“You’ll need to pull those belts tight,” said 5-time 24 Hour of Le Mans Champion Derek Bell as I was getting strapped in the passenger seat of a Ferrari. I’ve been around the road course before; I didn’t think this time would be any different. Wrong.

It’s the 20^th anniversary of the largest gathering of Ferrari’s in North America and they are at Palm Beach International Raceway for their usual two-day track meet. Ferrari’s – new and old – have completely taken over the paddock and the road course and it is a beautiful sight.

“Not to worry, I’m just warming up the brakes a bit,” Bell noted, pumping the brakes as we made our way down pit road and to the Palm Beach International Raceway road course. The first few laps Bell was struggling with some kind of automatic system that deals with shifting on the Ferrari. He didn’t like it. “I’ve got to figure out how to turn that off. Any idea how to do that?,” he said as we flew down the back straightaway.

Derek Bell, 5-time Le Mans Champion, two-time World Sportscar Champion and multi 24 Hour of Daytona Champion is asking me how to work a Ferrari? My apologies, Mr. Bell... I don’t own a Ferrari and I believe this is the first time I’ve been in one.

We came down pit road, paused for a bit while he fiddled with the buttons and eventually turned off that automatic system that was bothering him. “See if you can tell a difference,” Bell said before we went back on track.

I honestly didn’t think I was going to be able to tell a difference, but I did. Not only in the way the car flew off the corners but in Derek’s movements, too. He was able to be more aggressive as we made our way

through the turns and launched on to the half-mile back straight to hit 140 mph. Once you reach that point, it’s heavy braking to slow down for the final turn on the course.

Each time I thought to myself, we’re not going to make it through this turn. Obviously since I’m typing this, we made it. I never felt the back end of the car break loose as some have been known to do in that turn. Bell is an incredible driver. With his driving skills, I believe he could take an old Ford truck out on the course and it would be a smooth ride.

You too can score free a ride with Bell or racer Shane Lewis courtesy of the Palm Beach Driving Club during Cavallino at Palm Beach International Raceway. All you have to do is register at the Palm Beach Driving Club trailer located on the paddock. Gates are open until 5 this evening and open at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow. Admission is $30.

By Leah Vaughn