Ahhh...I can sense it all now if I close my eyes. The acrid smell of burnt rubber, the waft of oil and high octane fumes, the screech of tortured tyres and the cacophonous sound of highly tuned exhausts from engines that scream at rev's so high if you stopped to think and work out how many times a second a piston goes up and down you would never believe it possible!

We managed to get free tickets to go to Silverstone racetrack in Northamptonshire last Sunday to see the Renault Challenge. The family Moriarty all jumped into the trusty Multipla and headed off to see "what's what" at the "Premier" F1 track in Britain.
Now over the years Silverstone, the home of F1 and the British Racing Drivers Association, BRDC, has had quite a torrid time from the likes of Bernie Ecclestone et al complaining about the complete lack of funding that Silverstone has recieved over the years.
There was the problems of traffic jams, a new road sorted that out, there was flooding if I recall, someone has put that right I presume as they don't do the power boat championships and there was the lack of decent public facilities for the likes of me and you and for the drivers good accommodation and track side amenities.
Now call me names if you wish but, right up until I got into the place I was very impressed and I must say that the "getting into" was well Marshalled and parking was a doddle. However and it hurts me to say this, I have to agree with Bernie Ecclestone on this...the amenities are frankly bloody awful.

I can see they are spending money on portable toilets and some tent like structures for, presumably, corporate entertaining but...pu...leeeease! Why don't they think of the poor paying punter? The cost of food and drink was, frankly, deplorable, talk about extortionate. The path ways were nothing but rubble, lumps, potholes and divots to amble along kicking up dust on a sunny day and muddy on wet days. There was banking all around to sit on but no grass just the aforementioned rubble. Seating was adequate, but, little to no cover from the elements. We burnt that day, but, other days we would have drowned!

But, one saving grace...the track itself is still superb! You can't see all the way round but some of the spectating points give a very good view even if cars do flash past at what seems the speed of light!

But why do the cars have to be so noisy? Even with ear plugs it hurt and you can't hold a conversation with the person next to you....ok, you call me old now!

Silverstone...get your act together, you only need to look at Rockingham raceway some twenty miles away to see how much better it could be...now that is a superb racetrack that is...