Track day garage etiquette

[stueys]

Hi first time poster. I attended the track day at Silverstone on the 10th of November, which was a good day except the circuit was a bit quick for my standardish Mk2 Golf 16V. The only thing that spoiled it was the garaging arrangements. I had reserved a garage space for the day, and paid for the priviledge. Having not been there for a day before, i wasn't sure if they were supposed to be shared with other people or not. Having come back from the briefing i found a few other cars had appeared, either in the garage or parked outside the exit. Having asked one of the instructors how it is supposed to work, he told me if i had paid for a garage for myself, it is just for my use. When coming back in after my second run, i was blocked from getting in by a couple of 911's. When i pointed out that i couldn't get back in the attitude was "and??"
I had more problems through the day, these guys didn't seem to appreciate that i had paid for a garage, and kept blocking the exit.
Bearing in mind these guys are maybe driving cars with carbon brakes that probably cost more than doulbe what my car is worth, cant they afford £20 for there own garage slot?
I have spoken to Circuit Days who to be honest didn't seem very interested, if thats there attitude i dont think i would bother with them again? Track days are for all people, from those with lowly Golfs to 911 GT3s are they not??
Apologies for the grumpy post...

[WEREWOLF]

Think i`ll aviod using circuit days then.

[PetrolTed]

You're right - the organiser should have sorted it. Simple customer service to keep an eye on pit garages being blocked, particularly if you've paid to use one.

[mrh3113]

I'm afraid circuit days don't have the greatest reputation; check SELOC forums and do a search on them. There was a shambolic experience for several people at Donnington not so long ago. I went on one of their days at Oulton last week and it was ok but if the track had been dry and all the cars had been out on circuit it may have been a different story... If you paid for it you should have got it. Ask for refund and point out that it would be a shame to keep the issue going on all these forums....

[stueys]

I thought i would add the following, i didn't actually speak to the organisers about this during the day as there were to my mind 4 or 5 offenders, and i was on my own with my girlfriend so i wasn't too keen to start any trouble at the time. Also, i wouldn't actively encourage people not to attend any of their days. It would have been nice to have had a bit more of a positive response to my suggestions. I put it to them that they should mention in their drivers briefing that anyone who has paid for a garage space should be able to use it unimpeded by others. If an individual wants to let someone else share thats up to them, which i did myself to a couple of guys that actually asked me if it was ok.

[GVK]

Seems a bit elitist if they blocked you from getting back into a garage that you had paid for.

Silverstone pit garages are massive and enough room inside for loads of cars, no need to park in the pit lane blocking the entrances ( or were they parked behind them ?)

There's not much the TDO can do after the day in these cases, so ideally best to say something on the day if it's that bad.

[Jubal]

Agree with the views above. Always, always talk to the organisers on the day if there's anything you're unhappy with. There's nothing that can be done after the event. It's nice to be nice and sometimes track days can be a bit cliquey which puts people off complaining but you're buying a product and have a right to enjoy it. Most organisers are professional enough to recognise this these days. In defence of Circuit Days, I've done several events with them and never had a problem. But they were all oop norf (ish) where we are friendly