BHP Trackdays organised a mostly seven only trip to the Croix racetrack in France. We drove over the night before with Crazy Steve, Jeb, Knowley, and Pooh and stayed at Mme Trunnet’s B&B in Brimeux (based on Angus’ recommendation) which is perfect for an early morning trip to the track. Knowley and Jebs satnav devices meant that the drive there was completely hassle free except for losing Crazy briefly when we hid in an underground petrol station.

Mme Trunnet’s is an excellent spot to stay with great service, helpful advice, a secure courtyard to keep the cars in, and a huge old barn for bad weather storage. The rooms are enormous and the prices very very reasonable. Special french culinary treats for breakfast are a nice surprise as well.

The weather turned nasty overnight and was pouring rain by the morning. After a brief struggle getting Crazy’s car started (we finally used a heat gun to dry out the distributor and coil while carefully avoiding petrol in the carbs) we convoyed off to the track and it was nealy impossible keeping sight of five sevens in line in the rain.

Conditions were worse at the track with standing water in a few key locations late in corners. My first session out resulted in 2 spins including one just after the bridge. Fortunately they were both harmless with the car remaining on the tarmac. One of the really nice aspects of going on a track day with other sevens is that most cars are at about the same pace so for a lot of the time you cannot see any other cars and are not needing to constantly overtake.

There were a few other cars there including an M3, a Radical, and an Imprezza, but these all seemed to dissapear about lunchtime just as the track was drying off. Slowly conditions improved and grip increased, with the odd car going into the gravel. Eventually Steve and I had the track nearly to ourselves and enjoyed some very enthusiastic driving. It is incredible how fast a Cross Flow can go when being used properly.

We rounded off the day by having a great meal and some wine at a recommended restaurant near the B&B, along with some liquid refreshments. Eventually we headed home and all I can say is I’m glad I am not a taxi driver.

Late the next morning we headed off to explore the nearby walled city and some French coastal towns. Driving in France is a pleasure with very little traffic and generally good roads (watch out for cobblestone sections though). At the ferry we met some other seveners who were at the trackday and swapped stories. The weather turned bad again and we drove home on the M25 in torrential rain - at least the car had a good wash though. The new intercom headsets were well worthwhile as we could have a conservation without having to shout and enjoy some music as well. 

Some general tips : getting petrol is a hassle - many French petrol stations are unmanned and do not accept UK cards. Get petrol when you can.

Do not take your radar detectors to France - they are illegal and will be confiscated along with a hefty fine.

People in France go nuts over sevens - kids would just sit and stare at us while we were filling up with petrol. People would come up to us everywhere and start asking questions about the cars. Tourists were having their photos taken with the cars.