Eurofest 2008

The start of the day didn't go according to plan, leaving late due to a certain someone sleeping in left us rushing around with the car not fully prepped for the day ahead.

We got our arses in gear and arrived at Castle Coombe with 5 minutes to spare before the close of the decibel testing and safety briefing to allow us out on track (the first session being a 9am start).

Unlike previous track days the weather had not been kind and the track was very soggy. Unfortunately I had not had much experience in the wet so I really was only just getting to grips with it during the first session. It was a bit of an experience feeling the car slipping and sliding round the track but I was starting to get used to it.

Unfortunately I may have got a little bit overconfident before I was ready. On the last lap of the first session I managed to get myself completely off of the racing line and lost control which sent us hurtling towards the tyre barrier at just under 80mph. Definitely time for fresh underwear!

We did hit the barrier which brought us to an abrupt stop but we weren't hurt. On inspection of the car the wing and bumper looked a little worse for wear but miraculously all was ok, no structural or mechanical damage. We were able to drive it back off track no problems ready to dust ourselves off... and go out again.

The second session went a lot more smoothly and the car was looking good (even with the new expertly applied duck tape to secure the shattered indicator). Rich (my equally mad co-driver) decided now was a good time to start the much needed tuition on racing lines and how to stay on them.

After the session finished we had a wander round the rest of the event. We bumped into Neil from Fast Ford who proceeded to have a good old laugh at my earlier exploits. After a bit of a chat I did manage to find more track sessions were available so I got a few more booked up. I even managed to blag an invite to the Fast Ford track session (maybe they felt a little sorry for me but who cares!!! I wasn't gonna say no).

The following sessions saw the track drying out and in a condition I was certainly more used to. I was back pushing as hard as possible and harassing the very feebly driven french collection of vehicles while a 328 BMW was giving it some beans (but still not shaking me off).

The Fast Ford track session was a real blast but I was left for dust by Neil (Of said Fast Ford) as he hammered off round the track.

Somehow a Corsa had made it into the session but after trying to give me a run for my money I quickly earnt a compliment as the driver commented on how well the track car was going (especially when he found out that the engine was (still) standard)

After more wandering round we found that the official photographer had managed to capture that magical moment when it all went wrong earlier in the day so that photo just had to be purchased for prosperity.

The rest of the afternoon was spent gunning it round the track, trying to improve my positioning on the track and aiming for an ever quicker time.

No other hitches came to light and I managed to stay on the track (and out of the barriers).