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When it is time to get a gift for our daughter, Sam, my wife and I try to search out something special. We try to give her more of an experience then just a gift to open. We have been doing this for her for 12 years now.
For her birthday this year we gave her a complete driving school program with Team Texas at the Texas Speedway where she gets a feeling for driving a NASCAR Sprint car by actually getting behind the wheel and driving the car herself.
She had a two hour classroom session then 4 laps as a passenger one on one with a licensed NASCAR driver behind the wheel before taking the car out on the track herself for 10 laps with the NASCAR driver riding as passenger. She said she absolutely loved the whole experience.
She said the centrifigal force on the banked turns was something she never thought about until she went through it. Another thing was the steering. It was power steering but it still took a lot of muscle to handle the car in the turns. She had to use a helmet radio because the car was so loud inside the car that regular conversation was impossible.
The school puts up to 12 cars at a time, depending on the number of students, on the track so she was able to pass and be passed just like a real race.
Her best lap averaged 148 MPH and that was while passing 4 other cars and being passed twice herself.
All in all it was a great experience and a memory she will enjoy the rest of her life.
I think our next gift will be a driving school here in Florida where she will be able to drive a fuel dragster and a real funny car.
These experiences are not inexpensive but I think it's a great way to spend money!!!
Don
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![20191117_204117.jpg]()
For her birthday this year we gave her a complete driving school program with Team Texas at the Texas Speedway where she gets a feeling for driving a NASCAR Sprint car by actually getting behind the wheel and driving the car herself.
She had a two hour classroom session then 4 laps as a passenger one on one with a licensed NASCAR driver behind the wheel before taking the car out on the track herself for 10 laps with the NASCAR driver riding as passenger. She said she absolutely loved the whole experience.
She said the centrifigal force on the banked turns was something she never thought about until she went through it. Another thing was the steering. It was power steering but it still took a lot of muscle to handle the car in the turns. She had to use a helmet radio because the car was so loud inside the car that regular conversation was impossible.
The school puts up to 12 cars at a time, depending on the number of students, on the track so she was able to pass and be passed just like a real race.
Her best lap averaged 148 MPH and that was while passing 4 other cars and being passed twice herself.
All in all it was a great experience and a memory she will enjoy the rest of her life.
I think our next gift will be a driving school here in Florida where she will be able to drive a fuel dragster and a real funny car.
These experiences are not inexpensive but I think it's a great way to spend money!!!
Don
.
.
.
