Supercars driver Simona De Silvestro opens up about her fears and driving career

Groundbreaking Supercars driver Simona De Silvestro has no problem with travelling 300km/hour in a race car within inches of concrete walls, but there is something lingering off the Glitter Strip that instils incredible fear.

GROUNDBREAKING Supercars driver Simona De Silvestro has no problem with travelling 300km/hour in a race car within inches of concrete walls, but there is something lingering off the Glitter Strip that instils incredible fear.

The Swiss-born Nissan Altima driver has immersed herself in a Gold Coast lifestyle since arriving in the city two years ago, taking up skateboarding and surfing between the Supercars series.

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De Silverstro has the first skill mastered but conceded surfing was proving much more difficult – a reasonable issue considering her country of birth is in central Europe and nowhere near water.

“I’m much more afraid surfing because it’s not my element,” De Silvestro says.

“That is one concern, then you have all the animals that are in the water. I don’t think anyone has seen a shark on the Coast for some time but I’m really nervous about it.

Supercars driver Simona De Silvestro drives at 300km/h but is more afraid when she is surfing than racing. De Silvestro has been learning how to surf and shows off her board at Main Beach. Picture Glenn Hampson

“Skateboarding is not too bad. Surfing is a different beast. I look legit because I went and bought all the cool stuff but I think I’m too Swiss for surfing. It’s been interesting so far. Luckily I live on the beach so if I see a few people out I’ll try and go.

“I got a few lessons early on and I know what to do, I just don’t have the timing right.”

The four-year-old girl who cried when she couldn’t reach the pedals of a go-kart has now become the woman who has taken motorsport by storm around the world, having raced in both the IndyCar and Formula E Championship before becoming a beacon of hope for young female drivers in Australia.

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“My dad has a car dealership in Switzerland so he always liked cars,” De Silvestro says of her beginnings.

“When I was four he did a go-kart demonstration at the dealership and I really wanted to try it and I couldn’t reach the pedals.

“I cried all day and I think annoyed him enough for him to tell me when I grow a little bit he would get me a go-kart.

“Every month I’d tell him I grew a little bit. I was on him all the time about it.

“When I was seven I finally got my first go-kart. We always like watching racing on TV and I was really lucky that my parents also let me try anything as a young kid. That’s how it all started.”

Simona De Silvestro driver of the #78 Team Harvey Norman Nissan waves to fans during the drivers parade ahead of the Bathurst 1000, which is part of the Supercars Championship at on October 09, 2019 in Bathurst, Australia. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

De Silvestro, sitting 20th in the Supercars championship, is coming to the end of a three-year deal with Harvey Norman and Nissan and has been linked to a move away from Supercars.

The 31-year-old leaves for Europe on Monday to conduct a testing day for the Porsche Formula E squad after signing as a test and development driver in September and will arrive back on the Gold Coast the following Tuesday.

De Silvestro says she would love to get another spot in Supercars and feels she still has a lot to prove, but is looking at all options here and abroad.

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“I’d love to stay in Supercars but in racing you have to be in the right place at the right time, with the right team, the right car and you need a team that really wants you.

“That is what we are assessing at the moment. I’m looking around everywhere. People know about me overseas as well so at the moment there is no decision made.

“I feel like all the boxes haven’t been ticked off here so I still feel I have a lot to prove in Supercars, so we will see what happens.”

De Silvestro’s connection with Harvey Norman has paved the way for her friendship with the company’s CEO Katie Page and her partner and founder of the business Gerry Harvey.

Both are also at the helm of Magic Millions, opening the door for long debates about horses and horsepower.

“Gerry talks more about horses than Katie,” De Silvestro says. “I have never been able to go to the Magic Millions sales but maybe next year.

“I’m always telling Gerry that he has one horsepower, I have like 650 in the car.”