Crystal Palace

There are two motor racing circuits inside the M25, Brooklands and Crystal palace. CP is on my door step and has recently been butchered by Bromley council, however a large portion of the track is still intact, perhaps its time it got a protection order on it as it is seriously under threat. How do you go about getting enough people to support the survival of what is a piece of motor racing history?

I believe there is a Crystal Palace Society dedicated to the preservation of the park. They had a stall at the last event I went to there,the sprint a couple of years ago.
You have my support here,it was the first circuit I ever visited and still the best for spectating in the UK.

Yes it is the best, I'm a memebr of 7oaks and DMC who organised the sprints there but due to the butchery the have been no events for two years now - a crying shame.

I marshalled at the last sprint and it took my heart and mind back to my days as a teenager and regular visits to racing at 'the Palace'. In those days I used to live and go to school in West Wickham and could hear the cars from the back garden...wonderful! It really is a shame that Bromley have seen fit to butcher the track.

Brooklands suffers a similar fate. I helped with their marshals Fire Training Day this year and managed to get a look at the banked track that remains. I understand that does have a protection order on it and the club members are presently renovating parts of the old track?

It was a wonderful track! I went to the big F2 internationals there. A great atmosphere was created due to the compact nature of the pits / paddock and spectator terraces overlooking the start straight.
If only someone could 'do a Goodwood' and take us back to how it was! I don't think however the MSA would agree to having the white painted railway sleeper walls right at the edge of the tarmac like before. Looking back it was incredibly dangerous.

You would never beable to do a goodwood at the palace - too much to bump into and a lot of circuit to make and far too many people there. sprints however.... thing is you would need the MSA, Bromley council and a lot of money on side to make the thing work again. I'm surprised you could hear the cars in West Wickham as you could only just hear them in beckenham.

Brooklands has got protection orders but the Pru are fighting them I believe. The members banking (museum end)is under restoration (or has been) but the byfleet banking is in a terrible state.

Some time ago I read that should London get the Olympics, then the proposed stadium site would be Crystal Palace. As motorsport is not actually an Olympic sport yet I guess that they plan to build over what remains of the circuit.

Simon

That is correct Crystal palace is a major contender for International sport - hence the need for a protection order as it is that section of track that is the most threatened now.

It was only audible in West Wickham when the wind was in the right direction I have to admit. But don't forget there were no noise restrictions in those days so the beasts were a tad loud hahaha

That was where they filmed part of 'The Italian Job' didn't they?

not sure

yes it was....they were practicing jumping ramps with the Mini's on the pit straight. The exploding van parked on the grass on the inside of South Tower corner was the scene for the famous Michael Caine line " You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!"

Just a reminder of this Crystal Palace photos thread posted previously...
http://www.ten-tenths.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26339

many more recent crystal palace photos at www.sevenoaksmotorclub.com I think we should do something as its clear to me that CP is still a venue we all want to see intact.

Waaaaah no pic's of me in there :(

No I think they are mainly club members, I don't appear in any pics on the gallery either!

On the front page of the local newspaper is a story about the redevelopment of the stadium, we must act now to save the surviving bit of the circuit - but how?

SSC - Check your PMs I sent you some info

oh yeah.

An image that sums up crystal palaces final gorly day in 2000, hang on did I say final - 2004 is a coming!