27th July 2004 - Oulton Park

I really like Oulton Park. In fact I would go so far as to say that it is my favourite circuit. Just a shame that Bemsee no longer race there. Maybe we can persuade them to go back some time as it really is an awesome place.

The day started off wet which made things rather entertaining, especially as I didn't feel up to changing my wheels over. I ended up leading the advanced group on a wet track whilst using RennSports which have almost zero tread on them. Although I was only going slowly there seemed to be more grip than I expected but i was taking it very carefully.

By the time everyone had finished their first sessions it had stopped raining but it would take until lunchtime to get the track completely dry. Oulton is one of those bizarre circuits where some section dry very quickly and others take a while so you had to be careful where you tried to pick up the pace in case you got a little off line on to the damp stuff.

After lunch the sun came out and we were able to enoy Oulton Park to the full. Did I mention that it is my favourite circuit? A great combination of uphill and downhill corners, blind crests, double apex corners and even some excellent banking around Shell Oils corner.

When I first raced here my 600 would get really scary over Clay Hill but with a bit of experience and a lot less power the Raptor was great fun. Flat out in fifth gear with the front wheel in the air! The only corner I don't really like is Lodge which is a blind entry corner that comes back on itself so you need to turn in much later than it first appears.

That wouldn't normally be a problem but with too many track day heroes trying to overtake the instructor made for an unnerving experience. You would have thought that having double my horse power would allow them to do it on the straights rather than barrelling in to a blind corner and turning in too early. Oh well!

Oulton have strict noise limits and the local council seems to give them even less scope each year so there is less racing and a lot less track days available which is a real shame. I do look forward to racing there again!