john aston

It is important to note that , regardless of how many disclaimers and waivers are signed , it is not legally possible for a third party to exclude liability for injury or death caused by the third party's negligence. Nothing new , been the law for decades . That said , every accident on track ( as elsewhere ) , has to be considered on its own circumstances.

If MSUK continue with their incredibly prescriptive safety regime for EVs , even Teslas will be a rare sight. This means , at present , that I can drive my 1000bhp/tonne Gould (I wish) up Harewood , but not a Renault Zoe EV, or even my sister's Yaris Hybrid - as hybrids are effectively barred too . But I can drive the latter two to the event on public roads , where accidents are also know to happen. EVs are also very adept at short duration sport - look at the fabulous run at Goodwood by the McMurtry Speirling - I assume his grace was able to comply with MSUK rules. A massive own goal and a PR disaster in the waiting - we all want sustainable motor sport and barring EVs, and PHEVs is not a good way to be seen to be doing it .

A Piaggio Ape , if memory serves . 'Ape', as in Italian for bee - as I found out when wondering why Eddie Irvine had 'Ape' on his overalls ...

A Humber Sceptre - the upwardly mobile version of post # 1 Hillman Hunter . The one I saw was Peacock blue , immaculate , someone's pride and joy but testament to the ghastly badge engineering of the late Sixties. Tack a bit of chrome on the front of what we used to call a repmobile , glue a slice of wood on the dash and it's instant Terry and June . Hideous .

# 'Turn 5 '. Harrumph - it's somehow got by with being called 'Country' for sixty odd years ...Can I look forward to Q 1 and Q2 now?

Or as F1 Team Principals ...

Going north near Boroughbridge yesterday , late morning.K16 reg I think ? I was in the southbound MX5

I have three unworn green seven club polo shirts. They are from about 2012 but have been kept in a cupboard , two are still in their original wrapping . Two Large , one Medium . Tenner each and payment to Race Against Dementia . First come, first served - PM me please

I have two books by Robert McGowan which would interest anyone thinking of buying a 911 or Boxster Porsche 911 -The practically free supercar and Porshe Boxster - The practically free sports car Neither will win the Booker prize but they may be of interest to any wannabe buyers . Mine are free review copies so they are FOC, as long as you offer to make a sensible donation to Race Against Dementia. PM me your offer and the highest received before Saturday wins. I will pay the postage . (reviews of both books on speedreaders,info - 911 one already there , Boxster one to be uploaded tomorrow)

Three in market place yesterday morning. B1257 route I bet?

Ok - bloody crazy though ! I;ve been to four different circuits in the last few weeks but BARC seem hell bent on their own lockdown. No great loss , I was just going to pop in and say hello - I live close .

Can I drop by ? Or are only participants allowed in ?

Had it not been for a prior commitment at Croft I would have popped down to Harewood , as it is a venue I enjoy very much. So what on earth happened? The Harewood website refers to structural damage to an adjacent building , which can only be the farmhouse, or one of its outbuildings ....

Agreed- remember that the NC500 is an entirely arbitrary route , with no historical or cultural standing . My advice is - get a map(remember those?) and work it out for yourself - do the NW coast with Fort William as the start , driving clockwise - forget John O'Groats, head south via Altnaharra or Helmsdale - don't drive like a d***head , nor in convoy -enjoy and respect the place and the people , don't be just a box ticker Short guide available - BM me if required.

OH Joanne was a member of the WFA for many years. She has about 30 magazines(many unread- interest has waned ) and bulletins which are offered FOC . 'Buyer' collects or pays postage , as they are heavy ! Donation to RaD welcome .

..or the little straps that go on the doors , as I call them . I have found 2 of the longer straps(without screws ) and two of shorter (with screws) . First come first served - just PM me . No charge , only cost buttons anyway . But if you gave a quid or two to Race Against Dementia it'd be appreciated .

It'd be like keeping a pair of socks in its own wardrobe . The half hood , folded , is not much more than A4 size and thus will fit just about anywhere.

My Crusader was blue, chassis No 4 , OPT 440 J , and I had a 998 Rallye Imp engine - it was like a baby Elan but with early 911 handling.

At Barbon hill climb yesterday .Good day , in a perfect setting . RAC round in a few weeks will be great.

V Power diesel - I harbour strong suspicions that its main component is snake oil. I too once filled up by mistake with the stuff - but only a financial one as I wanted cheap diesel - and there was no discernible difference at all .

SB47 - I had two and both were excellent. I got the mist and spray round back of neck thing until I got the draught excluder too. Despite many long and wet trips I never used the full hood once after getting half hood . But you do need to get shower cap too for overnight stops in the rain- can get very wet then with rain blowing in . I did some research on a private test track I stumbled upon once...half hood was fine at 124 mph

Ian - do give it a rest will you ? Everything gets reviewed and sometimes updated. By all accounts James is dong a cracking job on trackdays - let him get on with it please rather than constantly sniping.

Andrew - negligence claims are founded , essentially , on a breach of the duty of care X owes to Y, in respect of foreseeable events . What that duty involves is not set in a tablet of stone , but is decided on a case by case basis, taking account of all the circumstances . The fact that some track day companies don't insist on FIA bars , or cages , is relevant in any claim , of course , but isn't definitive. You raise an interesting point though - unfortunately, whilst considering potential track days issues some time ago (before the bar debate and when I was still on MT ) , I did attempt to engage with the track day operators' association and received not even an acknowledgement and gave up after several reminders . I also failed to get a response from a couple of TDOs I contacted.... BTW , once you give advice you do not become automatically liable. You may do so- but , as ever with legal stuff , it depends .....

It doesn't matter what you get people to sign , you cannot evade criminal liability - eg a HSE prosecution . More nuanced re civil liability - basic rule is that you cannot get anybody effectively to waive their rights to take legal action in respect of injury if caused by your negligence . Nothing new - law has said effectively the same for decades - but , of course , society tends to be more litigious and insurance companies , after paying out , tend to go after whoever they can show caused the loss . So don't fall for that old saw 'you are here at your own risk'- it is rarely so

The odd thing is why Caterham opted for the five speed Mazda box when MX5s also have a six speed . Mine has and its ratios are spot on - much better than the type 9 my 1.4/1.8VVC Seven had , and far less frenetic than the six speed the R400D had . Mind you , there are tales of unreliability of the ND MX5 's six speed box so maybe Caterham played safe ?