news:

Half the fun of owning a supercar -and I'm not sure Purple Zilla actually qualifies as a supercar- is sharing the excitement by taking the car to events where the adoring masses can get a good look (or at some events, even a ride).

So when I was invited to be part of Jay Broom's ( http://www.jaykaybi.com ) second annual Wilton House Supercar charity extravaganza, I was only too pleased to accept.

The day started for most of the convoy at 6am on a Saturday morning in central London, but those of us living in the sticks, got to meet at a slightly more acceptable 7am at Fleet Services on the M3.

I got there just ahead of the London convoy, headed by Lord Pembroke of Wilton House in his utra dark blue Bugatti Veyron.

The looks on the early morning motorists faces as a day-glo pink McLaren F1 GTR race car trundled in behind, followed by a Koenigsegg, Zonda and dozens of Ferraris, Lamborghinis etc were priceless.

However, static displays alone are not really my scene and Jay knew he would have to dangle an additional carrot to get the maximum turnout of exotica, so this year he laid on an exclusive visit to Thruxton race circuit in Hampshire to let us exercise our steeds.

Not a full-on track day/morning, but a relaxed opportunity to use at least some of the horsepower gathered without breaking the law.

Unfortunately the weather was dismal with light showers keeping the track surface just slippery enough to make it treacherous for extremely valuable and uninsured exotica.

However, fair play to most of the participants as they gingerly went out to play for a few laps, especially Andy in the ex-Schumacher (R, unfortunately, not M) Mclaren F1 GTR as seen in the video at the bottom of the page (viewable in HD).

Despite being on worn Toyo R888s, P Zilla made light of the conditions and seemed to be the fastest car of the morning, although Lord Pembroke was apparently the most sideways driver in his beloved Bayside Blue R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec II! (He wisely left the Veyron in the paddock...) 

Although there were plenty of spinners, everybody managed to finish their sessions undamaged.

Then it was time for a noisy and chaotic convoy to Wilton House, near Salisbury.

Although it was only a 20 mile journey, the 100+ strong cavalcade somehow managed to get split into several fragments, and thanks to my trusty TomTom, I ended up leading a sizeable group through the tortuous Salisbury one way system, wincing as I saw F40s etc clambering over speed humps in my mirror...

We all eventually made it to the stately home, and I was staggered to see thousands of people lining the entrance and all the way along the lengthy driveway leading up to the rear lawn where we were asked to park.

It was hugely gratifying to see kids of all ages excited and enthusiastic about seeing these great cars, with multiple exhortations to "rev it!", only some of which I succumbed to (it's trickier with a dual clutch gearbox than with a manual.)

After a superb lunch in the stunning 16th century mansion, there was an organised sound off with thousands of pistons being revved to do their bit to keep the Salisbury region warm.

Loudest car of the day was a lime green Gallardo with straight through pipes that measured an eardrum-bursting 135dB, although an honourable mention should go to the Koenigsegg that actually blew the foam cover off the sound meter!

All in all, it was a memorable day, that helped raise many thousands of pounds for a very worthwhile cause whilst being a lot of fun for both participants and spectators alike.

Roll on Wilton House Supercar Day 2011!

(For those who wish to donate to the Salisbury District Hospital Stars Appeal, please click here http://www.starsappeal.org/donate.html )

Many thanks to Nick Williams for the Zonda and Godzilla photos and George F Williams (no relation) for the Veyron pic.