Yucca

Ferrari 360 fun at Silverstone

Q: What is worth getting out of bed for at 6.30am on a Sunday morning?

A: I’d normally only be rising at this rude hour if the surf was good, or if the promise of pristine Alpine singletrack loomed.

But, as it happened, we were in deepest Buckinghamshire where Yucca-client Silverstone had booked me and a couple of very excited school mates onto their Ferrari driving experience - well on a par with biking and surfing!

This was the weekend of the flooding in Cumbria, and the heavens had literally downloaded for hours on end. On our arrival at Silverstone, the track was still wet but at least the rain had stopped. Apparently, this is the worst state for the track to be in, caught in limbo between being too soggy for slick tyres, but not great for radial “wets” either.

In this netherworld of uncertainty, the track takes on the friction dynamics of an ice rink, as water, oil and grease conspire to make things very slippery indeed – just what you need when unleashing 400bhp whilst exiting a corner.

We checked in at the rather cool, neon Experience Centre, grabbed a coffee and waited for our briefing to start. Then we headed to Room 3 where, for 40 minutes, we were taken through the dynamics high speed driving.

Smoothness and keeping calm seemed to be mentioned quite a bit, as were the details of what happens when you turn too quickly into a corner or the car suddenly starts under-steering.

Post briefing, we drove over to the very same pits that are used for the F1 Grand Prix. First up were three laps in a Lotus Exige. The power-to-weight ratio of this feisty little car is true madness and it was great fun to learn the ‘Southern Circuit’ which we would be on for the rest of the day.

The Exige was the ideal warm up to the main event – the Ferrari 360 F1 Modena. The five Ferraris being used had all been modified and their V8 engines sound simply divine, even when you’re just standing next to one of them.

So, the door was opened for me, I was strapped in and then the head instructor talked me through the paddle shift operation, the 0-60 in 4.3 seconds capabilities and the 400bhp sitting inches from my ears.

I was issued the order to depart and suddenly I was driving a car that is on my list of cars to drive before I lose the guts to drive them properly. The three laps passed very quickly, maxing on Club Straight around the 110mph mark. There was one moment, doing around 90mph, when the instructor had to grab the wheel as I took a rather over-ambitious approach into a corner.

Smiles all round.

The last part of the experience was a high speed lap with one of the instructors driving. This was just a hoot, hammering around some of the bends going sideways at 70+ mph. It really was impressive what the instructors could do.

Waiting for the final part really shed some light on the types of people on these experiences. There were some real petrol heads, like two chaps from Birmingham. They explained (in their rather thick Brummie accents) that in their day jobs as lorry drivers they were restricted to 54mph, so this the driving experience was a great way to let off some steam.

Another guy had been given the experience day as a gift from his wife and was so excited he couldn't stand still.

The day ended with the presentation of driving certificates to all involved, together with an assessment of our driving. I’m happy to report that I did Yucca proud and came top of the group with 90%.

One of the other drivers had spun one of the Ferraris that day and I was very glad it wasn’t me: never a good way start to the week with a client!

Thanks again to Silverstone for sorting a great day out. I drove home at the national speed limit the whole way, naturally.