Challenging the World's Best Pro Drifters Is a Dream Come True for Simen Olsen

Apart from rooting for Chelsea Denofa to win the Formula Drift title, I've had my eyes on two other drivers in the series recently. And both finished in the Top 10 out of 36 in 2023. I interviewed Kazuya Taguchi in September 2022. Although he's had his share of bad luck, I still think he can clinch the title within the next five years.

He must fight through the series Titans: Aasbo, Backchis, Tuerck, Field, Forsberg, and Deane. And there's one more name on that list. Simen Olsen has been making waves in Formula Drift since he joined the Feal Suspension Race Team at the beginning of 2023.

I still remember my first trip to Gatebil

So I wanted to interview him while he still had the underdog status, as I'm willing to bet that he can get the crown as soon as 2024. I caught up with him while driving towards Sweden for a few days of ice drifting in his Toyota Supra MK4. And I could've easily spent a whole day talking to him about cars and sideways fun. The 26-year-old Norwegian lives in Hovag, about 186 miles (300 km) away from the capital city of Oslo. He has been drifting for seven years now, and his story might inspire you to pursue your motorsport dreams regardless of how impossible they seem.

As always, I was curious to learn where it all started for him and how he became involved with cars. "I was interested in cars from day one. I had that City Life playmat rug and played with Hot Wheels. Of course, I was into the Need for Speed Series: Most Wanted is still my favorite! I'm the first in my family with a strong passion for cars; my dad was all about work and the family business. But one of my uncles was a mechanic and used to build custom cars for a living. When I was nine or ten, he took me and my cousin to family-friendly automotive events and taught me more about car culture."

"I am super thankful for his support, and I still remember my first trip to Gatebil when I was ten. I still have 60 or 70 Gatebil magazine issues. I read a lot of those back in the day. The Toyota Supra MK4 was my all-time favorite growing up. I had it as a wallpaper on my phone; I always tried to unlock it in video games and so on." After celebrating his 19th birthday, Simen had made up his mind: he wanted to start drifting. He found a Nissan Skyline ER34 on an online market with a 2JZ engine inside.

"I told my dad I wanted to buy a drift car. I had the money to get it but needed more money to fix it if anything went wrong. We had a long conversation; it went back and forth. I was stubborn, and he said: It's your money, do whatever you want. But I don't think you should buy a car that's not road legal, which you can only use four or five times a year at the racetrack". So Simen did what any sane man would and bought the Skyline on the second day. After all these years, his family fully supports and understands his love for the sport, and he's happy to have them in the grandstands whenever he's competing in Formula Drift.

It was a big decision

But I'll get to that point in a bit. Equipped with only the passion for the sport and a team of good friends with no special mechanical skills, Simen began his journey, and he remembers it as one of the most exceptional periods of his life. After several years, he upgraded and finally bought his dream car: the MK4 Supra. As he became better and better at going sideways at high speeds, his knowledge of the sport improved, and he gathered more like-minded people around him. And with these circumstances, the idea of a drift-spec MK5 Supra came to mind.

"We looked for one for almost four months. I wanted to build an FD Prospec legal car. But we went too far by using a sequential gearbox, rear-mounted radiators, a custom steering column, and many other upgrades not allowed in the second division. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I had the chance to take on the Pro Series if I felt up for the task. It was a big decision: twice the number of events, travel time, and budget. I discussed it with the team and realized it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and we needed to take it."

"We were just friends who wanted to do our best in the greatest series of our sport. We didn't have any real racing experience, we didn't know how to set up a car, we weren't race mechanics." Despite all the obstacles, Simen had a fantastic start to his Formula Drift career by winning Rookie of the Year in 2021. He scored more points that year than Adam LZ and veteran drivers Dai Yoshihara and Ken Gushi. And it was just the beginning. "I remember my first FD race vividly. I was so happy walking around the paddock."

"I realized I was living out my dream of competing in this series. It was great but super stressful simultaneously, as we didn't know anyone except Aasbo and Castro or anything around the venue. I had a warm welcome from everyone, and people were very nice to me. FD feels like a big, happy family. There I was, ready to race against pro drivers I had looked up to for over ten years. I had my first tandem battle against one of my favorite drivers, Fredric Aasbo. I went out there and tried my best."

Odi is starting to convert me to a V8 guy

"I was familiar with his driving style as we had been out on the ice many times before. He won, but I was still happy." A lot of stuff happened in 2022, and Simen's Supra suffered multiple mechanical issues throughout the season, which left him in P24 out of 37 drivers after eight rounds. But things were about to change for the Norwegian Katana (this might be a good nickname for him, given his precise driving style). "I heard Odi Backchis was planning to expand Feal Suspension's Race Team, so I contacted him."

"It felt like a fantastic opportunity: I could drive without worrying about all the logistics. I can focus on my job, and Odi is one of the greatest. I trusted him, the car he built, and the team that would support me during the events. I wasn't happy about leaving the Supra behind. But all that changed once I drove the S14. It was perfect to drive right out of the box. Engine-wise, it's the best car I've ever driven. We adjusted some settings to fit my style, but overall, Odi is starting to convert me to a V8 guy."

"I still use 2JZs at home in Norway for my private cars. I understand why so many people use LS engines in FD: they're cheap, reliable, provide plenty of horsepower and torque, and the power delivery is excellent." My conversation with Simen was so exciting that I would probably need to split the interview into two or three parts. But before you go, I'd like to give you more insights on his 2023 FD run. "I got my first Formula Drift podium in New Jersey. Finishing second after the battle against Adam LZ was a great achievement."

"I had a lot of fun that weekend. And my mom and sister were watching from the grandstands, which made the whole thing even better. But I've got a lot more fond moments from 2023. I had a very competitive battle against Aasbo, where I lost after two OMTs (One More Time); it was very close. He's the man I'm trying to beat every single time; I haven't done so yet, but I can see myself getting closer and closer to that goal with every race. I also had two awesome runs against Odi!" Simen finished the season in fourth place: eight points behind Matt Field, 26 points behind his teammate Odi Backchis, and 61 points behind Chelsea Denofa.

We all started somewhere

But some of you may be shocked that in his third year of FD, Simen Olsen scored more points than guys like James Deane, Ryan Tuerck, Chris Forsberg, and even the driver he looks up to the most: Fredric Aasbo. That says something about his potential for the future, wouldn't you agree? "It's bizarre for me to have more points than these guys. I don't see myself as one of them, I'm still an underdog. It's a new situation for me, but it's very cool. Being so close to winning the championship is not something I expected to happen so early."

"You always hope to do well; my goal was to finish in the Top 10. But we were in the Top 4, which shows we're not just here to fill the lists; we can be very competitive. For 2024, I want to score my first victory and maybe even win the championship." If Simen's story inspired you to pursue your dreams as much as it has me, I wanted to share some words of wisdom on his behalf. After all, learning from someone else's experience can kickstart your career just as drifting has kickstarted this man's heart:

"If you want to start drifting, go for it, even if you don't have a big budget. We all started somewhere. Aasbo didn't begin his career in a fully-prepped FD car; none of the drivers on the grid did. Seat time is crucial, and you should focus more on reliability instead of adding more horsepower. Power makes stuff break; it will make you pay for things you don't want to pay for."

"Please keep it simple, reliable, and fun. Practice meets talent every day." With those words, I look forward to seeing if Simen can achieve his goals for 2024. It would be interesting to see a second Norwegian Champion in Formula Drift. But I'll return to his life story in a future episode, as there is still so much more to say about the young driver that will turn you into his fan.