"Maverick" takes flight with real life Top Gun
V8 Ute racer Gerard “Maverick” McLeod, took a joy ride with former Red Bull Air World Championship pilot Matt Hall on Saturday November 21 as a warm-up to his final round of the 2013 Auto One V8 Ute Racing Series – protected by ARMOR ALL.
Maverick took the flight from Tyabb Airport Mornington. As a Top Gun fan it was one on his bucket list and was definitely the best 18 minutes of his life. "That was the most unreal thing I have ever done!" He said. "I really didn't know what to expect before I jumped aboard but knowing Matt Hall’s outstanding international credentials, put my nerves to rest... A little anyway!" Hall has been flying since he was 15, has 4500 hours in various aircraft types, more than 1100 in light aircraft and in excess of 500 doing aerobatics. In 2009, he became not only the first Australian to ever compete in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship, but also the first Rookie to finish a Red Bull Race and the entire season on the podium.
Hall got up to over 400km per hour at one stage, with a max G Force of 9.5 and thinks McLeod did a great job.
“He did pretty well for a guy that doesn’t do any flying. We went through the whole profile, showed him all of the basic air show manoeuvres and Red Bull racing style, he did super well," said Hall.
“He definitely loved the speed, we had it up over 400km per hour a few times, he liked the race simulation."
McLeod was blown away with the manoeuvres and speed of the plane, and was really appreciative of the high altitude the pilots fly in and the breathing techniques they need to survive up there.
"What these planes are capable of is utterly insane and I now have a new found respect for stunt pilots and what they can do, It makes what we do on the race circuit seem so one dimensional," Maverick said. "The effect that the excessive cornering g-forces have on your body is very full on. It feels like you're being turned inside out and your cheeks feel like they are going to be ripped from your face."
Hall enjoyed taking the 30 year old around, believes he will go well in his motorsport career so long as he stay away from planes!
“We talked about the Utes and how it’s quite challenging due to the handling of the cars and the setups, but it sounds like he has his head in the right place and the transition to V8 Supercars is just around the corner for him. I think he should stick to driving cars, he did really well as a passenger but let’s just leave it at that,” Hall said with a laugh. McLeod will hit the track next week to close out his 2013 V8 Ute campaign. The Melbourne driver is currently sitting in 14th position, and is looking for a good result to end his year when he hits the track on December 6-8 as part of the Sydney 500.
The V8 Utes are just one of the great support categories running at the event – tickets are available now through Ticketek.
