Driving experiences

[big_al_granvia]

with supercars you are meant to steer them slowly, do not go near 10% of its capability as they cost mega to fix, battered scooby or civic, thrash the bollocks as the circuit will have a dozen parts cars, single seaters... we know you will spin, hence why the panels and wings are full of gaffa tape just try not to take a corner off when you do spin....legends, if you prove you can handle it we will take the restrictor off so you can spin into the gravel.... rally cars, aye you wont be the 1st to roll or break it, the guys will hammer it back into shape, it hasnt been driven straight in years anyway.... bought a mx5 or hot hatch, buy a cheap one that you can afford to lose, never drive it to the track use a mate's trailer or flatbed, if you bin it tough titties

[Jerzy Woking]

I treated myself to the two day BMW off road bike course in Wales. Instructors were the brilliant Simon Pavey and Nick Plumb. I rode one of their almost new 650 Dakar's.

And I near wrecked it. At every obstacle, encouraged by Plumb and Pavey, I never quite made it, hitting the floor everytime-they made it look so easy on their GS1050's.

At the end of the second day, the damage to the bike was a dented and scratched petrol tank, badly scratched side panels, bent handle bars and both levers, instrument cover broken, buckled front wheel and rear light in pieces. 

No damage charges, everything included. Absolutely shattered after two days, but very surprised at how many dropped out at the end of day 1.

Also attended a few car launches which were proper experiences! The Nissan Primera at Donnington Park, the Honda Civic at MIRA (limited to 100mph on the bowl), the Ford Focus at (I think) Bedford and a few more lesser smaller launch events at stately houses.

These were all years ago, and each one was advertised in a national newspaper, although never see these things advertised now.

[loserone]

13 hours ago, Jerzy Woking said:

wo day BMW off road bike course

That sounds brilliant.  I really do need to get a bike licence.

[Matty]

51 minutes ago, loserone said:

That sounds brilliant.  I really do need to get a bike licence.

Sell you my licence if you want. My bottle went a few years back 😁

[loserone]

I don't think I could ride any real distance on the road.  Plenty of lanes around here though and I always wanted a gasgas back when I rode MTB trials.

[Jerzy Woking]

https://www.bmw-motorrad.co.uk/en/world-of-bmw/off-road-skills.html

The course was a bit expensive, but included everything-bike, riding gear, instruction and basic accommodation. I just took my own helmet and gloves.

The instruction was just superb. 

The course looks to be structured differently now, but the intial ride (Level one?) was excellent, and instilled confidence in riding on loose surfaces, balancing and what the bike can do. 

Since then I've only ridden on the more gentle of gravel roads, as crashing so many times on the course did teach me that more serious off roading and I are not compatible.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

Welp, here it is! It's taken a while to post because you know... you have a couple of days off and come back to 17 days worth of workload.

A fair amount of shite to select from and they're adding all the time. I got the 3 car thing and a museum entry with the missis and a kid which might have been ours. I went out with a bloke I think was called Sam who was a diamond and could gauge almost immediately if you knew what you were doing or not. 

I chose the Allegro because it's on my bucket list to own one. I wanted to hate it and the drive to swerve me ever getting one but it was, by todays standard, totally bonkers and was a smile a mile, literally! 

I also chose the Avenger because it was a car I know absolutely nothing about but was in a couple of years of the Allegro so I had a comparison session. Totally different drive. The Allegro was tight, bumpy and harsh, the Avenger felt like there was Jelly between the bits of suspension. My missis went along for the scoot around the place but the smells we all love of velour, grease, old oil and exhaust fumes was making her feel a bit queezy.

And there it is, my final choice, the Rollz. My grandad had a few of them and I grew up surrounded by the smell of a Rolls and cigar smoke which has carried throughout my life as a terribly good smell combination. Shonky repairs included a switch added to adjust the seat, there was broken climate control and... well, it's beige. This is just how you'd want it.

What a ride. By todays standard, I'd say that it set some record years ago, it floats and smells just as it should.

After that glorifying experience, we had to get in on the museum bit. All sorts of random shite to please the eye balls was available. A journey through automotive history and all mostly British chod. (that's a get out clause because some stuff i'd never seen before!) I did spy the Mustang hub caps on the transit though. Here's a pictorial view for your immediate pleasure...

A credit to the guys maintaining these things, they were fantastic!

Moar in a bit where we enter the world of British Leyland!

 

 

 

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

 

More after I've cooked some sausages...

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

[DVee8]

On 24/08/2021 at 21:08, EML said:

I had an 911 turbo driving experience for my 40th at Elvington.

Biggest money making racket i have ever witnessed,

Even Mr Fiddler of carry on camping fame would have been proud

It was extra money for the huge excess waiver.

Extra money for in car filming, then photo's 

More money to have a few laps as a passenger in a car before you get chance to drive 

From sitting in the porsche to getting back in my car was 15 MINS......

It wasnt as if the circuit was good, a runway with 1000's of cones.

Becoming cone blind was manditory

2/10

I did the same, track day in the same car about 5years ago. The 911's dash was like a Christmas tree full of warning lights. Didn't get a long enough straight to open it up fully.

So many cones and other people on track.

Yep a money making exercise of extra insurance in case you hit or run off the track. Not much of a chance that happening.

We did get a high speed passenger ride in a Focus RS , that was OK.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

That is Elton's Bentley with Alpine system wedged in there. Wood. (not Elton, the car). I am going back here as soon as I can. Price breakdown:

3 car drive and museum entry for 2 adults and a kid, a night stay in a rather risky Premiere inn with breakfast chucked in, £200 + fuel and a dinner. That aint bad.

Can't big this place up enough, it's the most enjoyable fun I've had of recent times and thanks Sam, great guy. https://www.drivedadscar.com/

 

[anonymous user]

10 hours ago, Matty said:

Sell you my licence if you want. My bottle went a few years back 😁

My aunt had a motorcycle licence, she had never ridden one. I think it was a wartime glitch where she was given a driving licence when working for the GPO. She didn't drive for years, but kept her licence going and only started driving again in the 1970s after my grandfather had to stop. She panicked when she got a new paper licence (which replaced the little red book type) as it showed she had entitlement for everything. It took us while to persuade her that nobody was going to make he ride a motorcycle or drive a lorry.

[sierraman]

This makes me think about those you see in a no doubt financed nice car on a track day. Racing about on same bit of tarmac as a group of blokes whose bought an old ST220 to rag round for the laugh. What happens if you have a bang? Presumably you are on your own?

[warch]

The OPs driving day sounds awesome I’d usually like to ‘have a go’ in something mundane but different, rather than gingerly drive a Porsche around a circuit whilst being micromanaged by a bloke in a Prodrive shirt.

I would love a HGV or bus experience as in driving one not stuck behind one. 
 

Rallying sounds like fun and I would like to do a motorcycle track day but would prefer to bring my own bike which would be a old 600 I wouldn’t mind binning too much. 
 

The only thing that bothers me with the latter is I just want to circulate around the track, I can imagine spending the whole time trying to keep out of the way of faster riders or getting grief for being on the wrong line or whatever.

[Spiny Norman]

For my 40th far too many years ago a mate got me a driving experience day at Knockhill and it was fugging ace!
Lasted about 3 hours what with safety briefings, introductions, being taken out for a hilarious demo drive in an MG ZS V6 being thrown all over the circuit as a 'What not to do' exercise, then I got taken out for a few laps one to one with an instructor (who  when I watched Gordon Shedden turn up a few years later in the BTCC I thought, 'I recognise you' ) in an MGF.
Then we got the choice of going out for about ten laps on our own in either a fairly ropey looking Formula Ford type thing or a Legend, which is like a 5/8ths scale Hot Rod with a big bike engine. I went for the latter and spent the  entire time overtaking everyone else who'd chosen the FF cars. 
I don;t know what other racetracks are like but Knockhill is insane, I loved every second of it.
 

[New POD]

8 hours ago, anonymous user said:

My aunt had a motorcycle licence, she had never ridden one. I think it was a wartime glitch where she was given a driving licence when working for the GPO. She didn't drive for years, but kept her licence going and only started driving again in the 1970s after my grandfather had to stop. She panicked when she got a new paper licence (which replaced the little red book type) as it showed she had entitlement for everything. It took us while to persuade her that nobody was going to make he ride a motorcycle or drive a lorry.

My mum has a motorcycle licence. When I was in primary school, our second car was a Capri.  A 150cc Capri scooter.  Mostly my Dad used it for the 3 miles to work.  But mum occassionally used it. 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

9 hours ago, warch said:

.....I would love a HGV or bus experience as in driving one not stuck behind one.....

Could lead to a whole new career 

[eddyramrod]

15 hours ago, Crispian_J_Hotson said:

That is Elton's Bentley with Alpine system wedged in there. Wood. (not Elton, the car). I am going back here as soon as I can. Price breakdown:

3 car drive and museum entry for 2 adults and a kid, a night stay in a rather risky Premiere inn with breakfast chucked in, £200 + fuel and a dinner. That aint bad.

Can't big this place up enough, it's the most enjoyable fun I've had of recent times and thanks Sam, great guy. https://www.drivedadscar.com/

 

That's excellent!  I've saved the link in case I get the chance to visit.