Cadwell Park to be upgraded - maybe.

Cadwell Park to be upgraded - maybe.

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skeggysteve

Original Poster:

5,724 posts

216 months

Thursday 12th April 2012
quotequote all
I heard a rumour about this last year but couldn't find any more information but today The Lincolnshire Echo has this:

http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/Cadwell-Park-h...

I hope it happens and if it does I really hope they don't spoil the best circuit in the UK!

drakart

1,735 posts

209 months

Thursday 12th April 2012
quotequote all
skeggysteve said:
I heard a rumour about this last year but couldn't find any more information but today The Lincolnshire Echo has this:

http://www.thisislincolnshire.co.uk/Cadwell-Park-h...

I hope it happens and if it does I really hope they don't spoil the best circuit in the UK!
In my opinion, any widening will ruin the circuit. JP just wants to have another circuit to cash in on in the long run.

Please leave this one alone as a "classic" circuit.

nono

djroadboy

1,173 posts

235 months

Thursday 12th April 2012
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Best circuit in the UK!!! You're having a laugh aren't you? biggrin

To be fair, the circuit's great and should be left alone. It's the paddock and facilities that need upgrading.

Dan

ctsdave

872 posts

173 months

Thursday 12th April 2012
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I agree, don't change the track too much - I love the twists and turns especially given it's narrow extra challenge! I hope they don't turn it into a sterile Silverstone paddock either! An update yes, but as said I think they need to be very careful not to ruin Cadwell.

thunderbelmont

2,982 posts

223 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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From a drivers perspective, it's one of the best circuits in the country. It sorts the men from the boys. It's certainly not a boys circuit! Often people who moan about Cadwell couldn't drive a pointed stick up a cats arse!
Yes, it's narrow, but that's the circuits character. It would be nice to have a better pit area, but how can you do that without changing the fundamentals of the circuit? Moving the start/finish to the Park Straight would allow that, but it would change the feel of the place, for the poorer in my view.

Extending the circuit (leaving the existing track as-is so it can be run as it is today) would be good - another 10 miles of tortuous twisting track in the Lincolnshire Wolds would really make it the Nurburgring of the North!!

The Paddock has come a long way from how it was when I first went there over twenty years ago. At least you don't have to burn your clutch out getting up the hill out of scrutineering now!

You also have to remember that this place is a mecca for bike racing, and making it wonderful for cars, may totally ruin it for bikes.

Some Gump

12,671 posts

185 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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thunderbelmont said:
- another 10 miles of tortuous twisting track in the Lincolnshire Wolds would really make it the Nurburgring of the North
North?

Zumbruk

7,848 posts

259 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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It's as far North as Sheffield, and have you tried telling a Yorkshireman that he doesn't live in the North?

mat205125

17,790 posts

212 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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djroadboy said:
Best circuit in the UK!!! You're having a laugh aren't you? biggrin
Obviously completely subjective, however I'd be interested to know which circuit you think is "better"

I'd agree with the "best" comment, given that Cadwell is the circuit at which I've had the most fun driving at.

It's impossible to ever quantify an agreeable "best" of anything anyway, where its not possible to set a specification in concrete to measure "best" against.

drakart

1,735 posts

209 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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The only thing that they should change is the ability to run it backwards. I drove it flat out the wrong way at the weekend and it certainly adds a certain something!

bigbadbikercats

630 posts

207 months

Friday 13th April 2012
quotequote all
djroadboy said:
Best circuit in the UK!!! You're having a laugh aren't you? biggrin

To be fair, the circuit's great and should be left alone. It's the paddock and facilities that need upgrading.

Dan
I think you've answered your own question there.

If the choice is between (say) Silverstone and posh toilets or Cadwell and a hole in the ground then I'll be the one packing my own bog-roll for a trip to Lincolnshire...

I'll admit to very mixed feelings and a degree of trepidation on this one, I've probably put more miles (both competitive and track day) under the wheels of my 'bikes at Cadwell than any other circuit, I absolutely bloody love the place and given how even the modest changes the circuit has seen in my time[1] have changed the character of the place I can't imagine how the sort of alterations I imagine you'd need to be able to run modern F3 and GT cars competitively would change the place.

Mind you, whatever they do I it'll be better than having the place end up as a Golf club with pictures of racing cars on the clubhouse walls so if this is what it's going to take for JP to be able to justify keeping the circuit in the MSV portfolio I'm all for it...

[1] Cutting back the trees in the Woodland section so you no longer get the sensation of diving headlong into a dark green tunnel and colossal sense of speed through Hall Bends and that horrible Mickey Mouse chicane on the exit of Mansfield which we two-wheeled types have had foisted upon us.

BMR

944 posts

177 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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I have been once before to a car race meeting and whilst it was an absolute pain in the backside hauling stuff up and down to the pits the place is so full of character.

So much so that as I'm sitting here reading this thread I'm getting a bit nervous for my first time racing there in June!

Al Weyman

224 posts

212 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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Terrible place it needs a serious updating, the exit from the track in a hot steaming race car with a race clutch is simply a joke, you try to take a run up the hill and get hauled infront of the clerk for speeding(I have been) so if I ever go again which is doubtful after my last debacle I will cut the engine on the slowing down lap and play dead at least it may save a fine or a clutch!

djroadboy

1,173 posts

235 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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I was commenting on the overall package but based solely on the track itself I would still place Oulton and Donington above Cadwell.

HTH

Dan

vjay48

191 posts

158 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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The danger is more of the sterile snetterton scalextric corners,surely its the paddock etc which needs up-grading. A problem at snett. is if 300 circuit is used unless you want to stand on a pile of earth in the wind and rain you see less action on a large chunk of the track,in a 20 minute race you might only see the cars/bikes 8 or 9 times.

Graham

16,368 posts

283 months

Friday 13th April 2012
quotequote all
I'd have to say cadwell is my favourite circuit, but I think upgrading would be difficult, retaining the whole circuit.

A new paddock on the out side of park would be good, but I can't see how you could widen from the mountain to barn.

I think you would have to make the circuit carry on up the valley after the left in to the mountain, then round the current paddock and back into the straight before barn.

You could widen the rest where needed.
The new pits could also be the back of the current paddock if they put that loop in.

Mind you if I can hustle the Tuscan round it's not that narrow

skeggysteve

Original Poster:

5,724 posts

216 months

Friday 13th April 2012
quotequote all
djroadboy said:
...... based solely on the track itself I would still place Oulton and Donington above Cadwell.
I was worried that you were going to say Croft laugh Hope to see you there in May.
I agree that both Oulton and Donny are good tracks but Cadwell just has the edge, to me anyway.

..................

Hi Al, agree with the track exit causing problems, or maybe you only have problems when I'm there wink

Graham, I agree with your thoughts on using the valley to extend the track. I've seen a Ginetta G50 race at Cadwell and they managed with the width! I think the width thing could be something to do with the MSA and track licences.

.............

The rumours I heard were:
New pits where the collecting area is now.
Current cafe removed and new one built.
Hall bend to go.
Circuit extended by going straight on at the Hairpin (apparently MSV own the land outside the circuit there) and returning at Barn.

As I said it's all rumour so please take it as such.

norfolkscooby

3,175 posts

154 months

Friday 13th April 2012
quotequote all
skeggysteve said:
djroadboy said:
...... based solely on the track itself I would still place Oulton and Donington above Cadwell.
I was worried that you were going to say Croft laugh Hope to see you there in May.
I agree that both Oulton and Donny are good tracks but Cadwell just has the edge, to me anyway.

..................

Hi Al, agree with the track exit causing problems, or maybe you only have problems when I'm there wink

Graham, I agree with your thoughts on using the valley to extend the track. I've seen a Ginetta G50 race at Cadwell and they managed with the width! I think the width thing could be something to do with the MSA and track licences.

.............

The rumours I heard were:
New pits where the collecting area is now.
Current cafe removed and new one built.
Hall bend to go.
Circuit extended by going straight on at the Hairpin (apparently MSV own the land outside the circuit there) and returning at Barn.

As I said it's all rumour so please take it as such.
From an initial consultaion taken last year, it was slightly different.

Paddock Levelled with electric & tarmac throughout.

Cafe moved to where mountain top veiwing area is now.

New grandstand on grass bank next to Start/Finish

The old house in trees knocked down, 'pit lane' extended and garages installed with banking from hall cut into.

a '2nd part' to the circuit with ability to run current layout but also use new section from hall bends.

Currently, as per the Echo article, the Crown estate do own some surrounding land, however the land concerned at hairpin is owned by Farmer Robinson and he wont be easy to bargain with, it reportedly cost JP an arm and a leg to buy the very small part required to add run off at hairpin a couple of years back.

Im just hoping any work done doesnt ruin the circuit, ive done many TD's there in various cars and out of all the UK circuits ive been to its easily the best, a real challenge. Im hoping to get there on a bike soon aswell, and widening the circuit will kill it for bikes, as will any 'flattening' of the mountain for cars.

roddo

569 posts

194 months

Friday 13th April 2012
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I maybe getting old and don't like change but Cadwell pk is IMO as good as it gets.......

Over the past three years I have had some very boring races, however the best one was at cadwell where I threw my car off on lap 1 putting me from the front to the back..........But managed to finish 3rd.......

The best race I have had in the last three years.

Yes it needs pit garages and a better paddock but please don't touch the track.........

ctsdave

872 posts

173 months

Saturday 14th April 2012
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Agree with most of the comments so far - and it would be great if the existing layout is kept too (though hopefully as narrow as it currently is - I love it like that!). An updated paddock would be good though!

Not sure I see any problems on the track exit?? We've never had any problems there in many years of running race clutches in either wide arched MGB's or the TVR GRiff we run now? It is steep yes but surely if you're that concerned about stopping you wait at the bottom of the hill until you have a free run up?? I've never touched the clutch going up there - maybe just me?

Al Weyman

224 posts

212 months

Monday 16th April 2012
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Unfortunately the Muncie M22 close ratio 4 speed I run in the Camaros has the longest 1st gear ever fitted in a four speed production gearbox, think Manx Norton or BSA Rocket Gold star if you are into bikes, it will do 80mph in first gear with a 3.5 rear ratio and means you have to take the hill at least 20 or 30 mph with an engine that bogs under 3000rpm unless you slip the clutch and that will incure a trip to the clerk and maybe a fine, just totally unsuitable sorry, it has to be changed to be usable.