Wow, what a weekend the team had and I am so glad I got to witness it all close up and personal.
I have followed Laser Tools for years now and when I got my boyfriend into BTCC one of the drivers and teams he liked was Aiden Moffat and Laser Tools Racing. At the start of september it was his birthday, so I decided a perfect present would be VIP with Laser Tools Racing, after a few emails back and forth with Donna, we were booked in! I made a little poster to hide in with the presents and he was so happy and excited when he read it, although I think I was more excited than him! We bought tickets for the saturday, booked a hotel, woke up early saturday morning and off we went and enjoyed a day walking around.
Sunday morning it was raining boo! However it was not going to dampen our spirit. We were greeted at the gate and whisked to hospitality on the buggy, I do enjoy going on the buggies and at Silverstone it is a walk from the gate in my opinion. When we arrived at the awning we were greeted with happy faces, given our passes and told which table was ours for the day and what grid walk we would be going on. I never have a preference on which grid walk but I always love the last race of the day, everyone all fired up and I think it does tend to be the best, no one is thinking about the rest of the day and whether to make that risky move or not, they just go for it.
First up we grabbed a drink from the fridge and waited for breakfast to be served and it was delicious. Bacon and/or sausage rolls with pastries and fruit. I am quite fussy with how bacon is cooked, I like it crispy and for me the bacon was cooked perfectly. It was a good breakfast to start they day.
Next we had a walk around and went to the garage. Getting up close with the car which Cam was nice enough to talk us through different bits and show us inside the car and the steering wheel and explain things. Everyone in the team was so nice and welcoming, answering any questions and speaking to us. It was a lovely atmosphere and I really enjoyed spending time in there and watching them all set up and get ready for a race.
Lunch was enjoyable, great atmosphere, good food, chatting away and getting to know people on the table. I was just keen for race 2 as it was our turn for the grid walk. Again, we watched the set up in the garage and the car be pushed out into the pits. Then it was grid walk time, I love standing on the side of the grid waiting for all the cars to come round. It just gets me so excited being so up close and personal. I love standing in front and slightly to the side of the grid spot and watching the driver come up and stop in his marks.
Back to the garage to watch the race and it started to rain, the Infinity had never done a lap in the rain before so it was going to be interesting and a good chance to get data. Unfortunately on the out lap there was an issue but the team did an incredible job to get Aiden back out so they got a little bit of data.
Back to the hospitality awning for some cake, and in fact birthday cake as on the saturday it was Aiden's 23rd! His mum Donna got the most amazing cake made and it was lovely, as were the other desserts the team provided. It was then followed by a Q&A, understandably Aiden wasn't having the best day but he was still in a good mood, positive and as friendly as always.
Charlie and I hadn't decided where to watch race 3 but we got asked if we wanted to go on the grid for the final race, never going to say no. The atmosphere before the last race is immense as anything can happen, and that was true that day! The rain started to pour and the team made the right call with the timing of the tyre change to wets. He had nothing to lose, he was starting from the back and it would give him data for his new Infiniti. I cannot describe everyone's excitement watching the TV and seeing him go through the field and before we knew it he was second! The most nerve wracking part was obviously when Aiden decided to try a 360 spin! However, it got to the last lap and he was coming home for a comfortable second. Time to leap over to the pit wall to cheer him across the line and run down to where the cars will pull up to greet him when he comes round. It was so heartwarming and incredible to see everyone's faces and enjoyment from this podium, no one expected a podium so soon, especially not when he hadn't got any wet weather data.
I am so grateful I got to experience it and the podium. It was brilliant to end the day on the biggest high. Everyone in the team was so nice and welcoming, I really enjoyed speaking to Aiden's grid girl Hannah, getting to know people in the team. It was a really memorable day for all the right reasons.
Donna emailed me a few days later and sent me a picture their photographer Mike Inkley and it really just sums up how happy I was. Out of breathe, rain on my glasses, hats made me look like a gnome, but none of that mattered as celebrating the podium and all the teams hard work was more important.
Thank you to Donna for organising the surprise for Charlie, the team for being so friendly and welcoming. I will never forget that day and I would 100% recommend doing VIP with Laser Tools Racing.
Sunday morning it was raining boo! However it was not going to dampen our spirit. We were greeted at the gate and whisked to hospitality on the buggy, I do enjoy going on the buggies and at Silverstone it is a walk from the gate in my opinion. When we arrived at the awning we were greeted with happy faces, given our passes and told which table was ours for the day and what grid walk we would be going on. I never have a preference on which grid walk but I always love the last race of the day, everyone all fired up and I think it does tend to be the best, no one is thinking about the rest of the day and whether to make that risky move or not, they just go for it.
First up we grabbed a drink from the fridge and waited for breakfast to be served and it was delicious. Bacon and/or sausage rolls with pastries and fruit. I am quite fussy with how bacon is cooked, I like it crispy and for me the bacon was cooked perfectly. It was a good breakfast to start they day.
Next we had a walk around and went to the garage. Getting up close with the car which Cam was nice enough to talk us through different bits and show us inside the car and the steering wheel and explain things. Everyone in the team was so nice and welcoming, answering any questions and speaking to us. It was a lovely atmosphere and I really enjoyed spending time in there and watching them all set up and get ready for a race.
Lunch was enjoyable, great atmosphere, good food, chatting away and getting to know people on the table. I was just keen for race 2 as it was our turn for the grid walk. Again, we watched the set up in the garage and the car be pushed out into the pits. Then it was grid walk time, I love standing on the side of the grid waiting for all the cars to come round. It just gets me so excited being so up close and personal. I love standing in front and slightly to the side of the grid spot and watching the driver come up and stop in his marks.
Back to the garage to watch the race and it started to rain, the Infinity had never done a lap in the rain before so it was going to be interesting and a good chance to get data. Unfortunately on the out lap there was an issue but the team did an incredible job to get Aiden back out so they got a little bit of data.
Back to the hospitality awning for some cake, and in fact birthday cake as on the saturday it was Aiden's 23rd! His mum Donna got the most amazing cake made and it was lovely, as were the other desserts the team provided. It was then followed by a Q&A, understandably Aiden wasn't having the best day but he was still in a good mood, positive and as friendly as always.
Charlie and I hadn't decided where to watch race 3 but we got asked if we wanted to go on the grid for the final race, never going to say no. The atmosphere before the last race is immense as anything can happen, and that was true that day! The rain started to pour and the team made the right call with the timing of the tyre change to wets. He had nothing to lose, he was starting from the back and it would give him data for his new Infiniti. I cannot describe everyone's excitement watching the TV and seeing him go through the field and before we knew it he was second! The most nerve wracking part was obviously when Aiden decided to try a 360 spin! However, it got to the last lap and he was coming home for a comfortable second. Time to leap over to the pit wall to cheer him across the line and run down to where the cars will pull up to greet him when he comes round. It was so heartwarming and incredible to see everyone's faces and enjoyment from this podium, no one expected a podium so soon, especially not when he hadn't got any wet weather data.
I am so grateful I got to experience it and the podium. It was brilliant to end the day on the biggest high. Everyone in the team was so nice and welcoming, I really enjoyed speaking to Aiden's grid girl Hannah, getting to know people in the team. It was a really memorable day for all the right reasons.
Donna emailed me a few days later and sent me a picture their photographer Mike Inkley and it really just sums up how happy I was. Out of breathe, rain on my glasses, hats made me look like a gnome, but none of that mattered as celebrating the podium and all the teams hard work was more important.
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