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Requirements for track days

stevehorobin

stevehorobin

PCGB Member
Member
Hi,
Never previously considered a track day until I saw the list of 2021 dates in the recent Porsche Club e-mail.
Might be good fun to take my Boxster 986 S 2001 out for a drive.
BUT....
What do I need to do and have with me?
Insurance, helmet, tyres, MOT, service, ???
And is the money for the track day per car or per driver?
i.e. Can I take my friend along and we can both drive the Boxster?
Appreciate your comments,
Regards, Steve

 
Good to hear you fancy taking your Boxster out on track. It is great fun.


insurance. Not compulsory, many don’t bother, some policies such as PCGB policies through Lockton include track day cover;it is possible to buy separate track day cover per day, at a cost.
You will need a helmet, as helmet hire has been suspended due to Covid. A motorcycle helmet is fine. It will have to be full face in an soft top car.
The track day fee is for the car, and there is a small addition fee for the additional driver, so you can both come and drive the same car.
A valid driving licence is required.
It’s sensible to ensure that you car is in good condition prior to going on track but cars are not inspected.



 
Steve,

The Club’s track-day-guide referenced by Alan covers all the important aspects, tyres and brakes in particular, and as Graham has said an additional driver can be included when booking. Note that (non-Covid) a non-driving passenger is allowed, sometimes subject to a local charitable donation, and helmets are available to hire on the day. Arm and leg coverings are required, so don’t turn up in beachwear!

One-off track day insurance will be expensive and it’s much cheaper to have a policy which includes track day cover. Specialist brokers like ManningUK and ClassicLine will be able to help, although there are others.

Do it! It’s great fun and will give you the opportunity to drive your car without worrying about the constraints associated with modern road driving, and in a safe and secure environment. If you’re looking for a very good introduction to track day driving I can heartily recommend the one organised by R4 at Blyton Park, Lincs. It’s not on the Club’s track day booking site at the moment and in the current circumstances it may not be running this year, but keep a look-out on the forum. It’s always cheaper than the ‘official’ Club track days, instructors are included FOC and driver’s initially are grouped according to experience, so novices aren’t running with track day warriors.

Jeff
 
Alan, Thanks for the link. Proved RTFM still works !!!
Graham, Jeff,
Thanks. Doesn't sound to arduous.
I'm Towcester based. Guess the Castle Combe would be quite close.
Yes, I know Silverstone is 4 miles down the road, just the cost was a little high for a first outing.
All down to the virus I guess whether we'll be let out soon.
Also, good idea to keep an eye on the regions and their separate track events.
Thanks for the feedback.
Steve
 
Absolutely second the recommendation for Blyton Park as a first trackday. Very safe, but lots of fun and always has a great atmosphere. Usually on a Friday around the end of May.


Bear in mind that Covid rules last season meant that non driving passengers could only be from your own household or bubble.
 
Also, I would bear in mind that there are cheaper track days on offer - but they are not necessarily the right option - especially for a beginner. The Porsche Club ones are dearer but that's because they take fewer cars and are much better policed. Having said that, the Blyton Park one is a great option as the venue itself is much lower key.
Have fun.
 
laura said:
Also, I would bear in mind that there are cheaper track days on offer - but they are not necessarily the right option - especially for a beginner. The Porsche Club ones are dearer but that's because they take fewer cars and are much better policed. Having said that, the Blyton Park one is a great option as the venue itself is much lower key.
Have fun.
Click to expand...


Couldn't agree more. The club track days are not cheap but they are good value. Importantly for novices they're not over-populated and I found them to be a great environment in which to start my track day addiction.
 
Hi All
Thank you for your posts in support of Porsche Club track days.
If anyone has a question not already covered here please do email me at trackdays@porscheclubgb.com - I will do my best to answer any query you might have about our track days.
For your information, our days are filling rapidly and some are full already - let me know if there is a specific date you are interested in and I can check current availability for you.

thank you

Paul Grainger
Motorsport Administration
 
After a track day, what can you expect to have to replace on your car. Would it be reasonable to expect tyres to suffer excessive wear, brake pads to need replacing etc?

I am looking to do the track day in R27, june 2021, but I know the track is notorious for wear on the front right tyre and, because it is a fast circuit, very hard on the brakes. I am not under any illusion it will be easy on the car in anyway, but there are 3 days of activities directly afterwards that I want to attend with the club and I don't want a wrecked tyre and badly worn pads to ruin those days out.

Any opinions welcomed !
 
In a short answer, no you should not expect any dramatic excess wear, but the amount of wear your tyres and brakes suffer will be under your control, dependant upon how you drive, and also how many laps you choose to do. It is quite possible to drive quickly and have a lot of fun without thrashing your car.
After all, a track day is a non-competitive event and there is no compulsion to push your car to the very limit. Most instructors will advise starting slowly and gradually building your speed as you get to know both your car and the circuit, and most of the time this will not be hard on your car. Timing on a trackday is strictly forbidden, so you will not be chasing lap times so there is no real need to leave your braking to the very last moment at every corner on every lap.
Keep your sessions short to avoid overheating your tyres and brakes, do a cool down lap hardly touching the brakes at the end of every session and never put the parking brake on.
Having said that, it would be perhaps unwise to turn up with only 2mm of tread on your tyres and expect to be able to drive home legally. Its not ideal to come with brand new tyres either as they will tend to squirm. Check you brake pad thickness too, worn pads that have plenty of life left in for the road will transmit a lot more heat to the fluid so change pads if more than half worn. Fresh brake fluid is never a bad idea either. (Racing brake fluid even better)
Take time to build speed, aim to be as smooth as possible, good technique is much kinder on the car as well as being faster.
 
Perfect, the track day is roughly 4 months away, new rear discs and pads all round went on last week and the tyres are in good order so I should be relatively well set. I will keep an eye on the events section for the upcoming day and book myself a spot.

 
No I think the Park only locks the transmission, parking brake on the disks is seperate function so just leave that off for a while when parking up with hot brakes.
 
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