What would you do.... Grooms gift

[vfinder1]

Hi

Our wedding is almost here. I have decided to get my Fiance a gift that is something he has always wanted to do.... Rookie Experience Richard Petty Driving Experience.. So here is my dilemma.. When to do it.
So I have thought about doing it on Monday, 3 days before the wedding but part of me thinks what would happen if he got hurt.. Does anyone know if anyone has ever gotten hurt doing this experience?? Or I was thinking about doing it a few days after the wedding but have heard that it takes about 1/2 a day and we want to go to the beach.. We only have a few days with some of our family and friends there after the wedding and wanted to take some of them to the beach on their last day.. I could always wait until its just me and him there but I think others would enjoy watching him.

Anyone have any experience with the Richard Petty Driving experience?? How long does it take?? Do you think I should wait until after the wedding to do this?? I need some help deciding

Also, I am thinking about doing the 8am slot, how would we get there if we don't have a car?? The buses don't run that early for us to take a bus over to MK??

Thanks

 

[Petals & Pixie Dust]

I'm planning on doing this too. It is something my DF has always talked about doing. I'm planning on doing it a couple of days after the wedding. (at least that is my game plan) I figure this way we will have the first day or so as a married couple together and while he is doing the driving thing I'm gonna hit the spa....Just my 2 cents

 

[marebear]

I surprised my fiancee with the Rookie Experience last September and he had an AMAZING time - I would highly recommend it! He still talks about it to this day! NO ONE has ever gotten hurt and they make a point to tell the group that they want to keep it that way. The experience is divided into 3 parts. The first one, they get debriefed on what's going to happen and they go through all the safety precautions. They make them watch a video on what to watch for while on the track and how to stay safe. The second part, the group is taken around the park in a van and they explain the turns and how to go into the turns and the flags that they have to follow. You have the option of paying an extra $99 for a ride along the track as a passenger with a professional driver before your actual experience, where you drive the stock car yourself. According to my fiancee, this was worth doing because you got a feel for the car and the track before you drove around it yourself. After this, they go through the safety flags again and each driver is warned to obey the flags while on the track. The flags basically tells the driver to speed up or slow down. While they drive the stock car themselves, they are required to follow a pace car and they aren't allowed to pass this car. If you do well, the pace car lets you go faster each lap up to a maximum speed of 120 miles per hour. They go around the track 8-10 times - I can't really remember...

After their experience, there is a ceremony where they are given a certificate of completion along with their lap statistics.

They let me wait in the stands right beside the track so I can watch and take pictures. They also gave me a complimentary ride around the track in the van to show me the track. I think they do this for family members who are waiting.

The whole thing took about 1.5-2 hours. But we went when it wasn't busy. I think there were only 4 people in the class. We were told that when they're really busy, it takes about 3-5 hours for the whole thing to be completed. If you call them, they should be able to give you a better idea on how long it would take.

I would probably do the experience after the wedding. I'm really superstitious though because I just don't want anything to go wrong, just in case. We did the 8 a.m. experience - I told my fiancee that we had to hurry to MK for breakfast with Mickey. Little did he know, we were going to the RPDE! We basically took the bus to MK. I asked the driver how I can get to the TTC and he drove us there! From the TTC, a van from Richard Petty picked us up. and brought us to the Disney Speedwday for the experience.

Hope this helps. If you have anymore questions, please let me know.

Mary

 

[marebear]

I also wanted to add that I booked the experience through Undercover Tourist and saved $60!

http://www.undercovertourist.com/united-states/florida/orlando/attractions/tickets/

 

[Chilly]

I'm booking this for my DF as well.