Just to make sure they really were dead, Walshy jumped in the drivers seat to do a demonstration drift lap:

Things didn’t start well when I realised after we left the garage that having given them my mobile phone number, I had left both my phones in the car.

We had promised to take a barbecued burger back for Gill at the garage when we returned. So in true Top Gear style we figured that to keep the burger warm we could wrap it in foil and place it on the engine for the journey. Strangely it turns out this was not exactly the best idea in the world. Halfway there we could smell it cooking. On arrival it was gone! It had fallen through and was sat on the undertray beside the exhaust flexi. However, we did learn that the roof bows make handy tongs for fishing out barbecued food.

Having arrived back home from Austin and SxSW, the following day held in store a once in a lifetime experience that no amount of jetlag would keep me away from.

Arriving home from the airport gave me enough time for a couple of hours sleep before jumping in the car and heading up to the hotel in Bedford for the night.

First thing the next morning we were all up and drove across to Bedford Autodrome, where we were signed in a sat down to breakfast (mmm breakfast… I had missed proper breakfasts for the last week. The Americans seem to have a thing for brightly coloured cereals and random sweet breads. That’s sweet doughy things rather than meats you wouldn’t feed to your dog.)

Over breakfast we were given a briefing about the cars and circuits we would be driving. The line-up was awesome consisting of a Caterham Seven (both on track and in head to head autotest style races, Renault Clio Cup, Porsche 911 JP3, Jaguar XKR, Landrover, Kart, Jaguar JP1 and the single seat Formula Jaguar!

Our team started the day in the rather lively Caterham Seven Superlights on the East Circuit. With a claimed power to weight ratio of 286bhp/tonne these cars are quick. Combine that with their weight of a mere 490kg and they are a handful. A lot of fun to drive although possibly not straight after a big breakfast.

With no time wasted, we were then taken to the North Circuit where the Renault Clio Cup Racers and Porsche 911 JP3s were waiting for us. First up for me was the Renault. Stripped of all creature comforts and fitted with a six-speed sequential gearbox operated by paddles, this car is absolutely nothing like the road-going version.

Then I was into the Porsche. I got in the car hoping that driving it would change my preconception of Porsches. I didn’t like Porsches. The design lacks imagination. They are incredibly well engineered, but I expected a lesser driving experience from them with all their ‘electrickery’. However, driving this particular model seemed to suit my driving style, surprising me with the fastest lap time in my team.

Last up before lunch was the Jaguar XKR on the South Circuit. Powered by a 420bhp 4.2 litre supercharged V8 this car promised a lot. Grip levels were astounding, but as I tried to be more precise with throwing it into the corners, my lap times dropped. I guess I just didn’t click with this car.

After lunch we headed over to the West Circuit and were installed into the Formula Jaguars. This is a ‘slicks and wings’ F1 style car. 0-60mph is 3.1 seconds with only 1.6 seconds for 60-0mph. It is powered by a 3.0 litre V6 engine and is capable of 2.3G whilst cornering. I spent the first few laps getting to grips with the way the car felt and responded to my input and gradually started pushing harder. Unfortunately all too soon the session came to an end. I would love to go back and try this machine again. I’m sure I didn’t manage to explore more than a tenth of its capabilities.

Next was a complete change of pace as we were put in Landrovers on the off-road course. This involved driving across seesaws, beams and insane gradients all the while looking to score points by hitting tennis balls suspended around the course with targets on the wing-mirrors and in the centre of the windscreen.

Then we were back on the pace for head to head timed runs round a wetted down autotest circuit in Caterham Sevens that were similar to those we had driven earlier in the day, but these had been set up to slide. This gave us the opportunity to compete against each other directly and show how good our handling skills were. Keeping the car pointing in the right direction was not easy, but it was great fun sliding the car round the bends.

We finished up the day in the Jaguar JP1, a slicks and wings two-seater with an instructor to help us get the best out of the car.

Amongst those who turned up were many new faces alongside the ‘old hands’. Hopefully the ‘newbies’ will come back for more of our meets. Possibly the ‘newest’ face was that of little K, passengering with her dad Wispy on her first run at the tender age of three months. Good work Wispy (and Di) – get her started early

Pretty soon after setting off, the phone calls started. AJK and Frimley111R had come off the road after exiting a bend to be greeted by a sheet of ice! Thankfully no damage was done, other than to their pride and whatever punishment Penny would give Andrew for getting her muddy as she helped push the car out of the very muddy grass verge. Once again luck was on our side as no damage was done to either driver or car, although Frimley111R felt unsafe to continue with his brakes so full of mud.

The remainder of the journey was much less treacherous, with the rising sun melting away the ice. Although a lot of care was needed in many places. As far as I’m aware, there were no further incidents.

Everyone remaining descended on the little cafe at Hayling Island by half 10 for a well earned breakfast to the amazement of the locals who clearly weren’t ready for 70 sports cars.

Best start planning the next run.

On a less geeky note, planning for the annual Seloc Winter Warmer run is well under way now. MSA approval has been provided, the cafe down at Hayling Island has been warned they will be swamped, RLO’s have been sent the route maps for their approval and around 70 people have signed up. All that remains is to sort everyone into groups and pray the weather isn’t too bad for the day. Roll on 6th January!

Anyway, we made it to Goodwood without me losing the plot (too much) and wandered in where we found god knows how many millions of pounds worth of exotica – Lamborghinis, Maseratis, Nobles, Ferraris, Porsches, Aston Martins, Ultimas, Ariel Atoms. I was dissapointed at the lack of new supercars though. It would have been nice to have seen a Veyron or a Zonda.

This lead to a conversation about what IS a supercar now? Certainly for me Porsche are no longer supercars (with the exception of the Carrera GT). Perhaps this is because I see so many of them about. But also I think a supercar is something that is a complete beast. A car that is untamable, but on occasion will let you play along with the game. Lamborghini have held this reputation for many years now and that perhaps is why I have always loved them. With the Bugatti Veyron, there is absolutely no sense behind why they made the car, other than the simple reason of “to see if we could”. Porsche just don’t seem to have any of this ‘ludicrous-ness’. Don’t get me wrong, they are fantastically engineered cars and I respect them for that, but I think perhaps that may be their downfall in my mind.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings. Have a look in my Flickr gallery for some photos of a few of these beautifully crafted machines.

“Photos can be viewed in my Flickr account”:http://www.flickr.com/photos/hereticsun/sets/72157602008002983/