Friday 22nd July 2005

Fancy learning how to hillclimb?

Driving tuition available for sportsman-like events

---

TVR at Prescott Hill

Fancy learning how to hillclimb? The Association of Hillclimb and Sprint Schools (AHSS) school at Prescott, on the outskirts of Cheltenham, has four annual school days available to anyone. The hillclimb school day counts as a MSA instructional signature day if you already have a 'B' licence and want to upgrade it to an 'A'.

Programme overview

The Prescott Hillclimb Driver's School was established in 1984, for providing expert tuition to experienced hill-climbers and newcomers alike. Speed Hillclimbing is now more popular than ever before. More and more drivers are taking to the hills where true sportsmanship thrives and where motorsport can be enjoyed without the pressure of commercialism so often found in other sections of the sport.

Prescott has a unique place in the history of hill-climbing. Here Stirling Moss had his first drive in a racing car, the first ever Cooper made its competition debut and in later years Peter Collins and Graham Hill and many other famous names joined the ranks of Prescott competitors.

The objective is to develop existing skills and to teach you new ones. Each ascent is recorded by video camera and receives individual comments by the instruction team, so you can follow your progress through the day, correct mistakes and experience the satisfaction that comes from applying correct car control.

The next school is on 27 July, and costs £175 each.

PistonHeads will be featuring a report shortly from someone who's done the course already...

Links

• www.prescott-hillclimb.com
• www.bugatti.co.uk
• www.photos2day.co.uk

[james]

Is it true that Prescott Hillclimb School have recently bought 2 Jags for driver training?

[Incorrigible]

Harewood do a similar thing

www.harewoodhill.co.uk/

[agent006]

james said:

Is it true that Prescott Hillclimb School have recently bought 2 Jags for driver training?

Not sure. I'll check when i'm there this weekend. They have BMW course cars so i doubt they'd use Jaguars.

[zumbruk]

agent006 said:

james said: Is it true that Prescott Hillclimb School have recently bought 2 Jags for driver training? Not sure. I'll check when i'm there this weekend.

You marshalling? Wave at yours truly as I whirl past, all elbows and cursing, in TVR #94!

(BTW, the course is well worth doing, and excellent value. I did it a couple of years ago in a Cossie).

[coxy]

Timing of the next training session on 27th July is unfortunate seeing as the Speed Championship is there this Sunday the 24th!

We've got nearly 20 cars out this week so it should be a great event anyway.

[top brake]

i did this in '99 and what a brilliant day it was, think it was about £125 then - £175 is pushing it a bit

had Roy Lane and Mark Waldron as instructors, like having Stirling Moss and Button - awesome!

at lunch Roy Lane took us up the hill in an old Granada - what a guy!!!

[GarryM]

So Zumbruk you've been there before? Coxy, what about you? (Don't tell me - it will be your 47th time!) And I've been looking forward to this one thinking none of the TVR boys & girls have been there before and we would all be in the same boat (so to speak) Looking forward to it but it looks like I'll be bringing rain with me again

I've only seen a short vidio clip of this venue and it looks pretty unforgiving to say the least!! I've no doubt a training day there would be good but I wouldn't try it without having done a few airfield days or whatever first.

[GreenV8S]

top brake said:

at lunch Roy Lane took us up the hill in an old Granada - what a guy!!!

As far I remember, he had some rubbishy old tyres pumped up to around 50 psi to stop them overheating, and he was *still* miles quicker than any of the TVRs.

[zumbruk]

GarryM said:

So Zumbruk you've been there before?

'Fraid so. Sorry. But only on the course.

GarryM said:

Coxy, what about you? (Don't tell me - it will be your 47th time!) And I've been looking forward to this one thinking none of the TVR boys & girls have been there before and we would all be in the same boat

I believe the TVRCC bods did a mass day there a few years ago. Before my TVR days, though.

GarryM said:

(so to speak) Looking forward to it but it looks like I'll be bringing rain with me again

The forecast is for showers.

GarryM said:

I've only seen a short vidio clip of this venue and it looks pretty unforgiving to say the least!!

Yep. Big trees and Armco. I'd strongly recommend walking it - there's plenty of time since it's a civilised start time. The SR's say that new drivers MUST walk the hill. I've got insurance for this one...

(And the 'correct' line on Semicircle is round the outside where all you can see is trees and sky! )

GarryM said:

I've no doubt a training day there would be good but I wouldn't try it without having done a few airfield days or whatever first.

The training day is very good. It was virtually the first motorsport "thing" I ever did, and sowed the seed for actually getting on and *doing* it!

[GarryM]

eunosroadster said:

If you need track info have a look at:www.prescott-hillclimb.com/school/track.php hover your mouse over the corners and the right side shows the line with a brief description.

Thanks that's very interesting. Just been looking at some pics in their gallery. It always amazes me at places like this when you see hairy single seaters blasting up the hill.

[GarryM]

zumbruk said:

Yep. Big trees and Armco. I'd strongly recommend walking it - there's plenty of time since it's a civilised start time. The SR's say that new drivers MUST walk the hill. I've got insurance for this one...

Thanks Zumbruk. Will do. No insurance for me so keeping P&J in one piece definitely a priority!