Race Cars

#followcamfriday driving cars and riding bikes with Alex Petitdemange in Phoenix, Arizona

This was my first time ever riding as a passenger on an actual track. I only got a little bit car sick and was absolutely amazed by the driving skill and commitment by Alex. Everything makes perfect sense now. 

Alex has been racing cars for most of his life now and much of the skill that he displays on the track crosses over to how he rides his bike. Seeing the two sports influence each other was rather surreal. It is true with both disciplines, exit speed is everything. Limit of grip is the determining factor and slight mistakes will end in disaster. 

Alex's friend Eliot let us borrow his M3 for the day so that he could do some hot laps with me in the car. Alex taught me a  handy trick before we got started. Basically, put the seat all the way back, engage the seatbelt so that it locks and then push the power seat all the way forward until the seatbelt is basically choking you. This is proper practice in a car without a harness. I was amazed at the g forces and at how much my collar bones hurt after a few laps. Driving a car like this is exhausting. 

In addition to racing himself, Alex has been doing some teaching and helping others learn how to drive better. We did a handful of laps in the 550hp M3, the most powerful car Alex has ever driven at the track. Despite my fat ass sitting in there, he was able to set some of his fastest lap times. Barf. 

After we got good and car sick, it only made sense to ride some bicycles at South Mountain, just down the road from the track. Multi Sporting at it's finest. It takes the brain a minute to adjust from car mode to bike mode as it turns out. That said, the resemblance is uncanny and is is glaringly obvious that Alex is good at racing anything that has wheels. 

While you can't exactly nose-pick a car, you certainly brake hard into turns and accelerate out with speed. This is what works on the bike too. Every set-up is rewarded with amazing exit speed. Just like on the bike, races are won in the turns. Poetry in motion. 

South Mountain has a special kind of anger in the ground. It has not rained in months and the rocks are loose and unrelenting. This is where tires go to die. Keep your body off the ground and lean away from the cacti. Great success.