Below is printed a history of Curborough Sprint Course written by Keith Waters.
The sprint course at Curborough was formerly a small part of RAF Lichfield. Construction of the airfield began in 1939. On completion, 51 Maintenance Unit took up residence on 1st August 1940. The largest inhabitants of RAF Lichfield were 27 Operational Training Unit, whose task was to train aircrew on Wellington Bombers, before being disbanded in June 1945. 51 M.U. on the other hand remained on the site for its entirety and were responsible for checking over and carrying out any necessary modifications needed to aircraft that had been received from the manufacturers, before they were dispatched to their squadrons. After the war effort 51 M.U. continued to modify, as well as store and break up aircraft, until the airfield’s closure on 15th April 1958. The Air Ministry eventually sold the entire site for the sum of £240,000 on 1st May 1962.
Before Curborough was used for sprinting it was a venue that S&D.C.C. used for driving tests, and from 1960 onwards some also incorporated a sprint.
When a local farmer purchased the site from the Air Ministry, S&D.C.C. secured a lease and now had plans to develop the site into one of the finest sprint and driving test courses in the country.
However, improvements at the stipulation of the R.A.C. required the track to be resurfaced and spectator protection ditches to be provided before any sprinting could take place. Further improvements to the venue were also sought after by the club, which included the erection of toilet facilities. With club membership now at 550 an appeal for donations was launched. It was suggested that if every member made a donation of £2 then the necessary funds for the construction of the new sprint course and facilities could be amassed. But, as reported by the club’s President at the AGM on 24th April 1963 only 69 members had made a contribution to the appeal so far, totalling £245 13s. Operating to the £1000 budget set aside, club member Peter Boosie oversaw the construction work needed, using his connections with Douglas Concrete to great effect. The lease arrangement still operates today where the land reverts, on occasion back to agricultural use.
The inaugural sprint meeting took place on 16th June 1963. It was of a closed status (only open to members of S&D.C.C.) and attracted an entry of 37competitors, 2 non-starting on the day. The course differed slightly than that of today with the finish line some 15 yards further. Ian McLaughlin driving a Cooper Jap in 38.7 secs recorded fastest time of day.
The sprint meeting that followed on 22nd September 1963 was of a restricted status (being open to members of S&D.C.C. and other invited clubs) and therefore attracted a much larger entry of 75, 9 non-starting. The course had now been shortened to the present day 900 yards, moving the finish line back to enable the faster cars more braking area. Yet again FTD went to Ian McLaughlin, this time driving a Cooper X of 1098cc in a time of 37.7 secs.
As promised a permanent toilet facility block appeared in 1964, sited at Fradley Hairpin and still in use today. The commentary bus at the finish line is another addition of the 1960’s. It was driven to Curborough as an ex forces Thames lorry, the cab of which was later sold to an enthusiast who was restoring a similar model. The construction of the starline hut was proposed in 1972, replacing the previously dilapidated caravan, whilst the building of the paddock office was yet another welcome improvement.
Plans for a return road from the track to the paddock at Curborough were talked about as far back as 1974, when on 17th October representatives from S&D.C.C. met with Basil Tye (Deputy Director of the R.A.C.’s motor sport division) at Curborough to discuss the club’s proposals. A new road was to loop round behind the paddock office, which incorporated a braking area for returning cars after they had passed over the finish line. Also discussed on the day was the possibility of lengthening the course to around 1700 yards and moving the start and finish lines, but none of the above ever came to fruition and Curborough was not to see a return road until 1999. Aided by funding from the M.S.A. Development Fund it opened in the Spring of that year and was an instant success, with Curborough now being able to offer continuous running for the first time, a bonus for competitors and spectators alike.
Using the top loop twice in a single run did create an extension to the course to the distance of 1557 yards, the idea being raised at a meeting of the Curborough Sprint Course Committee on 8th June 1976 and subsequently implemented.
In latter years the venue has improved steadily. Significant modifications took place in 1992 to include a spectator viewing bank, marshals receiving proper posts equipped with protection from stray cars and the elements, and an area set aside for the parking of incident vehicles. The track also received upgrades with the corners losing their cone markings, to be replaced with proper rumble strips. 1996 saw the track’s surface renewed with a new layer of tarmac, where a donation was received from the National Lottery Sports Council Fund, and was the first motor sport project in the country to receive such funding. The new improved track was celebrated at the club’s ‘double lapper’ event on 14th July 1996 where Councillor Joe Brown, Vice Chairman of Lichfield District
Council performed the opening ceremony. While the Molehill, Main Straight and the Hairpin were often so called during the commentary at any of the events, the features of the track, as in keeping with many other motor sport venues were, up to 1998, unofficially named. It was thrown open to the members of S&D.C.C. to make their suggestions for the naming of such in the October/November 1997 issue of ‘Full Chat’. Another new addition for 1998 was replacing stretches of tyre wall with ‘Recticel’, a foam based vinyl covered material that absorbs an impact far better than its predecessor, and hopefully causes less damage to the car involved. Other more recent improvements for the 2001 season saw the paddock widened and numbered, whilst the spectators have gained a seating area.
The Curborough sprint school, being run by the Midland Automobile Club first got under way in 1998 and educates it’s budding pupils with expert tuition twice a year.
The present day Curborough Sprint Championship has always enjoyed a very healthy contingent since its inception in 1998. Other attempts at such have proved less successful in the past. In association with ‘Opposite Lock’, Curborough had its very own sprint championship back in 1971. It consisted of a total of 21 rounds and scoring was based on the drivers’ fastest run at any event less than 40 seconds!
Whilst the venue’s looks remain largely unchanged, its modern day uses are very diverse from 40 years ago. Curborough is used for a great many car magazine photo shoots and makes several appearances in television motoring programmes. But it is also well used for pedal car racing and other human powered vehicles along with cycling. Curborough has been awarded the accolade of being a cycling centre of excellence and also features in the Guinness Book of Records when the pedal car racers set a new 1000 mile record in 2002.
In 2006 the SDCC ran the first ever “three lap” meeting, and other events of this type are sure to continue.
In 2007 new permanent toilets were added to the paddock area, and a slabbed “patio” eating area placed near to the catering building.
