SDB

Hi All

We took the rally car for ANOTHER shake down yesterday at Drive-It-All's fabulous facility in Oxfordshire. The facility is regularly used by prodrive for testing, and they also run one of the best (and longest running) rally schools in the country there (

IWatkins

Great Day Out !!

Late turning up, alternator failing, fuel leak, broken bodywork, worst weather for years etc.

Isn't this what rallying is all about ?

Don't worry Simon, this is what shakedowns are for. Now it is handed over to the The King, all will be well, I'm sure.

Mind you, what a great facility. That marque was a god-send yesterday and what a great circuit. Bit of everything in there for testing the car. Smashing.

I'm actually considering booking a course with Drive-It-All just so I can drive around it. No wonder Prodrive etc. use it.

4.5 hour journey home to cover 45 miles due to fall trees, flooded roads and people not making corners. But hey, I was dry and warm

Cheers

Ian

Shaun

Cheers Simon 4 inviting me!!!!!

But you do owe me 2 gallon of fuel, dry cleaning expenses & money for the "Cold & Flu" tablets I had to buy

Track WAS MEGA, definatley worth a bash there!

I was luckily enough to go out with Simon and all I can say............his a nutter

The way he attacked the course......I wouldnt even try in BIG FOOT!!!!

It was a good day, just a pity it was shortlived

Shaun.

igratton

Yes indeedy !!!

A great facility.

A real shame for Simons car not holding together for very long.

As the other Ian above says...this is what rallying is all about.

I would love to see the top end of the stage so maybe a trip to the school is called for.

Bummer the rain got so bad...still...I can feel my fingers again now

See you all again soon.

Ian.

ARRON BIRD

Simon give my regards to Dave and Martin
Our MEGGA sucessful car used to belong to Martin.
Cheers,Arron.

johnfelstead

i know a little GroupA trick for the demisters simon. makes them 200% more efficient and costs about 50 pence, i kid u not!!!

Good news the fuel leak wasnt my doing, didnt sleep last night thinking i had done a **** job!!

carl

Is 'the stage' you're all talking about the big square of gravel with a course laid out in cones, or did I miss the exciting bit when I went on Drive-It-All?

SDB

LOL

carl The course is a 3 mile (ish) gravel and tarmac stage, set out on 3 strips of an airfield (making a HUGE triangle).

Prodrive use it for testing the rally cars that win world championship events.

Top speed is up to about 100MPH in the right car and there is every type of bend imaginable there.

We had all four wheels off the ground (admitedly only just!) whilst sideways at about 80MPH and landed sideways in a huge muddy water splash, then rocketed out into a 200 degree 500 yard bend which changes surface 3 times.

I have to say that I find it hard to imagine ANY enthusiastic driver not fining it exciting...

Unless they drove round at 30MPH. Even Dalby forest would be dull at 30MPH.

Cheers

Simon

Shaun

Driving round at 30mph, but I never even drove on the track!!!!!

Shaun.

carl

Hmm. On the rally day I did we must have used only a bit of it. It certainly wasn't three miles.

igratton

When the car was really going we lost sight of simon (i.e he drove approx 15-20% of the entire stage)....but we managed to spot him again when 30ft waves of water went into the air...guess there is a big watersplash somewhere over the hill....

Maybe I'll get to see it next time. The water didn't seem to do a great deal for good,clean combustion ...the car was missing like a bugger after that

Still...I've got the ok from the doctor...the feeling has returned to my fingers and they don't need to be amputated (yet)

Ian.