A few more pictures of the fun.
About a week before this event Bexley TOMCC were contacted by Bill at Boyer Racing to let us know that there were some places free on a Triumph-only track day at Brands Hatch. It was a tempting offer, especially as the cost was less than usual. I duly signed up in the "intermediate" category, together with Bob Colvin and Chris Biggs. There was also a surprise appearance by Chris Wallicker, who opted for the "novice" group as it would be his first track experience.
We were warned to be there promptly at 7:30 a.m. which usually means 7:30-for-8:00 but they weren't joking. I was in good time so had a chance to catalogue the bikes that were already there: quite a few Daytona 595/955s, a few Speed Triples of various vintages, ditto Sprint STs old and new, one Bonneville T100 and an awful lot of Daytona 675s. Confirming that they have been flying out of the dealerships, the latter were presented in every variation from "straight off the production line" to full race spec. with the (bloody loud) Arrow exhaust system. Considering that it was meant to be a limited production colour, there were quite a few graphite ones too!

Stars of track and screen

Another surprise was the presence of some star names from the world of bike racing in the persons of Jamie Whitham, Niall MacKenzie, Phillip McCallen and Paul Young, all of whom were on hand during the day to give advice and tips on and off the track.
The organisers soon had us in a briefing which was more comprehensive than any I've been to before - they had Powerpoint slides and everything! The message was largely the same however - don't go mad, don't do anything stupid - but embellished by finer detail, for instance: the chequered flag means slow down because the session is over, so the rule was "if you fall off after passing it, you'll be chucked off the circuit straight away". Oo-er!
In a strange reversal of previous procedure, on the way out of the briefing we got a white wristband to confirm that we had attended it and only then could we move on to registration where we got another wristband, colour-coded for each group. One thing that I'm still puzzled about is that we were not issued with numbers for the bikes, although we were required to bring photo ID and tape up lights and mirrors, which I hadn't actually done before.
To make it easier to do this we found ourselves a space in one of the garages alongside the pits, which gave us some cover from the elements. During these preparations we got talking to a friendly guy from New Zealand by the name of Jason. He was on a 2004 Sprint ST and had only done his first track day the previous Monday at the same venue, chosen not least because he lived pretty locally.
As usual the first out were the advanced group. With a completely dry track they were soon haring round the bends and screaming along Brabham straight to complete each lap. It was very interesting to see a new model of bike (the Daytona 675) in the hands of experienced riders and it seemed to be living up to its own press.

Biff, bang, pow, bother!

After 20 minutes of that, it was the turn of Chris B, Bob, Jason and I. We formed up in the pit lane, got our wrist bands checked and were soon pulling away onto the track. The two warm-up laps were lead by one of the visiting professionals and then when he waved us on, the pace picked up. I was trying to remember all the good habits from previous track days but still found it hard to get the directional lines and braking distances right on successive laps. Unfortunately near the end of our session Chris B turned on the power just a bit too much at just the wrong time and came a cropper on Clearways bend, ending up in the gravel. Neither Bob, Jason nor I saw it happen so when we were red-flagged back to the pits with no time to restart the session, it took a while before we realised who was missing from the ranks.
Within a few minutes Chris W set off with the other novices (including Bill from Boyers) while the rest of us waited for Chris B and his bike to be trailered back to base. We were greeted by a rather sorry sight, liberally coated in brown clay from the trackside and shedding gravel chips with every movement. And the bike was in an even worse state. The damage was inspected and looked at first to be confined to the front brake reservoir (from which the pipe to the master cylinder had broken off), rear bodywork, exhaust bracket and upper fairing. Fortunately Chris (and his borrowed leathers) had not sustained any real damage.
Taking it all rather philosophically, he was soon on the 'phone to Boyers to learn that they didn't have another reservoir in stock. However on the face of it, by stopping up the brake pipe with a bolt to prevent more air getting in the system, it was just about rideable so Chris hoped that he could nurse it back home, top up the fluid, bleed out any air and be back on the track later. He even got another wristband to replace his original one which he was required to surrender having come off his bike.
It had not all been plain sailing in the first novice session either as we then found out - Chris W was negotiating a bend when a much faster and decidedly non-novice rider overtook him on the inside, distracting him so that he ended up running off into a different patch of gravel, fortunately keeping it upright and withdrawing behind the barrier as instructed until recovered. He subsequently had a quiet work with the organisers and the rapid rider in question was encouraged to move up a group - overtaking me with regular monotony soon after the start of each intermediate session.

Visitor from the outside world

Around this time Tom Friar came by to find out how we were getting on and was on hand to observe the second intermediate session while Chris B headed home. There unfortunately he found that there was considerable damage to the rear sub-frame of his Daytona which put him out of action for the rest of the day, so he returned later by car to give us the bad news.
The morning sessions were comparatively uneventful - at least on the track! One poor fellow on a yellow T595 lost concentration when coming off the track and ran head-on into a fence post, inflicting considerable damage to the front of the bike and a similar amount to his pride I would suspect. Events kept to schedule, with a break for lunch at 1 p.m., by which time Chris Moore and Tony Schnorr had joined us as well. As the "Kentagon" facility was open for food we walked under the track - using a narrow foot tunnel that I didn't even know was there - and round the back of the grandstand. Despite the suggestion in the briefing that a heavy lunch was inadvisable, Bob and Chris W tucked enthusiastically into a substantial meat pie and spuds while I settled for something lighter.
On returning to the pit area just before 2 p.m. we were shepherded into a surprise briefing before the next sessions. This was to announce a change in the exit route from the track (due to the fencepost incident earlier) and a special session at the end of the afternoon for a Triumph-powered race outfit that had been brought along.
Bob and I had planned to go out for some petrol but because of the unscheduled briefing ended up leaving it until after our first afternoon stint on track. The nearby Texaco is literally only a mile up the road, but on this occasion was somewhat pricey.
During the afternoon Jason got some 1-to-1 tips from Jamie Whitham and the pace of our group was quite "lively", especially when the pro's and the odd bike journalist joined in on borrowed bikes. Kaye Moore paid us a visit to see how we were getting on and to take some photos and the weather improved consistently throughout the day which was a welcome variation from the forecast I'd seen the day before.
There was also a professional photographer on-site using the latest digital cameras and computers. In one of the garages, a row of four monitors displayed a slide show of pictures from earlier in the day and by spotting yourself, noting the picture ID and filling in a form (not to mention handing over some money) you could get an A3 or A5 print there and then.

Back to reality

Before we knew it the time had moved on, the sidecar session had been fitted in and the last opportunity for track time would feature both advanced and intermediate together. We were all feeling the strain by that point, so opted to miss the maelstrom, said our goodbyes, packed up and headed for home.
As soon as I pulled out of the circuit entrance onto the A20 I was immediately reminded of one of the things you pay for on a track day - beautifully smooth tarmac to ride on, not the cracks, lumps, bumps and potholes that decorate most of our national network. That was enough of a hint to keep to road speeds.
It is sometimes said of a good party - "I must have had a good time because I don't remember much of it". Fortunately I can recall all the high points of the day but if I needed confirmation that I made the most of it, I can contemplate the state of my bike tyres - well chewed on both left and right edges, or my leg muscles - aching more than I've had after previous track days. If I keep this up I may need to go to the gym!