Event date: 11 May 2024
Wow, what a day. Cloudy skies and a wet track presented no promises as we entered Sandown Raceway in our 5 Series BMW. Unlike the other Come and Try Days I had attended, this was an AROCA Sprint Round, which meant that the sessions were timed. The first round came and went with the presence of a wet track, however, all was well under the guidance of Graeme Bell. In the second round, the first glimpses of sunshine arrived, drying up certain parts of the track. By the time of the third session, it was past 1 pm, and I was seated in the car with Shannon Cooper receiving top-notch training from an E30 driver. On the third lap I got a surprise when I noticed the black flag aimed at my car. Unaware of the issue, we entered the pit lane where we were informed that we weren’t allowed 2 passengers in the vehicle during the competition. After some negotiation, we were granted one more round with an instructor before I would have to drive by myself. Suddenly it felt like everything came crashing down. I went from driving on the track with exceptional guidance from some of the best to being chucked into the deep end with no headlights. But hey, you got to start someday right?
Going into the solo round, I felt slightly nervous but confident in my abilities to control and handle the car. Focusing on spatial awareness and checking my mirrors in the first half of the day made me convinced that I would do okay. And let me tell you, I did more than okay. As soon as I entered the track and got into my driving rhythm, I completely forgot about the fact that I was driving by myself. Better than that, I achieved my fastest lap of the whole day in that final round!
This goes to show that whilst things may be difficult and scary at first, it’s all about popping that blister and giving it a go for the first time. Because trust me when I say that I wouldn’t have gone out on my own if it wasn’t for the motorsport regulations for that particular competition.
Claire Trainor | Member #1020
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne
