Let's Go a Racing Boys

[Baron von Del Boy]

The Birmingham Superprix 1986 - Formula 3000 round the City Streets of Birmingham, It was Marin Hone who got it off the ground, Stirling Moss had tried previously, but I think failed at the Council level

I seem to remember Milton Keynes doing something like that in central MK, i wasnt there, it may have just been demonstration laps, not proper racing.
Possibly something to do with Stewart/Jaguar/Red Bull F1.

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

I remember one chap riding shot gun in a 5.7 Capri telling me that they took off at the hump in Gas street and he was looking down on the roofs of the parked cars either side of the road

Capris were notoriously light at the back, with a 5.7 up front im surprised it didnt do a good ol' boys nosedive

 

[Invetterate]

The Government promised a few years ago to make it easier to set up such events. Guess what - they didn't! Anybody surprised? Course not...!

In the meantime, there are a few places left for the track day at the 3 mile long Snetterton 300 circuit which some of us are going along to on Tuesday September 7th.

You can really open up your Corvette there, believe me, and it has those corner things, you know the interesting bits that join up the straights? I've seen nearly 130mph down the Bentley straight in a C6 before braking very hard for the 40-50mph corner complex at the end, then try pulling about 90mph round Coram, probably the longest corner in the UK. Really concentrates the mind, I can tell you. Oh and it shows just how wonderful these Corvettes are!

Anybody fancy a go?

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

Anybody fancy a go?

Not for me thanks, ive got a stock post smog crisis C3.
If i had a bigger garage maybe i could put a C4 for track days next to it... if..

Bentley straight.. is that what they call it these days.. used to be the Revett straight.
Gerards at Mallory is surely longest corner.. oh, hold on, theyve messed that up with a chicane now.

 

[teamzr1]

The Government promised a few years ago to make it easier to set up such events. Guess what - they didn't! Anybody surprised? Course not...!

In the meantime, there are a few places left for the track day at the 3 mile long Snetterton 300 circuit which some of us are going along to on Tuesday September 7th.

You can really open up your Corvette there, believe me, and it has those corner things, you know the interesting bits that join up the straights? I've seen nearly 130mph down the Bentley straight in a C6 before braking very hard for the 40-50mph corner complex at the end, then try pulling about 90mph round Coram, probably the longest corner in the UK. Really concentrates the mind, I can tell you. Oh and it shows just how wonderful these Corvettes are!

Anybody fancy a go?

I assume you are mentioning the banked corners of an oval track?

If so I drove a Richard Petty NASCAR at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the corners were banked at like 30 degrees
At 160 MPH plus if your not in good shape due to the G forces the left side of body feels like it is on fire

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

I assume you are mentioning the banked corners of an oval track?

No. flat corners.

 

[teamzr1]

No. flat corners.

OK, I hate anything flat, esp women

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

OK, I hate anything flat, esp women

We had Brooklands circuit from 1907 to 1939 which had extremely steeply banked curves (almost impossible to walk up them). More recently we had Rockingham Motor Speedway built like a US banked circuit from 2001 to 2018. All existing UK circuits now in use have 'flat' corners.

 

[teamzr1]

I have to guess they took the banking out to slow the lap speeds down

In NASCAR here where speeds are over 200 MPH instead they keep the banking but reduce the engine's horsepower for those
tracks only and reduce the downforce to force drivers to slow down.

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

I have to guess they took the banking out to slow the lap speeds down

In NASCAR here where speeds are over 200 MPH instead they keep the banking but reduce the engine's horsepower for those
tracks only and reduce the downforce to force drivers to slow down.

No they both closed down.
Something big happened in 1939 that caused Brooklands to be closed.. oh, hold on, you guys didnt join in until 1941
Rockingham couldnt get enough ticket sales to keep going.

 

[Oneball]

Brooklands banking closed due to structural issues. It was a shoddy job to start with, the concrete slab breaking up from the off.

 

[Baron von Del Boy]

Brooklands banking closed due to structural issues. It was a shoddy job to start with, the concrete slab breaking up from the off.

Well, yes, thats why they didnt re-open it after ze var.

 

[Roscobbc]

I know Brooklands was at the very birth of motorsport in the UK and arguably if it hadn't happened perhaps some of the other UK race tracks wouldn't have been built. As fantastic and historic as Brooklands is - you realise that the track right from the very start was dangerous. Simply watching races from the day with the more powerful, faster car actually 'airborne' most of the time, skimming the high-spots on the track. One feels that perhaps if WW2 hadn't happened the finance needed to rebuild the track wouldn't have happened. I'm guessing some of your brickyard and board tracks in the 'States must have been very similar safety-wise back 'in the day'?