An Open Letter to Chris Harris

Dear Mr. Harris.

I recently found myself suddenly having a great amount of respect for what you do.  I have been an auto enthusiast most of my life and I felt I had a firm grip on the definition of what fast is.  Reading statistics and comparing them to the cars I’ve driven I was sure I could imagine the feeling of hopping into a supercar and taking it around a track.  Having driven a few autocross track days I felt I understood what it takes to get those supercars around a track.  But I recently found myself to be very mistaken.

I just bought a new car, well new to me. I went from my old 2007 Ford Mustang GT and bought a 2014 GT500 Shelby Cobra.  I didn’t test drive it and had it shipped to me.  When it arrived I gave them my old car and just jumped into the GT500 to take it home.  I understood this car is a beast and I expected a change but I was really not prepared for the staggering difference it was.  I won’t go into details but it’s been a long time since a car made me nervous and this car made me fairly terrified.  Trying to get it home in chilly Canada, in the month of February, with summer tires was a festival of screaming engines and tires.  I started getting the hang of it after about an hour and was able to regain a little confidence before I pulled it into the garage.

I’m absolutely certain I would repeat this experience if I got out of my Shelby and into a super or hypercar.  I watched your review of the GT500 Shelby Cobra and you were much more confident in this overpowered monster.  I have so much to learn.  Getting out of my car I thought what you must go through.  For you to show up for a shoot, get into a new car you have no experience with, and blast it around a track the way you do is amazing, and you do it while fully expressing how the car feels to the camera.  The amount of mental stress and adrenaline you surely endure must be wonderfully exhausting.

I truly admire your work, your attitude, and the professionalism in your car reviews and videos.  I look forward to learning what my GT500 has to teach me about my driving skills this summer, and I look forward to seeing your amazing track work with my new understanding of fast.

Thank you.

Chad Bordwell