Race Retro 2018
Report by Michelle
Sunday 25th Feb
The day was cold but dry and threatening snow. Just perfect for outdoor spectator sports that involve standing around watching for hours… NOT!
A miserable time if you’re not into rallying – or so you’d think.
Pack a warm jumper, gloves and possibly hand-warmers, a hat, scarf and of course, wear boots and you’re all set. Don’t take your dog for goodness sake! It’s way too loud for their ears.
The day was great! I can honestly say I was never bored (I hadn’t expected to be).
To start with, we wandered around the garages where rally cars were being prepped for racing. If we’d have stayed there, I’d have got very cold very quick. That’s where the cold-weather advice (above) comes in.
The day was cold but dry and threatening snow. Just perfect for outdoor spectator sports that involve standing around watching for hours… NOT!
A miserable time if you’re not into rallying – or so you’d think.
Pack a warm jumper, gloves and possibly hand-warmers, a hat, scarf and of course, wear boots and you’re all set. Don’t take your dog for goodness sake! It’s way too loud for their ears.
The day was great! I can honestly say I was never bored (I hadn’t expected to be).
To start with, we wandered around the garages where rally cars were being prepped for racing. If we’d have stayed there, I’d have got very cold very quick. That’s where the cold-weather advice (above) comes in.
Inside, the variation of stalls, stands and interesting things to see made the day for me. Yes, we stayed inside for the majority of the day, but when we did go outside, the rally course was run well, with excitement for the spectators at the top of the priorities for the organisers, it seems.
I spoke to people doing their best to get more women into motorsport, I tried on race boots, talked to enthusiasts about their cars, spoke to representatives of companies who just seemed to enjoy doing what they do – which always makes them interesting to listen to if they’re enthusiastic about their subject – and had a fabulous time.
The halls flowed nicely, though there could have been more space around some of the exhibits, and people seemed to be in a good mood – even if they don’t seem to realise that someone standing in front of a car with a camera to their face is politely waiting for them to pass so they can take a picture…
I spoke to people doing their best to get more women into motorsport, I tried on race boots, talked to enthusiasts about their cars, spoke to representatives of companies who just seemed to enjoy doing what they do – which always makes them interesting to listen to if they’re enthusiastic about their subject – and had a fabulous time.
The halls flowed nicely, though there could have been more space around some of the exhibits, and people seemed to be in a good mood – even if they don’t seem to realise that someone standing in front of a car with a camera to their face is politely waiting for them to pass so they can take a picture…
The car’s the thing of course in this kind of show, but the people behind the cars (and bikes) are what makes it shine!
Every person I spoke to was happy to speak to me and tell me all about their pride and joy.
Food is expensive - £12 for 2 pasties (yes, they were piping hot and delicious, but £12!) and the coffee was a bit blergh… but it was hot and it helped fortify for going back outside to brave the cold.
The burger van had run out of everything but chips (fries) by the time we made our way outside – there were lots of people asking for burgers, so it seems the organisation wasn’t quite there yet with that aspect.
Next time, I’ll make a flask and leave it in the car. Parking was certainly close enough to be able to just nip back for a hot drink.
Every person I spoke to was happy to speak to me and tell me all about their pride and joy.
Food is expensive - £12 for 2 pasties (yes, they were piping hot and delicious, but £12!) and the coffee was a bit blergh… but it was hot and it helped fortify for going back outside to brave the cold.
The burger van had run out of everything but chips (fries) by the time we made our way outside – there were lots of people asking for burgers, so it seems the organisation wasn’t quite there yet with that aspect.
Next time, I’ll make a flask and leave it in the car. Parking was certainly close enough to be able to just nip back for a hot drink.
Report by Trev
Sunday 25th February.
We attended as paying customers.
Access and Location
NEAC (National Agriculture and Exhibition Centre) Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire is very easy to get to and for this event, with a normal advanced ticket, parking was on grass a couple of hundred yards from the site. It is another few hundred yards to get into the actual exhibition halls.
VIP and disabled parking is next to the hall with good access.
We entered the site next to the sheds where the rally cars were being garaged and this gave good opportunity to look at the cars and get some decent photos. There were plenty of drivers and mechanics around if you fancied a more technical chat, but just remember it’s a live show and the cars do move.
We attended as paying customers.
Access and Location
NEAC (National Agriculture and Exhibition Centre) Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire is very easy to get to and for this event, with a normal advanced ticket, parking was on grass a couple of hundred yards from the site. It is another few hundred yards to get into the actual exhibition halls.
VIP and disabled parking is next to the hall with good access.
We entered the site next to the sheds where the rally cars were being garaged and this gave good opportunity to look at the cars and get some decent photos. There were plenty of drivers and mechanics around if you fancied a more technical chat, but just remember it’s a live show and the cars do move.
Inside the halls you are greeted with a packed setting of many small to medium sized displays and stalls. The order is mixed so no area is just cars on display or just stalls, but most exhibitors have taken good time to present themselves very professionally.
The cars are well presented and great quality, sticking to the race theme and in particular, the rally scene.
The halls are interspaced with coffee shops and stalls, but seating is limited and areas to just sit and rest are very limited. The areas they do have are busy, due to being near toilets which is not well thought-out.
The cars are well presented and great quality, sticking to the race theme and in particular, the rally scene.
The halls are interspaced with coffee shops and stalls, but seating is limited and areas to just sit and rest are very limited. The areas they do have are busy, due to being near toilets which is not well thought-out.
The show does feel cramped and it is difficult to get good photos, especially in the motorcycle section. The bikes are of great quality and proved very popular, but all being lined up against a wall with rope down the front next to them did not allow any chance of good photography or all-round viewing. This looked to be an after-thought part of the show. Generally, all the exhibited cars were behind these thick ropes which would be better if they were replaced with tape to allow them to be edited out later.
Food
My advice is to take your own. The food on site is very expensive but also the choice is very poor. At 1pm they had chips and vegetarian (sausage rolls because I have no idea what a Veggie pastry roll is called) rolls left. Outside they had a burger van but all they had was chips (3pm). All in it was very poor when it came to eating, although we did find the farmers market to be of good quality if limited for choice (Cornish Pasty) which is not near the main hall but is close to the rally live event.
Food
My advice is to take your own. The food on site is very expensive but also the choice is very poor. At 1pm they had chips and vegetarian (sausage rolls because I have no idea what a Veggie pastry roll is called) rolls left. Outside they had a burger van but all they had was chips (3pm). All in it was very poor when it came to eating, although we did find the farmers market to be of good quality if limited for choice (Cornish Pasty) which is not near the main hall but is close to the rally live event.
Live event.
This is great and with the whole show very good value for money. You get cars running almost all day and the cars are really giving it some, providing great viewing and photo opportunities. It is possible to get near the cars in the Parc Ferme so do be careful.
The event is not ideal for youngsters who are not car enthusiastic, so if you have some members of the family that do not want to freeze to enjoy the sound and sights of rally there does not look to be much to do. The event is 98% (my observation) male attended although many of the exhibits did have enthusiastic female exhibitors who looked to either take part in motorsport (had on race suits) themselves or just loved being part of it.
Conclusions
Good bits
Great event at a very reasonable cost. Entrance was £26 on the gate and £20 in advance and if you are part of a club that gets a discount, you can get tickets for £13 each which includes a programme. That is the best value entrance I have come across so far and with plenty to do, a single day visit is probably not enough.
You have a choice to book VIP parking next to the buildings at a cost and you can book two laps of the rally circuit for £25. (onsite booking only). You can also book drives out in classic cars which looked quite popular especially on such a beautiful sunny day. The live rally is great and because it runs all day does not mean crowds of spectators at certain times all rushing for a good position. Good positions were available all day.
The show is very well attended by exhibitors with stands costing from £37 per square metre.
Easy access to the site and cars.
Bad bits
Food and exhibition layout is the only bad points with food being poor in choice (not necessarily bad in quality) and expensive and space to relax is limited. The displays need better positioning to allow good viewing and photography (Most people were trying to take photos, not just me). You are not supposed to bring dogs and with all the noise I quite understand why but I did see several (they were dogs although were cat sized mostly).
This is great and with the whole show very good value for money. You get cars running almost all day and the cars are really giving it some, providing great viewing and photo opportunities. It is possible to get near the cars in the Parc Ferme so do be careful.
The event is not ideal for youngsters who are not car enthusiastic, so if you have some members of the family that do not want to freeze to enjoy the sound and sights of rally there does not look to be much to do. The event is 98% (my observation) male attended although many of the exhibits did have enthusiastic female exhibitors who looked to either take part in motorsport (had on race suits) themselves or just loved being part of it.
Conclusions
Good bits
Great event at a very reasonable cost. Entrance was £26 on the gate and £20 in advance and if you are part of a club that gets a discount, you can get tickets for £13 each which includes a programme. That is the best value entrance I have come across so far and with plenty to do, a single day visit is probably not enough.
You have a choice to book VIP parking next to the buildings at a cost and you can book two laps of the rally circuit for £25. (onsite booking only). You can also book drives out in classic cars which looked quite popular especially on such a beautiful sunny day. The live rally is great and because it runs all day does not mean crowds of spectators at certain times all rushing for a good position. Good positions were available all day.
The show is very well attended by exhibitors with stands costing from £37 per square metre.
Easy access to the site and cars.
Bad bits
Food and exhibition layout is the only bad points with food being poor in choice (not necessarily bad in quality) and expensive and space to relax is limited. The displays need better positioning to allow good viewing and photography (Most people were trying to take photos, not just me). You are not supposed to bring dogs and with all the noise I quite understand why but I did see several (they were dogs although were cat sized mostly).