Things to do in Saudi when you're....

... Saudi.

The first night I spent in my hotel I heard tires screeching incessantly out my window.  I assumed, somewhat logically, that these were the sounds of Saudi drivers suddenly finding themselves in a quickly disappearing lane and slamming on the brakes.  I've come to find out however, that instead of this being the sound of an accident nearly avoided, it is in fact the intentional result of one of young Saudis' most beloved pastimes -- "drifting".  You may be familiar with the term (especially if you're a fan of the Fast and Furious movie franchise), but in case you're not, "drifting" refers to intentionally spinning you're rear tires while turning so as to cause the rear of your car to swing to the outside of the turn and maintaining this "drift" as long as possible.   A phrase more commonly used in the U.S. outside of professional driving circles is "fishtailing".  Originally made famous by a few drivers in Japan, professional drift-racing has developed a fan base large enough to support an international driving circuit, dozens of magazines and enough YouTube videos to keep one occupied for hours, and in a land with little else to do other than drive, its popularity here has reached fever pitch.

You see them every weekend night setting up near long, wide strips of road all over Riyadh.  Dozens of cars and young men parked in bunches-- sports cars and SUV's, luxury and modest, high-performance and factory.  People will drift in literally anything, and with cheap gas and fathers willing to buy them 2nd, 3rd, and even 4th cars in some cases, young Saudis have absolutely no reservations about playing fast and loose with whatever they happen to be driving.  They'll drift off to one side then whip it back the other way and repeat, fishtailing back and forth as long as they can until the tires finally catch and they're flung down the motorway.  Then they'll hit the end of the block, turn around, hit the gas and drift back in the other direction, taking repeated laps till they eventually grow tired of it and speed off into the night.  There is a particularly wide and strait street directly in front of my hotel and if it weren't for the fact that I work the PM shift and have developed the habit of staying up late Skyping, I would be more than a little annoyed with the screeching that carries on until all hours just outside my window.  Accidents are a regular occurrence anyway but the enthusiasm for drifting has taken it to a whole other level, one that the conditions allow for and the authorities do almost nothing to deter. 

Outside of the city a number of other vehicular pastimes are to be taken advantage of.  Taking a 4 wheel-drive vehicle, an ATV, or a dirt bike out onto the dunes is a great way to exercise some reckless abandon with slightly less risk of injury.  "We drive up the mountain and down the mountain," as it was eloquently described to me by one student.   Another told me of drag racing gatherings they'll hold out far away from the potential hazards the infrastructure of a city of 4.8 million might hold-- where I hear it is not uncommon to see cars worth more than a fair share of houses.  Other pastimes in the desert, of which there are many (cuz there's lots of desert) include camping, camel riding, ball sports, and BBQ's.  All of which I will be sure to engage in just as soon as I am either invited or become properly equipped to facilitate.  The drifting however, I will leave to the Saudis, and definitely while in city limits.  And while I don't have a car and have no current designs to rent or lease one, the adventure of such an undertaking is appealing, but not without being fully insured.*

* full coverage in the Kingdom includes covering the "blood money" a driver is required by law to pay the family of anyone they may happen to kill while driving.  The family does have the choice between taking the money or actually asking for the driver to pay with his life, but I'm assured they almost always take the money...almost.