Take a 4x4 off road taster session in Leicestershire in a Ford Ranger or Isuzu Rodeo

4×4 off-roading is one of the best selling driving activities at Into the Blue, so we’re always on the look out for new centres to add to our portfolio of suppliers. We’ve just added a new 4×4 taster session in Leicestershire, at a driving centre in the grounds of Prestwold Hall, not far from Loughborough.

What’s rather unique about this supplier is that they use Isuzu Rodeo SUVs or Ford Ranger pick ups, two four-wheel drive vehicles better known in the USA than back here in Blighty, so we reckon it’ll be fun to see how the Japanese and American compare to the ‘British’ workhorses of the off-road world, the Land Rover and Range Rover.

At just £55 per person, this 4×4 taster session offers great value for money and you get a good 30 minutes driving, which is plenty of time to get used to off road driving skills and tackle some pretty gnarly obstacles like water pools, ruts and bumps.

And if you’re thinking of buying this as a present for someone, it’s a good choice as family and friends can ride as passengers whilst they drive, so you get to enjoy the experience as well.

Yes, that really is us at the wheel getting the Subaru to lean into the corner

It’s not very often we’re allowed to step away from the computer screen, so imagine our delight when we were shipped off to Staffordshire to drive some very fast cars.

Getting our priorities right, we signed in and then headed straight for the cafe for a tasty bacon butty. Truth be told we were hoping it’d calm our nerves, but all we could see from the window was a whole plethora of shiny sports cars leaning into corners and that made us even more excited.

First up was the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII (always in roman numerals, fact fans!). Now, it’s been a while since we’ve driven a right-hand drive car, so it was comedy watching the instructors face drop in disbelief as we tried to get in the passenger side. By the time we pulled out onto the tarmac track we noticed his hand was firmly holding the door panel. And was that white knuckles?

He needn’t have worried as by the second lap we’d got back into it and it really was great fun to drive, even though we kept trying to cheat and dropping from fourth to second gear and as instructor Steve said “missing out third gear altogether”. Oops. Next up was the Subaru WRX Sti circa 2003 in Blue Mica with gold alloys and 300bhp, don’t you know. And what a totally awesome car. This one really is our favourite car ever and we were giving it hands in the air as we overtook the Lamborghini!

So, we thought we’d been driving quite fast, but it wasn’t until our high speed passenger ride in the Ford Focus RS that we realised we were trifling amateurs. SO fast. Our brain was having trouble processing the images from our eyes we were going THAT fast. A truly incredible drive we never thought a Ford Focus was capable of.

The Ford Focus RS - in the right hands it really is quite fast!

Having recovered from the Focus, we headed over to a special gravelly section where we were to have a go at proper rally skills, namely handbrake turns. The poor little Peugeot 106 rally car was really taking a hammering as we drove really quite badly. Our patient instructor Ayden didn’t seem to mind (maybe because he doesn’t have to repair the car?!), but it really is unfathomably mad trying to just keep a grip on the steering wheel when the  tyres are just scrabbling for some grip. Much fun though and no-one seems to mind when you take out a few plastic cones as you spin round.

To celebrate the end of our top half day rally driving experience, we thought we’d go for another bacon butty (hungry work all this fast driving you know!), but we decided that’d be just too extravagant, so we said our goodbyes to the friendly bunch at Staffordshire and hopped back into our Kangoo with an earth-shattering 85bhp. *sigh*.

You know that mad eccentric inventor man Edd China off of Channel Five’s ‘Wheeler Dealer’ car show? Well, he’s invented some rather wacky cars in his time and with this brand new experience you can ride shotgun around Rockingham race circuit in the craziest motorised vehicles you’ve ever seen - and each one, unbelievably is road legal with an MoT, tax and insurance!

First up is the motorised sofa called the ‘Casual Lofa’. Edd’s very first invention, the driveable settee is covered in a rather kitsch leopard print velour that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Bet Lynch’s back room at the Rover’s Return. It serves as the perfect couch potato ride, as the steering wheel is a pizza pan, a chocolate bar changes the gears and to brake you hit the drinks can. And don’t think you’ll just be trundling along around on your Casual Lofa ride, Edd China holds the world record for the fastest sofa at a mind-bogglingly fast 92mph!

Sit back, relax and take a tour on the public roads in the 'Street Sleepers'

Next up is a ride in (or should that be on?) the ‘Hot Desk’. The world’s fastest office furniture. Fact. Once again, Edd holds the world record, managing a speed of 87mph in what looks like your typical office set up.

But of course, nothing is quite as it seems. As the driver pulls up a chair, you’ll realise the briefcase on the desk is the ignition, the computer keyboard acts as the steering wheel, the mouse is the horn and the indicators are hidden in nice little pot plants. With three chairs for colleagues, sorry, passengers, this ride can only make the commute to work more fun.

Last but not least, it’s time for a little nightcap before tucking yourself in to the Street Sleeper - a high speed motorised bed. For these bedtime capers, you leave the racetrack and head for the public roads, so make sure you bring your best pyjamas with you! Make sure you don’t get too cosy and nod off though, as once you’re back at the track it’s your chance to have a go at driving the crazy double decker car.

You may have seen this double decker car on TV. It’s literally one car on top of another and the driver and whoever clambers up into the hot seat of the top car has to deal with the steering and the driver in the bottom does the pedals. It’s a bit like trying to pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time, but if nothing else it makes for some great photo opportunities for your friends and family watching.

The wacky cars experience takes place at the Rockingham Race circuit in Northamptonshire and costs just £99 per person or £196 for two and at those prices, we think it’ll be a winner.