‘If everything seems under control, you’re just not going fast enough.’ — Mario Andretti
Some of you may remember that a couple of years ago I celebrated a significant birthday. The celebratory hullaballoo was topped by ticking something off my bucket list as I finally got to drive a tank.
It may not float your own boat (or military vehicle of choice), but I loved every minute and was introduced to the ideas of both driving blind and navigating the English countryside with a range of vision approximating that of the opening of a red letter box. My esteem for our doughty military folk went up several notches.
It was epic. It was brilliant.
One thing it was not, was speedy.
Perhaps it was an attempt to change this that prompted one generous daughter to gift me another driving experience for my birthday last year. Thanks to logistics, I had to wait eleven months to enjoy it, but enjoy it I very much did.
The set up at the Dunsfold track was impressively efficient as drivers of all manner of super cars were registered and directed to a safety briefing before being syphoned off to various check-ins for Ferrari, Lamborghini, Jaguar, Bentley, Porsche, Audi etc. This is the track used by the Top Gear team and beloved of The Stag who will not be feeling in ay way threatened by me. (The image at the top of this piece is not me!)
I was signed up to drive two very cool Aston Martins and, had it not been for health and safety I should probably have indulged in a couple of martinis in order to toast Mr Cool himself, James Bond.
The DB9 was a thing of beauty and, appropriately first featured in a 007 film in the year of my birth, as well as in seven subsequent outings. My instructor was Ryan, who cheerfully informed me that this particular version would only operate in 3rd and 4th gears, Having established that I couldn’t move the seat any closer to the pedals it became clear that changing gear at all was going to be a challenge. This is not a car that was made for comfort, but no one can knock it for sleekness and sheer class. The most off-putting thing was that all the mirrors (that were still intact) were positioned for his benefit, not mine. Driving blind again, apparently.
My intention was not actually to hit the accelerator full on but enjoy the experience of driving such a classic car. Having embarrassed myself by immediately stalling (who pulls away in 3rd gear, for goodness sake?), we set off.
The track will be familiar to Top Gear fans. Every driver – and there were plenty of us driving simultaneously, hence my twitchiness about the lack of mirrors – had a standard two laps in their vehicle during which they were required to navigate bends at Hammerhead and Gambon as well as two chicanes marked by pairs of coloured cones: yellow, red, green. A waiver fee ensured and insured that any damage costs would not end up on the drivers’ doormat. Clearly the idea was to floor it down the final straight before repeating the lap or taking the sharp left back to the parking area.
That clunky gear thing did me no favours and Ryan had to help me out a couple of times as I stretched my left leg into a position for the clutch that left me barely seeing over the dashboard. Still, it was a respectable outing during which I was only slightly startled by the racing boys revving their throaty Porsches etc past me at the speed of light.
Next came the DB9 which has never featured in any of the franchised movies, although a limited run, special edition was produced in 2015 for promotional purposes and retailers only, rather than for any on-screen appearance. This was not the one on offer at Dunsfold, but the standard model is still a very cool car. Sian took her life in her hands to accompany me in this one and I was introduced to paddle gears. These were first incorporated into the Ferrari 640 Formula 1 car in 1989 and, later, to road cars in 1997. For the uninitiated, these exist on either side of the steering wheel and allow you to shift up and down without the need for a clutch pedal, thus ensuring that you lose neither speed nor power. Nice.
This was an altogether more luxurious zip around the track. Once again, no cones were damaged and although I wasn’t looking at the speedometer, I certainly would have racked up tickets on any of our motorways had the cameras been working. The only down side of this Aston Martin was the discovery that my somewhat ancient phone fits so perfectly in the central console that it requires patience, a key, a fob and possibly a screwdriver to extricate it.
Then it was time to experience real speed by strapping in to an Ariel Atom with the doughty Phil, who clearly hadn’t heard of speeding tickets. His raison d’être was clearly to scare the living wotsit out of any and all of his passengers for the day. This crazy ride required a crash helmet, double webbing seat belts and a posture in which both arms and ankles remained crossed at all times.
Seldom have I seen a driver so in tune with his gears and at one with both car and road. I think he was expecting expletives and screams. What he did elicit was a series of giggles, laughter and a grin that stretched across most of Surrey. This was real racing, combining spectacular speed (up to 120mph) with effective braking. The chicanes were not a problem but the number of other drivers in our way was our main frustration, especially in places we couldn’t leave them choking on our dust.
I emerged, both shaken and stirred, dishevelled and delighted in almost equal proportions and grateful for a birthday present that has truly lasted almost all year. Huge thanks to @EverymanDriving Experiences The only question is, what next?
[Unfortunately, the photos that were taken fell down a cyber glitch so I only have the ones taken either by ourselves – my lovely, patient husband came along to watch – or the ones taken by cameras positioned around the track. Disappointing, but can’t be helped.]
[Title image courtesy of Pixabay]
