Throughout the day we had seven 10-minute sessions on the Castle Combe track; three pre-lunch and four post the one hour lunch break. Prior to the first ride we had a briefing from Dave Hepworth and a safety talk from a Castle Combe official before being put into groups. From memory there were 6 groups, ranging from novices, through intermediate riders, to “speed demons”, aka the more experienced track riders.
There turned out to be five TVAM volunteer instructors, plus one Castle Combe guide – I didn’t see anything of him as he went out with the above-mentioned ‘speed demons’! I was allocated to a novice group with my instructor Bob Harrison and fellow riders Danny, Adrian and John. Bob gave us a good overview of how the day would run and answered any questions we had. I could be wrong, but I think I was the only person attending the event who had not been on a track before. Certainly, the vast majority of riders were coming back for their fix of speed without the worry of oncoming traffic.
What we thought…
This was my first Skills Day with TVAM and first time at Castle Combe, hence I did not know what to expect. I have been on over twenty commercial motorcycle track days in the last decade and I thought it was going to be something similar…how wrong I was.
I always hate to be late (I mean arriving only an hour before track time), I put enough pressure on myself anyway before the day and did not need the extra stress of being in the long queue at the signing on, at the noise test then rushing to the briefing and to the first session.
We arrived at Castle Combe Circuit just before 8 am and I was surprised about the number of people I could see around the assembly area. I have seen more people in a single group before at other events.
Signing on only took five minutes and another five minutes for the noise testing. Wow! I had enough time to set the tyre pressures, check around the bike and have some water before the briefing.
The atmosphere was so relaxed, everyone seemed excited and it was easy to have a chat with fellow riders. I was happy to see there were no track bikes, ex-racers, etc. TVAM Skills Days are only for road legal bikes and Club members. The briefing went as it should and included all the information that is required along with good banter from Dave.
The red (Experienced) group went out first, so I had no more time messing around, helmet on and go. The first two laps were led by a professional track instructor, showing the best lines while warming up the tyres. The track condition was good enough (cold but dry) for some decent speed. Such a great track, with fast corners, tricky chicanes and technical sections.
As the day went on, everything got better and better. It was easy to get along with the other participants who were a nice friendly bunch. Being observed by a professional in the second session was a great idea. I quickly became familiar enough with the track to enjoy myself a lot and I did not feel that pressure from before.
Having only nine people in our group provided real quality time on the track, I was able to ride my own pace most of the time without big traffic and extremely fast guys all around me.
The relaxed atmosphere and small groups did not mean there was any compromise on safety. It was a very well-organized day. Everything and everyone was supervised as it should be on a skills day. Unfortunately, there were a couple of minor accidents which were dealt with perfectly by the marshals and the Medical Crew.
I was really impressed with everything. The overall feeling was that I had gone for a track day with a group of friends. Dave and his team did a brilliant job!
I would definitely go again, when I can.
Tom Palinkas
It’s a first for me!
Not only was the track skills day at Castle Combe on May 25th my first time on a race circuit, it was a first for me for many other reasons too, and I’ll get into those later. Before I start, and as someone who hasn’t attended such an event before, I’ll cut to the chase and say I couldn’t recommend this skills day too highly – it was well run and I learned a lot, which is of course what being part of TVAM is all about.
To set the scene, I suppose a bit of background is in order. I drunkenly agreed, (when sharing a bottle of whisky with my two brothers), to get a motorbike over the Christmas 2018 break. We even shook on it, so there was no going back! Our idea was that we could ditch our respective partners and kids, hit the road and go on an adventure…..somewhere…..anywhere! Of course, our plans had to change due to the pandemic and our trip is stuck at the planning stage.
All three of us passed our tests and bought bikes during 2019. Personally, I passed my test in July, bought a bike in September and joined TVAM in October. I’ve been lucky to have had long-time club member Keith Yallop appointed as my Observer and we’ve been working towards my advanced test, which hopefully will happen this summer.
Back to the day itself. Registration was from 7.15am to 8.15am, so depending on where you live you may have to prepare for an early start – living in Wokingham I got up at 6am for a 6.30am start. Other firsts for the day included my longest ride on a motorway, having avoided them previously, as I considered them boring to ride on; and my first time wearing a leather one-piece suit (I bought Keith’s old suit off him – it’s useful being a similar size!). While I was a bit nervous, at least I’d look the part.
It hadn’t occurred to me, but several other participants rode down the night before in order to be on the ball and refreshed to start the day. Another dozen or so had come with their bikes in the back of a van or on a trailer. Perhaps that is why I felt slightly over-prepared wearing a rain suit and carrying both a tank bag and rucksack full of spare kit (thermals, gloves, buffs, etc.), none of which I ended up needing – but thanks to Mel Hakhnazarian (Red Zone) for that tip.
For a novice it was slightly intimidating arriving in the car park, which was full of leather-clad ladies and gents, as well as approximately 60 shiny bikes and at least three ambulances (gulp). However, everyone was very friendly and welcoming. In many ways it reminded me of riding to my first St Crispin’s gathering (a distant memory), albeit a smaller affair but with the same welcoming atmosphere.
Being relatively new to biking, I was very interested to hear how loud my Honda CBR 650F would be (it still sounds loud to me). I was disappointed after asking the guy at the testing station if my bike was very loud when he said “nah mate, no worries. It’s very quiet, probably one of the quietest here” (sigh).
Throughout the day we had seven 10-minute sessions on the Castle Combe track; three pre-lunch and four post the one hour lunch break. Prior to the first ride we had a briefing from Dave Hepworth and a safety talk from a Castle Combe official before being put into groups. From memory there were 6 groups, ranging from novices, through intermediate riders, to “speed demons”, aka the more experienced track riders.
There turned out to be five TVAM volunteer instructors, plus one Castle Combe guide – I didn’t see anything of him as he went out with the above-mentioned ‘speed demons’! I was allocated to a novice group with my instructor Bob Harrison and fellow riders Danny, Adrian and John. Bob gave us a good overview of how the day would run and answered any questions we had. I could be wrong, but I think I was the only person attending the event who had not been on a track before. Certainly, the vast majority of riders were coming back for their fix of speed without the worry of oncoming traffic.
During our initial sessions we followed the IPSGA system and our first time on track was purely about information gathering, way finding and positioning – course layout, cornering, that kind thing. Before each outing Bob told the group what we’d be focusing on, before he led us out in a line. We were like baby ducks following daddy duck!
Our second outing focused on speed and correct gear selection, and by this stage we were already upping the pace! Our final pre-lunch session worked on honing our acceleration in and out of corners and again we contined to pick up speed around the circuit.
It really was an informative first half of the day and over my packed lunch (again I had possibly over-prepared as there was a nice café on site) I was looking forward to “getting down to business” post the break. Incidentally, and to everyone’s delight, the weather remained pretty much dry throughout the day. I even got to promote our sister-IAM Club, Bristol Advanced Motorcyclists, to a fellow rider who had popped into the on-site motorsports shop for some parts.
My next first was my rear wheel sliding slightly, whilst going through one of the two chicanes on the track. In truth, it was only a minor incident, but it did knock my confidence somewhat.
However, post our fourth time on track, our group used my ‘experience’ for a good discussion – every day being a school day! At the time I wasn’t sure what I’d done wrong, but through the post-ride debrief I got to understand what I’d done. Incidentally I geared down whilst turning, causing my tyre to spin when I accelerated out of the chicane. The lesson was to ensure I had all my braking and gear changing done, whilst upright and prior to turning.
It took a few more times to get my confidence back to where it had been, but by the last time on track I’d found it and probably put in my best (fastest!) lap of the day. Yet another first was at the end of the fourth session. Due to me dropping back a bit to catch my breath, the rest of my group had increased the distance between us! In fact, I actually missed the chequered flag and overshot the pit lane! I don’t think it amused the Castle Combe officials much. It also meant that I started to be overtaken by some of the advanced riders who had come out for their turn on track. This was a bit scary, particularly at one point when I was overtaken simultaneously on both sides.
My final first was nearly running out of fuel! I am normally very conscientious of this and had refuelled the night before. I’d worked out I had LOADS of fuel to get to the circuit and take part in the day’s activities. Imagine my surprise when I accidentally looked at my fuel gauge after my penultimate time on track to discover it was on empty! It didn’t occur to me that I’d use so much fuel whilst going around the track. I had to limp to the nearest fuel station to fill up. Thankfully all worked out in the end, but my top tip would be to fill up at a fuel station near but prior to arriving at a track.
When I got back to the circuit the car park was noticeably quieter. It turns out the novice groups were last in the running order and nearly everyone else had hit the highway – there seemed to be no hanging around for a chat at the end of the day. I guess everyone wanted to get home as early as possible.
I was pretty exhausted after my ride home, which seemed both longer and more twisty than my morning ride. I’d completed the track skills day and come out unscathed; I’d learned stacks, met lots of club members and at the very least I’d have a few stories to tell my brothers, who incidentally were very jealous of the fact I was a member of a club with the clout to hire out a race track for the exclusive use of members! I may even be able to pass on a few tips when we eventually hit the road for our delayed adventure….
John Staunton
First published in Slipstream July 2021
