Driving Experience Track Day-Taking A Caterham For A Spin!

In August, I was lucky enough to be invited to a driving experience with a difference. A friend who owns a Caterham 420R thought it was a good idea to allow me behind the wheel of his prize possession (how naïve!) so how could I turn down a track day experience, especially when I own an experience day company, and also get the chance to hang out with my mate!

Based at the Anglesey circuit in Welsh Tracmôn with mountains on one side and ocean on the other, this could this be the most beautiful race circuit in the UK! It certainly felt like it when the sun came out over the circuit.

We arrived at 7:30am for registration and wristband allocation with the obligatory track and safety briefing. The running order for the day was:

Track Day Times: 9:00am to 5.00pm
Lunch Break: 1:00pm to 2:00pm

When the session opened, we headed to the pit garage where the Caterham was fully prepped, fuelled and ready to go. We got suited up and packed ourselves tightly into the pocket rocket (Caterham 420R) and headed out onto the circuit.

With the adrenaline pumping, we rolled out of the pits and up to the marshal for our final checks before we headed out onto the circuit. Having personally been in some of the fastest road cars built, this first session was an amazing driving experience even for me, (or should I say passenger hot ride experience).

We slowly built up our speed with every lap to develop the heat into the tyres and gain an understanding of the Anglesey circuit. I was amazed at the speeds we were hitting down the back straight at times so much so that my helmet would lift with the force that it was subjected to (there’s no passenger windscreen). It was crazy, but so much fun. With every lap punched in, the control of the car, hitting the apex and hooking it up lap after lap was awe inspiring! It was an experience to be a passenger on his hot laps.

So, then it was my go! After carefully watching every input he put into the 420r, I thought “I’ve got this”… oh how wrong I was!! This little skitty pocket rocket wanted to teach me a lesson I thought I would never need to learn! Before I continue, a quick confession; I’ve many hours of racing karts and felt by the time I came to hang up my racing gloves, that I was good enough not to lose control of it, even in the wet. I was wrong and this was a quick learning curve of braking in a straight-line and heal braking through the corner, but this is not something that I’m used neither have I ever done before, knowingly anyway!

After both of us had a few more runs in the morning session, it was time for the lunch break. The track day organisers and marshals close the circuit and everyone heads to the onsite canteen so I tucked into a well deserved steak pie and chips which was delicious. I don’t, however, recommend stuffing your face then jumping back into a rollercoaster car as soon as the afternoon season opens!

The afternoon session was as much fun if not a little more controlled (by me) with what can be considered an incident free track day.

The supercar track day was something that I’d fully recommend and if you don’t have a very generous friend with a Caterham sitting in the garage, then go and have a blast in one of the many supercar experience days we offer. You will not regret it and I certainly recommend a passenger hot ride lap with a professional driver as your mind will be blown and your adrenaline will be pumping with a grin from ear to ear!