A Day at the Track

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Every now and then you get to do something really cool. Recently, I (Stacy) was lucky enough to be invited to a track day with a few of the Directors at work, and some of their associates. An early start was required to get out to Bedford Aerodrome, about 1.5 hours to the north of London. Upon arrival we were greeted with a queue of cars that consisted of Ferrari’s, Porches’, Aston Martin's, Mercedes', BMW's, Atom's, and Caterum's. This was the playground of those that have much more money than I!

The circuit was 3.8 miles long, smooth and open. It was purpose built for private track days, and designed to prevent damage to cars if they spun off the track. Perfect for a novice like me!

I was out first for about 45 minutes in the BMW M3 CLR. The first few laps were getting to know the track; where to start braking, where to turn in, trying to hit the apex, and then making sure to accelerate out smoothly without loosing the tail. I was then into the Ariel Atom. This thing is a go cart on serious steroids. 240bhp, and 0-100km/h in just over 3 seconds. If you brake too late, or accelerate too hard, it was guaranteed that you would lose it. Two of the guys spun it on the very first corner! I spun it on my 6th lap trying to avoid a Integra Type R that was imitating a ballerina doing a pirouette at 80km/h! I also got to drive the Porsche 911 Carrera 4. This was nice to drive, but felt a bit heavy after driving the Atom. Then I went out for a drive in the Mercedes CLK 63 black series. This was the most powerful machine I have ever driven - 507bhp! I managed to top 255km/h down the 1.2km straight!

Take a look at the photos, and the captions tell you a bit about the cars. This was a great day out, and one that I wont forget. Now I know what I am saving for - an Ariel Atom! If you want to see the Atom in action, check out this link: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WaWoo82zNUA

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Photos

Me with the Ariel Atom 240
240bhp, 500kg, 0-100km/h in 3 sec! Driving this was the most fun I have ever had!

Stacy drifting the Atom through the corner
Not all of these drifts went perfectly to plan....

Mercedes Benz AMG CLK 63 black series
6.3L V8 giving 507bph. I hit 255km/h down the straight in this baby - that's very quick (and very scary for a novice!).

Mitsibishi EVO X
AWD, turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder giving 320 bhp. A little rocketship!

Porsche 911 Carrera 4
This drove very nicely indeed, but felt slow after driving the Atom. Should have driven this first!

BMW M3 CLR
This is a race car: stripped out to be as light as possible, and handles like a dream. Paddle shift like an F1, 330bhp, all from an in-line 6 cylinder engine. This was the best of the bunch (apart from the Atom).

Farrari F355
I didnt get to drive this, but the owner surely drove it like it was stolen....great to watch.

Jaguar race
This car was for the professional only. Rides for £30 each. It was absolute lighting and left everything in its wake. It went past the Atom like it was standing still. And you would want to hope so with 600bhp under the bonnet!

Comments

[jk]

Aaawwwwsssommmeeee!!
That's great - very envious. It must be a little scary being in charge of a car that is worth so much money, especially when it's someone elses!! See you in a week! jk

[Tanya]

uh-huh
a lot of stats in this travel blog! Only half of that made sense to me but I'm sure you were in little boy-racer *heaven*!

[Rach]

Wow
You've really made Justin jealous.....

[Woody]

and...
so what?!? i still have to walk to work!