There's a very well-written article in the Globe this weekend on Toronto's street-racing sub-culture. Embedded with York Regional Police's High-Risk Traffic Unit (8 designated officers and a helicopter, along with social media experts and plants), author Stephen Marche gives a fascinating glimpse into the MeetUp scene, the TOTakeover scene, and the street racing scene generally.
Meeting late at night in suburban parking lots and industrial areas, these young men - and yes, they're pretty much all young men, with a few female groupies - are adrenaline junkies who think nothing of driving at 200, 220, 250 km an hour on suburban roads, recording the whole thing for Instagram. Some use trade plates to disguise their cars, despite the fact that they may be lime green or sprouting myriad extra lights and add-ons, making them instantly recognizable anyway (and the Instagram accounts are definitely also traceable).
But it's all about "chasing clout", essentially showing off to their peers. Some will even taunt the police to goad them into a chase, because that makes for a better video, or engage in genuinely dangerous activities just for the social media attention. Sometimes the police will give chase, particularly if they are aware of other crimes and misdemeanours, but sometimes it is just too dangerous to get involved - it may be a spur-of-the-moment decisionfor the police involved (and the stunt drivers know that).
Some MeetUps are serious, well-organized events, with closed-off roads, official photographers, drones, and motorcycle spotters. Others are more seat-of-the-pants affairs, where ice cream and pot-smoking feature heavily. It became a popular nocturnal pastime during the pandemic, when there was nothing better to do, but it has, if anything, become even more popular since then. Some of the vehicles are lovingly souped-up and tricked-out Hondas and Nissans; others appear to be daddy's purloined Maserati or Lamborghini.
Noise is an important part of the image, and catalytic converters are stripped out and holes drilled in exhaust systems for maximum effect. Part of the point of it is to be noisy, and some cars achieve noise levels close to jet engine levels, up around 130 decibels, right at the point of physical pain.
If the participants are caught, the consequences are not insignificant, ranging from license suspensions to jail time, but this does not seem to deter them. And, let's not forget: some of the participants do die from time to time, and some of them kill others (like the recent crash that killed two grandparents and their 3-month old grandson).
As the article points out, most of these young guys are just genuinely into cars, and arguably guilty of little more than an excess of testosterone. But if 95% are just regular guys, 4% are completely idiots, and 1% are out-and-out psychopaths. Those engaging in "drifting", "doughnuts" and "burnouts" on flaming roads are towards the latter end of the spectrum, and are generally hated by the regular MeetUp folk who have had their event usurped for someone else's social media feed. This is more TOTakeover territory.
Like I say, a fascinating glimpse into a world I know nothing about, and understand still less.
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