definately hit up gran turismo east, they usually have plenty of 17's. ask for kieran and tell him you heard about him from the guys from driftMechaniks, he'll hook you up.

but like erin said, any of the legal events (DG trials, drift fury, or SEDA) are by far the best place to learn. check any of those out and you'll be sure to learn a good bit and have a lot of fun.