Thoughts on building a off road track.

[tolska]

Hi all.

I was thinking last night on maybe opening an off road track somewhere in the heart of London due to there being lack of tracks in the surrounding areas which there seems to be hardly none for off road.

Obviously location would be difficult to find some waste land which is not being used and would be big enough to hold a decent size track along with a drivers stand.

I think it would be a good idea but would this just cause you to go broke or could you earn good enough money to keep the track in good order also be enough to push advertisement out.

I thought maybe attempting to get a sponsor on board which I have no idea where to start to even attempt to gain a sponsor.

I was thinking maybe there could be a charge of

[oodboo]

You might need to know how much the land is costing before you work out you prices. I'd also guess this is the main reason why there is a lack of tracks.

Find out some costs for land use before going any further.

[Stilli]

That would be great, there are no off road facilities within easy travel distance of me that cater for 1/8 scale.

 

I would think the best place to start would be existing facilities such as Sports Clubs that may have ground that they would rent to you. They would already have facilities on site, clubhouse etc which would let you concentrate on the track, rostrum and pit area.

There are plenty of old sports club grounds going to waste in my area at the moment that are worth considering if you have the money to develop them.

Another option would be Farmland but not too much of that around in the Central London area, maybe the Queen  has a spare corner in the grounds of Buck Pal.

Edited November 12, 2014 by Stilli

[tolska]

Some point this week I'll be looking to invest in some land obviously depends on the rent or the outright price,

Looking for old sports grounds is a good idea due to the size and buildings ect which are already there which would cut down expenses.

Thinking what oodboo said I believe this could be the reason why there is lack of off road tracks, I suppose it's best to see prices of the land first before even thinking of prizes, membership ect ect then again after all that I'm sure the local council will have something to say about it which I'm sure there is some regulations which need to be agreed on but again I do think this would be a good idea, it could also be good for the younger generation to get into RC maybe letting them rent a few RC's through the course of there visit.

Maybe even host birthday party's for children which could bring in much interest.

I'll be looking into this especially this week.

If anyone has any ideas, suggestions or even information on this subject I'll love to hear from you.

[Deafty]

What scale are you thinking?

Astro turf is poplular for a number of reasons (drainage mainly).

 

I too am seriously looking into setting one up, though I reside in Germany.  Over here we have to form a 'club' which opens the books to massive amounts of paper work.    But it does provide a secure place to hold monnies that other we can raise for the club.

 

Currently I have a (build on the day) carpet track that is setup for mini scales 1:14/1:16 and laid out in the local school grounds.   It has attracted a lot of interest,. so much so i am almost in need of providing models and spares for sale.  Wasn't really prepared to become a small business owner but it does look like the way to make this work for us.

 

from here I intend to convert some of my farmland and go from there with larger scale models but likely 1:8 won't be possible/realistic as we can get a bigger and longer track built for 1:10 which imo will provide more fun than effectively a smaller 1:8 track.

 

After your location research.  I suggest an electricity decision. Followed by materials ,machinery/tools and labour.  Be mindful of what surface you want.  I am currently in discussion with a tennis club who has two full courts of old turf going to waste.  things like this significantly reduce cost

 

good luck to you

[mugen mark]

make sure it miles away from people,the noise of nitros makes people complain and the council just shuts them down.renting rc to beginners,it cost you more in parts{mardave bangers would be the way forward for brithday partys ect}have about

Edited November 12, 2014 by mugen mark

[tolska]

I think mainly 1:10 and 1:8 scales would be ideal.

In regards to the AstroTurf this seems a good idea but surely this takes the fun out offf roading? I mean I've never used Astor for my Rc but I love using it on grass, mud, gravel. The drainage would be a big problem especially with British weather like today for example non stop rain since 5am, this would cause the track (dirt/mud) to be shut due to it becoming a swamp, so I guess Astor would be a good idea after all, could always chuck some mud down in certain areas,

I don't see a problem with the tracks being close to people, having it miles away makes it less convenient for local Londoners, people surely won't complain that much it's not like we'd be using quads or scramblers which produce much more noise, yes nitro produce some noise but not that much to complain about.

I have seen some land close to Croydon which is for sale/rent seems a bit pricey for what it is but again I have no idea how much land costs per the acre.

[mattr]

Some people will complain about anything.

[pockets snakes]

Tbh with the amount of noise in London won't be a problem

But if you do it near houses then yes could be an issue unless you go knocking doors and getting them to sign summit

[J450n]

Best solution I've ever seen is on motors TV, somewhere in europe they have converted an unused Ice ring, filled it with dirt and made a track in there, Biggest problem in UK is weather, in there it can be peeing it down outside and if youre inside it dont matter.  If an ice ring is not available, could you repurpose an old swiming baths, or if large enough, an old warehouse.

 

Good luck with this though.

[oodboo]

Anything big enough it's going to cost a fortune. Renting you're probably looking at tens of thousands if not more. Buying you're probably looking at millions. Even seemingly scrap land has value. Especially in the heart of London.

I don't want to put you of too much but unless you're a millionaire philanthropist I don't think this is going to be economically viable.

Edited November 12, 2014 by oodboo

[Deafty]

BTW, All the outdoor tracks I frequent in Germany (1:8)  are in industrial areas or under an autobahn outa the way. 

[TMaxxDave]

Where in Germany? Just outta interest.

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[Stilli]

That's why I suggest you try looking for a Sports Club that's already up and running and may have a spare pitch or unusable area that could be rented. All you would have to do would be the groundwork, track, rostrum and pit area.

Track surface needs some thinking about and I would suggest some form of semi hard surface with some fine loose gravel on top which could be used in all weathers.

[pockets snakes]

There should be summit in Bedford as loads of places to do it

[Si Coe]

We refurbished our 1/10th track this year. Land already ours, reused virtually all the old astro and it still cost

[Deafty]

Interesting.  How many put coin up if u don 't mind.  Outlay  Outlay Outlay

Where in Germany? Just outta interest.


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you comin over?  BW farm country (stuttgart region)

Edited November 12, 2014 by Deafty

[TMaxxDave]

I've spent my time in Germany, and won't be back over for a while. I spent 18months in Gutersloh, (Nord-Rhine Westfalen) and 3 years in Bad Fallingbostel (Lower Saxony). Lovely country, I'd be back tomorrow if could, but I can't :-(

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[tolska]

Theres is good suggestions from many and I like the idea about old ice rinks/ swimming pools no need to worry about British weather, but that would cost me a fortune, I'm not a millionaire I'm afraid,

I was looking to spend around

Edited November 13, 2014 by tolska