Lamborghini Beverly Hills sponsors a "trackday" at The Thermal Club
The fascination with racing transcends time and
culture. There is something about pushing a high performance machine to its
limit that evokes a natural high. We are oragnically conditioned to want to go
faster; we are conditioned to upgrade, customize, and flex our muscles, whether
with the bodies we are born with or with the racing machines we create.
In the past, this fascination was lived vicariously
through the documented lives of professional racers whose exploits on international
tracks were nothing more than dreams and fantasy.
Recently, beyond the glamorous fantasy of living
a successful racecar driver’s life, a new emphasis on the grueling training and
driving technique behind the profession has developed. Take, for example, the
movie Rush where actors Chris
Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl
display the riveting rivalry between Formula 1 racers James Hunt and Nikki Lauda.
“Downshifts” and “trailing brake oversteer” were terms for techniques that used
to mean little to the average sports car fan but have now become a natural and
relatable aspect in portraying racing in current media and art. A new clarity
now replaces the sense of mystery behind the wheel, almost persuading the
common viewer that anybody can drive at speeds upwards of 100 mph on beautiful
curves like those of Mulholland Drive.
Where pop culture goes, "real life"
often follows, and in recent years, high performance driving and racing have
gained new momentum, borne out by the widespread increase in sponsored
"trackdays" and driving experiences. So much so that such events for
even the freshest of novices are now part of any serious car marques’ marketing
strategy book. Even small bleeding edge supercar maker Automobili Lamborghini has
gotten in on the game, creating a comprehensive global Esperienza program, as
well as sponsoring the single make Super Trofeo series in Europe, Asia, and now
the US.
I recently had the chance to participate in a
"track day” experience sponsored by Lamborghini Beverly Hills.
A panorama of the beginning/end of the 4 part track
Driving into the entrance of the private
membership Thermal Club located in Thermal, California was like entering a
boxing arena. With solid beige walls surrounding the track and villas in
progress dotting the surrounding area, there was an ominous quiet. I couldn’t
contain my excitement as I drove down the palm tree lined driveway. Having been
to professional motorsports tracks before, I expected to spend the day on the
sidelines as I was surrounded by such a high performance selection of cars and
such an experienced group of people. But as it turned out, this would be a
driving experience unlike any I had experienced before.
A couple years ago, I participated in the AAA
driver’s course at the Auto Club Speedway. Going into the workshop, I expected
a refresher in the basic braking and safety laws. Instead, I burned through my
brakes, tested my Mercedes E500’s capability to handle hairpin turns, and
developed a natural reaction to a slide out. For this purpose, I highly
recommend anyone going to the track for the first time to participate in one of
these safety courses. There is a level of comfort attained only when you’ve
tested the vehicle yourself. The numbers, demonstrations, and verbal
confirmation of the cars look fantastic on paper, but it is only when you
yourself know how much your car can handle that the gut feeling of skepticism
about a seemingly impossible task finally settles. Such knowledge and
experience at the edge even has clear benefits to the average driver that
diligently follows every traffic law in the books; one never knows when a rain
slicked road will drop the thresholds of roadholding physics unexpectedly to
well below even posted limits...
As I drove further into the grounds of the
Thermal Club, more and more things revealed themselves. Complete with
go-karts, autocross track, skid pad, and a four-sectioned track, it was a
veritable Disneyland for cars. I began to hear the distant throbbing revs of
performance engines warming up, bringing their lifeblood and other fluids to
optimum operating temperatures. When we finally met up with the rest of the
group, the wide variety of cars was like a display from a sports car fan's paradise.
Ranging from an AMG SL65 Black Series to McLarens, track prepped Porsches and
Ferraris to the new Lamborghini Super Trofeo, cars from all over Southern
California were brought out to be tested and pushed to their limits.
We started off the day with an introduction of
the instructors we would be working with - most from Lamborghini driving
programs. These experienced drivers would be coaching us and leading us through
a series of activities to push our cars’ boundaries as well as our personal
limits. Drawing guests from all over California and beyond, including Bruce and Kendall Jenner, the day got underway with an initial split between
the experienced track drivers and the guests experiencing track driving for the
first time.
Kendall Jenner on a test drive. Credit: Kendall Jenner's Instagram @kendalljenner
The first station I went to was the main track,
as I tagged along with the more experienced drivers. With safety as our first
priority, drivers were asked to line their cars along the track for inspections
of oil, tires, brakes, etc. We then pulled into the track in order and began
practice runs to familiarize ourselves with the track. Following the lead of Paris Mullin we began our
familiarization drive….
My favorite part of the day came after lunch, at
the autocross station. The stage was set up with two Porsche Caymans, one blue
and one orange. Walking up to the circuit, I cockily assessed the small track -
straightaway, double S curve, tight hairpin, easy weave, short straight, last
hairpin, and easy end inside a stop box. Simple.
Once I actually got into the car, nervousness
suddenly overtook, making me ask driver Miles
Maroney to show me the course first. I couldn’t have my first run on this
track be a scene from Driving Miss Daisy.
Unfortunately, having a professional driver show me the track both sparked my
competitive side and gave me a false sense of capability. Being in the
passenger seat, we finished the course in 28 seconds. Sounds easy right?
Brittany Gruning and Miles Maroney about to go for a run on the autocross
With a big grin, Miles got out of the car and
joined the little group I had gained in watching me from the sidelines. As I
sauntered over to the driver seat, there was a little loop playing in my head
of how cool drivers looked when they got in their cars prior to a race. That
same cool factor when they get behind the wheel and know they’ll have a hell of
a race. I got in, cool as a cucumber, adjusted my seat for the proper
performance driving position, adjusted the steering wheel, practiced my leg
shift from gas to brake and back again, and silently recited a glorious verse
of Kenny Loggins as pump up for what was about to be the most epic first run,
ever...
I would love to say I flew past the finish line
and stopped in the stop box with a triumphant grin of victory while looking at
the timer display reading 27 seconds, but sadly, that couldn’t have been
further from what happened.
33 seconds later, yes, a whole six seconds
slower than I had aimed for, I cruised into the stop box.
How and why was I so slow?
The first problem was how hesitant I was to
power out of the turn. Another problem was using too much of the track during
the turn. In the initial more gradual curves, there is a tendency to use the
brake during them, which is absolutely not the correct maneuver for a beginner,
even if it is intuitive. When the brakes are used mid-turn, the car’s momentum
coupled with braking will tend to throw the car's rear end around and cause the
tires to lose traction with the pavement, resulting in oversteer or at best, a
four wheeled push.
In the second run, I was accompanied by driving
coach Bryce Miller. He explained
that the second the rear of the car clears the turn and you are pointed where
you want to go, my foot should fully be pressing on the gas. That way I reach
my fastest speed at the beginning of the straight away following the curve
instead of midway, shaving off precious partial seconds. Addressing my second
mistake, I was hugging the inside of the turn leaving no room for the back of
the car of clear when I went around the following curve. Although instinctually
when faced with an s-curve, one might want to shorten the turning radiuses by
clipping the inside of the curves for more of a straight line, I was actually
sliding out. By staying in the middle of the track, I was able to come out of
the s-curve with more control and speed because the individual curves were not
as severe, but more of a straight line.
I finished my second run in 30.83 seconds – more
than two seconds faster, but still not good enough. I had to break 30 seconds.
Going around the third time, I felt a difference in my comfort level with the
car. I had driven a Porsche Cayman before, so the car was not a complete
stranger to me. What this run gave me was the comfort that I knew how the car
would respond to me when pushed. To raise my comfort level, I asked Bryce to
drive the course in the same car. Having only driven an autocross once before
with the Lamborghini Aventador, a car not ideally suited for autocross, there
was a promise that I would really know how much the car could handle.
The trick to the autocross course was aiming for
the butt of the car to tap the cones. Once I felt that motion, the course was
mine and it became a matter of how much I personally could handle. As I pushed
myself to the point where I felt like I was practically abusing the car, I
finally made it past the finish line in 29.6 seconds. My excitement was
unparalleled. It was at that moment that I got my first real taste of the
competitiveness and hunger to be behind the wheel, pushing the limits of tires
and physics.
My passion for the autocross course would not
have been as great without the finely tuned sportscar I drove. The Porsche
Cayman felt almost like an extension of my body. Incredibly responsive and
tight, the car was tuned to react as instinctively as a catcher’s mitt to a
baseball. Flooring the gas to begin my trial run, the car did lag a bit, but
once the rear wheels achieved hookup, the acceleration was powerful and a force
I could definitely feel in the small of my back. I did a couple of laps without
the TRS on and the difference was very obvious. There was a lot more slipping
and sliding and quick corrections by the driver between the gas, brakes, and
steering were required. Depending on your mindset, the car was either much more
alive and pure without traction control, or more stable and predictable with it
on, though in a controlled, artificial way.
Next up was the skid pad. We switched gears to
the BMW M3 sedan, its burnt orange paint subdued by half a day of skidpad
residue. For those who are unfamiliar with a skid pad, there are a circle of
cones or an outlined circle in the middle of a wet part of the track. The water
is mixed with soap to make the surface slippery. With this slippery surface and
sudden surge of speed, the cars begin to slide out causing the rear of the car
to whip around. The lesson of this course is to help drivers understand that
instead of the instinct to use the brake and turn the wheel in the direction of
the turn or even to straighten out the wheel, the driver must turn the wheel in
the same direction the back of the car is spinning at to catch the momentum,
otherwise known as "dialing in some opposite lock to catch the
spin."
Only after you catch the spin do you apply the brakes.
Participants take different BMW models out for a familiarity lap
I cruised into the skid pad at around 20-30 mph
and as I almost completed the 180-degree turn, I was told to stomp on the gas
for a solid 3 seconds. Initially, my instinct to pull my foot off the gas was
too fast to actually cause a slide out. After my third time around, I felt the
shift of the car and managed to catch the car. Having learned this at a
previous course, this maneuver came naturally and even saved my life during a
rainy night on the onramp of the 405 freeway.
What I did gain from this particular experience
was the trust in BMW and specifically, the 3 series. I cannot emphasize how
important and eye-opening testing a car is. When you are allowed an opportunity
to safely push the boundaries you have mentally put up regarding how far and
daring you would push your car, it is only then that your car has the chance to
prove itself to you.
Many buyers love a car and purchase the vehicle
based on a test drive around the parking lot or around the block and their
faith in the car is never truly tested. It is only when they are faced with a
freak occurrence or completely out of the ordinary moment that they become
afraid of the car and panic. What if the brakes don’t stop the car in time?
What if the wheels don't grip enough and the car pushes into the wall? What if
the car flips over?
These are the fears I have begun to conquer
through these courses. I do not advocate unsafe driving or putting other
drivers who are not as experienced in danger. I do however believe in preparing
for the worst and when those moments do happen, such as a freeway onramp
hairpin turn in the rain, I know how to handle it and I have full trust in the
car to handle the situation. This knowledge, experience, and confidence has
saved my life at least once...
Safety first
We finished the day off with more laps around
the big track. Drivers were allowed to take their cars out and around the track
at their own pace. As the sun closed in on the horizon, drivers were all
invited to drive the latest M4's and M3's.
With the desert sky showing off its range of
orange and pinks, the track turned into a private area for professional drivers
who were practicing for their next race. This gave time for participants to
really take in the cars of other guests, as well as examine the Lamborghini
Aventator, Gallardo, and Huracan. Lucky guests were allowed to test drive the
cars around the track earlier in the day but unfortunately, the cars began to
get a little shaky at the end.
All in all a most glorious day for a new
aspiring speedracer.