So, how to start a blog on the recent trip to Spa Francochamps?
Well, the logical place is to start at the beginning. A random invite on FB to join a couple of lads on what is likely to become an annual pilgrimage to one of Europe”s greatest race tracks.
Discussions continued and it was clear that there were loads of people interested in the trip so we decided to rent a villa between us to keep the cost down.
Numerous little niggles to sort out on the car and watching the F1 there a couple of months before made for some appropriate build up but nothing prepared me for arrival at the track on Thursday morning.
It”s difficult to describe exactly what I was expecting but it”s safe to say the entire trip exceeded expectations in every single way!
I”m getting ahead of myself though, first there was the trip there. The majority of us decided to take the same Chunnel across to France so after meeting up for a bacon sarnie (or two!) off we
trotted to Folkstone. There was, as you”d expect, a typically eclectic mixture of SXOC cars there. The initial convoy was made up of an S14a, Z33 and a 996 Turbo. By the time we were at Le Chunnel we had been joined by another Z33, an MX5, S2000 and a Clio Sport.
Once the radios had been handed out to each other so we could abus…. I mean communicate with each other we boarded the train and hit the continent.
Thankfully the vast majority of the journey there was dry which allowed us to make some good progress, it has been rumoured that we were averaging 150kph but I can”t believed that. When the potential for generating Gendarme interest was mentioned on the radio the reply was “it”s like Disneyland over here, they can”t do anything!” Not strictly true but it made me laugh.
We arrived at the villa to be greeted by a stunning white fronted villa and masses of off street parking. Just what we were after. Once we”d finished arguing over who would get which bedroom and signed for the keys it was time to head into town for a couple of beers and a bite to eat.
The town is a great place with a few nice bars, plenty of little restaurants and, unfortunately, a casino. We all had a pretty relaxed evening until Wullie arrived who had spent all day at the track. He began regaling us with stories of spins, crashes and terrifying track conditions. Unperturbed we finished our drinks and the sensible members of the party retired back to the villa for an early night. A few less practical members of the group decided to carry the evening on in the casino which was a mixed blessing.
On the plus side the villa had been provided without any toilet roll which was remedied by the casino foraging party. On the down side their return at 2am and consequent noise was not appreciated by all!
So, onto the big day and the purpose of the whole trip. Alarms went off at 6:30am and groggy showers allowed the early risers to have some breakfast before heading 7 miles down the road to
the track. The casino revellers left things a little later than planned and finally departed at 7:21 for a 7:30am sign on.
The track itself is a breathtaking place, very hilly but not as tightly packed as the Nürburgring it still has some huge elevation changes. In the pre-dawn light of our arrival the first thing that struck me was a very steep hill flanked by masses of red and yellow tyre walls and numerous black skid marks on pretty worn looking red and yellow curbs. Turns out that was the infamous Eau Rouge and it certainly deserves its reputation. It was a suitably humbling place to be stood in front of for the driver briefing. We were told of the crashes and write offs that had taken place the day before including a Mclaren MP4-12C. The mood was tangible, wide eyes and jiggling knees betrayed the tension people were feeling.
So with a full tank of fuel and a healthy dose of adrenalin we donned helmets and headed out for the sighting laps. Just as we pulled out of the pit lane it started to rain, not heavy, but on an already damp track it was certain we”d all be taking things a little bit slower to start of with.
Little did I realise just how slippery the track was going to be. Coming round the right hander at Bruxelles with a green MX5 in front of me I put all four wheels sideways at just 35mph. Unlike the MX5 who was show boating with armfuls of opposite lock.
Three sighting laps later and the light now opening up it was time for a quick cuppa and then out onto the track for real. It was great. I”m not a massive track day driver but I”ve been to a few tracks here and there. This firmly ranks as one of my all time favourites. The morning session saw people exploring the limits of grip all around the track, some with greater success than others, but no disasters that I”m aware of. I took advantage of a free instruction session which was well worthwhile. Simon from RSR showed me just where I was getting the lines wrong and I could feel the speeds coming up as I was putting the car where I should have been. Sadly this also resulted in a false sense of security and my only two spins of the day. Still when better to spin than with a track instructor sat next to you!? Using this new found knowledge I was straight back out there and thankfully kept it on the back stuff. Plenty of tail out action at The Chicane and La Source made for loads of fun but probably not the fastest way round the track!
We stopped for lunch and then the Gods of weather were kind to us. The clouds broke, the sun came out and a wet track started to dry. It was great fun in the wet but in the dry it just came alive. No mention from me about Eau Rouge entry speeds or lap times. I was having a ball and really didn”t pay attention to be fair.
We hit the last half hour of the day and the precocious Gods of the sky decided we had had more than enough fun. The sky blackened and we were hit by a huge hail storm, having been stood in a T shirt moments before I”ll confess that I decided enough was enough. That was all the experience of Spa-Francorhamps I needed.
We all headed back to the villa to get changed, swap war stories and get on the beers! Needless to say I felt like James Hunt winning the championship. It was a perfect track for the 200, plenty of fast straights, camber changes and elevation difference.
A great evening was had by all. More bars, food and casino action saw us through to the small hours. Although it wasn”t much fun getting up the next morning, after a quick tidy up we headed off for some breakfast and made the three hour drive back to the Chunnel and good “ole Blighty.
The car performed faultlessly, the gearbox is getting tired now but that didn”t stop me giving it beans
all day long. I really cannot recommend making the trip enough.
Closer than Le Mans and the “Ring it”s a fantastic venue with everything you could ask for in a track.
I must say thanks to the likes of Madda for arranging the track time and Circuit Days for hosting the event. Ken even made a mediocre passenger.
Can”t wait for next years visit!
