Wyvern Drives Her Dream

[Wyvern]

A year tomorrow, I will turn 40

With that in mind, the coming year has been dubbed 'The Year of Living Dangerously', in which I intend to do as many things I've dreamed of doing on or before 1st May next year - i.e. before my dreaded big 4-0. And today I kicked that off in style by treating myself to a track day ;D

I've always wanted to drive a Lamborghini, and I've been in love with the Gallardo since it came out, so when Groupon sent an offer that was for track days at an airfield just two tubes stops from where I live, it was a sign, wasn't it? It would have been rude not to. And they had slots the afternoon before my birthday, so it would have been churlish to say no.

And so as soon as I booked, it began to rain. And it kept raining, until I began to wonder whether I'd be better off booking a boat trip. The weather was better yesterday, but there was a sting in the tail - a torrential downpour last night that kept me awake and brought the grand total up to three times the usual rainfall for April in this area. When I got off to sleep I had a nightmare that I couldn't find my kart boots and I was not exactly refreshed when I finally woke up properly (after several false starts).

But miracle of miracles, it was dry.

I made it to the track, selected my cars, decided to have a passenger lap in an Ariel Atom when I had finished driving and began waiting to be called for my first drive.

First up was the Lamborghini Gallardo. I was a little bit nervous, because I've never driven anything even remotely that a) powerful and b) mental, but it is my absolute dream car, to the extent that Mayfayre put a picture of one in the frame by my bed when I first moved in here so I see it every single day Could I do it justice or would I drive it like a muppet? The instructor was lovely and put me totally at ease, and I found the seat and the driving position surprisingly comfortable considering how bad my back is, and how lacking in flexibility I am.

I had nothing to worry about. It was really easy to drive, and the short, sharp nose was easy to see, so even though the Gallardo is quite wide, it was easy to put through the chicanes. And it had a lovely manual gear change that felt... nice. I was sure I was going to run the cones over and make a big mess, but but turned out to be easier than driving my Triumph Herald, and no more difficult than Mayfayre's Mondeo estate - but with a lot more POWWWWEEEEEER ;D It was just a joy to drive, and I know that after three laps of the track, I was grinning and bouncing and the smile never left my face for the rest of the day.

The next car was the Aston Martin DB9. This turned out to be much harder work. The nose is incredibly long, and it's not easy to judge a tight series of coned bends that aren't much bigger than the car when you can't see it, so the concentration couldn't slip for a second. However, the track had a long straight, and there you could put your foot down and then the noise was glorious. I didn't love it like I loved the Lambo, but I think if I spent more time with it, the DB9 would reward the effort, especially on a decent, challenging road without any cones to knock over...

My third choice might seem surprising, given that I could have had an R8 or a Maserati Coupe or a Ferrari F430 or a Porsche 911 Turbo... but I went for the Lotus Elise.

And now I want a Lotus Elise.

If the Gallardo was like a big, strong, friendly dog, the Elise was an enthusiastic terrier puppy. It was so much smaller it could just thread between the corners, and it just wanted to play - and so did I! It was screaming down the straight and I was laughing "I really like you!" and encouraging the little car the whole time. The instructor was encouraging me to push it a bit more and every time I pushed it, I could get more out of it, so before long I was accelerating through the chicanes and braking late for the corners. It was, without doubt, the most fun I had all day, and I really didn't want to give it back.

At that point, I was going to have a passenger ride in the Atom, but unfortunately, the tyres had gone and they didn't have a spare set. You'd think I would be disappointed, but actually, it didn't bother me at all; not only was the Lotus a perfect high point on which to end, but as I got out of the little Elise, I could feel a few spots of rain in the air. Talk about timing! By the time I got to the marquee to find a ride back to the station, it was throwing it down, and I got soaked to the skin just running from the car to the tube station! Imagine going around a track in an Atom in a deluge like that... Nope, it was definitely no hardship to miss that

So that was my birthday treat, and it was absolutely fantastic from start to finish. I'm so pleased I got the chance, and that I didn't kill a single traffic cone all day. It was just fantastic.

Next: Off roading in a Hummer H1 - but I'm not going to do that until the weather picks up a bit!

[liverbird]

Good for you Wy! Sounds like you had a fabulous day. I am going to do that when I reach 5 -0! I would choose the Lamborghini and the Aston but would want a jolly in the Porsche. Go and get that hummer ticked off your list. I think you should have a flying lesson as well!

[FizzyLogician]

Congrats on your great day, Wyvern! And it sounds like you drove two dreams...the Gallardo and the Elise.

[Wyvern]

May 1, 2012 19:39:46 GMT liverbird said:

Good for you Wy! Sounds like you had a fabulous day. I am going to do that when I reach 5 -0! I would choose the Lamborghini and the Aston but would want a jolly in the Porsche. Go and get that hummer ticked off your list. I think you should have a flying lesson as well!

I think the Aston wants a purpose built track rather than one on an airfield really. A Vantage would probably have been better because it's smaller and lighter, but I don't really care too much because I've driven an Aston, and I always fancied that idea *g*

The 911 Turbo looks like a cracking little car. Go for it - they sound epic too!

The Hummer is booked, just waiting for the weather to pick up a bit - I don't mind getting wet and muddy, but I'd prefer to avoid cold as well! And I am looking out for a flying lesson. I'm a bit heavy for some of the 'experience' flights at the moment (I'm working on it though) but I know I'm well within the limits for microlighting, so I reckon I'll get airborne before the next year is out ;D

[Wyvern]

May 1, 2012 19:50:06 GMT FizzyLogician said:

Congrats on your great day, Wyvern! And it sounds like you drove two dreams...the Gallardo and the Elise.

Thank you! You know, I think you might just be right

[amie8]

Pssst...you can still do stuff when you're 40.

[Wyvern]

May 1, 2012 21:29:59 GMT amie8 said:

Pssst...you can still do stuff when you're 40.

Glad to hear it - I just work so much better to deadlines

[eolise]

Very cool, my brother is gonna do that too very soon. Pics? ;D

[jmsquared]

Wyvern, that sounds fab. I would have chosen the Lambo and the Aston, but the third choice would be impossible. Probably would go for the Fezza. Great to hear about the Lotus, as there is a track near here that does quite affordable track days with them. I feel a treat coming on!

[liverbird]

We could do the "James May Ladies Day" on the race track and James could come along and judge!

[Wyvern]

Unfortunately I didn't really get any pics Nat - I had them lock my bag away in the office so I didn't have a camera, because I went on my own. I did get a couple of pics afterwards, so hopefully one or two of them might be worth bothering with! I really hope your brother enjoys himself as much as I did.

Jmsquared, if you get the opportunity, go for it! And if you can do a day with a Lotus, definitely do that, because it was just hilariously good fun. I'm now eager to do more

Now that, Liverbird, is an excellent plan...

[kt]

Congrats on the laps....and making the time to do something fun for yourself! Sounds delightful.

[Wyvern]

It was brilliant, brilliant, BRILLIANT, kt And yes, you've got a good point there - people should make time for themselves a bit more often!

[crumbs]

Wy, can you tell me (pm maybe?) where you went and how much it cost?

Were there any classic cars on offer of the 50s or 60s?

You sound like you had a fantastic time. Definitely go for the flying lesson- I bought one for Mr and he loved it. Trouble is he wanted to go the whole hog and get the licence, which couldn't and can't happen due to a shortage of cash. But he still loved it and was given the controls.......

[rx7]

oooh! I want to drive my favorite car, the GTR! I will drive my mom's RX7. Test drove a Camaro and had really bad visibility.

[Wyvern]

This week, I finally got around to my offroading session.

The day before I was due to go to Eastwell Park Estate in Kent (claim to fame - the bastard son of Richard III is believed to be buried in the estate churchyard), I got a rather sheepish phone call from True Grip offroading. The Hummers had been dismantled for their winter service a couple of months ago and there had been a delay in getting parts. Some rather crucial bits took eight weeks to arrive, and last Monday they finally appeared. Two days before I was due to drive one of them meant there was enough time to fit the parts and get at least one of them ready to drive.

Unfortunately, the supplier had sent three propshafts that were precisely the wrong size, so I had the choice of either rescheduling or driving something else. As I'd already arranged leave and train tickets, I decided to take that option.

I was very, very lucky with my decision to go for it, because Wednesday was cold, but it was dry, sunny and not too windy. Given that I had a couple of miles to walk when I got to Ashford, this was extremely fortuitous! I walked around the edge of the estate until I found the way in and was given a couple of options; either I could choose an alternative exciting vehicle from their fleet (I rather fancied the Camel Trophy Landy), or I could use the basic, beaten up Land Rover Discovery but take a bit more time driving around and have a lift up to the main bus route so I didn't have to walk another two miles along a lane with no pavement while the light was fading.

I'm not an idiot, so I chose the latter option. The Landy was quite battered and grubby, but it was comfy and it had a very friendly personality. I hopped into the passenger seat and the instructor took the wheel, driving me to the edge of the estate. I had expected him to do some demonstration driving, but no - it was much better than that. As soon as we were off the public road, we swapped seats and that was me driving for the entire session!

I drove through a field of sheep over a mud track until we reached the training area. Then I switched to low range gearing, and I was off. First I was taught how to tackle simple steep inclines by driving over humps of packed earth, and then it was on to uneven surfaces by driving over a zigzag course of logs, which tips the car from side to side as you drive. It was remarkable just how much it did throw the car about, but one thing I didn't expect was just how much it worked my stomach muscles. You really have to work your core muscles to avoid being thrown around inside the car - so no wonder Richard Hammond, who loves offroading, has such a taut midriff! Considering my mobility problems and size, I'm actually pretty fit, and on a day when my back's behaving (or I'm sufficiently out of it on Tramadol not to notice) I can comfortably walk ten miles, but good grief, I felt it the next day.

The instructor was happy with the way I was going, so we tried a bigger obstacle with a much steeper incline. At the top, he had me hold the car right on the apex, which was very silly, and then I went over the edge, keeping the descent steady with the footbrake. At the bottom of the incline, the instructor turned to me with an evil grin. "Are you feeling brave?" he asked. I grinned back, nodding happily. "OK," he said, "go back up then. Backwards."

I was up for it, but "Backwards? Not sure I can see much out the back to reverse..."

"You got over here OK. As long as you keep the car on the same line, you'll be fine."

So I whacked it into reverse, stuck my boot in and up I went, giggling all the way.

After that, I drove over all sorts of bumps and dips and surfaces, learning when to approach with speed and when to take it more slowly, and then I went on to learn something that may well be very useful in the future - driving through deep water with no fording point. My parents' village has flooded several times lately, and my dad has got it wrong quite badly in the past, so I wanted to make sure I learned how to do it properly. And next thing I knew, I was pushing a bow wave through deep water and not getting stuck. In fact, the doors leaked a bit, which was unfortunate as my jacket was tucked down in the rear footwell, but that just proves how deep the water was.

I went up and down over a more complex part of the course which combined loose surfaces, different heights of obstacle and a small ford with way more confidence than I would ever have expected given that I'd never driven offroad before, and then I was ready for the last big obstacle.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," said the instructor. "A lot of people really don't like this."

He pointed to a narrow cleft between two obstacles, not even remotely wide enough to drive through on the flat.

Now, I've been sideways in a car before, but not in relation to the ground. This would have me up at about a 45 degree angle.

That's not scary. That's hilarious! I loved it and could have kept going all afternoon. Unfortunately, my stomach muscles wouldn't have taken it...

But after that, it was time to drive back to the centre. This time though, instead driving up the track, I had to weave through trees over wet grass with the gears back in high range - in some ways this was more challenging than all the up and down stuff, because wet grass is slippery - who'd have thought it?! In between avoiding trees, I even stopped for a bit of bird watching because there was a magnificent hawk swooping about and keeping a beady eye on the sheep.

And then it was time to hand control back to the instructor.

I didn't want to. But next time... next time there shall be more. More mud. More water. More challenges. More sheep, probably. But probably not a Hummer, because cool as they are, Land Rovers can get into places that Hummers can't. The propshaft problem turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

So if you like driving, don't just restrict yourself to track days. Track days are ace, but why restrict yourself to that kind of thing? I'm now thinking about my next adventure. Perhaps I'll have a drifting lesson next

[FizzyLogician]

That sounds like a blast. We call it "jeeping" here, although a Jeep is not specifically required.

[devil-may-care]

Sounds like fantastic day out, Wy! ;D What's next on your list?