I've just got back from a brilliant trackday at the ring, thought I'd share some pics and vids.
Bookatrack had managed to secure their first ring day to celebrate 10 years of business so full laps and only 140 cars was too much to turn down. Quiet, dry, insured.
Drove down Sunday and found a suitable song for the de-restricted part of the journey:
The M Coupe is brilliant at speed, it'll cruise at 130 really comfortably and at 150 it still pulls although there wasn't much room for anything else.
On Monday we had a track walk with RSR instructors, just enough time to stop at Aremberg and Karrusell, then sighting laps which the other half drove. It was the first time I'd been in good weather, all other times it had been pissing down and grip was terrible. I was really looking forward to dry laps.
I posted the list of cars there in another thread, but it was something to see them all in the car park. 2 CSL's, 2 458's, 2 430 Scuderias, 2 R8's, loads of Porsches but only 1 Z4m Coupe!
Here's the track before the sighting laps:
This wasn't driven by Herr Rorhl, but it was lovely to see and hear going round:
Here's a one of the early laps, a bit more interesting than my out lap as there's a few more cars. Quality of sound from a £40 camera the size of a chewing gum isn't great and my Heath Robinson mount had a bit too much bonnet but anyway:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSQqSVlZDRo
On the main straight I saw 160 on the clock (not sure how accurate the speedo is at that speed) which was just shy of the start of the orange light at 7,500 revs in 5th. Couldn't verify wether the 155 limit can be defeated by leaving it in 5th. It was so bumpy that I didn't fancy passing the entrance at high speed to try any higher on the downhill section before turn 13. The beep (if you can make it out) is 145km/h to warn me not to get pinched on the autoroutes.
The car felt great, loads of grip, stable and the noise was so addictive! I've fallen in love with the car again. I had a great drive with an Exige on one lap, he was quicker in slow to medium corners (he had a motorsport wing + diffuser) but I finally got to out horsepower someone up the kesselchen (I've done the ring twice before in a 120bhp Eunos)
I was really glad I got new Vredesteins and a geo done before I went, they gripped brilliantly and took the heat very well (it was 30 celsius most of the day)
A car park full of fezzas, apparently 2 didn't drive home on their own
And the viewing area after we finished and a touristenfarhten started:
Hats off to Bookatrack, it was their first day and it went really well. Great driving standards (mostly) only a few people went off and a few hiccups (that were out of their control) aside, the timing of the day went smoothly. I hope this is the first of many they do, it's nice to be able to do a proper track day there and not pay (RMA) through the nose for it.
Oh, and 13.6mpg on the ring, 29 on the way home. Not too shabby I thought.
Bookatrack had managed to secure their first ring day to celebrate 10 years of business so full laps and only 140 cars was too much to turn down. Quiet, dry, insured.
Drove down Sunday and found a suitable song for the de-restricted part of the journey:
The M Coupe is brilliant at speed, it'll cruise at 130 really comfortably and at 150 it still pulls although there wasn't much room for anything else.
On Monday we had a track walk with RSR instructors, just enough time to stop at Aremberg and Karrusell, then sighting laps which the other half drove. It was the first time I'd been in good weather, all other times it had been pissing down and grip was terrible. I was really looking forward to dry laps.
I posted the list of cars there in another thread, but it was something to see them all in the car park. 2 CSL's, 2 458's, 2 430 Scuderias, 2 R8's, loads of Porsches but only 1 Z4m Coupe!
Here's the track before the sighting laps:
This wasn't driven by Herr Rorhl, but it was lovely to see and hear going round:
Here's a one of the early laps, a bit more interesting than my out lap as there's a few more cars. Quality of sound from a £40 camera the size of a chewing gum isn't great and my Heath Robinson mount had a bit too much bonnet but anyway:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSQqSVlZDRo
On the main straight I saw 160 on the clock (not sure how accurate the speedo is at that speed) which was just shy of the start of the orange light at 7,500 revs in 5th. Couldn't verify wether the 155 limit can be defeated by leaving it in 5th. It was so bumpy that I didn't fancy passing the entrance at high speed to try any higher on the downhill section before turn 13. The beep (if you can make it out) is 145km/h to warn me not to get pinched on the autoroutes.
The car felt great, loads of grip, stable and the noise was so addictive! I've fallen in love with the car again. I had a great drive with an Exige on one lap, he was quicker in slow to medium corners (he had a motorsport wing + diffuser) but I finally got to out horsepower someone up the kesselchen (I've done the ring twice before in a 120bhp Eunos)
I was really glad I got new Vredesteins and a geo done before I went, they gripped brilliantly and took the heat very well (it was 30 celsius most of the day)
A car park full of fezzas, apparently 2 didn't drive home on their own
And the viewing area after we finished and a touristenfarhten started:
Hats off to Bookatrack, it was their first day and it went really well. Great driving standards (mostly) only a few people went off and a few hiccups (that were out of their control) aside, the timing of the day went smoothly. I hope this is the first of many they do, it's nice to be able to do a proper track day there and not pay (RMA) through the nose for it.
Oh, and 13.6mpg on the ring, 29 on the way home. Not too shabby I thought.
I didn't see it myself but heard that a 430 Scuderia and a 458 were taken to RSR on the back of a truck.
Liverpool
