The club took an action packed four day excursion
Five Club members ventured out on a four day excursion into wales, to find the perfect roads, photo spots and an awesome circuit to drive.
Day one
A very early start saw myself in my newly acquired 996.2 Carrera 4, Mark in his 997.1 Carrera, Martin in his 996.2 Turbo and Trevor in his Cayman GT4 heading up the M5 and M4 motorways into Wales. Before long we were into the first mountain pass of the day, Ogmore Vale, stopping at the top for a pee and photo stop much to the amazement of the local sheep. The next pass was the Bwlch heading towards Neath and our breakfast stop in a lovely little local cafe before heading over the Black Mountain (Top Gear test road), again stopping for photos. From here we joined the A40 where Martin went off chasing motorbikes quickly realising that Sunday ‘power rangers’ can’t actually corner as quick as a 911 Turbo… After a fuel stop we had lunch at a little pub in the Mach Loop and headed up towards Snowdonia. A slight detour found some fantastic corners and ‘jumps’…. A stop for an ice cream and more photos overlooked by Mount Snowdon which for once wasn’t hiding under the clouds. On to the hotel in Bangor where we met up with Jon in his 981 Cayman (who may have overslept..). After the obligatory shower, phone call to home etc, we settled down for the evening with a beer or two and some food before much needed sleep.
Day two
Once again, an early start to have breakfast and fill up with petrol (in Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch but alas no photo) before heading to a very windy and slightly damp Anglesey Circuit for the RMA organised trackday. On arrival we signed on and stuck RMA number plate stickers and yellow/black novice stickers on the cars before a briefing and a couple of sighting laps behind the pace car. We were then allowed open pit lane access to the track which was the full International circuit, along with various BMWs, a Ferrari and a Lamborghini, couple of other 911s, etc. There are spectacular views from the top end of the circuit across the sea to Snowdonia when it isn’t cloudy but concentration needed to be on the track as there were some faster cars to contend with! Myself and Mark took the opportunity to have some tuition from the RMA coach which if you haven’t done a trackday before or are at a new circuit is very welcome. Everyone got a few sessions as the track wasn’t too busy. Lunch came and went with the swap to the Coastal Circuit in the afternoon with the infamous Corkscrew series of corners, again with a couple of sighting laps we were let loose. The first afternoon session was dry and because of that, very fast indeed, even Martin commenting on how much quicker some of the cars he was passing in the morning were going! Soon though the rain and wind returned which didn’t dampen our afternoon of fun, at one point only 3 or 4 cars on track at a time. We left the track around 4 and headed back to the hotel in Bangor for more drinks and food and tales of the days fun.
Day three
Not such an early start today as we didn’t need to be at the AVRO Aerospace Museum until 1 which left us with a leisurely(?) drive along the A55. A slight detour through Llandudno to drive up the Great Orme for views and photos because the weather had once again cleared up. A series of tunnels along the A55 allowed for full exploitation of exhaust valve misuse, although Johns Cayman seemed to be stuck in the loud position all trip, except when he got a warning on track… We had an impromptu coffee stop before searching out a car wash to remove the grime before having photos at the museum, quite by chance finding a quick drive through hand wash much to the amusement of the staff. We arrived at the AVRO museum and had a guided tour of the Vulcan and Lancaster aircraft cockpits before assembling under the full Vulcan bomber outside for a series of photgraphs. We cut the tour a little short to allow time to visit Demon Tweeks in Wrexham before heading to the hotel. A couple of drinks in the Turf, which is right outside the Wrexham FC ground made famous by a television series. Our evening meal was a short walk away before retiring back to the hotel for the night.
Day four
An early start once again to allow us to have a relatively traffic free run (or 3) around the Horseshoe Pass into Llangollen with time for photos. Traffic built up a bit as we headed south for breakfast but luckily Trevor found an unbelievable 20 mile stretch of very fast and twisty B road! We were joined for a bit by a really nice mk2 Escort RS2000, must have been tuned as I don’t remember them being quite as quick as we were driving back in the day… A lovely and welcome stop for breakfast saw us heading down through Wales on some lovely A roads marred only by the odd white van man or log lorry. We stopped for coffee etc at Gordano before all heading home for some much needed R&R.
All in all a fantastic trip with no car issues, loads of fantastic driving, banter and scenery. Huge thank you to Martin for organising as always, AVRO Museum for letting us have photos under the Vulcan and to RMA Trackdays for a very professional and friendly experience at Anglesey Circuit.
By Greame Lake
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