If you love motor sports and get a real thrill out of speed, why not consider another way of satisfying that desire?
There are lots of exciting sports out there to discover, and whether you simply want to watch or you feel up to giving it a go yourself, you’re bound to have fun. Many race car drivers participate in other sports in their spare time to train their nerves and keep their bodies in prime condition. These are four of the best.
Jetskiing
Taking the speedboat to a new level, jetskiing has been described as the most fun you can have on the water. Cornwall is a popular centre for it and there are others scattered around the country, on lakes as well as along the coast. Depending on local limits, you can reach speeds of over 40mph as you zip across the waves – more dramatic than it might sound because you’re relying on your own muscles to keep control. It’s surprisingly simple to hire a jetski and get lessons in how to handle it, and it will quickly get your adrenaline flowing.
Horse racing
The Grand National is one of the biggest events on the UK sporting calendar and always gets people excited about racing. If you’ve enjoyed a flutter on it in the past, imagine how much more fun it is when you’re trackside, listening to the crash of hooves as the horses come thundering down the track. You’ll feel your heart pounding as they near the finish line and the crowd roars. If you want to have a go yourself, riding lessons are easy to find, and although it takes quite a bit of persistence to get to the point where you can go fast, it’s well worth it to feel the thrill of humankind’s first ever high speed sport.
Tobogganing
You might think of it as an exotic winter sport, but there are actually quite a few centres in the UK where you can go tobogganing at any time of year. There are tracks for children, but there are also tracks you wouldn’t want your kids anywhere near – long runs where you’ll have to use all your muscle to keep from lurching to the side as you twist round corners at thrilling speeds. Because the riding position puts your face so close to the obstacles around you, there are few sports that take quite as much nerve – and few that are quite as addictive!
Sky diving
Ever since those first magnificent men in their flying machines took to the air, watching aeronautics displays has been a thrill, but if you want to take it a step further and go up in a plane yourself, nothing completes the experience like jumping out of it. Training is more affordable than you might expect, and there are lots of different places where you can do it. The scary part is jumping through the hatch – once you’ve done that, you can enjoy the sight of the countryside spread out beneath you as you fall.
Participating in these sports is a great way to get more out of your love of speed and really live life to the max.
