Getting out on the race track
With the squirmy bit out of the way my attention could turn to the practical element of the day – driving around the famous Goodwood Motor Circuit. Even behind the wheel of something as relatively mundane as a Mini Cooper S, there is an instant thrill that comes from lapping on a race track, especially one so fast and flowing as Goodwood.
Days like this nail down the idea that pure speed alone is not the be all and end all when it comes to getting that adrenaline fix. Sure, cataclysmic acceleration will get the heart pumping like little else, but even as I watched the speedometer just barely creep above 100mph down the Lavant Straight, the exhilaration was still enough to get my pulse up considerably.
That’s a good thing, because this is very much the initial step on the path to becoming a racing driver, and speed is a notion that is ranked a long way down on the list of priorities. Safety, consistency and confidence are all far more important here. And that is something that, as I came out of the other side of this experience, I am utterly in support of. I’ve experienced my fair share of track time, whether here at Goodwood, at Thruxton, or elsewhere in the UK, but never with any kind of pressure attached besides making sure I didn’t end up in the hedge.
So, coming into this more serious, assessed environment, this was the first time my driving would be scrutinised in any kind of meaningful way. I was concerned going in about how my performance would stack up, but it’s obvious that the ARDS test is designed to help people stay within their comfort zone. Every step of the way, I felt as though I was being set up to succeed. I may well have had a touch more track experience than the standard attendee, perhaps not, but I never felt as though I was dragged out of my depth.