Report to follow once we get home from the Slot Rally GB end of season party...
I love puttering with gears
Two go on a trip to Abergavenny
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8th-Sep-25, 07:00 PM
Whilst I carefully craft a detailed report on Andy and my antics of the past two days, I thought I would use a bit of AI to provide a holding teaser...
I love puttering with gears
8th-Sep-25, 07:59 PM
Hi Jeremy, Great intro, certainly made me laugh!
All the best,
Pip
9th-Sep-25, 09:20 AM
Slot Rally GB Round 5 - Abergavenny
With myself and Andy sitting, respectfully, 7th and 10th in the 'Classic' class, 6th and 10th in the '80s/90s' class, and 4th and 5th in the 'Modern' class ahead of the final round of the championship, a trip to Abergavenny was never in doubt. At worst, we would hold onto those positions, and at best, we might sneak a place or two higher somewhere along the way. But perhaps more importantly, I could try and wrestle that 4th place from Andy in the Modern class. So I hit the road at 04:25 early on the Sunday morning for a rendezvous with Andy at 05:45 near the Worthing barn, and we were off to the land of the red dragon and red moon (in a red Alfa!).
Three hours, and five counties, passed by quickly, as talk of the day ahead and of many other slot related matters kept us suitably distracted. A warm welcome was give to us travellers from the Abergavenny team on our arrival at the spiritual home of the Slot Rally GB, if not slot rallying in the GB as a whole. The Worthing mantra of 'no practice laps' meant that once we had unpacked our cars, it was off to the main hall for a visual inspection of the tracks and of the challenges ahead. Six local tracks were all up and running, and we watched on in eager anticipation as the seventh was carried into the room by the Tunnel Lane crew. This was their wonderful Elan Valley stage, which matches a beautifully contoured rally loop with scenery of the highest quality and detail.
So suitably refreshed by a cup of tea and some breakfast biscuits, our grouping was announced and Andy and I met up with Alan, Charles and Keith who we would sharing our highs and lows with for the remainder of the day. And thanks to Phil Barry from Abergavenny for allowing use of some of his photos of the tracks.
First up for us was the 'Ninco Tarmac' stage; a twisty, flowing, high grip, circuit that it was probably good to bank before we got fully immersed into the world of Scalextric Classic tracks that made up the majority of the others in the room. I was first up and definitely drove a bit conservatively with most of my cars, not wanting to cause any de-slots which would loose me time and make the remainder of the day all about making back the lost seconds. Andy however, was more confident in his driving and immediately gained a few seconds over me with all his cars.
Next up was Caerwent Patriot, the first of the Classic based tracks. A smooth, twisty track with plenty of little wiggles squeezes to both temper your top speed, and keep the marshals alert to placing any car back in the right slot. So well balanced cars and precise driving were rewarded on this stage.
Halfway Forest is a new track to the series, based on Classic track. It's another compact, twisty circuit that rewards car control, and cars that can re-slot themselves neatly if taking to the air after the humpback bridge halfway down the straight!
Our first ever laps of the Elan Valley stage finished the morning's racing for our group. As a photo can say a thousand words, here are some to views of the track: -
And in my head, the caption for this picture goes "Jeremy, just check out the time you have just set!"
All that was needed was a slight tweak to the braids of our cars to deal with the recessed braid of this routed track, and we were away. I came away afterwards thinking that you needed to find an optimum speed that kept your cars rolling round the sweeping curves, but not to exceed it! One car in our group ended up on the floor after getting out of shape in the run up the hill past the start/finish line; the steep banking either side of this narrow section launching the rear of the car over the edge. And it was a sound I heard a couple of other times during the day. One of my cars flew into the trees on the hairpin by the house on the descent. I almost wanted to take a photo of it hanging over the edge of the drop into the stream, but my racing instincts quickly kicked in and I got the car back in the slot!
A brief walk into town at lunchtime gave our eyes a rest, and our legs a stretch, and set us up for the three remaining tracks in the afternoon...
The last track you would want to face after a relaxing break is the modular plate of spaghetti that is Pembury 2...so how come we chose that!!!
I have no finger (or eye) memory of running on the track from my last visit to the club, so it was a case of hanging onto the controller with both hands and lets see which direction the slot took my cars. It was definitely a track where local knowledge would help you anticipate the cross overs and rapid changes in direction. Anyway, that's my excuses out of the way. My times were pretty consistent with all four cars, probably because I wasn't pushing them too hard, not wanting to suffer the time losses with de-slots. No such concerns for Andy...
Elevation featured heavily on our penultimate track, Stelvio. The clue is in the name, this is a twisty, hair-pinned, road up and down the rocky mountainside. Despite it's fearsome appearance, it's a fun track to drive, with the tight bends rewarding an aggressive tail out approach, whilst subtle downhill changes in gradients needing precision braking.
Our final track was my personal favourite to drive, Ellam Vannin. I really enjoy the combination of the free flowing single track layout and how it seems to sit naturally in the landscape!
Fun to drive...how can you not love a circuit with cattle grids and double hump back bridges just before a T-junction! How can you take a bad photo!
And all too quickly it was over. Whilst we waited for the last group to complete their final tracks, we took another look at the Elan Valley track: -
Results wise, it was the case that we held our overall championship positions rather than managing to make any gains. With hindsight, probably the more realistic outcome where were had limited experience of the layouts we were running on. So whilst not managing to claim any of the lovely cars on offer to the top three finishes in each class, Andy bagged one 'mystery' envelope for his 4th place in the Modern class, whilst I grabbed two for the 5th and 6th placings...and very useful 3dp storage boxes that are for tyres and gears, as provided by series sponsor Red Dragon Racing products.
So it only left for me to thank Phil Barry and the Abergavenny set up and break down crew for providing a great selections of tracks for us to race on on the day, and to Alan and Sebastian Birchmore for organising the Slot Rally GB series. Looking forward to 2026 already!
And after an evening out in Abergavenny where we enjoyed a very tasty Indian meal followed by a solid nights sleep in a popular brand of roadside Inns, all we had left was a relaxing drive back home...
With myself and Andy sitting, respectfully, 7th and 10th in the 'Classic' class, 6th and 10th in the '80s/90s' class, and 4th and 5th in the 'Modern' class ahead of the final round of the championship, a trip to Abergavenny was never in doubt. At worst, we would hold onto those positions, and at best, we might sneak a place or two higher somewhere along the way. But perhaps more importantly, I could try and wrestle that 4th place from Andy in the Modern class. So I hit the road at 04:25 early on the Sunday morning for a rendezvous with Andy at 05:45 near the Worthing barn, and we were off to the land of the red dragon and red moon (in a red Alfa!).
Three hours, and five counties, passed by quickly, as talk of the day ahead and of many other slot related matters kept us suitably distracted. A warm welcome was give to us travellers from the Abergavenny team on our arrival at the spiritual home of the Slot Rally GB, if not slot rallying in the GB as a whole. The Worthing mantra of 'no practice laps' meant that once we had unpacked our cars, it was off to the main hall for a visual inspection of the tracks and of the challenges ahead. Six local tracks were all up and running, and we watched on in eager anticipation as the seventh was carried into the room by the Tunnel Lane crew. This was their wonderful Elan Valley stage, which matches a beautifully contoured rally loop with scenery of the highest quality and detail.
So suitably refreshed by a cup of tea and some breakfast biscuits, our grouping was announced and Andy and I met up with Alan, Charles and Keith who we would sharing our highs and lows with for the remainder of the day. And thanks to Phil Barry from Abergavenny for allowing use of some of his photos of the tracks.
First up for us was the 'Ninco Tarmac' stage; a twisty, flowing, high grip, circuit that it was probably good to bank before we got fully immersed into the world of Scalextric Classic tracks that made up the majority of the others in the room. I was first up and definitely drove a bit conservatively with most of my cars, not wanting to cause any de-slots which would loose me time and make the remainder of the day all about making back the lost seconds. Andy however, was more confident in his driving and immediately gained a few seconds over me with all his cars.
Next up was Caerwent Patriot, the first of the Classic based tracks. A smooth, twisty track with plenty of little wiggles squeezes to both temper your top speed, and keep the marshals alert to placing any car back in the right slot. So well balanced cars and precise driving were rewarded on this stage.
Halfway Forest is a new track to the series, based on Classic track. It's another compact, twisty circuit that rewards car control, and cars that can re-slot themselves neatly if taking to the air after the humpback bridge halfway down the straight!
Our first ever laps of the Elan Valley stage finished the morning's racing for our group. As a photo can say a thousand words, here are some to views of the track: -
And in my head, the caption for this picture goes "Jeremy, just check out the time you have just set!"
All that was needed was a slight tweak to the braids of our cars to deal with the recessed braid of this routed track, and we were away. I came away afterwards thinking that you needed to find an optimum speed that kept your cars rolling round the sweeping curves, but not to exceed it! One car in our group ended up on the floor after getting out of shape in the run up the hill past the start/finish line; the steep banking either side of this narrow section launching the rear of the car over the edge. And it was a sound I heard a couple of other times during the day. One of my cars flew into the trees on the hairpin by the house on the descent. I almost wanted to take a photo of it hanging over the edge of the drop into the stream, but my racing instincts quickly kicked in and I got the car back in the slot!
A brief walk into town at lunchtime gave our eyes a rest, and our legs a stretch, and set us up for the three remaining tracks in the afternoon...
The last track you would want to face after a relaxing break is the modular plate of spaghetti that is Pembury 2...so how come we chose that!!!
I have no finger (or eye) memory of running on the track from my last visit to the club, so it was a case of hanging onto the controller with both hands and lets see which direction the slot took my cars. It was definitely a track where local knowledge would help you anticipate the cross overs and rapid changes in direction. Anyway, that's my excuses out of the way. My times were pretty consistent with all four cars, probably because I wasn't pushing them too hard, not wanting to suffer the time losses with de-slots. No such concerns for Andy...
Elevation featured heavily on our penultimate track, Stelvio. The clue is in the name, this is a twisty, hair-pinned, road up and down the rocky mountainside. Despite it's fearsome appearance, it's a fun track to drive, with the tight bends rewarding an aggressive tail out approach, whilst subtle downhill changes in gradients needing precision braking.
Our final track was my personal favourite to drive, Ellam Vannin. I really enjoy the combination of the free flowing single track layout and how it seems to sit naturally in the landscape!
Fun to drive...how can you not love a circuit with cattle grids and double hump back bridges just before a T-junction! How can you take a bad photo!
And all too quickly it was over. Whilst we waited for the last group to complete their final tracks, we took another look at the Elan Valley track: -
Results wise, it was the case that we held our overall championship positions rather than managing to make any gains. With hindsight, probably the more realistic outcome where were had limited experience of the layouts we were running on. So whilst not managing to claim any of the lovely cars on offer to the top three finishes in each class, Andy bagged one 'mystery' envelope for his 4th place in the Modern class, whilst I grabbed two for the 5th and 6th placings...and very useful 3dp storage boxes that are for tyres and gears, as provided by series sponsor Red Dragon Racing products.
So it only left for me to thank Phil Barry and the Abergavenny set up and break down crew for providing a great selections of tracks for us to race on on the day, and to Alan and Sebastian Birchmore for organising the Slot Rally GB series. Looking forward to 2026 already!
And after an evening out in Abergavenny where we enjoyed a very tasty Indian meal followed by a solid nights sleep in a popular brand of roadside Inns, all we had left was a relaxing drive back home...
I love puttering with gears
9th-Sep-25, 09:44 AM
Ellan Vannin - Manx Gaelic name for the Isle of Man
Life is like a box of Slot cars...
9th-Sep-25, 09:47 AM
A great report and photos for those of us who would like to be there but can't be, thanks.
Life is like a box of Slot cars...
9th-Sep-25, 01:50 PM
The Road Trip Back
The second part of Andy's masterplan for the trip was to make the most of the journey back and visit as many 'bricks & mortar' slot car shops as we could fit into the day. Our target was three...not sure what the maximum could have been, but we like our 'all you can eat' breakfasts and didn't want to rush!
So an obvious one to start with, and more 'steel portal frame and insulated composite cladding panels' than traditional building materials...
#1 Jadlam (12:40)
A 90 minute dash over the Severn and across the Somerset Levels took us to Glastonbury and this well signposted building. A multi-hobby retailer which was busy with both male and female customers as it covered all the bases. Pride of place immediately inside the front doors were the RC cars, and they make an immediate impact as you walk in. Next to them was the Scalextric aisle with a wide selection of current and recent models. Most of the other displays covered model making of all types, along with a wide range of paints and tools to assist with making all those models. This box jumped out at me, being a team that I supported in my youth, a livery that will never date, and a car that somehow used to make an appearance at my secondary school fete every year!
I made my purchase of a spray can of Tamiya Clear Coat, Andy treated himself to a branded bag, and we hit the road to our next destination. Not forgetting to take in the local sights...
Some traffic heavy rolling roads took us across Salisbury Plain to the actual city itself, where the ring road seemed to avoid the edge of town and took us right through the middle. Our eta at our next destination was starting to drift a touch; things were beginning to get a bit tense in the car as we began to sense we were running on the fumes of our breakfasts from six hours earlier. But we got onto the wide open M27 and M3 and made up a bit of time and safely arrived at our second store of the day...
#2 AC Models (15:09)
Just off the High Street in Eastleigh, North of Southampton, is this traditional model shop. Trains and RC cars shared the prime ground floor displays, with the Scalextric cars upstairs alongside the RC car repair workshop. This was more of your 'traditional' men-only customer based shop. A more limited range of Scalextric cars, but with a few hard to find examples for those in the know. A more limited range of model making kits, but a large select of railway products on offer, the prices of which reminded me of the relative good value of slot cars.
Time was definitely ticking on, so once we had made use of the facilities in the nearby shopping centre, it was a quick visit to Iceland for some snacks for the journey, and back on the M27 for our final destination...
#3 Gaugemaster Model GIANT (16:50)
A bit of a 'low hanging fruit' familiar target to finish off our trip, being just twenty minutes or so from Worthing. However, Monday was the grand re-opening and launch of a refreshed 'steel portal frame and insulated composite cladding panel' building, re-branded from Gaugemaster to Model GIANT and we wanted to recognise that event...and we made it with 10 minutes to spare! I don't think I am being controversial in saying that the shop is very much model railway focused, but as you can see in the photo, they do have a simple demo track on the shop floor which helps to maximise what Scalextric presence there is on display.
Sadly, there was no cake or lemonade left from the ribbon cutting ceremony at lunchtime, but the crowd had left hours earlier and it had all been cleared away, leaving the staff to politely guide us out of the door at closing time.
And a brief hour and a half later, having retrieved my car from Andy's, I was back home. Thank you to Andy for driving and for coming up with the idea of how to liven up the journey home.
Don't forget to keep visiting your local model shops. Use them or lose them!
The second part of Andy's masterplan for the trip was to make the most of the journey back and visit as many 'bricks & mortar' slot car shops as we could fit into the day. Our target was three...not sure what the maximum could have been, but we like our 'all you can eat' breakfasts and didn't want to rush!
So an obvious one to start with, and more 'steel portal frame and insulated composite cladding panels' than traditional building materials...
#1 Jadlam (12:40)
A 90 minute dash over the Severn and across the Somerset Levels took us to Glastonbury and this well signposted building. A multi-hobby retailer which was busy with both male and female customers as it covered all the bases. Pride of place immediately inside the front doors were the RC cars, and they make an immediate impact as you walk in. Next to them was the Scalextric aisle with a wide selection of current and recent models. Most of the other displays covered model making of all types, along with a wide range of paints and tools to assist with making all those models. This box jumped out at me, being a team that I supported in my youth, a livery that will never date, and a car that somehow used to make an appearance at my secondary school fete every year!
I made my purchase of a spray can of Tamiya Clear Coat, Andy treated himself to a branded bag, and we hit the road to our next destination. Not forgetting to take in the local sights...
Some traffic heavy rolling roads took us across Salisbury Plain to the actual city itself, where the ring road seemed to avoid the edge of town and took us right through the middle. Our eta at our next destination was starting to drift a touch; things were beginning to get a bit tense in the car as we began to sense we were running on the fumes of our breakfasts from six hours earlier. But we got onto the wide open M27 and M3 and made up a bit of time and safely arrived at our second store of the day...
#2 AC Models (15:09)
Just off the High Street in Eastleigh, North of Southampton, is this traditional model shop. Trains and RC cars shared the prime ground floor displays, with the Scalextric cars upstairs alongside the RC car repair workshop. This was more of your 'traditional' men-only customer based shop. A more limited range of Scalextric cars, but with a few hard to find examples for those in the know. A more limited range of model making kits, but a large select of railway products on offer, the prices of which reminded me of the relative good value of slot cars.
Time was definitely ticking on, so once we had made use of the facilities in the nearby shopping centre, it was a quick visit to Iceland for some snacks for the journey, and back on the M27 for our final destination...
#3 Gaugemaster Model GIANT (16:50)
A bit of a 'low hanging fruit' familiar target to finish off our trip, being just twenty minutes or so from Worthing. However, Monday was the grand re-opening and launch of a refreshed 'steel portal frame and insulated composite cladding panel' building, re-branded from Gaugemaster to Model GIANT and we wanted to recognise that event...and we made it with 10 minutes to spare! I don't think I am being controversial in saying that the shop is very much model railway focused, but as you can see in the photo, they do have a simple demo track on the shop floor which helps to maximise what Scalextric presence there is on display.
Sadly, there was no cake or lemonade left from the ribbon cutting ceremony at lunchtime, but the crowd had left hours earlier and it had all been cleared away, leaving the staff to politely guide us out of the door at closing time.
And a brief hour and a half later, having retrieved my car from Andy's, I was back home. Thank you to Andy for driving and for coming up with the idea of how to liven up the journey home.
Don't forget to keep visiting your local model shops. Use them or lose them!
I love puttering with gears
10th-Sep-25, 07:02 AM
Great report Jeremy! And it was a thoroughly enjoyable 36 hours. Thanks for being an excellent travelling companion and navigator through the Somerset Levels.
Running my four cars on those iconic stages was most memorable, particularly as we went in cold…
As with every Slot Rally GB trip, we’ve come back with more ideas to develop our own stages at WHO. Next year we’ll have 4 club nights, a Slot Rally GB Saturday, plus a special Rally Raid night.
I enjoyed running my four cars this year and delighted with fourth (and first non-NSR) for the Ninco Subaru in Modern and a fourth in the Avant Slot Challenge for the big red Galant. Those rather tasty prize cars for the championship podium places were just out of reach!
The drive back to Worthing was fun. AC Models certainly had the best selection of Scalextric on show and all three shops reminded me how much better it is to view cars in the flesh.
Running my four cars on those iconic stages was most memorable, particularly as we went in cold…
As with every Slot Rally GB trip, we’ve come back with more ideas to develop our own stages at WHO. Next year we’ll have 4 club nights, a Slot Rally GB Saturday, plus a special Rally Raid night.
I enjoyed running my four cars this year and delighted with fourth (and first non-NSR) for the Ninco Subaru in Modern and a fourth in the Avant Slot Challenge for the big red Galant. Those rather tasty prize cars for the championship podium places were just out of reach!
The drive back to Worthing was fun. AC Models certainly had the best selection of Scalextric on show and all three shops reminded me how much better it is to view cars in the flesh.
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