This is where four-time Bathurst winner Craig Lowndes relaxes. "I sometimes look across at Mountain Straight just so I can see what the weather's doing," he says.
"Every time I get an opportunity to relax and look around I take it; even at Skyline." But he says there won't be any casual waves out the window like his mentor Peter Brock on the last lap. "Not unless I have a 50-second lead," he says.
Driving Bathurst comes second nature to Lowndes who has driven there every year since 1996 and turned in more than 2000 laps in racing, practice and qualifying.
"My favourite part of circuit is across the top where you allow the car to flow, particularly from Skyline to Forrest's Elbow," he says. "It's also the most rewarding part of the track.
"It's important to get a good flow of the vehicle across the top. You have to be confident in the car to hit all the apexes. "There are no margins for error. You don't get away with a lot up the top."
Although he's never crashed at The Cutting he names that corner as the scariest. "You approach it in fourth and come back to third, then second and it's quite easy to carry too much speed and end up in the wall," he says.
"I haven't done it, but I've crashed across the top and that's a gut-wrenching experience knowing you've put yourself out of the major race of the year. But history has shown that The Cutting is where most accidents happen. That's where Murph and Ambrose had their accident. A number of drivers have come to blows there."
The best section for overtaking is at the Chase, he says. "I like going around the outside on the kink. It's less bumpy, but you have to have confidence in your car to pull it up from almost 300km/h. It's something I've got used to and now there are a couple of other drivers that go down the left, too."
He says other passing opportunities are on turn one, two and the last corner. "Basically the rest of the track you don't have much opportunity for passing, so you just keep it all together."
So buckle up for a lap of the 6.213km anti-clockwise circuit with Lowndes as he "keeps it together" at speeds approaching 300km/h:
"Turn one is an important corner to get right so you get maximum speed on the second longest straight.
You need to get good drive out of an off-camber exit which is really hard. You know you've had a good run up Mountain Straight if you hit the limiter in fifth and go to sixth.
Turn two is faster than you think and starts the incline. I use third gear then grab fourth as you climb up the mountain. The Cutting is quite a difficult corner to get right as you have a left foot brake in the kink, back to third and as you get into the actual turn you get really heavy on the brake and grab second gear.
Coming out of The Cutting I short shift to third before the hump and fourth as I go under the tree. I carry fourth all the way across through Reid Park into Skyline.
You know you have Skyline right if you have it on the limiter just before braking. Then you drop down the mountain in third gear and position the car for the Esses.
Let it flow and drop back to second for The Dipper, one of the slowest points on the track. Accelerate hard out of the Dipper up to third then quickly back to second for Forrest's Elbow, being careful on the brakes as you can easily lock the front right tyre.
Hopefully you get a good exit and max out early on the throttle changing up on the limiter all the way to sixth down Conrod. It's flat into The Chase at maximum terminal speed of almost 300km/h.
Then it's hard braking back to second if qualifying and third in the race to conserve fuel. A short burst of throttle and if I'm in second I grab third at the change of direction for the second-last turn.
Up to fourth for the charge downhill to the last corner, shift to second and then on the gas and hopefully on to the chequered flag."
