Patrik Sandell is the ruling world junior champion in rally. He, if any one, ought to know how to drive a car. Despite that he went to Italy this week to take driving lessons.
The reason is named asphalt. As every Swedish rally driver he’s born and raised on gravel and snow. But when it comes to asphalt it’s the south European drivers that feel comfortable. That’s the reason why Sandell has been in Gallo in north Italy for three days to go an asphalt school.
-It was a lot to think about the first day. On gravel and snow I barley have to think, every thing is in my head anyway. But here I had to think all the time and really start from scratch. It’s like sitting in a rally car for the first time, says Sandell.
You are working with sensors that register almost everything that happens in the car: acc- and breakpoints, steering wheel and spring system in the car. And every stage is recorded. After the stage the driver gets to know exactly how he drove, if he corrects right and what he can do better next time.
Many well-known drivers have been at this school, and Vittorio Caneva, who leads the education, has saved all results and movies from earlier pupils, so Sandell could all the time compare his results and development to the real asphalt specialists.
- I realized I had a lot to learn in the beginning. But the last day I had the same times as the asphalt specialists. Now I have to bring this with me home to my own car and out on the competitions, says Patrik Sandell.