Sweet dreams are made of this

As a sporting venue it has an incredible aura built, in part, on the back of some amazing races over the years. Heroes, villains, triumph and tragedy: Bathurst has seen it all.

European drivers liken it to the famous Nordschleife in Germany or Spa in Belgium -- ballsy, old-school circuits with no margin for error. Daunting at the best of times and immensely difficult to get right when you are driving on the edge lap after lap.

Then there’s the weather, which on big tracks like this can be completely different in one section to another. At Bathurst it can be hailing at the top of the mountain and dry at the bottom.

I’ve been coming here to work on The Great Race and other events for more than 20 years. In that time, I’ve never been for a hot lap in the passenger seat, let alone driven the track at speed. I’ve run it, cycled it and walked it; last year I even took the family around in a motor home during a full Griswold vacation… but for some reason the planets just never aligned to drive around it at speed.

Car companies don’t often get the chance to close off this circuit and use it for vehicle launches. In recent weeks an invitation to do just that arrived and I was determined not to miss out. “Um, sorry I need to reschedule that meeting… I’m very busy that day now."

Lexus decided that this iconic track was the perfect place to unveil the new RC F Coupe to a select group of Australian motoring media and it was going to let us drive it… around the circuit… with a helmet on… in anger!

Rally champ Neal Bates, his equally skilful brother Rick and a number of other race drivers like David Russell and Stephen White were on hand for instruction. I needed it. No matter how many times I've watched onboard laps or spectated in the crowd at the top of the mountain during the pole shootout, nothing can prepare you for the sensation of trying to drive fast around here.

I press the button and the 5.0-litre naturally aspirated V8 fires into life. I adjust the seating position and the mirrors trying to appear professional. During the laps we would sample three of the four available driving modes – Normal, Sport and Sport Plus. It’s Bathurst. There was no point using Eco here! That would come later on a road trip.

We’re asked to take a ‘slow in, fast out’ approach to the concrete-lined corners on track and to observe the 40km/h speed limit while in pit lane. Rick stirs me about wearing race boots (we’ve known each other for years) before giving me clearance to head out.

I’m conscious this is a $130K car and I don’t own it. But this is it: the moment I have dreamed about since I was little.

I ease my way into the fast lane and take it gently until pit exit. From there I gradually unleash the 350kW-plus power output and head up Mountain Straight for the first time, working up to fifth through the paddle-shift gearbox.

It’s a joyous sound that is unique — a little like the LFA at the top-end of the rev range. I feel the front get lighter as we crest the rise on the approach to turn two (Griffins Bend). There are witches hats out well in advance of the apex to remind us to brake early.

I brake but wash off way too much speed and immediately realise how much it would affect the lap time in a real race scenario. Ahhhh. I accelerate hard again and notice how the road falls away to the left a little more than I realised as we exit the right-hander and head for The Cutting.

You approach through a left kink — the first of several blind corners that make you hold your breath when you arrive with a bit of pace on. Then it’s down to second for The Cutting itself. As you drive out the instructor reminds me to short shift and hold a steady throttle for Quarry Corner and Reid Park. It’s like a pinball machine through here with walls either side.

The car drops down into Sulman Park. Only now do I understand how easily it could go pear-shaped through here, firing you off into the wall on the right. I’m not brave enough to push too hard or get close to the wall – it's going to take serious miles to learn to get this part of the lap right.

Already the instructor is at me to keep my eyes up and take the correct line for McPhillamy Park. Again, hold a steady throttle and accelerate harder across the top.

Skyline is aptly named. That’s what you see before the decent begins. No time to enjoy it. Brake hard for The Esses. Damn it! Again I was too hard on them. Back to second for The Dipper and then accelerate up through the gears before you arrive at the all-important Forrest's Elbow – the last corner before the 2km-long Conrod Straight.

Here the concrete wall looks like it juts out at a join. The instructor tells me to aim for that. We are back in second gear again. Now wind off the lock. Let it drift out toward the wall on the other side and unleash the Lexus V8 onto Conrod.

I briefly catch sight of the speedo, which snicks 254km/h in fifth (it’s an eight-speed gearbox). Again I feel the car get light over the crest at speed on the way down Conrod. Not unnervingly, it’s a brutal reminder of exactly how fast we are going!

There are witches hats just before The Chase. Bathurst winner Garth Tander would later text me to ask if I went flat through it. “Ah, no Garth, I wasn’t gifted with ‘the set’ you were.”

Brake hard… back to third. Accelerate out and let the car cool off before entering the pit-lane again. Change the drive mode and repeat!

I can’t begin to tell you how mind-blowingly good it felt. I did five laps on the day, which mightn’t seem like a lot but there were plenty of guests to cycle through who were also testing the RC F.

The taste of what it’s like to drive fast at Bathurst gave me a newfound respect for the drivers who can REALLY hustle a car around there. It’s not easy. By the end of the day I'm mentally drained. There is so much for an amateur to learn.

I've done track days before, but Bathurst is so much more than your average race circuit, which is why it takes so much practice to perfect. Then there’s the added pressure of doing it in front of a well-seasoned crowd. One day I’ll try that… one day…