I initially thought little of my editor’s request to do a ride along with a professional driver ahead of next week’s the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
But as I stood on a rattling Shoreline Drive, deafened by the thunderous roar of race cars hurtling past me, I immediately regretted my nonchalance.
Unfortunately, there was little I could do. By 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning, April 9, I had donned a racing suit and balaclava, pulled on a helmet and gloves, and effectively signed my rights away.
Indeed, before I had even had a chance to tell my family it was nice knowing them, I was strapped into a IndyCar two-seater preparing for blast off — my life now in the hands of retired racer Davey Hamilton.
I was one of the few reporters invited to experience the thrill of the 1.97-mile street circuit during the Grand Prix of Long Beach’s annual media day, which takes place before around 180,000 attendees descend on downtown Long Beach for the three-day racing festival from April 19 to 21.
It was a big privilege, I tried to reassure myself, before we took off with a stomach churning 160 mile-per-hour acceleration down Shoreline Drive.
My first thought: “I’ve made a terrible mistake.”
“I hope I don’t pass out,” was my second.
But I clung onto consciousness by picturing my editor’s disappointed face when I informed him I couldn’t complete the assignment because I had no memory of the ride. I also appealed to my ego by reminding myself that he had accomplished the same feat in 2019 without fainting or vomiting — two unwanted bodily functions I now felt on the precipice of.
Consciousness secured, the next task was to open my eyes. They had immediately sealed shut in what I felt was a rational reaction to our blindingly fast take off.
Unfortunately, my story would be scant on detail without the power of sight, so like the good reporter I am, I commanded by nervous system to calm down and obey my orders.
At first, they opened in fleeting…
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