Private TVR track day: proposal to hold one at Blyton
Discussion
I am proposing holding a private track day at Blyton if there is enough interest. This is a track day circuit in Lincolnshire, available for private hire.
Positives:
Airfield, brand new tarmac (2011), so no stone chips, and loads of room to spin off and not hit anything. If you want to read up about it, link
Fixed cost of hiring the circuit for an entire day, including marshalls etc, so the more who come, the less it costs. The total cost is £3048, so we need 20 cars to be viable (£150 each), 25 to be affordable (£120), 30 to be cheap (£100), 40 to be pocket money (£75).
We can dictate who comes, so it will be TVRs and possibly mates
Richard, the manager, described it as "interesting, fast, a bit like Bedford" and easy to get to (his words).
He is happy for us to caravan/camp/camper van at the site to make a party of it, and can supply power and loos etc for this purpose.
Negatives:
For you southerners it is quite a long way north (north Lincs). For reference, it is an easy 150 miles from London (straight up the A1, then 30 miles of good A road, so about 3 hours) and 100 miles from Birmingham (via M1 or A1)
It has to be a weekday this year - all weekends are taken up already. I would perhaps try for a Friday if there is interest.
There's not much saving by opting for a winter day, so we will make it summer.
There is a noise limit, which he describes as 95 decibels drive by at 20 metres. He says TVRs are not normally a problem, some of the tunnelers might have an issue. Mine at 98 dB at one meter to the side would pass easily he says, so it is only lunatic Cerberas that would be a possible problem.
So, please add your comments/start a list and we will gauge interest - I would plan it for about 6-10 weeks time, ie July/early August.
If there isn't enough interest, a few of us can always go there on a Javelin trackday for £119 in the week or £129 at a weekend, so nil desperandum, and my offer below will stand too:
Positives:
Airfield, brand new tarmac (2011), so no stone chips, and loads of room to spin off and not hit anything. If you want to read up about it, link
Fixed cost of hiring the circuit for an entire day, including marshalls etc, so the more who come, the less it costs. The total cost is £3048, so we need 20 cars to be viable (£150 each), 25 to be affordable (£120), 30 to be cheap (£100), 40 to be pocket money (£75).
We can dictate who comes, so it will be TVRs and possibly mates
Richard, the manager, described it as "interesting, fast, a bit like Bedford" and easy to get to (his words).
He is happy for us to caravan/camp/camper van at the site to make a party of it, and can supply power and loos etc for this purpose.
Negatives:
For you southerners it is quite a long way north (north Lincs). For reference, it is an easy 150 miles from London (straight up the A1, then 30 miles of good A road, so about 3 hours) and 100 miles from Birmingham (via M1 or A1)
It has to be a weekday this year - all weekends are taken up already. I would perhaps try for a Friday if there is interest.
There's not much saving by opting for a winter day, so we will make it summer.
There is a noise limit, which he describes as 95 decibels drive by at 20 metres. He says TVRs are not normally a problem, some of the tunnelers might have an issue. Mine at 98 dB at one meter to the side would pass easily he says, so it is only lunatic Cerberas that would be a possible problem.
So, please add your comments/start a list and we will gauge interest - I would plan it for about 6-10 weeks time, ie July/early August.
If there isn't enough interest, a few of us can always go there on a Javelin trackday for £119 in the week or £129 at a weekend, so nil desperandum, and my offer below will stand too:
Zippee said:
I'd be interested as long as I could come in my Cooper S JCW rather than the TVR - too loud at 129db.
Too right - that T350 of yours could be heard in Amsterdam. Don't see why not - the day will be a group of friends who love TVRs, and you qualify on both of those.
Now get on with some work..... like I should be doing!
).QBee said:
Negatives:
For you southerners it is quite a long way north (north Lincs). For reference, it is an easy 150 miles from London (straight up the A1, then 30 miles of good A road, so about 3 hours) and 100 miles from Birmingham (via M1 or A1)
For Northerners it is quite a long way South...For you southerners it is quite a long way north (north Lincs). For reference, it is an easy 150 miles from London (straight up the A1, then 30 miles of good A road, so about 3 hours) and 100 miles from Birmingham (via M1 or A1)
QBee said:
There is a noise limit, which he describes as 95 decibels drive by at 20 metres.
...and that's the killer. When folks have organised TVR session piggy-backing on public days at Oulton have the cars struggle to get under 105. OK, that's at the pipe and not drive-by, but I'd guess most folks have some idea of the static limit they can get under, but I've no idea about drive-by. A long way to go to find you're too loud. Can anyone advise what 105db static equates to as drive-by at 20 metres?fatboychim said:
Count me in Anthony, plus Paul in his T350 and 1 more in his Westy if you decide to lower the bar.
Obviously date dependant, but most of the summer is good for me.
Don't forget there is the TVRCC day at Cadwell early September you may want to avoid.
Great! That makes 8 I think.Obviously date dependant, but most of the summer is good for me.
Don't forget there is the TVRCC day at Cadwell early September you may want to avoid.
As soon as we have about 10 I will start a TiTTs type list (unless someone does it for me, hint hint). Please add a column each for Thursday night overnight stay at the track and Friday night BBQ at mine, if you are the willing list builder.
As soon as we have 20 on that list i will start to get a date sorted.
I have enjoyed track days with 30 to 40 cars - more than that and it could be a bit busy, so if we get around 40 I might limit it there.
I am thinking July, or possibly early August, so bring your wet weather tyres!!
I have no issue with lowering the bar to decently quick cars that are friends of the TVR - even novices in TVRs are fine, it's novices in luke warm Polos and the like that i am keen to avoid, due to the speed differential. A Westie and a John Cooper Works with a T350 driver are both good for me.
If anyone feels differently, about both car types and numbers, shout now - it's a free country.
By the way, normal rules like crash helmets and driving licenses, and track etiquette, will apply.
Who da man Anthony. Cooper can come any day.
I'd be very interested in the day.
So if it was a Friday, we could camp, kip the thurs night to be there bright and early! Cooool
Come on all you tivvers this could be a very special occasion, just tiv's in the pits, oh and the odd mini,
Safe safe safe is how I'd put this.
I've almost decided either I'm to dangerous or the other cars are on trackdays. This would allow all the fun we want with a huge dollop of respect for eachother and our cars. The founders of the company would surely approve.
QBee I'm away now for the wk end but you have answered the call in distinct fashion. Your quite a man.
To me if we can get as many people to understand this is gentle science then maybe even the guys with beautiful examples will feel like taking their cars out on track for the first time. Everyone wants to, they just feel unsure about a number if things, we gotta ensure there the ones looked after. It's more about the occasion the sound the vibrations, the smell and everytime you look over to the track there's another great tiv and a new found mate having a go.
Great stuff and I'm just slightly up for it, lol
I'd be very interested in the day.
So if it was a Friday, we could camp, kip the thurs night to be there bright and early! Cooool
Come on all you tivvers this could be a very special occasion, just tiv's in the pits, oh and the odd mini,
Safe safe safe is how I'd put this.
I've almost decided either I'm to dangerous or the other cars are on trackdays. This would allow all the fun we want with a huge dollop of respect for eachother and our cars. The founders of the company would surely approve.
QBee I'm away now for the wk end but you have answered the call in distinct fashion. Your quite a man.
To me if we can get as many people to understand this is gentle science then maybe even the guys with beautiful examples will feel like taking their cars out on track for the first time. Everyone wants to, they just feel unsure about a number if things, we gotta ensure there the ones looked after. It's more about the occasion the sound the vibrations, the smell and everytime you look over to the track there's another great tiv and a new found mate having a go.
Great stuff and I'm just slightly up for it, lol
Bruntingflop said:
.......and I'm just slightly up for it, lol
.....ever the master of understatement, our Alun. On a more serious note, there is a clear opportunity here to bring plenty of equipment to the track to deal with minor issues as they arise, so I will get my son in law along with a tool kit, jack, spare wheels, lubricants etc in a big trailer. If anyone else wants to bring stuff please do.
Also, as we can make up our own rules, we won't have any silly rules about charging for extra drivers etc. However, all drivers must have a valid UK driving license and all occupants of cars must be wearing a crash helmet. Usual rules about no racing or timing.....
It will be a flat fee per car on the track, which will be the hiring fee divided by the number of cars booked.
You WILL need to pay a couple of weeks in advance - I am not going to take the financial pain for half a dozen or more who get out of bed on the morning, see the weather, and go back to sleep. And I will need to pay a hefty deposit to Blyton to book the track. Track days rarely get cancelled by a minor downpour - pack your wets as well as your slicks if the forecast is bad, or do a Peter - run on R1Rs whatever the weather!!
What i will guarantee is that you will only pay the right amount in the end. This is mates organising a track day, not a profit making exercise.
Totally agree with the finance issue, if you think about it if we could get say 40 cars drivers etc, it could be great value even allowing for the extra distance to get there.
I feel it's a good idea to have a period of say 15 mins every hr to allow the beginners some time to acclimatise.
Be great to get some pics in Sprint.
Be really great to see all the fast cars we all own flying round, imagine the purity of the exhaust music. Oh yeah.
QBee, the dates your suggesting seems good to me, late summer gives us all plenty of time to arrange ourselves.
Best get my polished Y piece on the car.
I feel it's a good idea to have a period of say 15 mins every hr to allow the beginners some time to acclimatise.
Be great to get some pics in Sprint.
Be really great to see all the fast cars we all own flying round, imagine the purity of the exhaust music. Oh yeah.
QBee, the dates your suggesting seems good to me, late summer gives us all plenty of time to arrange ourselves.
Best get my polished Y piece on the car.
tvrolet said:
...and that's the killer. When folks have organised TVR session piggy-backing on public days at Oulton have the cars struggle to get under 105. OK, that's at the pipe and not drive-by, but I'd guess most folks have some idea of the static limit they can get under, but I've no idea about drive-by. A long way to go to find you're too loud. Can anyone advise what 105db static equates to as drive-by at 20 metres?
The manager/owner of the circuit is bound by local council noise limits. His comment to me was that he doesn't normally have problems with TVRs. Clearly the loudest Cerberas won't pass any noise limit, so I need to find out the static equivalent of 95 db drive by. I will consult with other tracks and report back. Somebody MUST have a clue. Javelin are I guess just quoting the usual maximum when quoting 105db. Between us we do have some bolt on cans to loan out to the worst offenders.
Looking at MSV's website and the noise limits details, they quote 105dB static and 92dB at 20 metres drive by for Oulton Park and Snetterton. This implies that the static for Blyton is around 108dB, which is actually a whole lot louder than any other UK track. You would have to have a seriously loud exhaust to break that limit. Or be producing a lot of pops and bangs.
Can I stress to those who have standard cars and have not got a clue, my 5 litre Chimaera with cats and standard exhaust was 98db static last time measured, which would be a mile under the Blyton limit - remember, decibels is not a linear scale, but logarithmic. To give you an idea, a 3 decibel increase is a doubling in volume. So the limit at Blyton is double the volume of any other UK track. So my car is one eighth the volume permitted at Blyton.
May I suggest that anyone wishing to book, and with a seriously loud exhaust, should ring up the nearest circuit to home, explain that you would like to do a track day but are worried about the noise of your car, and ask if they could test it for you if you dropped by at a convenient time. Remember, these guys are motorsport nuts. The response I have had from more than one track was "sure, come on down mate, we'll test it for you". You need to be comfortably under 108 decibels static at three quarters of maximum revs.
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