The rules of hajwalah are easy to understand, if not execute. First, get your SUV up to 100 mph or so. Then jerk the steering wheel back and forth to get your ride rocking. Do it right and you'll end up on two wheels, and if you're really good, you'll see smoke pouring from the tires. Be sure to hold your hand out of the window, using your fingers to indicate which gear you're in. Hit fifth and you just might win.
If this sounds remarkably dangerous, that's exactly the point. “The more reckless you are, the better—as long as you don’t crash,” says Peter Garritano. He spent a week in the United Arab Emirates last year photographing this madess for his series Hajwalah.
Hajwalah began on the streets of Saudi Arabia in the 1970s. As it gained notoriety, it spread to the UAE, Qatar, and Oman. So did the fatalities. Wealthy teenagers killing innocent bystanders while behaving like hooligans tends to bring bad press, which prompted the government to crack down. But every once in awhile, things would still get out of hand. Three years ago, a Saudi hajwalah driver was sentenced to death after killing two people.
That prompted a push toward competitions on tracks. “Hajwalah used to be the wild west of street drifting,” says Garritano. “Now, the culture is trying to find its way to formalizing the sport.” He checked out an event at Emirates Motorplex about an hour northwest of Dubai. “It was way more formal than I was expecting,” he says. “It used to be going out with your friends on the streets and causing mayhem. Now, it’s causing orchestrated mayhem.”
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Events are held every other Friday, and the action starts at sundown. Around 70 men, all in their teens and 20s, show off their skills and audacity in front of 200 or so spectators. Each driver gets three minutes to do the craziest stunts, usually in an SUV. They tend to favor Nissan Patrols and Toyota Landcruisers, and swap the anemic engines for something more potent from, say, a Ferrari.
Things wind down around 2 am, when track owner Wael Hammad hands a trophy to the best driver of the night. He won't say how he reaches that decision, but everyone knows chaos is king. “The more out of control you are, the more valuable that is to your score,” says Garritano. “Guys would burn down their tires and get onto the metal rims—tipping your car over is really good, too.”
The few drivers who crashed escaped unscathed, which doesn't make drivers happy because injuries are a source of pride. “Everyone I spoke to had a picture of themselves on Instagram in a hospital bed recovering,” says Garritano.
The winner pockets a few hundred bucks, which barely covers the cost of tires. But no one does this for the money. They do it for the thrill. “It’s the same sentiment behind teenagers doing donuts in any part of the world,” says Garritano. Except for that whole going 100 mph part.
