A Good Day for a Race

So, for my 30^th birthday gift, Lindsay got me a 1-to-1 instructor led racing experience at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire (home of the British Grand Prix).  When we arrived at the track, we were directed to the “Experience Centre” near the south-east corner of the circuit.  There, we saw lots of people and various race spec vehicles in the car park, and in front of the welcome centre, were a couple of Nissan 370 Z’s lined up.  After check-in, we scoped out some good places for photography, and then waited for them to call my name for my instructor. 

When they called me up, they asked what race I was preparing for… and I informed them that I was starting at ground zero for my race experience and needed to learn the basics of racing.  One of the instructors must have been used to training noobs, so he greeted me and led me to get a crash helmet and we then walked to the car.

He drove us to the pit area of the International Circuit, the southern half of the Grand Prix.  Then we talked about the basics of braking, turning, and accelerating.  He took us out for two warm-up laps around the track, showing me where to break, where to turn-in, and where to go flat-out after the various corners of the circuit.  We pulled back in, switched seats, then he gave me the go-ahead for my start. 

That car is FAST!!  The fastest car I’ve driven before this was an Evo Ten, and that was only around the streets of San Diego.  This was like driving a full size go-cart, except we were going 130mph down the straight and doing 50-60mph around some of the turns.  Being able to let the tires screech around the turns and flooring it down the straights were invigorating! 

Around the 5^th or 6^th lap, I started turning one of the corners and realized I was going too fast, and naturally, I took my foot off the gas.  Little did I know that when the car slows down, it also leans forward, removing downforce from the rear tires, and caused my tail-end to fly out from behind me and I ended up facing the wrong way on the track;  my first (and only) spin-out!  I’m glad I did it, though. It showed me that I was actually pushing the limits, and another thing was it taught me that more speed is more traction.  We pulled into the pits to talk about the physics of the spin-out, and a few other critiques he had for me, then we headed back out for another 15-20 laps.  Later on, I started losing traction on another turn, and I remembered the lesson and applied more gas and BAM, instant traction! 

After some good racing and even a few overtakes, we pulled in and switched seats once more.  He then took the car to the limits and showed me “real racing” around the track.  It was like a roller coaster!  He broke way later than I did, and he even drifted around a few turns.  He lost it once and we ended up a bit off course, but he quickly recovered and got us back on.  After his laps, we pulled into the pit area to talk about my racing.  He said I showed real improvement on my braking and I was getting more comfortable with the high-speed turns.  He drove us back the centre and I thanked him for his time and training. 

This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I’m glad Lindsay was there to share it with me.  It was truly amazing!

~Blake