Recently, I completed my first outing in a rally car somewhere in the forests of Malaysia. One of my resolutions for 2010 was to compete in a motor race for the first time in over 10 years. The last time I drove a car competitively was the Falken Rally of Singapore, way back in 1997.

Fast forward to the present and on a clear and sunny Thursday afternoon in December, I found myself strapped into the bucket seat of a Proton Satria - I was about to head out for my first ever shakedown in a proper rally car and I was feeling rather calm (instead of the usual sweaty-palms and sky-rocketing heart rate).

That I had an experienced rally driver in the co-driver's seat to guide me helped a great deal but I attribute this overall feeling of serenity more to the fact that I was not fully aware what was before me. I engaged first gear, slipped the heavy clutch and zoomed off and seconds later, found myself racing along a straight, muddy track with trees on the left and right in fourth gear.

Then, Mr Instructor who had been quiet all this time yelled out "100 square right" which is rally-speak for a right-handed turn 100m ahead.

At that instant, all the adrenaline that my body could muster must have been dumped into my bloodstream. My breathing became sharper and my heart must have been pounding faster than a piston at high revs! Instinctively, I performed a heel-toe manoeuvre, followed by another, then aimed for the grass verge on the inside and applied the throttle. All this time, I had just one thing in mind - "keep the car on the track and away from the TREES".

And the next thing I knew it, I was safely (and quite smoothly) through the turn. And this was how it was for the rest of the lap (each lap was 2.7km long with about 12 turns on total). I did another three laps and my average speed increased as my confidence grew - I was getting used to the car and becoming increasingly familiar with each turn. At the start of my fifth lap, the heavens opened and the track started 'breaking up' in certain areas.

I slowed down for the rest of the lap to get used to the conditions - the car felt like it was 'skating' sometimes but the grip from the knobby tyres was still very good. On the very next lap, I decided to increase my pace again while braking later into each turn. Then disaster struck!

I was slightly a little offline as I entered a tightening right turn and the car started to understeer. It happened so fast that the next thing I knew, the car was sliding of the track. I tried to steer but to no avail.

BANG! I crashed head-on into a tree - my instructor estimated that the car was travelling at about 55km/h when it happened. The front bumper looked like a pretzel, the front of the bonnet was bent badly and the radiator was crushed.

I wished the soggy ground could have swallowed me up there and then. Surprisingly, Mr Instructor was quite sympathetic. He felt that I had done well (up to the crash) and I had tried my best to control the car in the circumstances. 

I think he was just being kind. I knew that my overconfidence was the main reason for the accident. It was my first time in a rally car and I should have exercised more restraint - however well I was driving.

The total damage came up to around $1,500 (from my own pocket, of course) but the real pain I felt was knowing that I had messed up what was a really good day. Well, my next session in the car should be in March when it is still 'wet' and I will have a chance to redeem myself.

Still, I can console myself with the knowledge that even the world's best rally driver experiences the occasional 'off' every now and then.

"Sacrebleu!"

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