting to race their mom's cars, messing things up for the true racers. All the stuff you're asking really depends on where you live. The cops have been all over our asses here in Colorado lately, so there hasn't been too much racing being done. When the races are on though, its the greatest thing.

Where abouts in Colorado?

I usually hit the ones up in Westminster. The past couple of weeks, they've been locked down tight. Two weeks ago the cops were all over, some fucking moronic posers, got caught in a pileup before the races actually started and there was only like a hours worth of racing, if even that. Sometimes, I'll hit my local ones up here in Aurora. Just depends on the time and mood.

I agree that cops have been all over everything lately. Ever since The Fast and the Furious came out you've got a lot more people in it. Plus local news stations and national news have been doing all of these reports. With these powers combined you get COPS! They don't harass us as much here in Jax as they do in Cali. They pretty much just break things up, and send us on our way...then an hour later we are back on it, so it is really just a stall system for us.

:bandit: Can't nobody stop me,cuzz when my foots on the GAS!!!!!! Ill B looking back @ yo ASS!

the scene in tampa is too spread out to really race unless your in with a group or have connections. There's too many strips around here.

*Sniff* *Sniff* I smell rice!!!
and no, I'm not talking about you EAstud, so don't get pissed :flash:

well don't come to houston because depending on were you go to race... and there are alllooooott of street racing scenes you'll find alot of kids getting pissed off because they lost and start shooting up the whole place, seen it many times :bloated: and then like the cops like shut it down till the next day

imma stoplight racer or a "at speed driver"... there arent many cars that ive driven against (drivers technically) that stand up to me... ive kept up with jags, bmws, accords, civics, preludes, camaros, 300zxs, alot of really great cars in traffic... i know im a good driver.. i know my car and its limits... ive been at them.. and broken them all... and paid for it... granted i have a stock 95 cavalier on its last leg... but the only thing the other driver has on me is acceleration and top end speed... ive only gone up against a few drivers that have ever legitimately lost me flat out driving...

as far as etiquitte goes ive got my own rules... i dont tailgate unless forced to.. i dont cut off the person im driving against... just other cars... and i always try to leave the other cars a margin of area to work with... i always assume the other ppl on the roads are morons so i just assume the worst and drive accordingly defensive.. .the last car that really spanked me slowed down to look at me... i pulled up next to him and laughed... (he had an audi tt w/ an aftermarket dual exhaust and that little fin they recalled it for)... i just laughed... we ended up pullin off on the same exit (NJ turnpike is a great strip... 3 lanes mostly straight lines and easy goin at 3am... rare to see a cop... ) and stopped off and talked for a while...

i usually flash my lights or honk to acknowledge im game for a race... then honk or flash to say buy... i dont like flashing tho... i actually prefer to pull up next to you, turn on my interior light and look at you and make funny hand gestures to bait you into gettin it on... i flash lights alot to signal a cop...

(i felt so bad... i picked up a tail on an m3 doin atleast 120/125 i tailed him for all of 2 minutes ... i top out at 108... i ran up behind a cop about a minute after i let him go... cop took off like he had nitro in the trunk... the guy got stopped about a minute up the road doin atleast 130.. had him out the car and across the hood)