I was slightly less than charming to the circuit manager when she evicted us, "build a f'king bothy for the marshals and some f'king showers too".

wouldnt happen at knockhill for sure, one year that was a washout we had marshals sleeping in the bothy, kinnairds, clubhouse cafe and some of the truckies that were in hotels let the guys sleep in their wagons

btw amd, carl bradley was in the scroot bay friday night working on his car

A few "fashionably late" photos.

High quality shots, good effort!

Maybe she didn't know what a bothy was, I had to google it.

What about the people who paid?

Marshals and competitors were camping in there for free but they were selling weekend camping tickets iirc?

I'm asking too much as a competitor to be able to wash my hands after a turd or doing a gearbox change?

What if I've brought my kids along and one of them needs to pee, too much to ask to be able to wash their hands afterwards?

You dont expect portaloos to be clean all weekend, thats unrealistic, but on Thursday night when everyone was just arriving and setting up, there was already absolutely no water in any of the toilets in the paddock to simply wash your hands. Unless you're in the 3rd world (or France), you dont expect such things.

If you have a business model which is utterly reliant on volunteer labour it's a really, really, really bad idea to make your volunteers unhappy. Basic sanitary provision and a bit of flexibility in the face of unfriendly weather (e.g. allowing people to use structures like the scruting bay as additional shelter during a downpour) really doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

As a competitor (10 years or so of racing 'bikes at club level) I was always very, very aware of how dependent I was on volunteer marshalls and other officials and duly grateful[1]. I expect circuit owners/managers to do the same and I'm bloody livid at the idea they might be taking Marshall's etc for granted.

Bear in mind that we're dealing with a limited pool of people spending their own money and leisure time, who may find themselves with a choice between being treated like crap in a desolate corner of Scotland or being relatively comfortable at Brands Hatch on a given weekend...


[1] Especially on the occasion I head-butted the tyres at Lydden's Paddock bend hard enough to rip the headstock of my 'bike...

I very much doubt if planning would be granted for anything substantial on the Croft site- definitely not residential and this area is hardly short of light industrial estates already. Ironically Croft is not far from major population areas- Newcastle, Leeds and Teesside are all a relatively short drive away but there IS certainly the perception in a lot of the motorsport community that it is in the middle of nowhere rather than a few minutes off the A1. Compared to Cadwell or Snetterton it seems to me to be well located but , whatever the reasons are , I agree that the circuit is struggling. I find its promotion very feeble and it hardly features in most Yorkshire media at all. The enthusiasm of the people who work there is laudable but I do have the sneaking suspicion that MSV would make a much better job of it than BARC . I have been very impressed by how much Cadwell and Oulton have been improved from the spectator's perspective since Dr Palmer took over.

Weirdly I just got an email from Croft:

Croft Circuit has paid tribute to its officials, volunteers and the public for helping its big Dunlop British Touring Car Championship race weekend (23/24 June) run so smoothly – despite poor weather in the run-up to the event.

The BTCC’s annual visit marks the biggest motor sport event of the year in the North East and inevitably attracts large crowds. In turn this places huge demands on staff at the venue, just outside Darlington.

“Given our team on the ground is only about a third of those at some of the bigger venues – yet we still have to manage similar volumes of people – we did a superb job at the weekend so well done and a big ‘thank you’ to all concerned,” commented Croft Circuit Manager Tracey Morley.

“In all there’s about 15 of us – some volunteers – all keeping our eyes and ears peeled and on standby in case we need to react to situations behind the scenes. Parking and traffic management is always a major priority, particularly when the weather turns nasty which it did in the run-up to the weekend. Other events across the country had to be cancelled because this affected car parks but our preparations – plus the understanding of the public – enabled us to keep a smooth flow of traffic going.

“We are also very grateful to the marshals from the Darlington & District Motor Club, Scottish Motorsport Marshals Club and British Automobile Racing Club who put in three long and very dedicated days trackside. They were certainly kept busy by the touring cars as well as some of the supporting categories!

“On reflection we got through the whole weekend well. In fact we even had a couple hold their wedding reception in one of the spectator viewing areas! The main objective is that the circuit can accommodate the public and that they can enjoy it.”

It wouldn't cost the earth to hire a small marquee for the event for the marshals to shelter in though would it? Somewhere for those camping to meet and have a barbie and a beer in the evening, doesn't matter so much what the weather throws at them then.

On your second point, I wholeheartedly agree.

I think I have one similar to the shot I posted. I'll stick it up later.

As for the conditions at Croft things have deteriorated since BARC got involved. Until recently, the few of us who actually paid to see the club meetings were greeted with a smile and pointed towards the parking area near the back of the grandstand. These days we get herded into a field full of sheep st by "security". If you want decent parking you have to join the supporters club. Apparently handing over your cash on a regular basis is not enough for BARC.

I used to go to almost every car meeting at Croft. This year I've been twice. I'd rather make the 300 mile round trip to Oulton Park.