The dreamlike ride in a McLaren 720S
Who hasn’t woken up in the morning with a fixed plan in mind? Whether it’s a visit to the grandparents, the purchase of a certain product or the decision to stop smoking is irrelevant. What is nice is when this plan can actually be implemented. My wife woke up one day with a resolution to spend a day at a race track. Don’t ask me where that idea came from, I don’t know. But as a good husband, I naturally support such ideas. In fact, she got up and put on a racing suit without hesitation. Other clothes were totally out of the question. After a quick breakfast, I asked her where to go. Looking at the weather data, disillusionment quickly reigned. Snow fell at Hockenheim, there were thunderstorms at Oschersleben, and Spa also sank in the rain. Although it was rarely supposed to be dry in the Eifel region, the Nordschleife and Grand Prix circuit of the Nürburgring received new tarmac at the time.
“Wasn’t there a road here once?!”
Thus, the mood of my wife fell for the first time that day. I quickly suggested that we just follow the sun and enjoy some winding country roads along the way. She agreed right away and off we went. Helmet and gloves found place in the trunk without problems. We got into the bucket seat, fumbled with the belt in the lock that was strangely angled towards the leg, and hit the road. Behind us, the four-liter V8 biturbo engine rumbled. In front of us stretched an increasingly wet ribbon of asphalt this day. The sun rarely peeked out from between the clouds, but it couldn’t provide dry paths during these brief breaks in the rain. But it got even worse. Where once a beautiful country road with depressions and heights as well as wide and narrow corners had run, the path now suddenly ended. Behind the guardrail, the view fell into a hole. Apparently we hadn’t been here for a while. We had actually remembered the open pit lignite mine a few kilometers away.
Off to the go-kart track
In search of at least a few dry miles, suddenly the flash of inspiration hit us. How about doing a few laps on a go-kart track? There was one, not so far away from our current location. So we took the appropriate direction and let the 720 hp off the chain as far as possible and permitted. Arrived on site the next setback followed. Where once curves, curbs and tire stacks stretched, now stands a factory building under construction. The construction workers looked a little puzzled at the lady in the racing suit who got out of the car with gullwing doors and looked sadly in the direction of the construction site. After a quick look at the navigation system, I was able to give the all-clear: There is another kart track listed just a few miles away. If the address shows up in the system, the track must still be there, right? So we fired up the eight cylinders again and continued on our way.
Second attempt
Once again, the streets were wet from the rain, but the destination was tempting. It was supposed to be an indoor kart-track, so at least there was a chance of dry laps. But it came again differently than desired. The door to the track was locked. We were there outside the opening hours. Meanwhile, the expression of disappointment on my wife’s face reached completely new lows at the corners of her mouth. Brain storming was the order of the day once again. What else could we drive to as a destination to feel a little driving pleasure? On the way home, we had notived a sign for a traffic practice area (Verkehrsübungsplatz in German) a few times in the past. Maybe the last opportunity of the day? We looked up the address, entered it into the sat nav and drove there. Those of you that are familiar with these facilities, know that it is mainly for novice drivers who can practice safe handling of a car there. Meanwhile the understanding for fast-driving curves and dynamic driving maneuvers is very little.
Shopping with a supercar
The drop had been sucked, the day was over. Only the promise of a delicious home-cooked dinner could elicit at least a small smile from my wife. But for that we had to go grocery shopping. A relatively normal activity when one is on the road in a normal daily car. However, as you, dear readers, have long known from the picture galleries and the headline, we drove around in a McLaren 720S. Weekend shopping with a supercar, is that actually possible? At least we were able to answer this question with a “yes” on this day. A standard folding box fits easily into the trunk under the carbon fiber hood. There’s even more space next to it, for example for a helmet and jacket. Meanwhile, behind the bucket seats on the storage area below the rear window were the driver’s gloves. With a full shopping box, we finally headed home.
Plenty of bare carbon all around
Chewing, I mentioned to my wife that although her actual wish didn’t come true, she was on the road all day in a top-class supercar. The very special configuration, with not a single visible carbon option left unticked, meant that she was as close to racing as it gets. In fact, it’s almost astonishing that this car dispensed with the rollbar and thus the mounts for the six-point seat belts. A glance at the price list makes the cheeks glow. Just for the value of the extras installed in this 720S, you could buy a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS in basic trim and still have money for fuel left over. To put it in figures: € 118,070 went into additional equipment alone. On top of that, of course, is the actual McLaren 720S, which has a base price of € 260,000 (including VAT) in Germany. So it was a dreamlike drive after all – even if it wasn’t what we had dreamed of.
Images: Markus Herrig, Katrin Kierse, Matthias Kierse
