Last week I got to spend a couple of days in Valencia (Spain), at the Circuito Ricardo Tormo. I spent Monday trackside, watching the ELMS crew. As hard as it is to sit and watch a racing car turn laps without being the one behind the wheel, I was able to pass time by combining two passions of mine: Motorsports and Photography.

I’ve always wanted to give motorsports photography a proper try, and oh boy is it difficult. Shooting portraits in the pit lane without tripping over the mechanics and engineers working on the car is virtually impossible. Capturing a car traveling at over 200kph is like trying to catch a fly with chopsticks. I have so much respect for the guys who do this professionally.

Tuesday was my day to get behind the wheel, sharing the car with Sacha Lehmann and Mathis Poulet. I’ve already driven Valencia a couple of times, but never in the 2020-spec car. This circuit is like none other I’ve ever driven. It was originally designed to be a motorcycle circuit, so the grip is a lot closer to track limits. There’s also a lot more camber than on most circuits, so you can turn in much earlier and carry much more speed on corner entry. This track is quite technical, with long, double-apex corners, fast direction changes, and tight high-speed sections.

I was the first of the three in the car. It had rained overnight, and the track was a little damp, so I spent the first few runs finding my feet. I hadn’t been in a race car since December. But it only took a handful of laps before I started to feel confident and started pushing again. By my second run, the track had completely dried. With a few laps in dry conditions under my belt, we were able to start working on car balance. The car was quite understeery all morning, but after some minor setup changes and a fresher set of tires, the car felt great. The last few runs were real fun, Sacha and I were pushing each other for lap time.

Thanks to Virage for the smooth operation. It was great to be back, I never realize how much I miss it until I get strapped back in.