Having done the Lamborghini Experience we were pretty much ready to tackle anything! The afternoon was to be spent doing the rally driving experience - a chance to drive four cars on a gravel circuit and smooth circuit. After an initial briefing we were split into teams, with each team doing different events.
The events were: VW Polo on gravel, Ford Focus on gravel, Subaru on smooth and then a Mitsubishi Evo on the smooth track! Fortunately we got to build up from small to big as rally driving is nothing like you've ever experienced.
The polo on gravel was an absolute nightmare. It requires strong steering wheel control and although you never get out of second gear there's inherent dread of crashing. The instructor, Jason, was brilliant and made you feel you weren't totally incapable of driving. The Focus on gravel was a lot more fun and gave me the biggest adrenalin buzz of the day. It was easier to handle than the Polo and I'd have loved a few more laps in that car.
After the gravel track comes the tarmac! To familiarise you with the circuit the instructor gives you a lap or two in the Subaru before handing over the controls. This was the closest to driving a normal car around lots of traffic cones that the day got, but you're encouraged to push the car and yourself. It was a lot of fun too.
The experience then ends with the Mistubishi Evo. Again you're encouraged to accelerate and push the car. A beast of a car and really fun to drive. And the end of the experience your instructor gives you a rating. It's unclear how meaningful this is, but as he marked myself and my wife the same we think he should be a UN diplomat!
As time runs out at Prestwold Hall, Everyman do run some offers and for £20 you can be driven round the gravel track in the Subaru by a rally driver. If ever you needed a demonstration on how badly you performed, then take advantage of this! Great fun - although a couple of laps more would have been nice.
The day should have ended at this point, but after collecting our photos (well worth doing) and certificates it was then we discovered that we should have done the Audi Experience too. Fortunately there was time to do this and we had the track almost all to ourselves as we took the Audis out for a spin. They are more comfortable to drive compared to the Lamborghini, although perhaps not as iconic!
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