Lydden Hill - REAL race track skidding! make it happen every month!!

[royal]

Haha, was directed at alex kdrifts post, but didn't mean it like that! was including myself when I said it

[MJG]

I hope it continues long enough for me to get my license back and start coming down, at the moment it's too far to ask someone to tow me just for some practice but would be totally up for it when I'm mobile on my own again.

As for 15mins and tyres, if you kill them then it's no problem to change tyres in a few minutes.

[AlexF]

Originally Posted by royal

Haha, was directed at alex kdrifts post, but didn't mean it like that! was including myself when I said it

lol - too many Alex's

Track looks like fun!

[retrodan]

people seriously u will not kill tyres if u have 200-250 hp cars and not massive balls, serioulsy, and u can drive round half the track to let them cool down if u like, plus MOST people will be fair shitting them selfs round this track, but it will learn u god i can promise that!!

so come along, grab ya BALLS and go skid for fun!!!

[LiGhTnInG]

Originally Posted by royal

The average practice day allows you to do one or maybe two laps and then queue for another 10 or 15 minutes.

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Just chatting about this and I reckon its worth making a point of the fact that this is 15minute CONTINUOUS sessions. At a normal skid day with one lap wonders you spend at least 10-15 minutes queueing for every one lap you do.

Although understandable due to the small venues, I don't like the way skid days and comps are run with only perhaps 1 minutes seat time for 10-15mins of queueing and only one or if you are lucky 2 laps of a track.

I reckon the average Lydd (kart track) practice I get about 20 or 30 runs give or take a few, they don't last any more than a minute or two so thats around 1 hours max actual seat time for the average practice day and you only get to do one or two laps at a time.

Didn't realise you felt this way mate. Myself and Nick are very approachable, and if you feel the queue's are too long, let us know.

We can get cars out quicker, but we keep people calm by running gentle laps and making sure everything is controlled and cool.

Generally in the afternoon, there is almost zero queue time. There was at the last day. The afternoon had no queues at all. People were coming off their lap and going straight out. Your car was broken at the time, so you probably were'nt aware.

Its so hard to get proper tracks to support skidding, we need to make it happen. Drifting wont get taken seriously by the motor sports industry until we're skidding real race tracks at high speeds

It's not hard to get tracks for drifting. Not at all. It's just that bigger tracks cost more than the drift community is willing to spend.

We'd get the grand prix circuit at silverstone every month if people were willing to pay the prices to make it feasable. But they aren't, so we can't.

[boXXer]

i'd 100% be up for this. Sounds like a good laugh.

[iamben]

I really like that video one of the best UK drift vids i've seen

[kirbster]

This sounds awesome, also happens to be the closst track to me so id deffo be up for this at some point and i know a few others that would to im sure.

[royal]

Sorry Sam, I didn't mean that comment to sound like a dig at the Lydd days. I love doing the Lydd days more than any other day and consider it my local track. What I was getting at was aimed at all practice days in general, and down to the nature of the venues limiting cars on track etc for obvious reasons. I'm itching to get out on continuous laps as I don't like only being able to do one or two laps. I was disappointed at the last Lydd in the morning when we were only doing one lap and missing out manfoot corner as that for me makes the track, but its something I was going to mention to you , and I know you're good for being flexible and trying things differently, so not an issue as such. The only place I've been able to do continuous laps was Teeside on new years eve and Norfolk after BDC and both were down to there being hardly any punters on track. If I could do Lyd and Lydden every month or so my life would be complete haha
Re queues, I don't think they are too bad at Lydd considering the amount of people and size of venue, although they do get a bit long now that its so busy. I'm sure there's some scope for running extra days now and perhaps splitting ability groups? it doesn't help when feck-wits like me loose wheels either and hold the day up!!


A big track like Lydden can stick everyone out at the same time so we can go around and around (at high speed) until the tyres are gone. I love getting into the flow of it like that and think its much better than the usual one hit wonder 'skid comp-spec' format which I don't really like.

As for big tracks always being available I'm not sure I agree although I don't organise days so wouldn't know.When someone mentioned silverstone a few months back loads of people replied but silverstone said no?

Originally Posted by LiGhTnInG

Didn't realise you felt this way mate. Myself and Nick are very approachable, and if you feel the queue's are too long, let us know.

We can get cars out quicker, but we keep people calm by running gentle laps and making sure everything is controlled and cool.

Generally in the afternoon, there is almost zero queue time. There was at the last day. The afternoon had no queues at all. People were coming off their lap and going straight out. Your car was broken at the time, so you probably were'nt aware.



It's not hard to get tracks for drifting. Not at all. It's just that bigger tracks cost more than the drift community is willing to spend.

We'd get the grand prix circuit at silverstone every month if people were willing to pay the prices to make it feasable. But they aren't, so we can't.

[RandomGuy]

Originally Posted by retrodan

people seriously u will not kill tyres if u have 200-250 hp cars and not massive balls, serioulsy, and u can drive round half the track to let them cool down if u like, plus MOST people will be fair shitting them selfs round this track, but it will learn u god i can promise that!!

so come along, grab ya BALLS and go skid for fun!!!

yeah man!!!!
wise words!!!

lets go kill da neeeesans wurd!!!!!!!!!

[cookwibble]

silverstone would be sooooo far away money wise its unreal. the problem with the big tracks is they can and do charge five figures, even if people pay £200 you would need to guarantee vast numbers which us drifter types cant do. im sure sam and terry and others have had the sweats about filling up days where the track costs less than a grand. the problem isnt acceptance by big tracks, they are businesses and they can and do fill £150 track days, its simply that we as drivers have somehow attached a value to our practice days of £60-£80, which is pretty unrealistic at any but the smallest, most accommodating tracks. so for us to be offered somewhere like lydden hill at what is an insanely cheap price (Javelin wanted to charge drifters the same money for split practice at RAF bentwaters) its just amazing! i hope beyond hope that this takes off, i would rather do 1 day a month at a proper track like this than 2 at a small one. if anybody who wants to go needs any help at all getting there in a non financial sense im more than happy as i really think this could be one of the best things to happen to drifting in this country so far.

[LiGhTnInG]

Royal, the reason silverstone didn't go ahead was because for the day to be affordable; ie circa 150 per person, we would have had to had many people there, and 1 gravel entry= session end.

That also would have been groups of 15 min sessions, but it would have been a high likelyhood that one or more individuals could have been in sessions that could have been black-flagged. This would then make the day a complete waste of money for those one or more individuals.

You name me anyone who would be prepared to lose 150+ for nothing.

We were also going to run some practices at lydden hill, but Nick put some feelers out on here, there was initial interest, then people like hudson, dave ruston and buff put the oar in saying that it was a professional track and not for intermediates.

For the price, it'd have to be full money up front, as the price to open the front doors at lydden and get marshalls\medical is too much to be able to risk someone's bank balance on just the say-so from some K1'ers that they would turn up.

[royal]

Fair one, I can see the issues you'd have to deal with. Its a hard one I guess as even people with a bit of experience are still likely to have an off. I hope it can work out ok and be something that can realistically run regularly. Seeing how many people enter BDC each month would suggest there's enough people out there who can actually stay on track the majority of the time to make a big track day feasible. Its getting them to commit I suppose? I genuinely think it will be a massive boost to UK drifting if we can get skidding regular at big venues.

[G-Man]

oops wrong thread! how'd i do that?>!?!

[charlay]

if it were just run like a drift friendly track day sessioned with 10/15/20 min sessions with 2 alternate groups(poss beginner/advanced) on/off/on etc. where no people were mildly discouraged from manji'ing all the straights and killing tyres after 5 minutes(Which can easily be done in 80% of the drift cars likely to attend) instead just drifting corners a bit without taking the piss, it'd probably work.

I'd personally definatley be interested. think 10min sessions would be better to avoid as many tyre blowouts etc

[royal]

Get your name down on the other thread in the events section for the 5th mate

[charlay]

Not a chance I can afford it yet, just spent 2k and have yet to fit most of the suspension, brakes, turbo, intercooler piping, weld rust hole in driver compartment, refit interior, after removing all sound deadening and get it almost MOT ready. and then pay for the part of the 2k that wasn't my money. if this were end of july/early august of if theirs another one, i'd be up for this as the car will need a shakedown(mostly grip) but i want to drift a proper track and burn some of the massive tyre stack in me garage.

if there were more dates id be in

[Little Jon]

Originally Posted by retrodan

people seriously u will not kill tyres if u have 200-250 hp cars and not massive balls, serioulsy, and u can drive round half the track to let them cool down if u like, plus MOST people will be fair shitting them selfs round this track, but it will learn u god i can promise that!!

so come along, grab ya BALLS and go skid for fun!!!

Dan is right peep's, this track is not for the faint hearted, be prepared!!

3rd gear bend at the bottom of the hill, 80mph+ entry speed or, as i learned at the JDM demo, you will end up in the gravel either on all 4 wheels or the roof!!

But, on a good note............the adrenaline rush is fuckin brilliant!!!

[haza88]

surely it would be better to run the same track as the bdc and not go up the hill i would def be up for trying then as you could link every corner???

[AMY DORAN]

Hey Guys,
After reading this thread I can see there is alot of interest for drifting here at Lydden, BUT unfortunately due to the lack of drifters committing to our trackdays I no longer provide drift sessions on our trackdays.
IF you guys can generate enough interest, and get at least 15 cars to a trackday then I will re-consider.
Unfortuantely I have to look at this from a business point of view so I apologise for any inconvience.
The only time I can Guarentee drifting tracktime at Lydden is at the 2009 BHP Performance show and at the 2009 BHP Jap-edition.
I hope to see you all back at lydden soon.
All the best
Amy