I attended this supposed rally SCHOOL today with a friend of mine, with vouchers from Red Letter Days. We paid a considerable amount for the extended experience (30 laps), and it must be said the two ... Read More
I attended this supposed rally SCHOOL today with a friend of mine, with vouchers from Red Letter Days. We paid a considerable amount for the extended experience (30 laps), and it must be said the two instructors (Roy and a young man, Simon, I believe) were very good; engaging, and educational.
Problems arose when my friend paying close attention to the instruction of his guide took one corner slightly wide and clipped a cone, taking the wheel arch off his car. This resulted in the owner, Simon Clark (an older man who wears a flat cap), taking him off. My friend then swapped cars with myself, and assumed the laps he missed out on (around 7 laps) would be made up in his 2nd car, meanwhile I was driving his supposedly 'wrecked' car.
Upon completion of our alloted laps we realised this was not the case, and proceeded to the reception to ask what happened next. The man at reception got on his walkie to the boss, and then told us that due to damage to the car he'd been pulled in. He told us repair costs totaled £30 which still left my friend out of pocket. At which point Simon Clark was called in.
He told my friend he was driving out of control, despite the fact he'd been out in the second car already, and he deemed him unfit for the experience hence would not be getting any recourse. Simon spoke in a very rude and belittling manner, and it struck me that he has incredibly poor business acumen, in addition to his poor general behaviour. At this point I should say the instructors were very apologetic when out on the course, and seemed to feel sympathy for our plight. An act the boss seemed incapable of, it was my general impression that the boss was in a bad mood, and took this out on us. His profile on the website states he wants to help young people learn skills on the road, clearly this couldn't be further from the truth!
In addition to this the RWD, and white knuckle experience advertised on Red Letter Days are in fact not included. Which Langley Park 'kindly' informed us of only when we arrived, no compensation was offered in any way for this either.
So if you're looking for a rally school that allows for no mistakes despite your best efforts, and offers dismal customer service in spite of the astronomical fees charged, Langley Park is your place. Read Less