oulton park safety brit gt

[gravel_monkey]

after the brit gt weekend at oulton the boss of modena motorsport graham schultz slated the circuit stating it was not big enough for gt cars and the safety features like run off areas were not up to scratch. ( before we go any further i would just like to make it known that everyone is entilted to their own opinion) i know his comments have been disregarded by other gt teams who were there, dr palmer and indeed marshals who have even had letters printed in motorsport news.
i personally feel after marshaling and spectating at oulton for nearly 20 years that since johnathon palmer has taken over oulton park, the circuit has never looked better and improvments have made it the safest it has ever been. accidents will always happen and on the odd ocasion the big big accident will happen like the gt weekend. do you guys on here feel mr schultz has a point or do you feel he was just upset becuse his driver destroyed a brand new lambo just out the box?

[Piglet]

Firstly I'd like to see a linky to his comments to see what was actually said and what in particular he is talking about.

Secondly, at risk of trotting out the old favourite "motorsport is dangerous, it says so on the ticket and the fences", Oulton is, and I hope always will be a challenging circuit, compared to the sanitised GP circuits (Silverstone etc.) the run off areas are small and the barriers are close. There is nothing new about that, the drivers know this and one would hope, moderate their behaviour accordingly.

The circuit is inspected by the MSA who deem it to be safe. I hope there is always room to learn from big incidents such as the Ginetta crash and to see how different types of crash barriers etc. perform under impact and I'm sure that John Symes at the MSA looks at footage of these incidents to see whether improvements can be made. Safety should always be discussed as the safety of drivers, marshals and spectators should be paramount and IMO those involved should be able to make their comments known, it's not necessarily a case of being right or wrong.

[Justin Moran]

I would also like to say that the Lambo didnt hit anything! just dug its nose into the soft earth and that was enough to flip it into the air. It in no way came into contact with any barrier/tyre wall! So the run off was sufficient towards us at Cascades.

[Mike Kelly 1]

The soft earth was due to the inclement weather that we had up North prior to (and during the meeting). If the weather had been kinder in the days prior to the meeting then the Lambo might have a. got away with it or b.made it to the armco! Both this incident and the Ginetta G50's accident happened as a result of collisions. If cars didn't hit each other there would not be as many accidents!

[thepits!]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly 1

If cars didn't hit each other there would not be as many accidents!

Err, yeh right. and if we didn't speed we wouldn't get tickets, or not drink so we didn't get drunk, or.......

we may all live longer - but would we want to?

[Justin Moran]

Originally Posted by thepits!

Err, yeh right. and if we didn't speed we wouldn't get tickets, or not drink so we didn't get drunk, or.......

we may all live longer - but would we want to?

But this is meant to be a non contact sport? Speeding and drinking we do by choice, Im positive there are very few drivers who choose to hit another car? (BTCC excepted of course )

[numbersix]

So Herr Schultz is not going to race at Monaco then.

[thepits!]

Originally Posted by C9/89

But this is meant to be a non contact sport?

[Mark Mitchell]

The only safety features Mr Schultz really needed to be concerned with are the Roll Cage, the seat-belts and the on-board Extinuisher! If they all perform satisfactorily then anything else is a bonus!

[badgeman62]

funny how this year the circuit was,nt big enough for gt cars,yet what about last year,and the year before,and the year before that,etc.

[Justin Moran]

We would all defend our beloved circuit to the hilt! But its true some series wont come now because its too challenging for them!

[Piglet]

Originally Posted by badgeman62

funny how this year the circuit was,nt big enough for gt cars,yet what about last year,and the year before,and the year before that,etc.

Errr last year it was F3 that were unhappy about the circuit I think (or was it the year before?).

I've heard discussion about Oulton being a bad venue for the first round of F3/GT, it's a challenging circuit and perhaps too much for drivers who've spent the winter planning the first corner of the first race and are trying to prove way too much in the first race.

[badgeman62]

seems to me the bigger the meeting the bigger the gripes about the circuit.the club meetings seem to like it.no more to be said in my opinion.

[peteh]

Originally Posted by badgeman62

seems to me the bigger the meeting the bigger the gripes about the circuit.the club meetings seem to like it.no more to be said in my opinion.

True, the club meetings are happy with the way things are, i think Mr Palmer has done a great job and it is only getting better. Echoeing Andy the bigger the club the bigger the whine.

[badgeman62]

thanks pete

[chrispowl]

Correct me if I`m wrong but racing cars work best on tarmac, so why was the driver thinking that traction was improved on soggy grass/turf....

[gravel_monkey]

looks like i may have started a real debate for once.
as was asked before about the quote, it was on crash.net and in autosport, i will try and get a link for you all.
i wonder if he is going to attack the pit lanes in scotland after the shambles his team had at knockhill! i was speaking to some of the tech 9 the other day and they said they loved oulton in their new car (same type as team modena)

[Justin Moran]

Originally Posted by chrispowl

Correct me if I`m wrong but racing cars work best on tarmac, so why was the driver thinking that traction was improved on soggy grass/turf....

To be fair I think he was nerfd onto the grass but the fact the front splitter dug in and that flipped him is what caused the accident not the closeness of the barriers!

[Paul Newns]

Oulton is my favourite circuit in the country, not just because it is my home circuit but because it is challenging and not just flat and boring. Knockhill is another circuit I like for similar reason. And don't get me started on the Nordschlief, it's truly awsome (in the true sense of the word).

Having just watched the GTs from Knockhil I expect Mr Shultz wont be liking that one either because it has no runoff areas worth speaking about and expensive cars got damaged (how did that Ferrari mount the tyre wall? It didn't seem to be going that quickly through the gravel.).

He is entitled to his opinion, and having lost lots of money when his brand new Lambo crashed I can understand why he feels as he does, but unless everywhere looks like Silverstone he isn't going to get acres of tarmac/gravel trap to play in.

Will he be going to Rockingham? Concrete wall, no runoff area.