CastleCombe Spring Action Day 2026
Wow! what a start to the Automotive Car show calendar this was!... As in, oh Wow! what an early start!.. I've forgotten how tough these can be sometimes- even my 3 year old son sleeps in a little bit these days!
That said, it was nice to be getting up so early to do something fun that I haven't done in a while.
My mum offered to babysit my son for the day, so me and my partner whipped him up, got him out and I think he barely knew he was at my mums when we left him with her about 6:15 in the morning!
I was on the National Karz Stand, and the meeting point was just down the way from my mums so it came together well- the aim was to leave Swindon for a little after 6:30 and we managed to do just that.
I always enjoy the morning meet and convoys as you can tell everyone is there with the same anticipation and excitement for the day- its also a good chance to make new friends in the group and catch up with ones that you haven't seen in a while.
We're all in it together, forever fighting our problems and niggles with the cars - overcoming some, while developing and finding others. The pursuit of our perfect car and perfecting our cars never ends and the stories and memories we make with them together never ends- and its always great to share the highs and lows as you have experienced them in one form or another yourself at some point!
It was a bit cold, but a fresh and sunny start- I could tell the Soarer was really enjoying this extra cold and dense air as the turbo could be heard spooling up and down, ready to open that glorious external wastegate and shout power and freedom to everyone!.. of course we kept it respectable and within the speed limits as we wanted to stay in convoy on the way down and on the way in to make organising the stand easier.
We cruised down together at a nice steady pace enjoying the empty motorway, the cars, the sunrise - and the odd one or two of the group used it as a great opportunity to go up and down the convoy and get some rolling footage- keen to see that at some point!. I will be sure to share it here when I find it.
Good job we did leave early as the queues were already growing as we arrived a little before 7 - I think we finally finished sorting out the stand cars on it a little before 8, compared to the previous event, we were all pretty crammed in and pushed back. We had towards 20 cars on our stand, so shout out to the organisers of the National Karz stand for getting us all positioned and in place, it sure wasn't easy!
As were were a little to late for the Mcdonalds breakfast run like some of the guys managed to do ,so we got breakfast at the main Castlecombe Track Restaurant- this is just what was needed to set us up for the day's walking and exploration ahead.
After a proper breakfast roll we got walking and exploring the trade stands as they were by the cafe- straight away, we were hit with the wide range of stands and interesting things on offer- Not to mention the cars that were on the trade stands too- As to be expected, they were some of the loudest and most extravagant cars of the day- all polished and cleaned up to a "T" no panel left untouched.
That led nicely on to the "show and shine section" which had a few dream motors on there for sure for me too- I may take a chance and submit my Soarer for those stands at further events this year!
I think the one that resonated most with me though was the very clean, silver 4 door r32gtst. Having owned a R32 previously- there is definitely a soft spot for them as it was one of my dream cars. For me though the slightly understated appearance and what looked like a largely original and comfortable interior really did it for me - talk about a classy,retro cool family car- every box ticked here.
We then ended up at the AdamC stand and again, AdamC had done a great job of curating the cars he had there. AdamC turned up himself in his Dodge Viper GTS- the typical blue with white stripes-definitely the one I want! it was a bit dirty, but rough and ready. Its great to see AdamC using it as a car and not being to over protective of it. I believe he had plans to drive to a Southend Car cruise that night- so must've been an insanely long day for him!
Other standouts on that stand were the twin turbo drift limo, and I think some type of silver Volkswagen Corrado Cabriolet- Be sure to advise me if you know what it is in the comments.
Of course, we cant ignore the Need for Speed Underground 2 inspired Nissan 350z that was there too - Whoever else was there and saw it heard "riders on a storm" going through their mind aswell too I expect.
In terms of spectacular and craziest builds of the day, Most of drift cars have a space there- so it was safe to say we were excited to see them get on track!
After an initial Walkaround, it was a bout time for the first drift session and we got to the fast end corner of the track before the start straight- This is a great place to be as some of the guys are coming in towards or over 100mph sideways and then they can power through and manji down the straight up to quarry corner where they tend to pair up or get closer as a drift train.
I was not prepared for the amount of smoke they would be producing! When I was here end of last year, the weather was a bit wet and the tarmac quite damp in places, so they weren't producing much smoke, they were also much slower too.
With the dry track and milder conditions, they were absolutely shredding the tyres, just what we want to see.
I think the "colour design" black jzx100 chaser was doing a pair of tyres every couple of laps! That and the purple BRZ drift car are well into the 1200bhp+ area apparently- and it definitely showed with it being a big fast track.
2 other drivers we were keeping an eye on were my friends Tom Simpson in the SPR Garage PS13, he's had a few issues previously and there was an issue for the first drift session which was then addressed for the subsequent ones. It was great to finally see him let rip and get some good runs in- I think his car is in the 800bhp area with nitrous and anti-lag - as you can imagine, it makes all the right noises!
The other person out there drifting in a white S13 was Matt Denham - He has been drifting longer than I've been driving and I attended some tutoring he did at a drift school many years ago at Santa Pod - the guy has the patience of a saint and the skill of a god behind the wheel, so its always great to catch up and check in with him at these events when he's there- Again you will see some footage of him out with the rest in a later post once I've edited the video!
I didn't get as much footage as last time, but be sure to check it out once I have it uploaded!
I also managed to catch up with my friend who has a very tidy Renault Clio with a F7p engine and track ready, he joined us for a walkaround and a bit of lunch. On the way back, we found out he got selected as one of the top 50 cars to go out on a parade lap! unfortunately the weather turned off and he shot off before the parade lap. I was hoping to get out in the passenger seat and join him for it. Maybe next time
The weather was a blip thankfully but it was weird, you tend to get a bit of everything at spring and autumn action days -inbetween the occasionally warm sun, this hail/sleet shower appeared - about 20 minutes later it was sunny and drying out again. you definitely need to dress for the occasions.
We wandered round a bit more and styed until the final drift session, then shot off after that. It was an early start and a long but enjoyable day. Thankfully it was a nice steady drive back in the sun.
While it was sunny, we popped the car away and met my mum with our son in a local pub garden to wrap the day up - cracking season opener!..until next time!
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