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There are very few tracks that we have access to where you won't hit something.
Thompson has actually turned out OK so far. At TTD's A few people have reached the barriers but none have been injured.
The couple of injuries we had were riders that never reached any barrier - they simply landed/tumbled wrong - which can always happen.
so you mean exactly like Loudon? lol I understand people problems with thompson but i prefer it over NH. ya there is afew things that could be improved but the grip is great, i actually really like the flowing section when you get off the oval in the back, the front straight is different and yes more difficult then most straights that are actually straight. there are dangerous areas but really is it any more dangerous then turn 2,3,10,11 at Loudon? if they could come up with a new track in NE that actually did racing I probably wouldnt go back to NH unless they fixed the pavement at least. though alas you can only race at loudon and there for i will keep going lol.
The "but it's better than" argument is fine, except realize you're comparing it to what is basically a 25 year old track that caters primarily to NASCAR.
I understand where JC is coming from. It is what it is. But damn-it, it seems like it could have been more!
It really is a stunning racetrack as far as views go while on track. If they can address the runoff in a responsible manner, they will have a winner. As with most video, it's hard to judge actual distance until you see it for yourself. What may appear to be a huge rock wall 20' from the track on the outside of a corner could me much farther back or not on the likely runoff line.
I'll make a generous offer to assist the motorcycle community.
For 2015, since bikes aren't allowed, I volunteer to take my Turbo Miata on track at Palmer to get more video and give a in depth personal review from a motorcycle enthusiast. Donations towards entry fee will be accepted shortly.![]()
2021 KTM Duke 890 R
2016 BMW S1000XR
1982 Honda CB750F Super Sport
Have you ridden Loudon? The is one turn on the track that isn't linked with other turns and that one turn has elevation change and double apexes. The first 6 turns at Thompson are stand alone unlinked turns between straights. As it see it Thompson is far more dangerous than Loudon. Turn 2 has air fence and the wall is a good distance from the crash zone. Turn three has the cut through and airfence, turn 10 has runoff where people crash and airfence, and 11 has tons of runoff.
Don't get me wrong. Places like VIR blow Loudon away in terms of runoff and safety, and I know that. My big issue is that Thompson and Palmer had a clean slate to make awesome tracks and they dropped the ball. Loudon isn't perfect but they do what they can to be safe, the other tracks don't even seem to take it into account. Palmer seems like it at least has a great layout, ignoring the rock walls.
Palmer is the one that had the clean slate to start with, no such luck at Thompson. Thompson, just like NHMS still had their nascar track to deal with..but unlike NHMS, only a small amount of land to work with. Also part of the permitting approval (and being backed by a huge donation from Mohegan Sun) for Thompson was to repave the existing road coarse which was in use until the mid 70's...far from a clean slate. IMHO other than the bridge, they did an ok job with what they had to work with
Yamaha
I agree with Mark about Thompson... as for Palmer, they had that pesky mountain made of pure rock which prevented unlimited runoff. This had to be the most costly track to build by far.
Thompson is fine for a track day but not racing. Its convenient to me and plenty fun. I really hope palmer pans out as I am 10 miles from it![]()
I feel like the convenience factor plays into a lot of people's opinions of a given track.
Not suggesting I am not guilty of that as well.
fixed
they got a little too excited and let high HP cars out there before the pavement was cured (or they didnt put enough down) and they rippled it all up, hence all the patches out there now.
for me Thompson was fun. the bridge, while it may be the stupidest place to one, is really a non issue for me. its a relatively low speed corner, if you lowsided there youd probably make it to the wall but that can easily be fixed with airfence. if you high sided then youd most likely be further through the corner and have far less stuff to bounce off of. i feel its far less dangerous than, say, heading directly at a wall at 100mph (ie: T3 @ NHMS). i will agree that the back section is fast and fun and there is minimal runoff. the final corner is really the only one that made me make a real mental note to be careful, but only after i started getting some chatter through there (from the rear oddly).
At first i thought palmer may be ok if you ran it the opposite way the video is, but as you get further into it i realized that was not the case. i showed the video to a guy at work, and even he said "wow, theres a lot of walls to hit". he doesnt race or do trackdays. his racing experience consists of watching F1
When I start my KTM in the morning, rules are broken. Its inevitable...
01 SV650S (RC51 eater)/07 690SM /03 300EXC/14 XTZ1200
TRACKS:Firebird/NHMS/VIR/Calabogie/California Speedway/NJMP/MMC/NYST/Palmer/Thompson/Club Motorsports
When I 1st heard of Palmer and saw the 3d map of it I was already hooked... I hope to God they make it safe and bikes are allowed
common tamworth !!!!
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v...type=2&theater