Track Focus – Reims

Track Name – Reims
Club – Reims Enduro Model Car
Country – France
Location – Reims (129 km east-northeast of Paris)
Direction – Clockwise
Surface – Chalk

The 33rd running of the 1:8 Offroad European Championships takes place in France this week in Reims, a city famed for being the home to many of the largest producers of France’s most famous drink – Champagne.  Part of an impressive complex that also includes an 320 metre onroad asphalt track, the 340m offroad track has one very unique feature and that is its surface.  White in colour, the track is actually chalk which makes up the majority of the ground in the area with most of the champagne aged under the city in tunnels and caves carved from the chalk.  While most track surfaces are a dark colour causing them to absorb the heat, the white of the chalk reflects that heat which is an element drivers need to keep in mind when choosing tyre compounds, tyre choice set to be the key factor in deciding this year’s European Champion. Run by the Reims Enduro Model Car club, which was founded in 1987, the track opened in 1999 and currently has a membership of 130 drivers.

One of the tracks that makes up the highly competitive French National Championship, this is the second time the track has hosted the European Championship with David Tortorici winning the second of his European titles here in 2005.  In terms of the layout the track is proving very popular with drivers who like the speed and flow of the track which they say overall is not too technical.

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