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VAD17

1st track day

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Glad you enjoyed it, no point having cars like ours and not use them to their full potential and you can't really do that on the road. 

 

I've thought about Bedford too as it's not that far compared to others. I stick with sprinting for now, but quite a few of them are just to far. 

Bedford is very good to start with (as was highlighted by quite a few people here), combination of fast and slow corners, lots of run off, I also felt marshals were rather good (though i am sure few chaps banned for noise would disagree).

 

Its also long enough to be interesting and once you split it into sections you challenge yourself where you feel more confident.

 

The only part i didnt particularly like was 2 straights with chicane between them. Even if you carry decent speed out of the corner, our cars are just too slow to accelerate (i could just about reach 110 ish before i had to brake again). But "slow(er)" corners are fab, I often noticed i was getting back closer to M3 on coeners that was overtaking me on straight.

 

I'll definitely do it again

 

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Hi guys, can I ask for opinions on tow hooks/ straps.

 

Do you typically fit both front and back? Do you prefer a hook or a strap, and why? Any recommendations?

 

Based on the quick Google search looks like hooks are more straightforward and some look decent enough to leave permanently. Straps do look nice (IMO) but require bumper removal to fix into sub frame, right?

 

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1 hour ago, VAD17 said:

Hi guys, can I ask for opinions on tow hooks/ straps.

 

Do you typically fit both front and back? Do you prefer a hook or a strap, and why? Any recommendations?

 

Based on the quick Google search looks like hooks are more straightforward and some look decent enough to leave permanently. Straps do look nice (IMO) but require bumper removal to fix into sub frame, right?

 

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You'll really struggle to fit a tow strap on the 86 due to the depth of the mounting hole for the towing eye and the polystyrene type stuff around it. Tow hooks are a much simpler option. For track days I fit a front and rear but only a front is really required at most places.

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Booked next track day at Silverstone on Nov 26th.

Thinking whether to buy my own helmet. Any recommendations?

I have tried Bell and Arai. Bell seem good but I cant decide whether to go for M or L.

Will inside mould a bit after few days?

I know people say get the most expensive you can afford, but for few (novice) track days hard to justify 400-500+ pounds.

 

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1 hour ago, VAD17 said:

Booked next track day at Silverstone on Nov 26th.

Thinking whether to buy my own helmet. Any recommendations?

I have tried Bell and Arai. Bell seem good but I cant decide whether to go for M or L.

Will inside mould a bit after few days?

I know people say get the most expensive you can afford, but for few (novice) track days hard to justify 400-500+ pounds.

 

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Always try a helmet on before buying, some manufacturers will suit your head shape, some won't and they may even differ model to model. Get the smallest size that is comfortable, it needs to be tight.

Spend what you can afford, the big brands don't make an unsafe sh1t helmet!

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The helmet size won't change, as has been said never buy a helmet without trying it on first. You only have one head, so how much you spend depends upon how much you value it. Car type helmets (FR) are fire retardant. Also may be worth considering an open face helmet, it's a lot nice to use than a full face and if you're only going out in tintops then it would always be my preference. I got a Bell Mag helmet for around £200, seems reasonable and have used it for three years now. 

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I have a V2 helmet, it's comfy and was fairly cheap (£120 ish); they're a bit pricier now. Open face is definitely much nicer in a hardtop car. Price largely affects weights rather than safety - an expensive helmet will be a super lightweight carbon fibre jobbie, rather than using heavier plastics. You might want to consider getting a helmet with HANS attachments for future proofing also.

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Thanks for the feedback. I am not planning on putting racing buckets or multi-point belts, so HANS is not an option I am considering. I have looked at Simpson hybrid sport harness as an alternative if i decide to track more, apparently it works even with 3 point belt.

There isnt really a motorsports store close by (at least i couldn't google one up in South East close to Wimbledon), so i might go and check it out while I am at Silverstone.

 

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Had a great day at Silverstone last Sunday with Opentrack. As with Bedford took me some time to get used to the circuit and learn the lines, and it was a bit crowded (with all the expensive supercars around was not entirely comfortable getting close to them :) ). But what a fantastic circuit, definitely worth the extra money.

Got a bit too brave in early afternoon and ended up turning through astroturf into Arena couple times (each time 1st lap from the pits), but all was fine and stayed all the way till dawn.

Managed to overtake McLaren P1 (well, he was doing cooling lap :) , but still - shame had no video or photo).

Great day, time to plan next one...

Silverstone-261117-1.jpg

Silverstone-261117-10.jpg

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Helmet sorted as well now, ready for 2018...

My GT86 is going to get some nice Christmas presents thanks to Mike@TD.co.uk and Lucas@Partbox.

Looking to decide on next track day - either Bedford again or Brands in February.

Would want to try TD NA tune asap while I still remember how stock car behaved.

I also want to try CarLimits, but taking a day off in Jan or Feb will be challenging 20b0cb602ed0d2beca61f539a67e0a36.jpg

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Good place to try on helmets in the Midlands?

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I just tried few on track days to see. Frankly was not that much of a difference - Bell was somewhat less comfortable in M (but L was too loose), and I found Sparco fitted me well and my ears didnt hurt after a whole day on in it. Sparco also has several different M sizes, so it was a bit easier to choose.

But if you cant find a shop close by (I couldn't), I'd say try few at track days and then order online from somewhere with good returns policy.

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2 hours ago, sam534 said:

Good place to try on helmets in the Midlands?

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Demontweeks isn't that far and has a wide range to try on. GSM in Nottingham also carries helmets I believe. Autosport at the NEC in January may also be worth a visit. 

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Demontweeks isn't that far and has a wide range to try on. GSM in Nottingham also carries helmets I believe. Autosport at the NEC in January may also be worth a visit. 

Thanks deacon, demon tweeks is only an hour and half away, and it's where I was looking at some.

 

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10 minutes ago, sam534 said:

Thanks deacon, demon tweeks is only an hour and half away, and it's where I was looking at some.

 

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I'm Midlands based and it's where I went to get mine. They were very helpful 

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I'm Midlands based and it's where I went to get mine. They were very helpful 
Great, I'll check out GSM as well looking online they have a good choice

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Hello good people,

Can I ask more experienced forum members of their views on Thruxton circuit as a track day?

And also, hopefully not a controversial topic, opinions on TDOs?

I only had experience with MSV and Opentrack. Opentrack was at Silverstone and while it was very enjoyable being on track with McLarens, Astons and Ferraris at times it was somewhat crowded with waiting times in the pits.

I have heard Gold Track allow less cars and although they are more expensive some friends say its worth it.

Appreciate your thoughts

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The big issue with Thruxton is noise, which is why none of us have been there. It's 90Db I believe which is very low. It's a very fast circuit with Church corner being the one everyone talks about. I've driven every track in the UK except Thruxton. 

As for TDO's I used to work for Bookatrack 15 years ago. I think to a point the more 'premium' the less cars on track but, the problem is that the premium TDO's will tend to have more expensive cars on the track. Of course this does not mean that having a decent car is any reflection on the ability of the driver, but I tend to avoid TDO's that have a lot of Caterhams going as you will be pulling over constantly for them. Bookatrack have a lot of Caterhams as they are a dealer. 

I don't overly fuss about TDO's anymore. It was different back in the old days where I used Javelin and of course Bookatrack a lot. I would say have a look at the entrants and pick TDO's that have similar cars entered to your's. I'd avoid a day full of GT3's and exotica as a rule. 

Nowadays I tend to use Javelin a fair bit as I've known Colin a good 15 years now and well they run the sprint series. Also generally the kind of cars that run are similar to mine. I recently went out with Mazda on Track and that was fine. Yes lots of mobile chicanes with the abundance of MX5's but it wasn't a problem as such. I thnk they're all much of a muchness when it comes to TDO's. 

The cheaper track days tend to have more cars booked on which can lead to crowding, so that can be a factor. Gold track are more premium as are Bookatrack but you will find there is more exotica on track which can be frustrating if you're getting overtaken all the time, but then again you get a lot of Billies who have exotica that can't drive so they will hammer you down the straights and hold you up in the corners. You see that everywhere though with powerful cars. 

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Think I've been lucky but I've never had to queue in the pits on a trackday, unless there's been a red flag.

This isn't the first time I've heard Opentrack have over filled Silverstone, there was a big thread on Pistonheads complaining about a terrible day there Opentrack ran earlier this year. 

MSV, Javelin and Mazda on Track days have all been great for me. Bit controversial as we have a deal with them, but I found some of the Lotus on Track days not great as I was constantly getting caught by Exiges and Elises on track tyres. 

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1 hour ago, VAD17 said:

Can I ask more experienced forum members of their views on Thruxton circuit as a track day?
 

Thruxton is fast. I don't think they do many trackdays a year, but I've driven a Cayman and Formula Renault around there. They seem to do the track experience stuff and actual racing, when I was there Tiff Needell was there doing passenger laps. I really enjoyed it however I feel that was partly due to the single seater experience, being able to walk around supercars is grin inducing experience, I was only overtaken by Tiff in an M3..... going sideways iaround me into Cobb :lol: From memory it has decent run off and it's all about getting the car balanced around the long fast corner sections.

This isn't me but a good view of what to expect....

 

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Thanks guys

Have not considered noise limit. I will measure it after TD NA tune and then can decide.

Its pretty close to me and (at least on videos) looks like a good circuit.

I will be going to Bedford in Feb and Brands in March. Cant wait...

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