Donington Park is one of the UK's most loved race circuits. As a sim racer, there is a very good chance that you would have driven Donington in your sim. But what's it like to visit the circuit in reality?
The British Touring Car Championship's opening weekend at Donington Park was a mixture of rain, drama and fantastic racing. Keen sim racer and my good friend, Chris Hancock, has given us a rundown on his first ever experience at Donington Park from a sim racer's perspective.
Chris has some real racing experience, specifically, he has competed in multiple national karting endurance events. However, he had never been to a proper car racing track. This was also his first BTCC experience, and no better place exists for this combination than Donington Park!
#33 Adam Morgan, West Surrey Racing. Image Credit: C.Minniss Photography
Q: What Surprised you the most about the event and the venue?
"I was surprised by the organisation of the meeting and the track's curfew, the meeting overran by a considerable amount and the curfew of 8 pm was not hit. We managed to see the majority of races, excluding one of the Porsche races. The delays were caused by rain, safety cars and red flags. These aren't anything to do with the circuit or the event organisers, I just wish the racing had been allowed to resume when the rain had stopped. Seeing the touring cars in the evening sun was a pretty special experience however, i had a lot of nostalgia for the late nineties super touring night races!
Q: What did you find most disappointing about the circuit and the event?
"The lack of racing due to the rain in the morning was a bit of a letdown, we travelled from Cornwall to get there for the first Touring Car Race and we could have left hours later if the delays had been communicated earlier than 10 minutes before the race was supposed to start. It wouldn't have been so bad if they had started it when the rain stopped, but it didn't. I understand the need for safety, but the tarmac was almost dry by the time racing started again!"
#15s Cameron Richardson, NAPA Racing UK JCW Mini Challenge. Image Credit: C. Minniss Photography
Q: Did the event live up to your expectations?
"It's the BTCC... The racing is always spectacular! The support series' was also fantastic! The smaller size of the grid this year is a shame to see, however, the racing and competition up and down the grid were awesome to see. DeLeon (Un-Limited Motorsport) and Moffat (LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ) especially surprised me and the normal culprits at the front, Ingram (ExcelR8 Motorsport) Ashley Sutton (NAPA Racing UK) and Jake Hill (Laser Tools with MB Motorsport) were fantastic to watch as ever!
Q: What advice would you give to someone who hasn't been to Donington Park before?
"Be prepared to walk up a lot of hills! In sim racing, it's hard to understand the level of elevation, especially around the Craner Curves and the Old Hairpin. I felt like I had been to the gym afterwards. Make sure you know where the open toilet facilities are, some of them were closed which surprised me considering the BTCC weekends are among the biggest events for the circuit."
#17 Ben Mahoney, Legends Championship. Image Credit: C. Minniss Photography
As mentioned earlier, Chris is a keen sim racer. He has turned hundreds and hundreds of laps on various circuits, but what was the biggest surprise from his real-life experience of Donington Park?
"Scale. The scale of the track is something that is lost on a lot of sim racers. The track is miles long and the walk around the whole track can take up to an hour or potentially more if it's wet. The amount of closed walkways and underpasses caused problems with viewing. Planning where you want to watch the action from beforehand is essential."
What was your first visit to a track you frequently raced virtually like? Have you got any advice for sim racers looking to experience a racetrack they know so well in the virtual world? Let us know on X @OverTake_gg or down in the comments below!
The British Touring Car Championship's opening weekend at Donington Park was a mixture of rain, drama and fantastic racing. Keen sim racer and my good friend, Chris Hancock, has given us a rundown on his first ever experience at Donington Park from a sim racer's perspective.
Chris has some real racing experience, specifically, he has competed in multiple national karting endurance events. However, he had never been to a proper car racing track. This was also his first BTCC experience, and no better place exists for this combination than Donington Park!
#33 Adam Morgan, West Surrey Racing. Image Credit: C.Minniss Photography
Q: What Surprised you the most about the event and the venue?
"I was surprised by the organisation of the meeting and the track's curfew, the meeting overran by a considerable amount and the curfew of 8 pm was not hit. We managed to see the majority of races, excluding one of the Porsche races. The delays were caused by rain, safety cars and red flags. These aren't anything to do with the circuit or the event organisers, I just wish the racing had been allowed to resume when the rain had stopped. Seeing the touring cars in the evening sun was a pretty special experience however, i had a lot of nostalgia for the late nineties super touring night races!
Q: What did you find most disappointing about the circuit and the event?
"The lack of racing due to the rain in the morning was a bit of a letdown, we travelled from Cornwall to get there for the first Touring Car Race and we could have left hours later if the delays had been communicated earlier than 10 minutes before the race was supposed to start. It wouldn't have been so bad if they had started it when the rain stopped, but it didn't. I understand the need for safety, but the tarmac was almost dry by the time racing started again!"
#15s Cameron Richardson, NAPA Racing UK JCW Mini Challenge. Image Credit: C. Minniss Photography
Q: Did the event live up to your expectations?
"It's the BTCC... The racing is always spectacular! The support series' was also fantastic! The smaller size of the grid this year is a shame to see, however, the racing and competition up and down the grid were awesome to see. DeLeon (Un-Limited Motorsport) and Moffat (LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ) especially surprised me and the normal culprits at the front, Ingram (ExcelR8 Motorsport) Ashley Sutton (NAPA Racing UK) and Jake Hill (Laser Tools with MB Motorsport) were fantastic to watch as ever!
Q: What advice would you give to someone who hasn't been to Donington Park before?
"Be prepared to walk up a lot of hills! In sim racing, it's hard to understand the level of elevation, especially around the Craner Curves and the Old Hairpin. I felt like I had been to the gym afterwards. Make sure you know where the open toilet facilities are, some of them were closed which surprised me considering the BTCC weekends are among the biggest events for the circuit."
#17 Ben Mahoney, Legends Championship. Image Credit: C. Minniss Photography
As mentioned earlier, Chris is a keen sim racer. He has turned hundreds and hundreds of laps on various circuits, but what was the biggest surprise from his real-life experience of Donington Park?
"Scale. The scale of the track is something that is lost on a lot of sim racers. The track is miles long and the walk around the whole track can take up to an hour or potentially more if it's wet. The amount of closed walkways and underpasses caused problems with viewing. Planning where you want to watch the action from beforehand is essential."
What was your first visit to a track you frequently raced virtually like? Have you got any advice for sim racers looking to experience a racetrack they know so well in the virtual world? Let us know on X @OverTake_gg or down in the comments below!
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