Special Race Day at Ricardo Tormo Circuit, Cheste, Valencia, Spain
Sunday, May 5th, 2013 the racing circuit at Ricardo Tormo, in Cheste, Valencia opened the course to all those Wanna Be's who have dreamt of being a Hamilton or a Vettel or an Alonzo. You were permitted to bring your private car to the course, and after paying an entry fee of 250 euros, plus incidentals like insurance, etc, you got to go out on the course and do your thing.
I had considered taking my Jag along, but I'm not so sure I should be racing my classic car around the course. That would be pushing the car to, and probably beyond its limits, which would be a terrible thing to do to an 18-year old. So, I went to watch the action. The first thing I noticed was that there was not one Jaguar in the place. A wise choice on my part! I got there about 11am, and the only action that was taking place was with three Formula 3 cars that were doing the course, then coming in to the pit stop for a change of driver. That gave me the impression that I had misunderstood. It seemed that you could only go around the course in one of those.
I was beginning to have second thoughts. That would have been different. Perhaps I should sign up. However, at noonday, (12o'clock) out came the procession of private cars. They were 24 in all. One car was allowed to go around on its own. It fished tailed all the way, seeming never to gain control. Everybody stood and watched in awe and horror. Why was this happening? The answer was simple. The car was being driven by a stunt driver, but he succeeded in freaking out all the novices who were ready to go.
The line up included a Porshe, several BMW's, a couple of Mercedes, and a red Ferrari. They were supposed to be able to do four laps of the course, but in the end they were allowed to do about double that. They all began nicely enough as they got the feel of the course, with several coming in to change drivers. As they got into the swing of things they began to relax and the competition became fierce with a whole lot of overtaking going on, just like on the motorway. The Ferrari came in for a change of driver, and as the new driver was making his second lap, he skidded and spun three times, ending safely off the track. The car was not damaged although it took them a long time to return to the pits, mostly I think, because the drivers were so shook up. I'm fairly certain the driver must have tightened his butt muscles.
I think everybody must have had fun. They certainly drove their cars hard. At least two came in to say that they had no brakes because of overheating. They were lucky to have had a perfect day, weather-wise, although the moderately hot conditions would not have helped with tyre temperatures. Fortunately there were no accidents that involved damage to cars, nor injuries.
Closer to Christmas there will be Classic Car Day at the track that will allow me to take the Jag to the course and to drive children from some care homes to fulfill a wish for them. It will also fulfill a wish for me as well, so I will definitely look forward to that. It''s in my diary so I will report on that experience with pleasure.
So, you want to be a race car driver? Private cars on the race track at Cheste.
Copyright (c) 2013 Eugene Carmichael
