8 Simple Pleasures People Who Love Driving Have Experienced

Nailing an apex

Track days are a great way to learn the limits of your car. Learning a track and finding the fastest route through a corner is incredibly satisfying, and the first time you nail your line gives epic satisfaction.

Listening to a good song late at night

Cruising along at night listening to a great song can be a very cathartic experience. There’s something special about a deserted road and chilled out music.

Perfecting heel and toe

Thanks to rev-matching software, this is a skill that’s going the way of the dodo, but for those of us who enjoy the technical side of driving, smoothly downshifting with a quick blip of the throttle can’t be beat.

Getting into a good rhythm

One of the most important aspects of car control is mastering the way the car’s weight shifts about. Getting momentum under control, and using it to your advantage, is an advanced technique that sets you above the average driver.

Pulling an epic burnout

Burnouts might look like childish, yobbish behaviour from the outside, and, to be honest, they feel that way from the inside, too! That’s why pulling them off is so much fun. Still, getting a burnout right takes a decent amount of skill, so laying down long ‘elevens’ will never stop being satisfying.

Catching a slide

We’re not talking drifting (yet), we’re talking getting a bit too enthusiastic into a corner and catching an oversteer moment. Turning into a slide becomes an instinctive action that saves fast drivers the world over from big, expensive crashes.

Holding a drift

Sometimes when the back gets out it’s intentional, and holding onto a long, arching drift takes supreme car control. Bringing the footwork and steering inputs together to ensure you don’t spin out isn’t something you can learn overnight. It takes plenty of practice and patience. The results are awesome.

Shifting like a boss

Knowing when to shift is a basic skill that everyone who drives a manual car must master, but really nailing the shift in sympathy with your engine takes true knowledge of your car. Shifting without upsetting the balance of the car will make a huge difference to your lap times.