Want to make millions in years to come? Buy a race track. As most road cars become more homogenised and enjoying the remainder in public becomes increasingly socially unacceptable, enthusiasts are taking to the track like never before.
Ben Taylor, CEO of the British Automobile Racing Club, which runs Thruxton among a host of other race tracks and hillclimb and sprint venues around the UK, says:“Interest in track days exploded after Covid and shows no sign of going away. We had a record year in 2022, and with 2023 essentially already booked out, it will be the same again this year.”
What if you’ve never done a track day before, though? What if the idea of pushing yourself and your car harder than you ever have before makes you as anxious as it does excited? If so, such thoughts make you part of one of the world’s least exclusive clubs, namely that of almost everyone who has done a track day for the very first time.
The good news is that in almost all cases, the perception is far, far scarier than the reality. Indeed, driving a car on the limit on a track isn’t only far more fun and less frightening than trying to do so on the road but also far safer.
You’re not going to find anyone coming the other way on a track, you’re not going to find a slick of muck all over the road and, if it does all go wrong, there’s a far better chance that you won’t hit anything. Even if disaster does strike, the barrier you hit will have been designed specifically to protect you – unlike a tree.
Even so, there’s plenty you can do to ensure your first track day is memorable for all the right reasons. And you can do it all from the comfort of your own home.
Because there are so many different forms of track day, including those where you drive cars belonging to the track, all subsequent comment presumes you will be taking your own car.
The most important consideration is which track to visit. Every one in the UK hosts track days, but you perhaps won’t be surprised to learn that it costs more to use a Formula 1-certified facility like the Grand Prix layout at Silverstone than a charming but far smaller one that caters for club-level motorsport, like Mallory Park.
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