The Journey Begins: A Text from Harry Metzger Sets it All Off

It all started with a simple text message from Harry Metzger, a late-night text that read "how do you fancy driving the leemon winning Audi?" The message was sent quickly, and the recipient couldn't help but feel excited. The text was just one of those moments where everything felt right, like a perfect storm had come together to make this opportunity a reality.

A Couple of Weeks Later

Just a couple of weeks later, the day arrived for the main event. The day started off with a bit of a classroom session, where the team took the car on a tour around it, explaining all the different switches and operations that needed to be performed. This was an important step in understanding the car's capabilities and limitations. After the briefing, they made their way down to the pit lane, where Alan McNish had been waiting most of the day. Alan had taken Richard to road cars to show him some lines once you're up to speed.

Learning the Lines

The first line was flat, with the instructor explaining how to brake come down the gears to third and let it roll, turn in, and get back into First or Second gear. This exercise helped Richard understand that taking more speed through the right side didn't matter as much as he thought it would. Once he had mastered this simple maneuver, Alan sat next to him while he drove around for a few laps to try and get his eye in. The goal was to forget about speed on the right for the speed on the left.

The Car: A Completely Alien Environment

As soon as Richard got into the car, it felt like a completely different world. The little bubble canopy and letter box wind screen made it look intimidating from the outside, but once inside, it was tight and snug, making him feel like he was part of the car itself. Alan had described the car as looking like it had been through a war, with bits peeling off and burn marks down the side from previous encounters with other cars.

The Realization

For Richard, it was a surreal experience getting behind the wheel of a car that had experienced so much in its 24-hour journey. The fact that it looked almost as bad as it did after being rolled into the truck after the race was mind-boggling. Yet, despite its rough exterior, the car still felt like a work of art, with its precise engineering and responsive handling.

Five Lap Limit

After the initial excitement, Richard realized that they had only five laps to drive in the car. The plan was to take out three laps and then bring it back in one piece. However, as he started driving, he couldn't help but want to experiment with some of the quicker corners. But for now, the priority was just to get a feel for the car and make sure they didn't push their luck.

An Unforgettable Experience

The experience was truly unforgettable, and Richard felt grateful to have had the chance to drive such an incredible car. He realized that it gave him much more feedback than he would expect, despite its intimidating appearance. The five laps were a tiny window into what it's like to drive this car, but for Richard, it was a memorable experience that he would cherish forever.

A Fabulous Car and an Unforgettable Experience

In the end, it all came together in a way that made the experience truly special. The car was not only fascinating but also engineered in such a way that it tells you lots about driving. For Richard, most of his experience was bad, but it gave him more feedback than he expected. The real challenge was getting used to the fact that this car wasn't as intimidating as he thought it would be.

The Special Car and an Unforgettable Journey

In conclusion, Richard's journey in the leemon winning Audi was one for the books. From a simple text message that started it all, to the unforgettable experience of driving such an incredible car, every moment was filled with excitement and anticipation. The car's unique features and the team's expertise made this drive truly special, and Richard felt grateful to have had the chance to be a part of it.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enit all started with a text a late night text from Harry Metar which just said how do you fancy driving the leemon winning Audi which just it's the kind of text you like to get really so quickly sent yes yes yes yes yes please um and a couple of weeks later here we are the day's actually been incredibly relaxed it started off with a bit of a classroom session where they took us around the car uh particularly the steering wheel with all the different switches and and operations we need to do um and then we came came down to the pit Lane Alan mcnish has been here most of the day and he's taken me round in a road car to show me some lines once you're up to speed this first one's flat really really brake come down the gears to third come off the brake and let it roll turn in get it down to First maybe second here and onto the throttle yeah this one you can take more speed through the right because it doesn't really matter where you are if you're here or here or here and then he sat next to me poor guy while I drive around for a few um just to try and get my eye in one know always think forget the speed on the right for the speed on the left now you've got that Kink where you're breaking and tuning and then literally it was straight in the car so once you're in it's a completely alien environment ready to check ready to check see that Richard loud and clear just a little bubble canopy and letter box wind screen it looks from the outside it looks quite an intimidating place but once you're in it's really tight and snug and you feel completely part of the car as Alan mcnish said it looks like it's been through a war because it it has for 24 hours and there's there's bits peeling off it and there's burn marks down the side where it's had touches with other cars and there's still the bugs on it and oil and dirt and it's just it's literally as as they rolled it into the truck after the race it's as it is so yeah for us to be able to drive that car as it was is is yeah amazing but yeah from that point on we had five just five laps in the car so an out laap three time laps and an in laap every lap you're telling yourself it can do this it can do that through some of the really quick corners but today wasn't the day to really have a have an experiment with that so priority was just to get a feel for the car and and to bring it back in one piece um amazing experience really fabulous car the way it's engineered and the way it feels and it it tells you lots about the driving much most of it bad in my case but it it gives you much more feedback than maybe you would expect it's not as intimidating as as I certainly thought it would be um so you five laps is a just a tiny little window into what the things like to drive but um yeah Unforgettable experience and and a really really special carit all started with a text a late night text from Harry Metar which just said how do you fancy driving the leemon winning Audi which just it's the kind of text you like to get really so quickly sent yes yes yes yes yes please um and a couple of weeks later here we are the day's actually been incredibly relaxed it started off with a bit of a classroom session where they took us around the car uh particularly the steering wheel with all the different switches and and operations we need to do um and then we came came down to the pit Lane Alan mcnish has been here most of the day and he's taken me round in a road car to show me some lines once you're up to speed this first one's flat really really brake come down the gears to third come off the brake and let it roll turn in get it down to First maybe second here and onto the throttle yeah this one you can take more speed through the right because it doesn't really matter where you are if you're here or here or here and then he sat next to me poor guy while I drive around for a few um just to try and get my eye in one know always think forget the speed on the right for the speed on the left now you've got that Kink where you're breaking and tuning and then literally it was straight in the car so once you're in it's a completely alien environment ready to check ready to check see that Richard loud and clear just a little bubble canopy and letter box wind screen it looks from the outside it looks quite an intimidating place but once you're in it's really tight and snug and you feel completely part of the car as Alan mcnish said it looks like it's been through a war because it it has for 24 hours and there's there's bits peeling off it and there's burn marks down the side where it's had touches with other cars and there's still the bugs on it and oil and dirt and it's just it's literally as as they rolled it into the truck after the race it's as it is so yeah for us to be able to drive that car as it was is is yeah amazing but yeah from that point on we had five just five laps in the car so an out laap three time laps and an in laap every lap you're telling yourself it can do this it can do that through some of the really quick corners but today wasn't the day to really have a have an experiment with that so priority was just to get a feel for the car and and to bring it back in one piece um amazing experience really fabulous car the way it's engineered and the way it feels and it it tells you lots about the driving much most of it bad in my case but it it gives you much more feedback than maybe you would expect it's not as intimidating as as I certainly thought it would be um so you five laps is a just a tiny little window into what the things like to drive but um yeah Unforgettable experience and and a really really special car\n"