My first race car experience

"thebigbossyboss" (thebigbossyboss) 07/08/2014 at 20:29 • Filed to: race car

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A few weeks ago I went out to !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and took part in a ride around the track in one of the tracks race cars.

Having never been in a race car....this was very exciting. (Pictured...the excitement builds)

Instead of the radio...we get a track map & a short shifter Sweet. I didn't ride in this car, but they're all spec'd identically so the only difference was the colour of the door inserts.

The Car

The race car was a fifth gen Ford Mustang (not sure of the exact year). It had the 4.6L V8 and whole host of upgrades like stiffened suspension and roll cage, stripped out interior, and a bunch of other goodies. The car makes 350 HP at 5,700 RPM (jesus) and 340 Ft lb torques. That....is a lot of torques.

I actually learned (many moons ago) to drive stick on a 2003 V8 Mustang, (which is a tough car to learn on because of the ridiculously heavy clutch and weird shifter position) but I digress.

Anyways it was good to get back in a Mustang, and this time, I wasn't driving. I took 4 laps around the awesome 5.05km Calabogie track with Matt (the track kid) as the driver.

The experience:

Waiting patiently....

And we're off!

Oh man. Where do you even begin. On the first corner I saw us approaching at what I would term "way too fucking fast" but then, I am not a race car driver, nor do I drive a Ford Mustang.

However my brain's internal physics engine went like this "we are approaching way above a reasonable speed...therefore we will probably crash".

We didn't crash but gripped our way around the corner, during which I remarked to the driver (OH MANNNNNNN THE GRIP!!) and he said "That's nothing wait until we hit this other corner"

Once we got a lap down I felt a lot more comfortable in the car, I guess knowing you can take corners at ridiculous speeds probably adds to your confidence. Because the gauges are recessed I couldn't really judge the speed, but the driver told me we hit about 180 km/h (111 mp/h) on the fastest parts.

After about 10-12 minutes...it was over...however it won't soon be forgotten. My name is Will and I am a race car addict.

Here is a short video of the shenanigans.

SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman > thebigbossyboss 07/08/2014 at 20:33

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thanks for sharing!

djmt1 > thebigbossyboss 07/08/2014 at 20:41

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Racing cars are awesome.

desertdog5051 > thebigbossyboss 07/08/2014 at 21:24

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Very cool. I know you will go back.

thebigbossyboss > djmt1 07/08/2014 at 22:08

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Is this an ariel atom?

djmt1 > thebigbossyboss 07/08/2014 at 22:11

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Yup, my first racing experience. Seriously if someone offers you a go in an Atom just say yes regardless of the circumstances. It is like nothing else.

thebigbossyboss > djmt1 07/08/2014 at 22:14

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Best advice ever given.

Slow4o > thebigbossyboss 07/09/2014 at 10:31

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As a driver of a decently set up Mustang on slicks, the cars can grip much more than you would expect them too. They can embarrass a lot of other set up cars without stick axles.