Cyrious Report: Return to the Podium

It’s been over 2 years since I've stood on the top of the podium and feels great to be back!

We returned victorious from the first round of Formula Drift Canada at Autodrome St. Eustache, and I'm very proud of our team and my FR-S on a long awaited win.

The two weeks leading up to this event were hectic to say the least. I spent most of the break fixing the car from our crash in Florida. It came down to the wire, with parts showing up only days before the event, and then finding other parts that were damaged the day we were about to leave. Luckily, I was able to get it all sorted out with just enough time to make the six-hour trip to Montreal.

The event was held over the weekend. Saturday was just a practice day, which was great because I figured there would be some bugs to work out of the FR-S. However, everything felt right the moment we got on the track. I was feeling comfortable with the car very quickly and after 10 laps of consistently hitting the same line, we decided to shut it down and save the car/tires for the main event!

Sunday morning we had two-hours of practice before moving straight into qualifying due to the stormy weather approaching. I did about six laps in practice, all relativity the same – very smooth, smoky and consistent. We threw on a fresh set of AD08's and went into qualifying. My first lap out I did the same line I had been doing all weekend, which put us in second place. On my next lap, I pushed a bit harder and got a slightly better score but got edged out by two other drivers so we ended qualifying third.

The battles that followed were pretty tough. The competition pushed the FR-S and I to do some of the best driving we’ve ever done together. We had an edge on everyone! The FR-S just seemed to have more grip than the rest of the field. On all my lead laps I would gap the competition by at least one or two car lengths, and then on my follow laps I was able to stick on everyone. We fought our way through with no "one more time" battles, and the judges’ decisions were all definitive. Nobody was able to touch us that day, from the Top 16 to the win!

We will carry this momentum into Round 2 of Formula Drift Canada in July. I truly love drifting the FR-S. After two years and a lot of hard work, it’s the car that I’ve always dreamed it could be!

I hope you had a chance to check out the live stream on Periscope. You can now watch the team and I get ready on race day by following @ScionCanada on the app. I enjoyed answering your questions and I'm stoked you get to see the action live from the side of the track!

I'm very excited for the rest of the season and looking forward to the next battle. Thanks for the support!

The Cyrious Report – Building for 2015

Pat Cyr here! Very excited to write my first blog post for the new FR-S chassis we are building for the 2015 season at my shop, Cyrious Garageworks!

At the end of last season, we knew that we wanted to make some major changes for the 2015 season to be more competitive and keep up with the high horsepower cars that dominate drifting these days, so we decided it was in our best interest to swap in a 2JZ engine, taken from the iconic sports car the Toyota Supra! The 2JZ is known around the world as one of the most reliable engines ever produced, and when modified, it can produce upwards of 1000hp! For next season, reliability is a key thing for me. We push the car and its engine to its limit, so having a set up where I can just focus on driving will be great for us!

The other major change is the Wisefab steering system we will be running this season. It is a purpose built drift steering system just for the FR-S and produces loads of steering angle so I should be able to achieve those crazy backward entries!

For the past 3 months we have been focusing on getting the chassis prepped. You have to start with a strong foundation, so we had the new chassis acid dipped to remove all of the factory paint and seam sealers, then we went to town with the welder, spot welding every seam on the chassis to stiffen it up and also adding longevity to it as well. After that, we built the all-important roll cage. Roll cages are one of our specialties here at Cyrious Garageworks, we like to build them tight but also try to add in a bit of style where we can! I also wanted a really clean engine bay to showcase the 2JZ engine, so we went ahead and filled every excess hole in the engine compartment to give it a clean, smooth look. After all that was done, we sent the car over to our good friends at Davis Autobody to get a fresh coat of epoxy primer laid down on the entire chassis to prevent rust and protect the chassis.

Back from the body shop, we mounted the 2JZ engine and transmission in the FR-S chassis and fabricated mounts to bolt that big engine in the car! When building cars, a key thing is mocking everything up. Sometimes things will get mocked up 2 or 3 times before final assembly. So after the engine was mounted, we mocked up the Wisefab suspension. From there our focus switched to the interior of the FR-S. First thing to do in there was to mount the dash which had to be modified to fit with the new roll cage. Then we installed the pedals and set up my new Sparco seat. Once I got it in a comfortable position, we built a custom steering column, made a custom shifter for our Tremec transmission, and mounted up our hydro e-brake handle. We spent a decent amount of time doing this, laying everything out, moving things around and making it as perfect as possible, as driver comfort is a very key factor.

Next on the to-do list is the paint. We will be heading back to Davis Autobody in the next few days to have the interior and engine bay painted up in gunmetal metallic; then they will lay the base coat down for our new livery design! The look of the car this year will be different than anything I have ever run before, so I can’t wait to show it to everyone at the Montreal International Auto Show in January! Next season will be an exciting one for us and I’m looking forward to sharing our journey with you.

That’s it for me today, now it’s time to get back to work!

Pat Cyr "Road to Formula Drift" Episode 3

See behind the scenes as Pat Cyr talks about his season and the challenges of balancing his racing career with running a shop. Among the highlights this year was a third place finish at DMCC which was the first time an FR-S has been on the podium in North America.

What’s the next chapter in Pat’s career look like? Well, let’s just say he is turning into the “Goliath”….find out what changes he has in store as he takes his ride to the next level.

Pat Cyr "Road to Formula Drift" Episode 2

In Episode #2, we explore Pat Cyr’s passion for BMX racing and Auto Cross which eventually led him to the crazy world of professional drifting.

Along the journey, we learn about Pat’s amazing story through the eyes of his crew and family as they share a candid perspective about the man behind the helmet and what makes him tick.

See his aggressive ‘take no prisoners’ style play out on the track as he showcases his true personality. Prepare for a white knuckle ride as Pat boldly slides his Scion FR-S at the famous Autodrome St-Eustache (Montreal) during the first ever Formula Drift Canada event.

Check back soon for Episode #3 in the series.

To catch up on episode #1, click here.

Pat Cyr - Road to Formula Drift

Meet Pat Cyr, one of Canada’s most aggressive professional drifters. Pat’s unique style and flare for the dramatic make him a fan favourite and created a cult-like following called the “Drift Posse”.

World renowned film maker Brandon Leung is following Pat on his journey to compete in his Scion FR-S at the Formula Drift finale at Irwindale Speedway aka the “House of Drift”. In full-on amazing cinematic quality, see what it takes to become a legend in the sport and why sliding is such an adrenaline rush.

Imagine the intensity as you sit next to Pat Cyr inside his FR-S as he challenges top notch competition. From prepping in the garage, to pre-race rituals in the paddock, experience drifting like never before!