You don’t even need a fully specced racer or roll-caged car; a normal, everyday, road-legal crapper will do, so long as it’s safe, is legal to drive, passes a few basic safety checks and you don’t razz around like a twat and hit anyone. You’re allowed to get it wrong, and excursions into the kitty litter usually only end up with a ‘cooling off’ period before you’re allowed back into the action. You’ll need the time to get the stones out of the car anyway. The only required equipment is a helmet, and most track day firms have them for hire (check first mind). You’ll also need to cover your arms and legs, just in case the car breaks a side window and you get covered in glass. Some drivers buy race suits, but you’re best spending cash on making the car faster and embarrassing the shit out of the pixie-boot wearing Porsche drivers. Wearing racing boots is best left for those who need them. Driving gloves are a smarter buy, as are a set of uprated pads for the front end.

Don’t buy a crapper and simply turn up, although many people do. Make sure the car is up to a full-on session, and take along a tool kit just in case you need to tighten anything up, remove anything, or replace it entirely. And make sure the tyres are going to get you home too: tracks are far grippier than the road, and tyre wear can be horrendous.

The best way to learn any circuit is by sitting with an instructor. Don’t be proud, as these guys have done more laps than you’re likely to, so they know all the tricks, and ask plenty of questions. There’s a huge difference between the ideal line and the ideal racing line (think defence), so they’ll talk you through both, and you’ll learn more in the first five laps than you ever would alone.

You can get a wheel over the rumble strip at the bottom of the hill to preserve speed up in to the braking zone for Druids, and don’t brake too early here. Druids is a bend that tries your patience, so get on the power as soon as you can and use all of the track on exit. Feed back across to the right for Graham Hill, don’t brake too much, and pitch the car in. Take a huge chunk of rumble strip on the inside of Surtees to settle the car for the never-ending Clearways: ignore the first apex and stay wide to clip the next, then unwind lock and keep the throttle nailed right to the start-finish line. Job done!

Local informant: 01474 872331
www.motorsportvision.co.uk/brands-hatch

It’s a quicky so just brush the brakes, apex the curb late and run wide on exit before sweeping over to the right and settling the car for hard braking into the Club complex. It’s a slow, late turn in, so is hard to get right, but it’s rewarding when you do. The long right-hander should only be apexed once: right at beginning, and you should exit onto the Abbey straight with a lot of speed. Abbey itself is faster than it looks, but the approach is faster than you think, so be careful first time through. Start turning for Bridge as you pass under the bridge; the camber should keep you in the middle of the track for the exit. Priory is faster than it seems but the next, Brooklands, is very tight, so brake earlier than you think and turn even later. Luffield is tricky and rewards the most patient drivers. Get the power on as soon as you can, exit left, then cross the track to take the slight kink right and cross the line. Brake for the unsighted Copse, but not too much: going in with an unsettled car will make it a handful. It’s far better to sort out the over/understeer in the bend.

Local informant: 0870 4588200
www.silverstone.co.uk

Duffus Dip is a big boys corner and requires a great deal of skill to get right. The inside kerb will launch you on to two wheels, so watch it, and you should always be thinking of maximising your exit out of the second part of the corner. McIntyre is a slow right-hander and shouldn’t be attacked. Avoid the kerb at the bottom of Butchers, but attack the one on the inside of the Glenvarigill brow to give you space at Brabhams. It’ll take practice, but you’ll crack it. A late apex at Clark will give you excellent exit speed for the straight, while a late turn in at the uphill Taylors hairpin means you can carry as much speed as possible through it.

Local informant: 01383 723337
www.knockhill.com

It's an awesome circuit to drive, and a tough one to master. The long pit straight makes judging the braking and entry speed into Redgate tough. It’s later than it looks, which makes the exit fast and hard to hold as the car pulls to the left on exit. Hollywood is a natural right-hander that can be held on constant lock, and that should bring you inline with the fast turn-in for the Craner Curves. Aim to exit mid-track because the outside is usually covered in crap. Old Hairpin is quicker than it looks, so turn early and exit late over the low kerb to preserve speed. You’ll need to be across to the right under Starkey’s Bridge to take Schwantz Curve flat and be able to brake in a straight line for McLeans. Turn in for McLeans late and use the entire track on exit. The blind crest at Coppice is unnerving for everyone but it helps slow the car down a touch, but you should be committed to turn right as the car crests. Let the car run to the kerb on the left but hold constant lock to exit onto Starkey’s without touching either kerb. Fogarty’s Esses are violent on the car, so take the hit and drive around them. Watch the braking into the Melbourne Hairpin as it’s easy to lock up. Hold the inside line and then let the car run wide. A late turn-in is required for Goddards, and aim for a late apex so that you can use all the track on exit for the straight.

Local informant: 01332 810048
www.donington-park.co.uk

The plans are to develop the track into a top-line two-mile circuit offering four configurations for car races, rallies, sprints, rally stages, motorcycle races and supermoto events. The first event is scheduled for the end of May, so the circuit is a buzz of activity at the moment. The Anglesey Driving Centre is also based at the circuit, and they’ll be happy to help get you boned-up on racing techniques.

Local informant: Anglesey Circuit, The Estate Office, Bodorgan, Anglesey, LL62 5LP
www.angleseycircuit.com

Exit the pits and apex Old Hall at the drain cover aiming to exit and bleed out to the curb on the left. The Avenue falls steeply downhill so use the little compression as the car settles to brake, then turn for the left-hander at Cascades. Unwind the lock to blend out to the right and floor it for the next left-hander, Island Bend. The apex is unsighted because the road is undulating, but you can keep a constant amount of lock on and bring the car into line for the heavy braking needed for Shell hairpin. Turn in early and use all of the camber to power through and out of the bend. Ignore the kerb on the right but apex it later as you brake in a straight line for Foulston’s chicane. Don’t hit the big kerb on the way in and be careful with the one on the right. Accelerate hard up to Knickerbrook and prepare for some tough braking. Turn in and use the kerb to pull the car straight for the rest of the complex. Accelerate up the hill and turn when you get to the service road on the right. Turn in for Druids, aim for the second kerb and push hard towards Lodge. The road is bumpy and the turn-in for Lodge is late. The road drops away too, so if you’ve gone in too hard you’ll fuck it on the way out. Dear Leap is quick and leads you back onto the fairly short opening straight.

Local informant: 01829 760301
www.motorsportvision.co.uk/oulton-park

Launching off the line is a skill that takes time to master, but there are a few tips the novice can benefit from. Never be out-psyched by the opposition; chances are they’re as nervous as you, no matter how experienced they are. Besides the element of surprise is always better than the complacency of defeat.

Drag racing is about raw power and talent. It’s man versus the clock,  the immoveable force of speed versus time… and of which time usually holds the upper hand.

There are three main epicentres of drag racing in the UK: Santa Pod near Wellingborough, Shakespeare near Stratford-on-Avon, and Crail Airfield at Crail, Scotland.

The sport is relatively straightforward: launch off the line and twat down the quarter-mile strip as fast as your car will allow you. You don’t even have to have a racer to do it, as most tracks operate ‘Run what ya Brung’ days, which means you can drive anything you like down the strip. All you need is a helmet, long sleeves, covered legs and a damn heavy right foot.

Although it may not seem too technical at an entry level, the sport becomes far more demanding once you start getting in to things like bracket racing. This is racing to a set time for the quarter-mile distance. The closest finisher to the bracket time wins, but break that time and you’re disqualified.

The launch is key. A perfect getaway with no wheelspin means the car is laying down every ounce of horsepower and torque it has. To help, a compound is sprayed on the tarmac to make the tyres grip – and competitors warm up their rubber by doing a burnout. The proper drag cars run exceptionally low tyre pressures to make the most of the available grip, and the tyres expand during the run by as much as four inches. This gives them a third gear as the centrifugal forces and pressure forces the tyre to expand.

The startline is also where a majority of problems occur; engines blowing, clutches letting go, plus it’s a noisy place, so take some ear plugs. If you’re driving, then follow the marshals’ instructions, get to the staging area and wait your turn. Once on the startline, and having done your burnout, the countdown is a nerve wracking time. Eye the light tree, and as soon as the last orange dies, nail it and keep your foot buried until you cross the line. Anything under a 15 in a standard car is something to be proud of.