For my 40th birthday my parents bought me one of those gift things to drive a sports car round a race track. They knew it was on my bucket list. I was so surprised and super excited to receive this gift. I have always wanted to drive a nice car round a race track!

Trying to book a day to do this was difficult. All the dates I was available were fully booked. I tried a few times to book and then we went into lockdown because of Coronavirus. I thought I was never going to get to use my voucher!

Just as we were coming out of lock down I tried again to book. The expiry date on my voucher was expired but because of Covid they extended it by 6 months, so I really needed to get this done. I was finally able to book a session, the nearest race track was Castle Coombe in Wiltshire, and the date was 8th May 2021. Fingers crossed for no covid restrictions on travel. Welsh people had been prevented from travelling to England.

When the day arrived, luckily for me, travel restrictions had been lifted, but only just. We were still required to wear masks every where we went. It was so weird going somewhere as we had not been able to for the last year or so.

The weather was awful and it rained all the way to Castle Coombe. I was wondering if I would even be allowed to drive, but by the time I got to drive my first car, the rain had stopped. What a relief!

My Dad and Leanne came to watch me. When we arrived I had to check in and confirm the cars I was driving. They then sting you for all sorts of money; insurance, pictures, videos, extra laps, car upgrades, all sorts. It was very tempting to say yes to everything but I didn’t, I stuck with what I had, although I did pay for insurance and photo’s. Once the check-in was sorted, I then had to wait out in the paddock until it was my turn to drive.

Quicker than expected, I heard my name being called, and it was my turn. The first car for me was the Aston Martin. I got in the car, the instructor went over all the safety stuff and then I was off. Omg I was rubbish, I was driving so slow. Two reasons, I could not see the road as I was so low down, and I was so nervous to take my eyes off the road that I couldn’t see, that I was unable to look at the speedometer. The instructor was telling me when to brake and when to turn. There were different colour cones on the track to indicate when to brake, turn and accelerate. I know I was going slow as everyone else on the track was over taking me haha!

After a couple of laps I was starting to get the hang of it, and remember the turns a little bit. I was getting faster each time I went round. Unfortunately three laps of the track in each car just wasn’t long enough. I didn’t like the Aston Martin very much, and disappointingly, inside the car was not posh, it was adapted for racing and very basic looking. The outside looked good though. I am glad I drove this one first as it was my least favourite and I was just getting to grips with the track.

I then had to wait again for the next car to be ready. My dad and Leanne were freezing. Even though it was the beginning of May, it was a really cold and damp day.

Next up was the Lambourghini. Bright green mean machine. This was better. I knew the track and was feeling more confident to go faster. I found this car quite hard to drive. It was heavy on the steering and didn’t accelerate as quickly as I thought it would. Don’t get me wrong, it was a good fast car and very powerful, just wasn’t what I was expecting really. I still absolutely loved it though. Definitely faster, I think I only got over taken by the pro’s this time.

The last car of the day for me to drive was the fabulous red Ferrari. Omg what a difference. This car instantly felt faster, sleeker, and easier to drive. It was so low to the ground and I could feel it gripping to the road as I whizzed round the bends. By now I am really confident and on the home straight I put my foot to the floor and went for it! Too scared to take my eyes off the road though as those bends come up so so quickly, I have no idea how fast I was actually going. It was such an amazing feeling, I was gutted when the 3 laps were over, I wanted to drive this one for longer.

After I had driven all three cars, I was then given the opportunity to be a passenger in a car driven by a professional. What the actual holy moly. I sat in the back of the reasonably priced car, a Ford Focus. Nothing fancy whatsoever. It was literally like being on a roller coaster!. When he pulled off I could feel the G-Force pushing me back into the seat. And then we went round a corner! Oh my days I don’t even think he touched the brakes the whole way round the track. I have never experienced speed like it. It was both terrifying and amazing at the same time. I actually thought I might die haha!

What an absolutely fabulous experience and great day out. Well worth doing if you like fast cars. I am so happy to have ticked this off my bucket list and driven a fast car round a racetrack. Well not one car, not two but three cars! Proper made my year so far.

Big thank you to my Mum and Dad for the birthday present. I loved it 🙂