Your drifting journey starts here. This is a hands on driving lesson where you take control of a custom built drift car and learn how to drift from the driver’s seat. With professional instruction beside you, you’ll master throttle balance, handbrake use, and the key techniques to hold angle and drift a full corner with confidence.

Between driving sessions, you’ll enjoy a passenger ride in a professional drift car and have time to watch live drifting from trackside making it an unforgettable full day experience.

We run once per month, and new dates are released every month, around 4 weeks in advance. Booking your slot here locks in your place for the next available lesson day. If you can't see a suitable date, you can grab a voucher and secure early booking access to future dates HERE

Want to progress faster?
Stage 2 takes everything learned here and pushes it further covering transitions, higher speed entries, and linking corners across a drift layout.

Or save nearly £100 with our Flex Bundle, which includes Stage 1 + two Stage 2 lessons.

Stage 1 Drift Experience
Everything you need for your first step into drifting. The Stage 1 Drift Experience gives you hands-on driving, expert instruction, and the full National Drift Academy atmosphere - a complete day of learning, adrenaline, and excitement from start to finish.

1 Lesson (Stage 1)
Your first step into drifting. Learn core car control skills including throttle balance, handbrake use, and how to hold controlled angle through a full corner - all from the driver’s seat of a custom built drift car.

2-Hour Driving Session
Plenty of seat time in our drift-prepared BMW, with instruction tailored to total beginners. You’ll build control, confidence, and the feel for driving sideways safely and consistently. You will get X2 sessions in your 2 hour slot approx. 30mins total.

Instructor Demonstrations & Ride-Alongs
Ride shotgun for a demonstration lap with your instructor, seeing first-hand how each technique looks in motion before trying it yourself.

Instructor-Level Coaching
One-to-one tuition from professional instructors with competition experience. Your lesson is structured around your pace and comfort level to make sure you get the most from the day.

Two Driving Stints
Split driving time allows for a feedback session between runs, helping you correct mistakes and quickly apply new techniques.

Pro Drift Passenger Ride
Experience two full-speed laps in a professional competition drift car. Feel the power, speed, and precision of top-level drifting.

NDA Licence Card
Earn your personalised National Drift Academy Licence - proof of your skill level and your ticket to progress to Stage 2 training.

Session Media
Photos and videos captured throughout your session are uploaded to a private Google Drive folder for you to keep and share.

Event Access
Enjoy the full-day experience - spectate other drifting sessions and watch advanced drivers in action throughout the day. You +1 are covered! Additional persons will need to pay the BDD spectator entry - £10.

Driver Briefing & Safety Training
Start with a clear briefing covering car setup, safety, and the fundamentals of drift technique.

All Equipment Provided
Helmet, tyres, fuel, and everything else needed for your session are included. Just bring yourself and your enthusiasm.

Hospitality
Tea, coffee, and refreshments provided throughout the day.

What You’ll Learn

Step 1 – Learn Fundamental Sideways Car Control
Your drifting journey begins behind the wheel. With pro instruction, you’ll take control of a custom-built drift car and learn the fundamentals of throttle balance, handbrake use, and car control by completing donuts. This stage builds the confidence and trust needed to keep a car sideways safely and consistently.

Step 2 – Advance to a Wide Donut
Step up from small circles to wide, controlled donuts. You’ll learn how to balance throttle and angle smoothly, maintaining steady control while expanding your drift radius. This step develops rhythm, feel, and the ability to hold drift angle with precision.

Step 3 – Develop Proper Throttle & Steering Control
Here drifting becomes consistent. You’ll focus on combining throttle and steering inputs to maintain angle, fluidity, and control throughout each drift. This fine control becomes invaluable as you move toward line driving in later stages - the difference between participation and progression.

Step 4 – Learn to Enter a Drift
Move from static donuts to initiating a drift on command. You’ll practice clean, controlled entries and learn how to bring the car into drift using speed, angle, and timing. This is where you start to feel the rhythm of real drifting.

Step 5 – Learn How to Drift a Corner
This is the breakthrough moment - taking everything you’ve learned and applying it to a full corner. You’ll hold angle, balance throttle and steering, and feel the rush of completing your first proper drift. From here, you’ll build on consistency, speed, and control - the perfect foundation for Stage 2.

Your Progression Path

Stage 1 gives you the essential control and confidence to drift safely and consistently - the solid foundation every driver needs. From here, Stage 2 takes everything you’ve learned and builds on it, introducing transitions, clipping points, and higher speed corner linking.

If you’re serious about learning to drift properly, Stage 2 is where the fun really starts it’s better value, covers more seat time, and pushes your skills toward real track layouts and competition-style driving.

Many of our drivers book Stage 1 and Stage 2 back-to-back on the same day to accelerate their progress and get ahead of the curve.

On the Day

Your first drift day is more than just driving - it’s your entry into the National Drift Academy community, paddock and the full drifting experience.

Arrival & Welcome
You’ll check in, meet your instructors, and get introduced to your driving group. The atmosphere is relaxed but charged with excitement as engines fire up and the smell of tire smoke fills the air.

The Paddock Atmosphere
Between runs you’ll hang out trackside, chat with instructors and other drivers, and watch cars slide through corners at full angle.

Ride-Alongs & Spectating
When you’re not behind the wheel, you’ll strap in beside a professional for full-speed demo laps or chill with refreshments while soaking up the sound and smoke from the sidelines.

Plenty of Seat Time
Your session includes two driving stints, giving you time to reset and apply feedback after your first run. Every lap builds confidence, control, and the buzz that keeps drivers hooked.

Part of the BDD Open Drift Day

Stage 1 lessons run alongside the Bishopscourt Diff & Drift Open Day, (Only Sunday Bookings) meaning you’ll be surrounded by live grassroots and pro-level drifting all day long. It’s the perfect backdrop to watch and learn.

You’ll find plenty to enjoy:

• Non-stop diffin’ & drifting action
  
• Food and drink stalls
  
• Car displays and paddock walks
  

End of Day
You’ll leave with adrenaline, photos, new friends, and your NDA Licence Card marking your first official step into drifting.