Dave Wayne

I know this is not necessarily what this thread is about, but I always feel the World Final meeting format is harsh on the 2 drivers who are first home in the consi semi. Yes, it gives them a place on the grid for the big race, but apart from very rare occasions they are not generally in the mix in the world final, so they end up having to race in the consolation to try and make it to the final despite having had a top 2 finish already. This suggested format would make it even worse for them as there is the possibility that they could race 4 times in the meeting, get 3 top 4 finishes, and still not make it to the meeting final !!

All I was saying is that with 42 cars there I would much rather see 3x28 car heats than 2x21 car heats and a maximum 22 car consi. There was a meeting at Cov a few years back that had an attendance in the high 50s but instead of dropping a race they stuck with the traditional format and we had 3 boring heats where nothing happened. Stock car racing for me is all about the top men having to work their way through a packed grid and tonight that is exactly what they will have to do in all 3 formulas. Promoters need to tailor the format to provide the best action for the fans and trackstar have done that in my opinion.

Great to see the 2/3rds format being used giving us big grids of 28 cars all night rather than 2 small grid heats. Action from race 1, none of this diluted heats building up to the final mullarkey that we used to get at Coventry.

It would have made a massive difference. Track limit is 36 cars and that is how many are booked for the support heat.Booking 2 or 3 more would give an additional race and 2 watered down heats of 20 cars or less.

You don't think the European might be a factor then ?

Be interesting to see how we prove we attended. Think my wristband will have gone soggy in the shower by then. 😉

Was definitely Hazel mate, I was shocked to see her on the turnstile Thursday night and then again at the weekend. The response you got should have confirmed it - her usual standard of PR and customer service.

Seeing as incarace have only ever held 1 shale F2 meeting, this could mean potential Euro title winners not getting a booking !! Mildenhall? Theoretically yes, but it specifically states Incarace, not Spedeworth.

Seeing as incarace have only ever held 1 shale F2 meeting, this could mean potential Euro title winners not getting a booking !!

F1 are the support formula this weekend as it is a championship weekend for F2 and Saloons. For F1 it is just a normal meeting each day. F2 have qualifying heats Saturday and Sunday leading into the championship race. Saloons are qualifying heats Saturday, last chance and championship on Sunday plus a couple of allcomers races.

I thought the Bull Shed was usually at Skeg as well ?

To be fair to Rob, Hazel had pretty much the same rules posted on her website for this weekend in her final year of promoting but when I rang and spoke to her she said there was no problem with bringing a sensible amount of food and non-alcoholic drinks of any description, but no alcohol and no massive cool boxes. We didnt have any problems then, didnt have any problems at the big banger meeting in June this year, and I don't imagine anyone will have any problems this weekend. The biggest issue is people ignoring the 'no alcohol' rulings as I think that people taking their own alcohol into a licensed premises probably breaks the rules of the license and leaves the promoter open to possible fines and sanctions.

Kingpin is right. For those that can't be spending mega bucks in the stadium, on top of entry tickets and ever increasing travel costs, here's the answer. Whilst there's nothing happening on track, or a Formula that isn't your bag, nip out to the car and indulge yerself on whatever you like. Might be inconvenient to a degree, but gets a result. 2 minor problems with that : 1) Not all of us only go to watch 1 formula, so on this particular weekend there won't be a formula on that I don't want to watch. 2) At the last big meeting in June (Banger teams) the usual car park was not available to ordinary patrons and everyone had to park in a field at the opposite end of the stadium to the turnstiles. Therefore, it is not a 'nip' but more like 10 minutes each way plus eating time.

Not an easy question to answer I am afraid. I would guess at 16 or 17 races on the Saturday night - standard 5 race format for F1, 5 heats and a final for F2, and either 5 but more probably 6 heats for Saloons. Working on an assumption of 3 or 4 races per hour then it should all be done and dusted by 10pm. However, this is usually a very brutal meeting for Saloons which could result in delays and fence repairs so it could be after 11 by the time it finishes. The old days of early Sunday morning finishes seemed to disappear with the shale.

Starting with 24/25 car heats is likely to be carnage in the early heats and therefore less cars in the later heats.6 heats of 20/21 cars is more than enough for a track like Belle Vue, and should give plenty of action without too much damage. Too many cars in the early heats could leave you without a full grid for the final which would be more disappointing for me than a few 'tame' heats.

Surely you don't mean me ?

Gary Coffey - ex-F2 176 - has been red but not sure what his last grade was - will probably race from blue or yellow. Euan Millar - current F2 629 - red top so will probably race from red Lindsay Wilson - ex Saloon red top 246 - has since raced lightning rods and 1300 saloons - will probably race from red or blue

I believe that Lindsay's is a 50th birthday present !!

Being a bit pedantic here but I thought this was a one off when I saw it the other week. White roof is C grade.

Advice to 'F1 only' fans is to not write off the 1300s as a 'pit walk' formula. These are not the poor imitation seen at skegness, buxton, and occasional coventry meetings. These are the best 1300 saloon drivers in the country racing for one of their major titles and can be as brutal as the 2L saloons. Team racing and inter promotional rivalries often cone into play and backmarkers taking out leaders is not unknown. Just a pity I will be at Taunton for the 2L European !!

The biggest problem is the lack of consistency, not only from track to track but from race to race. In the second F2 race on Saturday the winner went early on the original start and was a good 5 car lengths in front of the rest of the reds when the green went down but wasn't punished. Also, as has been said, on normal race starts the higher grades tend to hang back and then build their speed up meaning they are at racing speed while the lower grades are still accelerating, but this has been an issue for years. When I was racing Saloons at Crewe in 1993 the starter came to see me on the grid at the start of the second race as I was racing from white and told me that I had gone too fast on the rolling lap in race 1. I told him that I had to because the reds were flat out down the back straight so I would get annihilated if I didn't. 2 races later, and I was spun in turn 1/2 on lap 1 by a blue top and then hit head on by a red top. I know I wasn't the fastest out there but that shouldn't be happening to a white top on lap 1 !!!

Who would have thought it ?!!I notice somebody of the same name is booked for Saloons at Brum and Stoke. Is he the new Mark Williamson ?

John Englestone is an ex-Saloon Stox driver and father of current Saloon Stox 220 Casey Englestone. He raced at least once last year and also at the Good Friday Skegness this season - both in Newson hire cars.

Yeah, at least an hour from Mildo to Lynn. But I'd stay away from Lynn. Came back that way after the F2 WF thinking it might be a good idea, but it took even longer. I'm going the same way as Ipswich....... set off in the direction of Lynn, but don't take the A17, stay on the A1 until the A14, then the A11 to Mildenhall (the town) and then ask someone. Or the A1101 towards Beck Row. Agree with Carl in terms of sticking to the A1/A14/A11 as they are dual carriageway all the way so a much quicker route. There are roadworks on the A14 around Cambridge but not normally much of a delay at weekends. The only thing I would mention is that the A11 doesnt quite go to Mildenhall. At Barton Mills roundabout you need to take the A1101 to Mildenhall but dont follow it all the way to Beck Row as Carl suggests. This will take you the long way round the airbase which is very large !! At the roundabout in Mildenhall you need to go left onto B1102 and immediately right (there is a cut through after a few hundred yards if you miss the right turn). Follow this to a t-junction where you turn left, round a long right hand bend, and then as the road bends to the left take the right fork. Continue along this road till you reach the car park entrance on your left hand side.

Seems like a lot of people are turning on each other on this thread which really doesnt achieve anything. I think we can all agree that there is an issue with the age that defines a child, and it is definitely wrong that anyone under 16 should be charged adult prices. However, for an adult I don't think that £20 is a bad price for a championship meeting - maybe the issue for some is that the championship is not for the formula they are going to watch ? Having gone through that period of having to take 2 kids along and pay for them I fully appreciate how expensive it can be, but it always amazes me when people factor in the cost of food and drink when most (if not all) tracks will let you take in your own.