Driving Lamborghinis on a Frozen Lake is The Best Thing Ever

Matt Bubbers March 14, 2024

To get to the jaw-dropping Lamborghini Esperienza driving events — and trust us, after having tried it ourselves you really do want to get here — you’ll need to become friendly with your local Lambo dealer. These things are invite-only, but SHARP recently had the chance to spend time drifting the Italian brand’s finest 600-horsepower, $320,000 supercars across a frozen lake in Quebec as part of the Esperienza Neve. And. Just. Wow. The Lamborghini Esperienza is the GOAT of driving experiences.

I Want To Go To There

In Canada, local Lamborghini dealers typically invite a handful of their best clients and/or prospects to enjoy these unabashedly extravagant, shameless, and downright decadent experiences. Sorry, “Esperienzas.”

The price is around $20,000 per driver, and each driver is welcome to bring a guest. Some brought their spouse, while others brought their entire family. There were five waves of guests this year, with roughly 10 drivers per wave. (Canadian dealers typically cover half the cost, while drivers pay the other half, not that money is much of an object here.)

Still, participants do get a lot for their time and money. Typically included in the cost is expert instruction from a cadre of current and former professional racing drivers, two nights at a luxury hotel, spectacular meals, drinks, a frozen-lake-turned-racetrack where the police won’t bother anyone, and a fleet of Lambos on studded ice tires ready to rip.

On the menu at this year’s Esperienza Neve was the rear-drive and extremely frisky Huracan Tecnica, the rally-ready Huracan Sterrato and two versions of the Urus SUV.

Esperienza What?

In case it wasn’t obvious yet from the photos, Esperienza Neve translates as Snow Experience. It takes place on frozen Lake Sacacomie, where Lamborghini’s people spent several months ensuring the ice was thick enough to drive on. The company bought out the entire L’hôtel spa Sacacomie, and brought it its own high-end catering team. The company also set up a temporary building for drivers on the ice, so everyone can keep warm between driving sessions.

“Esperienza Accademia Neve is not only offered in Canada but globally with recent programs taking place in Livigno, Italy this past January and Queenstown, New Zealand in August of last year,” said Andrea Baldi, chief executive officer of Automobili Lamborghini, Americas Region.

Should ice not really be your thing, there are other Esperienzas too. “While these events had paused during the pandemic, we are now rebuilding our offering for a variety of Lamborghini driving programs in the Americas and are currently looking at the possibility of rolling out Esperienza Giro, Esperienza Terra, Esperienza Dinamica and Esperienza Avventura,” Baldi explained. So expect to see more where this came from.

What’s it Like to Drive A Lamborghini on Ice?

This is as close to driving nirvana as we’ve come. It’s one of those oh-my-god-we-can’t-believe-it’s-legal experiences.

After a welcome hot-lap and tour of the frozen track carved into the lake, Lamborghini basically just let us loose in a few million dollars worth of its finest machinery.

The all-wheel drive Sterrato drifted around the ice like it was born to do it. By mid-morning we were drifting in endless figure-eights. By early afternoon we’d linked up the whole track into one endless drift, flicking the car one way, then back through 180-degrees the opposite direction over and over in a kind of automotive ballet of which the cast of The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift would totally approve of. The Sterrato’s all-wheel drive system and dedicated “rally” mode made it feel like child’s play. The V10 engine’s shriek echoed off the trees.

The rear-drive Hurracan Tecnica was another beast entirely. Drifting it in one continuous slide around the skidpad came down to being smooth and anticipating what the car would do before it did it. Easier said than done, but it was more difficult but ultimately more rewarding when everything came together. The Urus SUVs were big, heavy, ponderous things compared to these two V10 supercars, but they too drifted amiably in slow-motion around the entire ice track without complaint.

Fear not: there’s nothing to hit on a frozen lake, and if any driver found themselves beached on a snowbank (ugh) there was a truck ready to tow cars out and back into the action. No harm, no foul. The brave professional drivers offered occasional helpful tips when asked, but otherwise just let us have fun. If you’re not Lewis Hamilton, don’t sweat it. The skill level of guests ranged from total beginners to pretty quick, but everyone was welcome equally and encouraged.

We can’t explain why it’s so fun to drive a car sideways. It’s utterly pointless pure joy. You’ve just got to try it for yourself — preferably on a lake, where there’s nothing to hit, in somebody else’s Lamborghini.

The Après-Drive is Divine

Once the driving is done, or drivers simply want a break, the hotel’s glorious spa is open. The hot-tubs and saunas overlooking the frozen lake are a fine place to reflect on the day’s adventures. For those guests not so enamoured with cars, dog-sled tours, snowmobiling and snow-shoeing were all available too.

“The adventurous Lamborghini Esperienza programs have been part of our highly curated customer-delighting experiences designed to entertain and thrill our valued clients, not to generate a profit,” Baldi explained. The goal is to build long-term relationships with clients who, let’s face it, can buy any car they want.

“The reaction from Lamborghini owners is always incredibly positive when you give them the chance to take their driving to the next level and be part of our passionate community,” Baldi continued.

Honestly? Drifting Lamborghini’s V10 supercars on a frozen lake all day kind of ruined all other driving for us. If you can have more fun on four wheels we’ve yet to discover it.