Driving a Ferrari/track day as a present - anyone done this?
Miss Poppy
Posts: 1,217 Forum Member
✭✭✭
I'm thinking of buying a 'drive a Ferrari' day as a gift for a relative this sort of thing http://www.virginexperiencedays.co.uk/driving?OVMTC=Broad&site=&creative=10415165601&OVKEY=%2Bvirgin%20%2Bdriving&adpos=1t1&device=c&devicemodel=&gclid=COPyy6e3q7sCFUUOwwodxlwA3g
But I'm worried it might be a bit of a rip-off (ie, lots of faffing 'safety talks' or whatever and not enough time on the track
Was wondering if anyone had done anything similar and if there are any outfits you would recommend/think are best avoided
Many thanks!
But I'm worried it might be a bit of a rip-off (ie, lots of faffing 'safety talks' or whatever and not enough time on the track
Was wondering if anyone had done anything similar and if there are any outfits you would recommend/think are best avoided
Many thanks!
0
Comments
I have a feeling they're all the same format.
I was considering trying one at Silverstone a year back and you effectively got 3 laps of driving which was 10-15 mins.
Obviously some of these experiences are better than others. I did a similar thing at Chobham, but it wasn't half as good. My advice is to find one that runs at a real race track that is actually used as a professional racing circuit. At Thruxton I was allowed to drive the car as fast as I wanted with no limitations whatsoever.
You do only get a relatively short time behind the wheel, but it really is great fun and exhilarating.
Mine was through the circuit itself.
http://www.thruxtonracing.co.uk
It's a bit expensive, but great fun and whoever gets the present will definitely enjoy it. You don't spend that long actually out on the track, but I would still recommend it.
The instructor at the end gave a score out of 100 to all his "pupils" for that session based on understanding and implementing the instructions given, using the racing line, car control, awareness to other users, etc. He said he very rarely gave a score over 70. My brother was given 75 which he was rather chuffed with.
This was at Knockhill in Fife.
That's very similar to what I did, but the first few laps were in a Porsche. I was also marked by the instructor etc.
Did your brother enjoy himself?
Yes I think so. He still has the certificate framed on the office wall, and bought a couple of photos (taken by a resident photographer for these kinds of events) which are also displayed somewhere around the house.
I second this comment. I bought my OH a driving experience at Thruxton earlier this year, compared to the one he did previously through a gift experience company the Thruxton one was streets ahead.
It was expensive but lasted three hours in total, driving three different cars for about 5 laps. Whereas the gift experience one was all about the safety briefing and instructor laps with very little actual driving time.
What I would say is to spend time researching how long you actually get in the car ie how many laps, how many miles the track is. I found ones at Thruxton to be far better value and it's a proper racetrack whereas gift experience ones tend to be at disused airfields so the tracks are shorter with restrictions.
My fave to date was a single seater at Silverstone, about 50 45 mins in total of driving...
That said, I'd much rather have a longer go karting sessions than driving a supercar for a couple of laps. I've found quite a lot of the time the tracks are modified so you can never truly put your foot down. As others have said, check the circuit, and the time in the car.
You certainly won't get a day roaring around a track in an F430 or whatever.
What you normally get is an introduction and then a session in summat like a Golf GTi to learn the circuit and then a session in, say, a BMW 3-series to get a feel for a RWD car and then, finally, a few laps in the Ferrari.
Thing is, it's all stuff that a petrolhead is likely to enjoy regardless of what car is being driven at the time.
Personally I don't think track-days using road-cars are that brilliant. They're fun but road cars tend to be big and unwieldy things on club racing circuits.
Far more fun can be had on a track day involving karts, single-seaters or Caterham 7 type vehicles instead.
DB5 or similar for the day (what a dream)!
If I win/do the lottery I will have a LOT of classic cars
FFWD an hour and after the demo lap in the Scooby driven by an instructor, I was eventually in the Ferrari. Heeding the "don't make a twunt of yourself or you don't get the full beans later" message from the briefing, I hung back a bit on the 4 laps. Then waited, & waited, & waited. Eventually when I asked when my run was due I was told 'that was it mate. These are all here for a full day, yours was just The 4 Laps Experience', Gutted. What about the briefing? Didn't apply to you mate. Tough luck. The 2 flying laps as a passenger in the Elan as some kind of recompense was crap - I've been faster in the trusty bare-shell 2 litre Escort (not an RS2) in my road rallying days, and had more fun.
Read the voucher, make sure you know what the instructor is saying, and to who.
If you're a 'petrolhead' and are used to booting a GTi-type hot hatch or decently powerful sports car round the country lanes you'll probably find the restrictions of how hard you can go to be a bit limiting.
If the person is a decent, experienced driver I'd look into hiring them a nice car for a special day, or get them a real race car drive instead. Ferraris are expensive things to repair if someone gets it wrong, which tends to limit what they'll allow you to do, but something like an old Formula Ford single seater will feel just as fast and at the end of the day it's made out of steel tubing and a Ford Focus engine so they tend to let you go for it a bit more in these types of car. Also you're in them on your own, so you set your own pace.
"Here is a concert ticket for an event in May"
er no, you have missed the point
Like most people I know I am a great driver, until I did this ~ I was like an old lady doing the weekend shopping. Everytime I braked for a corner the instructor told me to speed up.
The problem is that you don't have long enough to adjust to the performance of the car compared to your own everyday hack, especially in terms of its braking capability.
But well worth doing, had a great time. Afterwards a police driver took us round in an Evo on slick tyres, now that did scare the shit out of me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3NSMx7Ev5A
TBH, I'd be kind of embarrassed if my driving made somebody sick.
I do have a bit of sympathy for both Damon and Dom' Littlewood there though.
Big luxury cars tend to be designed to insulate the passengers from road vibrations and when you drive them quickly they transmit some rather odd sensations to the passengers that you would get if you were thrashing along in a hatchback which wasn't as refined.
What difference does it make? Personally I quite like the idea of getting a gift that's something to look forward to and enjoy a few months down the line. What use would a track day be on Christmas Day?
I have done these a number of times- once as a present (and thought it was an amazing gift BTW) and a few times with work taking clients out etc. Great days out. You can often find these track days where you actually get to drive a few super-cars on the day and sometimes an old classic like a Jaguar E type/ Aston DB5 (James Bond Thunderball car etc).
I couldn't recommend it more, especially if the person receiving it loves cars (sorry for stating the obvious here) as obviously most people including myself cannot afford our own Ferrari to whizz round a track on!
OP I'd say check out independent reviews but most recognised race tracks will be legit- yes the lucky recipient of your gift will have to have safety briefings, and yes they will most likely have an instructor take them round a few times with him driving to lean the car, and the track etc.
You still get more than enough time actually driving the car yourself though- if you didn't these places wouldn't last very long I'd say.
I highly recommend it and think it makes an excellent present.
(my ex gf once got me a flying lesson as a gift- now THAT was even better).
Go for it!
This did kind of remind me of my husband complaining that I was driving like a rally driver, which is totally untrue my driving is very safe and I haven't made him sick yet ;-)
Not at all when I did one. Only thing they said was if you spin it or crash it you're done for the day!