The
Women in the the Hotseat Challenge is the brainchild of former British Ladies
Rally Champion, Kate Heath. Kate
thinks that there should be more women taking part in the male dominated sport
of rally driving, so she has developed the challenge to give women a first taste
of the sport. You
need nothing more than a driving licence to try your hand,
so when I was asked if I fancied a go, I didn't need to be asked twice. I donned
my crash helmet and went to find out what it was all about. The
day begins, sensibly enough, with a safety talk from Kate and her team and then
it is straight down to business. First lesson of the day; handbrake turns. I
have no idea if any of you have been driving a car along and the passenger pulls
on the handbrake, but the first time it happens it's a bit of a shock! Even when
you are expecting it! Once
we'd had help with a few, it was time to try it on our own... the first couple
were a bit tame, but then I got a taste for it and was flinging the car about
all over the place. This is what driving should be like! Next
up, the Autotest - a discipline in itself. The aim of this session is to weave
in and out of the cones, do two tight circles around the last cone then come back.
As fast as you can. Oh and without hitting the cones. I was alright at this apart
from the last bit! Still I don't think plastic cones cost that much to replace... And
finally we head onto the rally stage. I can't begin to tell you how excited I
was about this! The
first challenge was getting into the car - the seats are low and bucket shaped
and the person in the car before me was very short. I'm rather tall. Once I'd
folded my legs in and managed to get all the seatbelt buckles in the right holes
it was time to go. We
were given a couple of practice laps and then three timed laps - the average of
these would give us our final score. Undoubtedly
the highlight was the hairpin bend - those handbrake turns we have been learning
earlier came in handy here and no matter how untidy I may have looked I felt like
a pro! There
was only one tree on the circuit and there are plenty of people at BBC Lincolnshire
who will tell you I drove into that tree. I would like to state for the record
that I did not hit the tree. I stopped about 2 inches away from it. I did however
completely destroy the stop sign that was in front of the tree! Despite
that momentary lapse of control the whole thing went very smoothly and I finished
with a respectable time. And
my tree related escapades did earn me a bottle of champagne for the most amusing
driving of the day! So in true motorsport style that was sprayed everywhere and
I spent the next two days trying to get it out of my hair! My
verdict on the day - if you like driving and ever get the chance to try rallying
seize it with both hands... I might not quite be ready to give up the day job
yet but I'm certainly up for going out again. If I could just find someone to
lend me their car... | 
