Circuit Des Remparts Angouleme Sep 2022

Wagon · Oct 24, 2022

Some of you may have done this event already but I thought I would document it as its a fantastic way to spend a long weekend,,
So we started Thursday 15th sep and met at the Eurotunnel , a problem immediately occurred with me having a flat left rear , we pumped it up on the train and pulled in to the nearest French services when in France , luckily the SL has a full size spare..

So , that changed we ventured to Le Haute de Lis hotel in Villandry , the hotel owner Pascal loves classic cars and red wine so a very funny night as had by all , I would highly recommend this hotel as a stop off , its great..

From there we decided to visit the Hotel De France where some of the historic Le Mans drivers stayed..

The next stop was a random stop by Nige who was in the lead , the village was mostly shut but we found a cafe and had a bunch of coffee's ,11 euro for 8 tasty coffee's was a bargain

next stop , we had bought some sustenance from a supermarket so where to eat , again Nige found the spot..

more to follow..

Wagon · Oct 24, 2022

Forgot to say that Rouen is now a low emission zone which means you need a vignette , my car was eligible but the older Porsches were not so I dropped a pin by Yvetot which neatly took us round .

Then off to our Gite via a Carrefour and plenty of twisty roads ,we stayed at Les Rivieres Gites in Nadaillac which is about 30 mins south of Angouleme .

Saturday morning we went to Brantome for a coffee and a mooch , its very pretty

Then off to Angouleme to get our tickets and some lunch , the atmosphere in Angouleme at race weekend is great , there are classic cars parked all over the place and you never know what's going to be in the next square/street , its great.

In Angouleme..

Wagon · Oct 24, 2022

The town has some interesting art/graffiti as well , this is only a small sample , there's loads to see

Wagon · Oct 24, 2022

Some of the race cars

Look at those tubes!! the T16 evo2 was stupid fast..
I have plenty more pics if anyone is interested

Back to the Gite after a great day , another BBQ then an early doors departure for a nearly 8hrs drive back to Calais , E10 at Calais was 1.41 euro a litre and the 98 was only a bit more expensive , needless to say we all filled up.
Quiet roads in the UK on monday because of the funeral and back home , if you can do it its a brilliant trip and well worth it.
Cheers
Paul

phobos · Oct 24, 2022

Looks like a great road trip. Great photgraphy as well! That 037....

Wagon · Oct 24, 2022

Bobby Dazzler · Oct 25, 2022

Some great photos, thank you for sharing

SpikyMikey · Oct 25, 2022

Wonderful stuff

The Alpines are rather lovely and there can't be many Group B Citroen BX's around surely?
Thanks for sharing

st13phil · Oct 25, 2022

Looks like a great excuse to catch a bit of the last summer sun in France

Brought back fond memories of a stay at Hotel de France in La Chartre-sur-le-Loir with a large group from a motorcycle club a good 20 years ago. Thanks for sharing.

Flyinspanner · Oct 25, 2022

I’ve been to the Malta Grand Prix a couple of times which looks like a similar vibe.
Great photos

Swotty · Oct 25, 2022

Thanks for the pics and glad you enjoyed it.

I live less than 3 hours away and friends who have been going regularly for many years and are always encouraging me to go. Several race and others just go to ogle the cars. For the first time, several said that this year the event had become too successful in that it was just too busy. Accommodation has apparently become far more expensive, presumably not helped by the current financial problems, but still more than expected.

Did you get that impression?

Wagon · Oct 25, 2022

Swotty said:
Thanks for the pics and glad you enjoyed it.

I live less than 3 hours away and friends who have been going regularly for many years and are always encouraging me to go. Several race and others just go to ogle the cars. For the first time, several said that this year the event had become too successful in that it was just too busy. Accommodation has apparently become far more expensive, presumably not helped by the current financial problems, but still more than expected.

Did you get that impression?

The Gite was pretty inexpensive , probably as its a 30 min drive to Angouleme , plus it was split 8 ways..we park in the underground mall carpark which is also cheap and walk into town.
Saturday qualifying was great , not busy at all with easy access to everything , beer and lunch prices weren't unreasonable either, especially compared to here..
We book seats in a stand which gives you access to the paddock which I think was just over £40 , its well worth it as the public viewing areas get busy on race day , race day was busier than I've seen it in the past but I think this is the first event since the lifting of all travel restrictions so more foreign visitors maybe , plus it was 25 degrees out..
Top tip on raceday is to go get your lunch before the racing stops for lunch . all the restaurants and sandwich paces get mobbed for an hour.