A group of South Carolina high school students, plant employees and community leaders got the rare experience of riding shotgun with professional drift drivers at the Giti Tire plant on Monday, May 9, 2022, as part of a community event hosted by Giti Tire.
It was a unique opportunity for students in the Chester County Career Center’s Automotive Technology Program to see the state-of-the-art facility and learn more about the tire manufacturing process firsthand. They also got to meet Formula DRIFT drivers and ride along with the drivers on a course set up outside the plant to experience the performance of the GT Radial Champiro SX2-RS competition tire that is designed and produced at the Giti Tire plant in Richburg. The event also played an instrumental role in further enhancing pride among plant employees for their dedication in producing world-class, American-made passenger and light truck tires in Richburg.
“The drift along was an amazing experience that the plant was able to offer employees, as well as local students, community leaders and first responders,” said Ethan Pease, lead engineer for the plant’s Innovative MFG & Digitization department. “There was not a single employee who came out of the experience with anything less than a smile on their face. Every single employee was looking to hop right back into the car and go another lap or two around the track.”
The event was very timely as the drivers were fresh from the Formula DRIFT competition in Atlanta on May 7-8 in which GT Radial driver Chris Forsberg celebrated on the podium after achieving a second-place finish. GT Radial driver Dan Burkett finished fourth.
It was also timely because the students had just finished studying about tires, steering and suspension in vehicles. They were thrilled with the opportunity to see how tires, such as the GT Radial Champiro SX2 RS competition drifting tires, are made right there in their backyard. Then they donned helmets for a thrill of a lifetime drift along on the GT Radial Champiro SX-2 RS competition tires with Forsberg, Burkett, Jeff Jones, Kazuya Taguchi, Travis Reeder and Amanda Sorensen – all world-class Formula DRIFT drivers.
“It was awesome,” automotive tech student Isaiah Schnepf from Great Falls High School, told the Chester News & Reporter which covered the event. “There was nothing but a smile on my face. I can’t even explain it – it went by fast, but it was one of the best experiences of my life!”
Schnepf told the Chester News & Reporter that getting “hands on” experience with the professional drivers was really valuable “because a lot of the things we saw today, we are doing in our auto tech class at the career center.”
“We were thrilled to welcome students and community guests to our Richburg plant to showcase our highly automated manufacturing plant, latest manufacturing technology and skilled workforce, as well as experience the performance of GT Radial tires made in Richburg,” said Julianto Djajadi, executive vice president for business operations for Giti Tire USA. “Our South Carolina plant is a special place with special people and many stories to tell. We hope this visit inspired the next generation of engineers and manufacturers in the local community.”
On top of this drifting experience, they were also able to ride along the Maxtour LX Experience, where the participants could compare and experience the control, handling and wet braking performance of the GT Radial Maxtour LX tires compared to other top tire brands.
Since planting roots in South Carolina, the company has partnered with the Chester County School District and established Giti Math & Science clubs in schools across the area to help students develop valuable STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) skills. The clubs meet several times throughout the year, culminating with an annual interscholastic contest.
Since planting roots in South Carolina, the company has partnered with the Chester County School District and established Giti Math & Science clubs in schools across the area to help students develop valuable STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) skills. The clubs meet several times throughout the year, culminating with an annual interscholastic contest.
