First Time Track day with the club

Well, what an excellent weekend! As a complete novice and fairly new club member I am more than happy to share my experience at Castle Combe.

As usual the event was fantastically organised by WPDC and Motorsport Events. I had been itching to book a track day after a recent experience and now seemed like the perfect time. It was actually the main reason I purchased my car in the first place! Having had a few passenger laps elsewhere I knew it was something I needed to experience myself.

Firstly, I have to thank the Club and Classicline for their insurance coverage. This is not a paid ad or sponsor but it certainly calmed the nerves knowing you’re covered on track. Track-Day Insurance was included as part of my policy so I didn’t need to pay any extra, just a small increase in excess should the worst happen, spoiler: It didn’t.

Anyway, the trip started on the Friday afternoon with a gentle drive up to the Cross Hands Hotel. A nice little spot, ample parking and very reasonable costs. Once I arrived, Martin, Trevor and Steve were already there. Having never met any of them before I have to say within just a few minutes it was like we had all known each other far longer. This honestly is one of the friendliest groups I have come across, even as the guy driving “just a Cayman” you never feel out of place. Anyway, Martin soon corrected me on that! “YOU DRIVE A PORSCHE!” 😅

Saturday arrived and it was a nice fresh morning, a little fog but that soon lifted and the cars started arriving at the circuit. There were all kinds of different motors on offer, big wing R35 Skylines to 205 GTI’s, a bit of everything! Porsches and WPDC certainly had an excellent presence, alongside Williams Crawford who arrived in their Boxster and Cayman with a handful of staff. The atmosphere around the place was great from the get-go, everyone having a good laugh and chat. The one thing I hadn’t realised about track days was there’s actually quite a bit of standing around, resting the cars etc. It’s a good chance to chat and catch up! I think that’s honestly one of the real highlights of the day.

The sessions started at 9am and I was into the first group for sighting laps. There were 15 or so cars in our group which was lead by a Volvo XC90. The pace car didn’t hang about and it was quite fun even just following that! After 3 laps the XC90 pulled in and you were allowed another 3/4 laps before the next group was to go. All of my previous worries were quickly calmed as I found ample space on the track. Having recently sat on Youtube corner at the Nurburgring I was really concerned about other cars around, that place is a little crazy, thankfully Castle Combe was nothing like it. There were probably 10-15 cars on track at once, very rarely did you come near anyone else and when you did overtaking was swift, safe and reassuringly easy.

After my first few laps we came in, it was a nice chance to reflect but I was already itching to go again! Thankfully others on the day had far more experience than me and Steve very kindly offered me a few passenger laps in his GT4. This was an incredible experience and again just proves the friendly nature of the club. He really helped me to get a better idea of the lines, we had a great chat going round and the car was extremely impressive. Martin and Steve were fantastic company all day and honestly it was a pleasure to spend the day with them, thanks guys!

Sadly not long after we saw our first small accident of the day. I wont go into any real detail but it wasn’t anything too major. It was a little sad to see and I can’t imagine how the guy felt but it definitely reminded me there’s no need to push, no need to race, no need to prove anything. Quarry is certainly a corner to be respected!

I went back out for about 3 more sessions, each time my confidence grew a little as you get to know the track. I can’t say I ever really pushed the limits of the car, I didn’t even experience brake fade so I know I was hardly trying! Martin explained the cones for ‘braking’ and ‘turning’ zones, the funny thing is I was already braking well before these zones 😂 but I enjoyed it!

Anyway, if you made it this far then hats off and I apologise for rambling on… sadly my day ended a little bit early as I noticed a very minor oil leak underneath. Whilst I probably could have continued I figured it was safer to head home than push the car anymore. With Williams Crawford onsite it was fantastic to have some reassurance, Richard Williams was more than happy to lie on the floor and give me the all clear driving home. Having called them 9am the following Monday morning they had me in Tuesday for a check and diagnosis, another benefit of being with the club!

To summarise, as someone who has sat on the sidelines for far too long it has been really great to get involved. Track days were far less scary than I had imagined and a really good chance to push the car in a controlled environment. My utmost thanks to WPDC and the Admins for running such a great group, it’s been an absolute pleasure every meeting I have attended so far. A truly great bunch. Thank you!