lets hope you havent spoiled it for the rest squeezing in on these 'track' days....

I wrote a big feature on this issue for Superbike mag a year ago and had a lengthy chat to Rodney about it, it's actually really interesting (well the topic, I'm not bigging myself up, lol!) and makes you understand that it really is out of the circuit's hands, they risk MASSIVE fines and licences taken away from them for going over noise limits, with mics connected directly to the council! (You also understand why Donington has a noisy track day on the Thursday, then a quiet one on the Friday, then race meeting at the weekend... You'd think it's ridiculous, but they're not allowed two consecutive noisy events. They are also given a number of 'noisy' days they're allowed a year etc...) They have to behave to survive, they're not being mean! Although it's frustrating when you're not aware of all the behind-the-scenes goings-on, it seems like they're taking the pee.

It's outrageous how people buy a house next door to a historic circuit that has existed for more than a hundred years (Castle Combe) and then complain about the noise - unfortunately CC is plagued by this and has risked being shut down altogether many times... Oh, and that's also why they have six groups on their track days with only about 12 bikes allowed on the circuit at the same time, that's imposed on them! And they are told how many days they are allowed to run in a year and when hence they're so restricted...

But I'll dig out the piece and scan it in sometime this weekend.

Exactamundo, if you wanno blow yer top it's the local council's, nimby's etc who are the root cause of more and more restrictions on the UK's circuits.

It's got to the point where a council will act big time on just one persons gripe.

Locally, it's happened at Croft and Elvington. Some of the locals were well hacked off at Elvington that the Nimby's won, they liked the fact F1 cars used the venue.
There are a good few other local airfield venues that were used for clubby stuff but the land owners won't allow access as they just don't want the hassle.

On the other side of the coin I wonder what would happen if some locals wrote to the council asking for more use to be made of the local circuit!!:confused:

In other countries a local circuit is often seen as something to have pride in, attracting business and visitors to the area.

Ray.

Incendiary comments follow ;-)
Interestingly when Heathrow want to build another run way they don't give a stuff about the locals both in terms of noise and emissions pollution as well as uprooting whole communities from their homes. I wonder how many of the local inhabitants to Castle Coombe user airporrts to go on holiday and drive gas guzzlers to the supermarket....I could go on :-)))) I think it's called freedom and democracy ;-)

From the CC website

The noise limit for the day is 105 db(A), which is measured at ½ metre from the exhaust outlet at ¾ maximum revs. It is the rider’s responsibility to ensure that their machine is within this limit. All machines are sound tested prior to going out on the circuit. In the event of a machine failing the sound check, then the rider will be entitled to a 75% refund. If you are unsure if your bike will get through the noise test (i.e. if it is fitted with an after market exhaust system), then you can always come over to get the bike noise tested prior to booking a place.

ACU Noise tests for our bikes are at 5500rpm so about 3/5 maximum revs for a Class A bike and this measurement is taken 0.5 meters away at a angle of 45 degrees, there is no mention of any angle on the CC website and with the higher revs used the readings will come out higher than those that were taken at Snetterton

In the past I have found most race cans need to be well baffled at Castle Combe and have needed to be since we first took CBR600s there over 10 years ago. In the past we have never had a problem getting a quiet race bike out on a Castle Combe trackday.

on a lighter note, I once had a pillion ride at castle combe, with John Reynolds, on a GSXR1000, great experiance, but at the same time Shakey was in a lambo and Steve Plater was in a brand new ferrari which was road legal strait out of the show room, and they both got black flagged for being too noisey and not aloud back on track all day! I also had a passenger ride in an audi RS somin' or other which was great and a mitubishi evo which was horrible. all noisy, rattley and bumpy and after the gsxr none of them seemed very fast.

Matt 72

p.s. I was late arriving after getting lost on the A272 and didn't get to ride round myself, a great shame. but I'll get over it.

just checked the CC website, seems every other weds is a bike td...think I may have to do one of those! havent done CC before and its a close as any track to me

Then they form a commitee, Get voted on the parish council and then onto the district council :mad: Also helps to join the masons..................

Sad barstewards the lot of them :mad:

I always suspected that Steve Mason #41............but thought he was just a small, harmless, Scottish, ginger person.............didn't realise he held such sway at Castle Combe..............:roll: We can nobble him at Mallory....:devil: