Events, Gatherings, Out & About > Members' Travels

Out & About. Saturday 26th November (TVR 'Play-Day')

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Bush Tucker Man:
Well, the day of my belated 40th pressie has finally arrived & now passed (see here for details; 'Track Day' & 'Leicester Bound. Again')

We set off down the M1 yesterday morning after a brief incursion into Wakefield & PC World to purchase an external Hard-Drive for Joanne. (160Gb).
A brief journey out of the city saw us on the M1 southbound, with me selecting a steady 65mph set on the Mondeo cruise-control.
A stop for tea & dinner took place at Tibshelf (home of Ben Kentzer) services, where there's some unusual carvings by the buildings entrances.

Then it was a straight run to jct 21 & off at the A46, & into Fosse Way Retail Park, so SWMBO could shop........ :roll:

I won't bore you with the details of the hotel (Holiday Inn, St Nicolas Circle, blah, blah....)

Joanne took me out (well, I drove) to Husbands Bosworth; a wonderful place & onwards to Market Harborough to show me one of her projects, which is the relocation of the 'Market Harborough & District Hospital' on Coventry Road into the grounds of 'St Lukes' on Leicester Road. A surprisingly small site!
The town centre is very nice, with the Old Grammar School up on its 'stilts'


We side-tracked then to find Bruntingthorpe & it's a bl**dy huge airfield, I guess it was a 'V-Bomber' base??

On our return to Leicester, we did find somewhere quite acceptable to eat in the early evening. We found a pasta/pizza restaraunt on Silver Street, called; 'Ask'.
It was most convivial.
A stroll back took us past St Martins, the beautiful Guild Hall and Wygston House on Applegate.

This morning saw an damp drizzly morning as the alarm went at 07:00.

By 08:45 we were signed out & away heading in a southerly direction through Oadby & Wigston on the A5199.
That's nice windmill to the west of the road at Arnesby, by the way.

On arrival at the grounds gate, we were directed.

Sadly upon enquiring :cry: , the AVRoe Vulcan (XH588) that's kept there is only open for viewing on a Sunday, as it's locked in one of the hangers.
The Super-Guppy, Buccaneer, Lightning & various others can be seen.

There's even one of those tanker artics with the outriggers for drivers roll-training.

On arrival at the 'holding area', I only expected perhaps 20 other frozen souls waiting there turn, but it was packed!!
On investigation it turns out that anyone can turn up & on payment either be driven around, or drive the vehicle itself.

On offer were;
Aston-Martin Vantage(?)
Lotus Elise
Porch 911
Ferrari 355 (& 360)
Subaru Impreza WRX
Lamborghini Gallardo (2 of them)

And my chariot :D
As always, I'm struck by the sheer delicacy of it in comparison to the Italian exotica. It looks so small & 'twee'

The driver came over, shook my hand and gave me the keys :D
We got in, quite an easy ingress in comparison to an Elise, he gave me the safety talk; Emergency exits, etc......

Having set the seat for leg-length & rake it was time to start it.


By Gods!, it's loud inside, if not a little worrying :?
A surprisingly heavy clutch & we were off. I didn't stall it.
Sounding like a Top-Fuel dragster grumbling to itself, we headed towards the track, a barely above tickover it was lunging at about 25mph.

"Right foot down & up through the gears"

It was a bit 'squirmy' on the damp surface, but I couldn't help grinning at the way it got to about 85mph in 3rd in what seemed like no time at all.

I think I only got up to perhaps 100*mph, but with lunatic instructors in Gallardos passing by, perhaps discretion was the better part....?
The large transmission tunnel does make a handy arm brace on the faster right-hand corners :lol:  
Given the very wet tarmac on some corners, I was surprised by the sheer grip available & the power it could put down.

Before I knew it the session was over.

Next stop....
Sagaris, as a passenger :D .
And I thought the Griffith was rapid  :(bigshock):  :(bigshock):
This car really pushed you back in the seat, it brought to mind all the old stories about Cobra 427's & their ferocity.

On the 2nd lap, he really went for it.
We followed an Impreza & Gallardo into the chicane
Gallardo flew past the Impreza
We drew alongside & with a slight fish-tail at 120-ish, dropped the Gallardo  :(bigwicked):  :(bigwicked):  

I saw about 165mph at one point on the back-straight before braking started, no wonder the journalists raved about its performance on its announcement to the motoring world.
On a performance-per-££, it's got to be a world-beater.
The instructor reckoned it's an easier car to go fast in than the Griffith, as it's more aerodynamically stable & the longer wheel-base helps.
He enjoys TVR's as you drive the car, there's no electronic nannys in the way



And here's the photo link :D
See the bottom of Page 2 (& page 3)
The operators of these track-days Big Thunder

Oh & here's a taster photo below :D



*I reckon that the Griff was 'off-tune' as it didn't pick up quite as rapidly as 340bhp & 350Ib/ft ought to in a car that dainty, but it as still rapid :D

Now I'm thinking, stuff the 110CSW, I want a Griffith :(biglove):

H:
one of my mates  who lives out your way (leeds I think) uses a Griff 500 as a daily drive awsome car been in it whils he s been doing doughuts on ainsdale beach southport, got my own back by drifting the rangie in the sand with him in the passenger seat :) Hes just bought a fireblade engined caterham as a track / weekend car. Still love the sound of the griffknow its the same block ect anyone know if ther 5 liter griff engine will drop straight in a rangie?

H

TimM:
I was reading down your post and wondering if you still wanted one.


--- Quote from: "Bush Tucker Man" ---
Now I'm thinking, stuff the 110CSW, I want a Griffith :(biglove):
--- End quote ---


Silly question  :roll:

Glad you had a good time  :wink:

thermidorthelobster:

--- Quote from: "Bush Tucker Man" ---We set off down the M1 yesterday morning after a brief incursion into Wakefield & PC World to purchase an external Hard-Drive for Joanne. (160Gb).
--- End quote ---

That's an interesting idea.  What interface does Joanne have?

Xtremeteam:

--- Quote from: "H" ---one of my mates  who lives out your way (leeds I think) uses a Griff 500 as a daily drive awsome car been in it whils he s been doing doughuts on ainsdale beach southport, got my own back by drifting the rangie in the sand with him in the passenger seat :) Hes just bought a fireblade engined caterham as a track / weekend car. Still love the sound of the griffknow its the same block ect anyone know if ther 5 liter griff engine will drop straight in a rangie?

H
--- End quote ---

 i know of a bowler thats running a TVR 5 litre lump that is ARC approved because it can be proved back to the 3.5 that graces a rangie

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