Grand Silverstone day out for members

The sun certainly shone on the annual Guild day out to the Friday practice day at the British Grand Prix on Friday 3rd July – thanks to our friends at the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) 40 of our membership were able to join a record Friday attendance to the UK’s biggest motorsport event at a scorching Silverstone.

Members were provided with much more than a free ticket. The BRDC operates two facilities at Silverstone, both with their own private grandstands – the main clubhouse overlooks the Luffield complex and the second, The Farm, has a stand with a view directly down the start-finish straight. The passes also included a three-course lunch in a marquee adjacent to the clubhouse.  

The BRDC’s main clubhouse was recently refurbished and provided a relaxing, air-conditioned environment and a great base for the day – with free tea and coffee available all day long and a bar available. There is plenty to see in the clubhouse – the Guild’s own noticeboard with our annual award winners is still prominently displayed while there is also a remarkable collection of thousands of racing models – as members can imagine these were jealously studied by our News Briefs editor!

In terms of F1 action Friday normally comprises two free practice sessions but with this year’s Grand Prix including a Sprint race, late in the afternoon saw a nail-biting Sprint Qualifying session, in which Lewis Hamilton snatched pole position for the Saturday race to the delight of the massive crowd.

News Briefs editor Andrew Charman did a little Googling and discovered that Friday general admission tickets for the GP meeting had been priced at £70. “That’s £15 less than the cost of a Guild subscription – and without the in-circuit parking, use of two clubhouses with two grandstands, the lunch, the tea and coffee all day long…

“Just as important was being part of such an amazing event – being sat in a packed Farm Grandstand and experiencing the reaction at the moment Lewis took that pole position was something special…”