I write in response to recent letters from Rob Gent and Peter Rosier in your excellent November and December issues. Both correspondents have very succinctly highlighted the issue that has dogged Silverstone for decades and that the management team that I head has sought to address over the last six years. The root of Silverstone’s welldocumented financial woes has been that it has only attracted people to the circuit on a handful of days each year.
As has been proved conclusively in the recent past, it is not possible to cover the annual costs of operating an FIA Grade 1 and FIM Grade A circuit on gate receipts from a handful of weekends a year. If it is to survive at all, Silverstone has to become more than a ‘one or two Sundays in July’ business.
The development of Escapade, the luxury short-stay development between Copse and Becketts, is a very good example of how Silverstone’s remarkable heritage and brand can be put to good use in attracting visitors to the site 12 months a year. Yes, it will be very exclusive on the second Sunday in July,
