[richard in NC]

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Guys,

Since I was apparently the only member who went to the Lime Rock M5 Experience [event details], I should share my thoughts. It was more or less a 1 day M School but a bit more advanced, being at a full track.

It was my first time to Lime Rock or even the Connecticut area, so I wanted to go as much for the experience and fall scenery. I had done the 2 day school at the Performance Center this February with the E60 M5, and got a brief drive in the F10 M5 at a corporate seminar event there as well.

I stayed at the Interlaken Inn. It was nice but nothing special compared to other top Inns. The restaurant was good with a small selection of nicely prepared dinners. All entrees were locally sourced and with natural/organic ingredients. I met some of the Performance Center instructors and chatted with them a bit. They discussed having 30+ folks from BMW Brazil there the first day.

I attended the Tuesday session. We had only 13 folks for 3 groups. That gave us plenty of track time. Most had at least some track experience but a few did not. It actually sprinkled rain upon arrival but everything dried out by track time. We had an hour of chalk talk first to orient us to the track and upcoming sessions.

I first did the skid pad in an M3. With only 4 persons, we got a lot of laps. After some skid recovery tries, I attempted holding a drift and got 1/2 a lap.

We then went to practice the Autocross course in 1M's. This was about their last use, being replaced by M6s soon. If you want a fun little pocket rocket, be on the look out for 8 of them real soon.

We then did high speed ABS braking exercises in M3's and got a few laps in on track. Then a break for lunch.

We went back out to the Autocross for timed laps in the 1M's. I tried getting up to speed too soon on cold tires and almost spun out, but I caught it and did my 5 laps. My times were good, only 1 sec or so off the fastest pace but it wasn't good enough to place in the top 3. The 1M is a great car but harder to stay on edge than the M3.

Then was my turn in the M5 on track. Mine was Space Gray. We did lead follows with 2-3 cars behind an instructor. Every few laps, we'd rotate who was first behind the instructors. We got up to speed quickly and I didn't really have the time to settle into the car. Unfortunately the lack of adjustable side bolsters was really noticed. Compared to the 1M and M3, I felt I was swimming in the seat until I settled in. The M5 is definitely fast and quite a thrill to drive at speed. It has good balance and great grip but it does feel big compared to the M3. It actually felt a lot like a bigger, faster, slightly softer version of my '08 550i M Sport which is not a bad thing. But I needed more than the 15-20 laps to begin to be really comfortable on the edge.

We then did laps in the M3s. I felt immediately comfortable in it. I got video of the M3 session that I am uploading. Unfortunately, the M5 video didn't take so I can't compare speeds or lap times between the 2 cars.

Next up was an all too short ride with the instructors in the M5s. One lap for speed and one lap for show. Unfortunately, I forgot to try and at least get an iPhone video. We then had a little happy hour to end the day. It was a great experience but ended all too soon.

I then spent a few more days touring Connecticut, Vermont, NH, and western Mass, before flying back home. Here are some pics.

EDIT: The video is ready. Be sure to watch near the end. Someone had some fun.