How Did I Become an F1 Driver?
Chapter 37 - 31: An Unexpected Delight

Chapter 37: Chapter 31: An Unexpected Delight

"Are you ready?"

The driver turned his head and asked Qin Miao, amidst the roar of the engine, as he started the car.

Qin Miao barely heard the question, but gave a thumbs-up to indicate he was ready.

After receiving the signal, the driver nodded and gently gave the car some gas, slowly driving out of the pit area while shouting to Qin Miao, "If you can’t take it on the track, just reach out and tap my arm."

As he spoke, he pointed to his elbow on the side closest to Qin Miao.

Qin Miao gestured ’OK’ to show he understood.

But before Qin Miao’s hand was back down, the AMG, which had been cruising smoothly at just over 20 kilometers per hour, suddenly accelerated.

Unprepared, Qin Miao was pressed into his seat by the sudden force pushing him back.

But soon, this pushback sensation weakened, as the Shanghai pit area has a speed limit of 60 kilometers per hour, and once the speed reached 60, the electronic control system limited the car’s speed.

However, that moment when the car suddenly accelerated felt like being crushed by a heavy object, with a heartbeat that skipped a beat—it sparked a fire within Qin Miao like a spark in a haystack.

This is G-force! This is the pushback sensation!

Qin Miao didn’t have the fear a rookie might have when first encountering racing. Instead, after experiencing the pushback force of the GT3 car, he felt more exhilarated.

He enjoyed the feeling of fighting against G-force; it felt particularly interesting.

Soon, the AMG drove out of the pit area.

And once the car was out of the pit area, Qin Miao’s initial excitement disappeared.

Because from the moment they left the pit area, every time the driver accelerated or braked, each turn required him to fight against the lateral G-force, or else he would be tossed around in his seat by the G-force.

Several times when speeding through the high-speed corners, Qin Miao felt he was going to be thrown out, thankful for the five-point seatbelt that strapped him securely to his seat.

Throughout the process, Qin Miao could feel a force pressing on him, with the difference being the specific layout of the bend in front of him.

While braking in front of high-speed corners, Qin Miao often felt like his eyeballs were about to be flung out.

At full throttle on the straight, it felt like gravity reversed, shifting from below to behind.

In short, for a complete novice who sat in a GT3 car for the first time, G-force was not kind.

If not for the Hans System pulling on the back of Qin Miao’s helmet, a hard brake could have snapped his neck, given its strength.

After several laps, Qin Miao understood why F1 drivers have necks as thick as their heads. When the G-force presses down, without a strong neck, you really won’t withstand it.

Sitting in the GT3, Qin Miao had no extra energy to notice changes outside during the first three laps; he was solely fighting against the G-force.

After reaching the fourth lap, Qin Miao slightly adapted to the feeling of being battered by G-force. When the G-force pressed down, he could barely control his body’s instinctual muscle-tensing reaction.

Only then could he spare some attention to observe the driver’s maneuvers beside him and feel the road feedback transmitted through the AMG, through the car’s vibration and the feedback of the G-force.

To be honest, it wasn’t until now that Qin Miao truly discovered the difference between a simulator and a real race car.

Though not as vast as heaven and earth, there were indeed many details missing in the simulator compared to actual driving, like the feedback when tires roll over the curb, the vibrations between the car body and tires during extreme cornering, changes in suspension travel, and even the sound tires make at their grip limits during a turn.

These are things simulators and G-force seats can’t replicate authentically.

No matter how well-made or expensive your simulator setup, you simply can’t simulate the true feeling of sitting in a GT3 racing car, flying down the track.

By the time the fourth lap was completed, Qin Miao’s heart gradually calmed. Although his body was still uncontrollably tossed around by the G-force, his mind began to sense the changes in the AMG beneath him in each corner.

Of course, there were also unexpected surprises for Qin Miao.

[Ding!]

[Practice lap completed, Track Proficiency +1]

[Current proficiency on the Shanghai International Circuit: 1]

Sitting in the car to complete practice laps actually grants proficiency?

Qin Miao did not expect his skills to be so generous for once.

However, Qin Miao understood the system’s prompt mainly appeared because he had carefully observed some maneuvers the driver used when cornering, such as braking points and the car’s posture as it navigated the turns in the previous lap.

Although Qin Miao wasn’t the one driving, after one lap, he felt as if he’d made a lap himself, just without hands-on operation.

As time went on, Qin Miao gradually adapted to the feeling of being in the racing car, becoming accustomed to the bumps. With time and increased laps, his track proficiency on the Shanghai Circuit reached 20.

In fact, over the hour, this AMG GT3 made 26 laps, but 4 laps were while Qin Miao was still adjusting to the G-force, and another 2 were during moments when Qin Miao was slightly distracted, making those practice laps invalid according to the system.

After an hour of driving, Qin Miao only gained 20 points of proficiency.

However, Qin Miao didn’t mind losing those 2 proficiency points, since gaining proficiency from sitting in the car was already a pleasant surprise, and he wasn’t going to ask for more.

After an hour on the track, the AMG gradually slowed and returned to the pit area.

Very soon, the car stopped in front of the pit lane.

Before the car came to a complete stop, Qin Miao saw a familiar figure eagerly waiting at the pit lane entrance, waving happily as soon as they saw the car Qin Miao was in.

Qin Miao wanted to respond, but at that moment he was too tired to even lift his hand, managing only to give a weary smile to Qimeng.

As an ordinary person who doesn’t usually have much physical activity, sitting in a race car for the first time wasn’t in a lower class vehicle, but a GT3.

And then racing aggressively on the track for nearly an hour, it would be unusual if he still had any strength left.

After parking the car, Qin Miao unfastened his safety belt, opened the car door, and got out.

Qimeng came over to help Qin Miao, having chatted with the team staff and learned a lot about racing.

From those conversations, she learned that racing is physically demanding.

Qin Miao did stumble a bit when he got out, but he managed to stand on his own.

Qimeng helped lift his helmet visor, intending to help him cool down. But when she opened it, she saw a genuine smile on Qin Miao’s face.

Blinking in the glow of Qin Miao’s smile, Qimeng felt a little dazed. But she quickly steadied her emotions and curiously asked, "What makes you so happy?"

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