Brake fade at lap six was the first honest feedback the car had given me since I bought it.
On the road, you never ask enough of the brakes for long enough to find their limit — a hard stop, then miles of nothing before the next one, plenty of time to cool. A track does the opposite: six laps of hard braking into the same three corners, no cooling gap, and by lap six the pedal had gone soft enough that I backed off a full car length earlier than I wanted to.
Tyre pressures were the second lesson. I’d set them cold to the factory road figure and they’d climbed further than I expected by lap four, which changes how the car turns in more than I’d have guessed from reading about it. My co-driver in the passenger seat didn’t say much, which told me more than anything he could have said.
Notes for next time, for anyone booking their first day: ask the day organiser what pad compound is fitted before you go out, bring more brake fluid than you think you need, and don’t judge your own pace against anyone else’s — the car will show you its limits faster than your ego will admit to them.