You have no clue what a racecar driver goes through during competition. That’s what I came away with after speeding–if you can call it that–in a stock car for a participatory program run by the Richard Petty Driving Experience (800-BE-PETTY; www.1800bepetty.com) at Joliet’s Chicagoland Speedway.
After some tutelage, I got into a fire-resistant suit and put on a helmet that felt like I was wearing a bowling ball.
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I wiggled through the cockpit window and was strapped into a crisscross seat belt so tight my future children wailed.
As experienced driver Dave Erickson helped with the stick shift (stop laughing), 600 horses and I went for eight nerve-racking laps along with several other people–thankfully, not all at the same time.
I was too nervous to remember much: gripping the steering wheel for dear life; worrying I would bump into the pace car I followed, which helped navigate the track’s twists and turns; the smell of burning rubber; fear of getting too close to the wall ringing the track; a bead of sweat rolling down my face.
I literally kissed the ground when I was done.
I topped out at only 117 miles per hour. Others whipped around in the 120s to 140s.
“I’d have to give you probably about a B,” Erickson said. “You did a great job out there.”
Oh, I’m a demon on wheels.
I took a ride afterward with racer Bob Keck, who soared at 160 m.p.h. for three laps. The experience was dizzying, but there were several Chicago Bears participating, so I had to “man up.”
Still, the program is exhilarating. I gained a new appreciation for NASCAR racers who concentrate on more than my piddly worries–and contend with them for three to four hours a race.
The Richard Petty Driving Experience has seven permanent facilities and visits 18 other tracks around the country. The Chicagoland Speedway driving program operates through September.
A Ride-Along (three laps with a driver) costs $99; my Rookie Experience (8 laps by yourself) is $379; the King’s Experience (18 laps) is $799; and the Experience of a Lifetime (30 laps) is $1,249.
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On the radio.
Kathy and Judy wonder if getting behind the wheel like this is really worth it. Listen to WGN-AM 720 between 9 a.m. and noon Monday.