RE: PH Blog: Brands - a whole new circuit

RE: PH Blog: Brands - a whole new circuit

Tuesday 24th July 2012

PH Blog: Brands - a whole new circuit

Indy schmindy, Dan's had a taste of 'proper' Brands Hatch and has a new favourite track



Having proven the worth of our VW Transporter/Caterham combo for the long trip to the Alps my journey home included a more regular haunt for a rig like this in the shape of the paddock at Brands Hatch. Road legal or not, many a track day toy will find itself on a trailer rather than getting to the track under its own steam.

More at home here than a French camp site!
More at home here than a French camp site!
And while cars like Caterhams, the new Radical SR3 SL and Ginetta G40R are viable to drive to and from the track as well (point proven by a road-legal G40R that won this weekend's Club MSV Team Trophy at Cadwell) as on it if you're racing, camping or just want to eat up the long motorway miles in comfort slinging your track toy on a trailer isn't a daft idea at all.

Suffice to say, our Transporter was far from the only van in the Brands paddock with a trailer on the back, the racy looking Sportline definitely one of the cooler ones though. But I'm clearly biased.

So much for getting it there though. What about the track?

Tested in the Alps, enjoyed at Brands!
Tested in the Alps, enjoyed at Brands!
Frankly I was a little bit nervy. The Indy is familiar enough but that bit in the woods out the back less so. I've done a photoshoot there so could picture the scene - dips, crests, fast blind corners and very little run-off in a pretty convincing impression of a cut-down Nordschleife, minus the Channel crossing and schlep across Belgium. Lining up in the pitlane all was looking OK. Until it started to rain seconds before the green light came on. Cue some very, very cautious laps, the very real sense there was a lot more speed than I was finding as a whole new Brands Hatch revealed itself.

Crazy weather with, at one point, baking sunshine at Paddock and a raging thunderstorm at Druids (yes, really) added to the fun but after a couple of sessions the speed was really coming, a bootful of brake and fourth gear into Hawthorn eventually becoming a little lift in fifth and idle speculation about whether trying it flat would be a good idea.

Sunny side up - blue skies at Paddock...
Sunny side up - blue skies at Paddock...
I also had a quick back-to-back with the bright green Supersports and it was an interesting comparison, bringing to mind Danny's recent PH Fleet update on his Elise and musing on why, post suspension upgrades, he had less confidence in it. PHer Max Torque offered up a very detailed and plausible possible explanation, centring on the idea that the car had greater grip now but 'felt' more jumpy and less confidence inspiring, meaning Danny felt less comfortable pushing it hard.

I got exactly the same feeling from the Supersports. Sharper, more pointy and much more 'lively' with its stiffer suspension and limited-slip diff I felt a lot more relaxed in the Roadsport. But then we had just spent a week together.

Supersports an interesting contrast
Supersports an interesting contrast
Definitely the Roadsport felt pleasantly confidence inspiring, which is just as well given it only had inertia reel seatbelts and a half cage. Armco a few metres of wet grass beyond the edge of the track in 90mph-plus corners takes on a rather more intimidating air from that point of view. Likewise hot headed race drivers (here's looking at you Fergus Walkinshaw in your Ginetta G55...) forgetting themselves and using the access road before Paddock as the braking zone and orange Caterham now alongside as a turn-in point. Smell it? I was sat in it.

Fear makes you stronger though, right? And it's funny how what was once terrifying quickly becomes a life enhancing thrill, that near-flat run through Hawthorn, dab and flick into Westfield and Dingle Dell and dammit, could've gone quicker there combination of Sheene and Stirling among the finest collection of corners I've been lucky enough to experience anywhere. Clearways is a very different corner from the one I've known from Indy days too. Especially with a fresh sheen of water that wasn't there last lap.

Run down to Hawthorn is scary fast
Run down to Hawthorn is scary fast
Suffice to say, the magic of 'proper' Brands has now very much elevated itself in my memory, up there with Spa, Laguna Seca and that circuit in Germany we mention here on occasion. The only tragedy is that Club MSV only gets to hold 20 or so track days on the full GP loop, split between cars (there's one coming up in August) and bikes. Yes, there's a hearty price premium as a result. And it may well ruin the Indy for you for ever more. But if you ever get a chance to drive (or ride) the GP it's one you shouldn't turn down.

Dan

Author
Discussion

Finnegan12

Original Poster:

2 posts

140 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Lovely car

Finnegan12

Original Poster:

2 posts

140 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
The initial message was deleted from this topic on 24 July 2012 at 12:29

enroz

98 posts

164 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
A very underated circuit, just not wide enough(see Monaco)for F1.

Shame

MarJay

2,173 posts

174 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
I did the GP on a bike, and it was nearly on a par with Cadwell Park as a decent circuit.

Nearly.

Maybe the next destination for the Van/Caterham combo should be Lincolnshire?

fatboy18

18,930 posts

210 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Ive been round the GP Circuit in a Shelby GT350 mustang, what made it more exiting was I was sitting on the floor pan hanging onto the interior roll cage, The driver was going for it big time biggrin Dingle Dell was an experience as the car lifted onto two wheels yikes We had sneaked out on a practice session wink Only one race seat in the car wink Very naughty but bloody good fun biggrin

bakerstreet

4,755 posts

164 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Driven round it on one of the experience days. I think it was the old Nigel Mansell Race School run at Brands.

I have the game Race Pro on the XBox and I love Brands Hatch in something like a Radical. Great fun smile

V8 FOU

2,970 posts

146 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
I rode the GP circuit back in the 70's on a Honda 400 in the days of Jeff Crookbain school. The first session consisted of 80% binning it at Surtees! I went on the second session and had a great time. Still got the pictures somewhere (and before anyone says anything they ARE in colour!)
Love to do it again - perhaps in the Esprit?

RemyMartin

6,759 posts

204 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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Absolutely loved doing a GP track day on the bike. Hawthornes is such a fast bend after a proper flat out blast. Very exciting. Just could not get clearways right all day though.

Although the day was slightly spoilt by the constant red flags of people over doing it.

FWDRacer

3,564 posts

223 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Brands Hatch GP is properly intimidating - especially to race on. 'Bout time they got some more circuit time and kicked the NIMBY's into touch. yes

VladD

7,853 posts

264 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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I used to love it when there was the old chicane and the BTCC cars used to get airborne through it. Dingle Dell was it?

I've only ever driven the Indy circuit, but would love a crack around the full GP.

From a TV spectator standpoint, I always find races round the Indy circuit a bit disappointing, but that probably because the full GP circuit is so epic.

WCZ

10,492 posts

193 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
my personal fave track in the UK.

garypotter

1,483 posts

149 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Driven on the indy circuit and crashed on the indy circuit oops!
passenger in a 996 gt3 rs and 993 rs - fantastic cars on a fantastic circuit.

Thanks AB for those memorable laps, still part of my pub banter.

DE15 CAT

355 posts

160 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
FWDRacer said:
Brands Hatch GP is properly intimidating - especially to race on. 'Bout time they got some more circuit time and kicked the NIMBY's into touch. yes
I love watching racing on the GP circuit, & when the historic F1 are there wow, coupled with a gentle walk out there great fun.
I had instruction & single seater laps on the Indy circuit in the 1980's when a young'un & was mighty impressed.

AS for those infuriating NIMBY's, Id love to hear one of the morons explain the thought process of 'I want to buy a house so let's get one near a race track then try complaining to get the noise stopped' they must be a extra special strain of inbred retard.

RichB

51,433 posts

283 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Very tempted to do Brands GP circuit but reading the info from MSV Club in that link I see that the noise limit is now down to 102db for the GP circuit. It's getting ridiculous frown

Edited by RichB on Tuesday 24th July 13:40

fatboy18

18,930 posts

210 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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In all seriousness, anyone know what the Db rating is on a modern F1 car? A few years ago I went to Silverstone to the F1 Qualifying laps, it was the loudest thing I had ever heard! How come they seem to be able to get away with noise yet any of us wanting to take our cars on track are limited to noise rules? This is the same for all UK circuit race tracks as far as i'm aware?

BBS-LM

3,972 posts

223 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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I think the GP circuit at Brands is a must do for any motor racing fan out there.

NITO

1,077 posts

205 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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I love the GP circuit at Brands, so much better than the Indy. I don't know why they can't run it all the time but I couldn't go back to the Indy. I only ever go to Brands when its the GP circuit which is rare and as mentioned at a premium price frown

Please...run the GP permanently!!!

caine100

327 posts

189 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
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It's a shame the noise limit is so low.

Contaminated

119 posts

194 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
caine100 said:
It's a shame the noise limit is so low.
It is a shame, but in all the years I've been going to Brands I'd not actually realised until Superbikes at the weekend just how close to houses the GP circuit is. between Sheene and Stirlings there were people drinking beer, leaning over the back fence. Sounds great to me but I doubt the missus would go for it.

Chris71

21,535 posts

241 months

Tuesday 24th July 2012
quotequote all
Contaminated said:
caine100 said:
It's a shame the noise limit is so low.
It is a shame, but in all the years I've been going to Brands I'd not actually realised until Superbikes at the weekend just how close to houses the GP circuit is.
True, but how many of them were there before the circuit and how many chose to move next to it?

The former might just be true in the case of Brands Hatch, but my local kart track was under threat from the residents of a newly built housing estate recently. The track pre-dates it by decades and there have been people flying out of the adjacent aerodrome continuously since the 1920s.

God I hate NIMBYs.