Chateau Elan and Road Atlanta by Valarie Edwards:
Ladies, this one is for you! I think men have kept the secret of road racing to themselves so we won’t know how much fun they’ve been having at the track. Here’s what happened. Recently, David and I, along with photographers Kevan Ward and Wayne Petty traveled to the Skip Barber Racing School at Road Atlanta in Braselton (about 45 minutes north of Atlanta ) as part of our Speed Tour of Georgia (premiering March 26th @ 9:00 PM). After first suiting up in our red rally suit and helmets, we then climbed into our Mazda Miata’s for a quick safety lesson from our instructors. (Check out the pix for how good looking these two are! Vrrrmmmmm vrrrmmmm!!) OK, seriously … these guys really know what they are doing.Even in the falling snow, the instructors, Sean and Rob controlled the cars through hairpin turns, reaching speeds of over 100 MPH. There’s even a part of the track called the skid pad that’s been slicked over to simulate an oil spill … we did it all, donuts and spinning, billowing tons of smoke. Yeah, I was holding on for dear life but hey, that’s ‘cause I was trying to hold on to my lunch too.Then, it was time for David and I to take the wheel and time off against one another. Long story short, David won the timed trials but was disqualified because he failed a regulation backup. I am officially claiming the race as a win for all womankind. (Insert end zone dance here.) This is serious fun anyone can enjoy. Check out the Skip Barber website for scheduled class times. Later we headed to nearby Chateau Elan for some serious winding down at The Spa at Chateau Elan. Everything about this place is FAB-U-LOUS! More about my visit to Chateau Elan in my next post. Let me just leave you with these few words … Chef Marc at Chateau Elan is H-O-TTTTTT.
