MX5 only track day, Llandow circuit, Wales UK, April 2013
One of the guys on MX5Nutz forum is organising an MX5 only day at Llandow track, in aid of the charity Mission Motorsport. To hire the track for just Nutz we can do so at a cost of £80 per car for a full day on track. Extra drivers are £15. The way they usually do it is 2 sessions in the morning to familiarize yourselves with the circuit and then of goes to open pit lane.
This time we are hoping to raise a bit of money for a great cause, Mission Motorsport. If you don't know who these guys are then check out their website:
http://www.missionmotorsport.org/
They race MX5's as part of their project so they are a very worthy part of the community to help out so hopefully we can all have a fun day and raise some money for these guys to recover while burning rubber. We can sell all spaces and make a difference to this charity. Having spoken to Jon at Mission Motorsport we hope we can have a car and some of the guys join us on the day. Anyway, onto the track!
If you've not done a trackday before, it is a hugely fun track, especially as part of a club.
Start/finish straight is the one along the top, which leads into 'Bus Stop', the left/right/right/left/ complex. It looks easy, but it is difficult to master. Screw the first corner up (Assuming you don't bail into the 'oh shit' lane) and it ruins the lines for the following 3 corners, and even the sweeping right that follows. The back straight is a long one over a slight crest. The last corner, known as 'Glue Pot', is a fast right hander leading into the start/finish straight, again hitting near 90mph before entering the Bus Stop once again.
It's a nice track to drive on. The only real downer is that it is quite heavy on the N/S/F tyre. The real advantage is how cheap the track is. It can often be half that of places like Donnington or Coombe. The sound limit is set to 105dB, but I've never seen a car tested there!
The format for the day is usually two 15 minute session for each group (They usually split drivers up by experience, the novices in their own group, denoted with coloured bands) in turn, followed by an "open pit" format where up to 10 cars are allowed out at once.
In short, it's a fun track. It's easy if you want it to be, or a challenge if you're pushing to squeeze time off your lap. The staff there are excellent and very helpful (being car/bike nuts themselves). There is also a go-kart track next door should you fancy a thrash round there. If you have any questions about Llandow, we'll be happy to answer.
The current aim is around April time so everyone will have plenty of time to sort there car out and hopefully we'll have decent weather. If there's enough interest we can take deposits and book the track. We're not doing this for a profit, just a good time on the track with 39 other MX5's (hopefully) and to help out a great charity.
Thread on MX5Nutz: http://www.mx5nutz.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=109171
Russell.
