First euro trackday
Discussion
Next year me and a few friends are planning on our first euro trackday, we're relatively new to TDs on bikes (done loads on various uk/euro circuits in cars) but on the bikes i think we've done 3 Brands GP and 1 Brands Indy.
So far we've all just rocked up on our road bikes with minimum tools/spares.
The first question is which circuit to choose, we all like the look of Brno, concerns though are weather, we've never done any TD's in the wet so would prefer as much sun as we can get, how reliable is Brno weather wise?
How fast is the circuit? ok for 600s? Well a 675.
Also what trackday organisers are best these days? I've done some research but most stuff i've found is a few years old.
What will be the bare minimum we'll be looking to take with us really in terms of keeping us going for the few days we'll be there, I'm guessing tyre warmers will be essential to prolong the life of the tyres?
What do most people budget for a trip start to end?
Any other info appreciated
So far we've all just rocked up on our road bikes with minimum tools/spares.
The first question is which circuit to choose, we all like the look of Brno, concerns though are weather, we've never done any TD's in the wet so would prefer as much sun as we can get, how reliable is Brno weather wise?
How fast is the circuit? ok for 600s? Well a 675.
Also what trackday organisers are best these days? I've done some research but most stuff i've found is a few years old.
What will be the bare minimum we'll be looking to take with us really in terms of keeping us going for the few days we'll be there, I'm guessing tyre warmers will be essential to prolong the life of the tyres?
What do most people budget for a trip start to end?
Any other info appreciated
Did my first Euro last year at Jerez and it was epic. I put new tyres on prior to going out (they lasted the whole weekend plus will do me for a few more days), took out stands, tyre warmers and tools with any essential spares (levers/pegs). Food was cheap, I had rented a car but ended up getting a lift to the circuit everyday with the guy who put it his bike in the stillage with mine. I need to book another.
All tracks are Ok for all 600s, nomidea why you’d think otherwise.
Tyres depends on your skillset, but agree that tyre warmers are a good to prolong the life of them.
You’ll be able to beg steal or borrow most tools that you’ll need, but you will need your own paddock stands if you’re running warmers, an extension lead and either a blue round plug thing, or a Euro travel plug.
It’s an idea to take some basic tools, but only take what you’ll need to get wheels on and off, no point trying to load a Halfords 300 piece professional tool kit when you’ll only use 6 or 7 of the tools in it. Someone there will have brought a full Snap On kit with them and you’ll be able to borrow anything extra off them.
Leathers, gloves, helmets, boots etc along with some clothes should all go on the stillage to keep you to hand luggage only for the flight.
Budget, I’ve only done a couple but they work out at c£1200 with flights, cars, extra night, tyres on top of the basic cost of the TD in my experience.
One thing I’ve noticed is that Euro groups run faster than UK days. Not sure which group you run in the UK, but if for example you’re lower end Inters, then book Novice.
Tyres depends on your skillset, but agree that tyre warmers are a good to prolong the life of them.
You’ll be able to beg steal or borrow most tools that you’ll need, but you will need your own paddock stands if you’re running warmers, an extension lead and either a blue round plug thing, or a Euro travel plug.
It’s an idea to take some basic tools, but only take what you’ll need to get wheels on and off, no point trying to load a Halfords 300 piece professional tool kit when you’ll only use 6 or 7 of the tools in it. Someone there will have brought a full Snap On kit with them and you’ll be able to borrow anything extra off them.
Leathers, gloves, helmets, boots etc along with some clothes should all go on the stillage to keep you to hand luggage only for the flight.
Budget, I’ve only done a couple but they work out at c£1200 with flights, cars, extra night, tyres on top of the basic cost of the TD in my experience.
One thing I’ve noticed is that Euro groups run faster than UK days. Not sure which group you run in the UK, but if for example you’re lower end Inters, then book Novice.
For your first one I'd suggest a Spanish one. Generally a bit cheaper on the track & hotel package, the track doesn't make a separate charge for the garages, cheaper & more choice on flights and probably more chance of a sunny one?
That said I've done Brno once before and I'm doing it again next year - lovely place.
Guess at a typical Brno budget
£650 track, transport & hotel
£30 extra for garage hire (most annoying)
£30 medical insurance
£120 return flight (Brno direct or Prague / Bratislava / Vienna)
£30 parking at UK airport
£30 airport food & beer
£40 share of foreign hire car & fuel
£200 three evening's drinks & food
£120 bike fuel (five or six tanks worth)
£50 brake pads
£280 tyres (big variables here)
£50 daytime food, snacks, drinks, rehydration stuff
Cannot be bothered to add that up, might be depressing. Just do it, makes UK days look crowded & aggressive.
That said I've done Brno once before and I'm doing it again next year - lovely place.
Guess at a typical Brno budget
£650 track, transport & hotel
£30 extra for garage hire (most annoying)
£30 medical insurance
£120 return flight (Brno direct or Prague / Bratislava / Vienna)
£30 parking at UK airport
£30 airport food & beer
£40 share of foreign hire car & fuel
£200 three evening's drinks & food
£120 bike fuel (five or six tanks worth)
£50 brake pads
£280 tyres (big variables here)
£50 daytime food, snacks, drinks, rehydration stuff
Cannot be bothered to add that up, might be depressing. Just do it, makes UK days look crowded & aggressive.
Watching with interest. I'm looking at doing either portimao or parcmotor next year.
Going from what I have read on various Facebook groups that focused events are cowboys, damaging bikes during transport(no stillages), losing people's s
t and rubbish at sorting any issues. Is that true? I'd hate to turn up in Spain to find my bike is fked and all my gear is in the boot of someone else's hire car.
Am I just better off booking with NL or circuit moto?
Going from what I have read on various Facebook groups that focused events are cowboys, damaging bikes during transport(no stillages), losing people's s
t and rubbish at sorting any issues. Is that true? I'd hate to turn up in Spain to find my bike is fked and all my gear is in the boot of someone else's hire car.Am I just better off booking with NL or circuit moto?
Gavia said:
Give it a rest with the Focused bashing. They might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but they’re not as bad as keeps being made out
There's no smoke without fire though, and I know of a good few people that have been screwed over by them, some of them good friends too, so I know first hand many a FE horror story. Did you hear about the bike that got lost for 2 months ?However, lots of people have great trips with them that go without issue, but the chances of having problems are higher with them I'd suggest.
Personally, I'd not avoid them completely, but I'd only go with them if no other TDO had the track and the dates, although that 9km lap of Almeria/Andalucia Combo is certainly getting my fingers twitching to book with them.
I like no limits, and I've had 3 really good Euro Trips with them, and the drop off in Swindon is 5mins from my house too, which helps
There's plenty of other good ones, and I've heard nothing but good things about Pacific Motorsport, Circuit Moto and redline.
I went to Almeria and Andalucia with CSS, but not sure they're running Euro's any more, which is a shame as it was really well organised and super relaxed
graeme4130 said:
There's no smoke without fire though, and I know of a good few people that have been screwed over by them, some of them good friends too, so I know first hand many a FE horror story. Did you hear about the bike that got lost for 2 months ?
However, lots of people have great trips with them that go without issue, but the chances of having problems are higher with them I'd suggest.
Personally, I'd not avoid them completely, but I'd only go with them if no other TDO had the track and the dates, although that 9km lap of Almeria/Andalucia Combo is certainly getting my fingers twitching to book with them.
I like no limits, and I've had 3 really good Euro Trips with them, and the drop off in Swindon is 5mins from my house too, which helps
There's plenty of other good ones, and I've heard nothing but good things about Pacific Motorsport, Circuit Moto and redline.
I went to Almeria and Andalucia with CSS, but not sure they're running Euro's any more, which is a shame as it was really well organised and super relaxed
There will always be issues with every provider, I can tell tales of No Limts and Circuit Moto with ease. However, lots of people have great trips with them that go without issue, but the chances of having problems are higher with them I'd suggest.
Personally, I'd not avoid them completely, but I'd only go with them if no other TDO had the track and the dates, although that 9km lap of Almeria/Andalucia Combo is certainly getting my fingers twitching to book with them.
I like no limits, and I've had 3 really good Euro Trips with them, and the drop off in Swindon is 5mins from my house too, which helps
There's plenty of other good ones, and I've heard nothing but good things about Pacific Motorsport, Circuit Moto and redline.
I went to Almeria and Andalucia with CSS, but not sure they're running Euro's any more, which is a shame as it was really well organised and super relaxed
I’ve only ever done one day with FE years ago and it was fine, but a lot of the stories are becoming exaggerated over the internet and many would have you believe that Kev Healy will eat your first born as part of the deal you sign up to when doing a trackday with them.
AdamIndy said:
Gavia said:
Give it a rest with the Focused bashing. They might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but they’re not as bad as keeps being made out
Give what a rest? It was a question, I wasn't bashing anyone.Damaged bikes - I’ve seen a bike come off the NL srillage upside down hanging on by one ratchet strap. Many have recently had screens smashed due to the smaller stillages
Lost stuff - lots of stuff goes missing on the journey, most of it due to the person packing their stuff not securing it properly.
Rubbish at sorting issues - nice and generic. Were they even raised? Plenty have lots to say after the fact and don’t raise it at the time.
Gear in someone’s hire car - have you made this up? Is there some sort of
crew that only go on FE days, but NL and CM do a full CRB check on their punters?I don’t work for FE, or have any connection with them, but this whole, let’s just bash them for fun is quite tedious. In fact, last week there was a pathetic Facebook spat between Circuit Moto amd NL, which reflected very, very poorly on CM and their ex-NL instructors.
Gavia said:
I’ve only ever done one day with FE years ago and it was fine, but a lot of the stories are becoming exaggerated over the internet and many would have you believe that Kev Healy will eat your first born as part of the deal you sign up to when doing a trackday with them.
I agree totally that it just seems fashionable to hate FE and exaggerate, and I’ve heard 3 versions of the same event get worse over time However, I’ve seen with my own eyes how KH deals with people, and he’s a proper c-unit
moto_traxport said:
mckeann said:
I've done 4 of the last 5 years at brno with NL and lost half a day to a thunderstorm out of 12 days. I've had worse weather in southern Spain.
Now you've fked it! 
graeme4130 said:
I agree totally that it just seems fashionable to hate FE and exaggerate, and I’ve heard 3 versions of the same event get worse over time
However, I’ve seen with my own eyes how KH deals with people, and he’s a proper c-unit
I know he is. A total weapons grade bellend, but that doesn’t mean that the stories are true, or that the Trackdays are a shambles. However, I’ve seen with my own eyes how KH deals with people, and he’s a proper c-unit
Other TDO main men have their moments too.
Gavia said:
Read your post again and show me the question vs the statements
Damaged bikes - I’ve seen a bike come off the NL srillage upside down hanging on by one ratchet strap. Many have recently had screens smashed due to the smaller stillages
Lost stuff - lots of stuff goes missing on the journey, most of it due to the person packing their stuff not securing it properly.
Rubbish at sorting issues - nice and generic. Were they even raised? Plenty have lots to say after the fact and don’t raise it at the time.
Gear in someone’s hire car - have you made this up? Is there some sort of crew that only go on FE days, but NL and CM do a full CRB check on their punters?
I don’t work for FE, or have any connection with them, but this whole, let’s just bash them for fun is quite tedious. In fact, last week there was a pathetic Facebook spat between Circuit Moto amd NL, which reflected very, very poorly on CM and their ex-NL instructors.
I have read it again and still, there is no statement there. Maybe it could have been worded better but Shakespeare I am not. I posted what I had read and I asked if any of this was true. Damaged bikes - I’ve seen a bike come off the NL srillage upside down hanging on by one ratchet strap. Many have recently had screens smashed due to the smaller stillages
Lost stuff - lots of stuff goes missing on the journey, most of it due to the person packing their stuff not securing it properly.
Rubbish at sorting issues - nice and generic. Were they even raised? Plenty have lots to say after the fact and don’t raise it at the time.
Gear in someone’s hire car - have you made this up? Is there some sort of
crew that only go on FE days, but NL and CM do a full CRB check on their punters?I don’t work for FE, or have any connection with them, but this whole, let’s just bash them for fun is quite tedious. In fact, last week there was a pathetic Facebook spat between Circuit Moto amd NL, which reflected very, very poorly on CM and their ex-NL instructors.
Damaged bikes, yes, I've seen that picture too. From what I have read, it wasn't strapped to the stillage properly. Fair do's, nobody to blame but the owner. Smashed screens, everyone is advised to remove their screens before loading onto the stillages. I've read the newer stillages are smaller which to me still seems a better job than chucking them in a lorry trailer. Not ideal I grant you.
Lost stuff, lost bikes? I have recently heard of a guy whose bike went missing(not the only time this has happened I believe). On arrival FE were of no help whatsoever and he was basically told "tough s
t" and had to hire a bike for the 3 days he was there. That's not cricket. If this isn't true then please correct me. I've never been on a Euro trackday so I can only go on other people's experiences, hence asking if any of the above was worth worrying about.Stuff going missing in my eyes is less likely to happen if you pack your own gear on a stillage and unpack it yourself the other end. From what I understand with FE, your gear is basically chucked in the lorry and picked through the other end. Again, I'm not being antagonistic and if this is incorrect then please do enlighten me.
Rubbish at sorting issues, read above about the guys bike going missing. Again, I've never been on a Euro trip so it's people like myself that will read all this bad publicity and start asking questions as to if it's worth me risking my pride and joy with them. I can't afford to turn up in Spain to find my bike has been left behind or shipped to the wrong country etc.
Gear in someone else's car was perhaps exaggerated, I didn't mean for it to be taken literally and for that I apologise. Though fairly recently I read of someone's paddock stands going walkies. Low and behold someone else was using them even though the guys name was on the stands. I've also read of another guys fuel jug being swiped and used by someone else, again it had the owners name on it.
I didn't mean or want to get anyone's back up, I was simply asking if the rumours are true or if they are blown out of proportion.
For what it's worth I've done a couple of days with FE over here and they were fine. I have no axe to grind and I personally have no issues with them. It's just every other day there is another post about FE's cock ups whereas I rarely read of any issues with NL or anybody else for that matter. I've never once read a single post of FE defending themselves. I'm damn sure if my company(if I owned one) was getting slated to the extent they do, then I would publicly stick up for myself.
I haven't seen the spat between CM and NL, I will have a look for it!
Gavia said:
FE use stillages, exactly the same as everyone else.
You need to stop believing everything you read.
The spat is much more CM, with NL giving one comment and leaving it at that.
FE don't use stillages, they loads your bikes onto a lorry themselves and strap them to each otherYou need to stop believing everything you read.
The spat is much more CM, with NL giving one comment and leaving it at that.
The spat between CM and NL was a bit pathetic. I thought CM took a cheap shot there
graeme4130 said:
FE don't use stillages, they loads your bikes onto a lorry themselves and strap them to each other
The spat between CM and NL was a bit pathetic. I thought CM took a cheap shot there
Ah, that’s me eating a lot of humble pie then. Whoops. The other comments stand though. The spat between CM and NL was a bit pathetic. I thought CM took a cheap shot there
Agreed about CM, I thought it was thoroughly unprofessional.
Gavia said:
graeme4130 said:
FE don't use stillages, they loads your bikes onto a lorry themselves and strap them to each other
The spat between CM and NL was a bit pathetic. I thought CM took a cheap shot there
Ah, that’s me eating a lot of humble pie then. Whoops. The other comments stand though. The spat between CM and NL was a bit pathetic. I thought CM took a cheap shot there
Agreed about CM, I thought it was thoroughly unprofessional.
I always thought JB was a good guy, but I'm not sure I do anymore and to be honest, I'm not sure I'd want to go with CM knowing that's how they do business.
Gassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff