Six days on snowbound roads at the wheel of a Ferrari Purosangue, taking in the spectacular landscapes of Inner Mongolia, proved to be an unforgettable experience for 150 very fortunate clients
As the first model in the marque’s history to be a bonafide four-door, four-seater, the Ferrari Purosangue has a unique appearance. Couple that with the astonishing landscape of a remote frozen terrain under deep snow, and you have the ingredients for a very special driving occasion.
So it was that Ferrari China chose to host an Esperienza Ferrari event, with a difference. This Esperienza was on ice. In Inner Mongolia.
Watch as 150 owners take part in Ferrari China’s Esperienza On Ice event in Inner Mongolia…
The aim of the six-day event was to afford owners an opportunity to test their high-performance driving skills in what were extremely challenging winter conditions. In January around 150 participants gathered on the frozen expanse of the Yunlong Lake. The nearby city of Yakeshi offers access to breathtaking scenery. The long, long hard winters of these parts leave its vast forests blanketed in snow for months on end. In this high-latitude region such conditions can persist for up to 200 days a year, and see temperatures plummet to as low as -45 degrees Celsius.
The Purosangue’s mid-front-mounted, naturally- aspirated, V12 engine delivers a massive 725 cv, with some 80 per cent torque available even at low revs. It always makes for exhilarating driving. And the snow and ice on and around Yunlong Lake was chosen to boost yet further the four-wheel-drive’s thrill-ometer.
From left: the ice bound Yunlong Lake provided an exciting test track; tackling the remote forest roads; navigating the frozen lake allowed drivers to experience a variety of the Ferrari Purosangue's driving features; temperatures dropped to minus 45 degrees Celsius
The event’s diverse driving programme included circular routes, slalom practise, and abundant off-road motoring. Clearly such intense conditions pose severe challenges to both drivers and cars so before anyone put studded tyre to icy road, a team of safety-conscious Ferrari instructors briefed all participants on a range of driving skills, concentrating on how to control the car in extremely low-grip conditions, how to master the technique of counter-steering and how to use throttle and steering in a slippery turn.
The snow-covered tracks were chosen as the ideal proving ground for the Purosangue’s array of technological features such as its roll-and-pitch control, active suspension system and the improved traction afforded by its contact-patch optimisation. And that traction proved to be the star of the show.
Indeed, the ability of the Purosangue to produce rapid acceleration combined with nimble handling, in such challenging conditions, provided an exhilarating adrenaline rush for every one of the intrepid drivers.
The northern region around Yunlong Lake experiences especially severe winters that leave its huge forests covered in deep blankets of snow for months on end
After navigating the icy terrain with finesse and agility, at the end of their snow-and-ice driving experience many of the participants came to the same conclusion that is already widely shared on the Purosangue: it belies its size to offer an almost shocking degree of versatility, rarely if ever seen in its class.
In keeping with the Esperienza series, the social aspect of the event was not neglected, helping to introduce owners from all over China to Inner Mongolian cuisine. This was accompanied by hospitality that included traditional musicians playing horsehead fiddle, as well as an interactive Mongol-Tuvan throat singing session. Even the go-karting sessions came with traditional yurt huts for rest periods, adding to the authentic flavour of the region’s unique surroundings and culture.
THIS STORY WAS TAKEN FROM ISSUE 62 OF THE OFFICIAL FERRARI MAGAZINE