Great track, some fast corners, a long straight and some twisty technical bits. Good value for…read morearrive and drive and races with friends. The best track up north, great for racing with plenty of overtaking places.

Not exactly that close to Newcastle but not too far either! For my baby brother's birthday we…read moredecided to burn off all the cake calories with some adrenaline fueled laps at Go karting. Now having been to the Warrington circuit previously which I consider to be one of, if not THE best Go Karting venue in the country, this one was a much better experience than I anticipated. (To give you an idea of what I mean, this track was 200m, The Warrington track is (wait for it) 1000m with 35 corners!! Yep, exactly!) If I remember correctly we paid £30 each for 55 laps. The other options were £20 for 30 laps and £25 for 40 laps. from experience I know that time flies when you're Go karting so I opted for 55 laps. And let me tell you, time flew by! Just as we were getting into the thick of racing battle it was time to go. We were the last ones on the track which was fantastic as we were literally just racing each other. The track was huge but just long enough with two difficult hair pin turns. The major straight on the track was long enough to build upto and maintain top speed for long enough to have you heart lodge in your mouth as you slammed the breaks on for the hair pin bend at the end. All in all this is a decent venue for Go karting and did firmly put me in the mood to start planning a yelp Go Karting adventure at the Warrington track. Who's in?

A great way to spend a day!!…read more Just on the outskirts of Leeds, not far from the royal armories, is a hugely understated building. From the looks of the industrial buildings around PPIK (Pole Position Indoor Karting) it doesn't appear to be up to much. Holy hell was I wrong. There are a number of races available, all ranging in cost. I'll detail the one I chose and for more head to their very comprehensive website. I got a group of mates together for an 'Iron man 50' karting session 50 minutes of warm up and racing. The cost per person was £50, which is quite expensive, but this is not something you do every weekend. Booked over the phone whilst in Japan they were obliging to process me really quickly, 10% deposit taken and dates confirmed. I also arranged to have trophies presented to the top three winners (out of our group). On the day we arrived we were handed overalls, gloves and hairnets (hygiene). There are lockers on site and it's advised that you use them, becase you will lose your phone to a tire) and after some prep work on flags, which mean stop / go / stop what you're doing / you're out of here you crazy b*stard. We went out for our helmets and a warm up. The track in fantastic. With two bridges and two tunnels it's a decent size. Plus with chicanes and choke points it's real fun with a group of mates. We had a few crashes, but the karts are nice and sturdy (Watch out for the sharp left under the bridge, I almost took a kart in the face). Note* When setting off on the warm up they recommend you leave some distance, between yourself and the car in front, to get a good time. Do it, and go hell for leather, because your best warm up lap will decide where you start on the qualifying grid. The higher up the better. Anyway. The lads and I loved it. We headed to the PPIK bar (plenty of draft beers), received a detailed printout, a good laugh, trophy presentation and a bottle of champagne (on the house) for the winner. Sadly I did not win, but I did get the fastest laptime of 47.600 - if you beat it let me know. A seriously good out!

Wow, this was so much fun! Not done it before, and just by chance got the opportunity to go with a…read moregroup to an event here... and glad I did! We did the Ironman 20 - so 30 minutes driving all together when you include the qualifier. Bit pricey, but loads of fun!

You may've seen the really annoying adverts for this one. I've never reached for my remote control…read moreso quickly in my life. Having said that, Lightwater Valley is a grand day out. Wow I sounded very Yorkshire even by my standards there. This is one of the more known amusement parks in the North and it will soon be open for the upcoming season. That means rides galore and silly funfair related fun. For the bigger kids (and we're included in that) there are ten adrenaline rides. We're not talking quite in the same realms as Alton Towers but they really aren't bad. The Ultimate used to be their crown in the jewel but you'll find other newer attractions to add to this now. It is still the longest rollercoaster in Europe though. For smaller people there are even more rides and I love the skate and go-karts. Ace fun regardless of your age. Everything is included in a one off admission as well so once you've shelled out to get in it's play time unlimited. The eateries are basic at best and very expensive so smuggle some pack lunch in. I also recommend trying to plan your visit around the school holidays as it does get very busy. That can't be helped and they will try getting you on the rides as quick as possible. An adult ticket costs £20 which for a day isn't too bad really. Family tickets are cheaper and they also have some special offers. Praiseworthy value for money. Bring on some oooohhhh and arghhhhs.

I want to step out of another closet here. I am a fun junkie. Ok I've said it!…read more In a previous life I was a regular visitor to theme parks as, sadly, it was part of my job. Because of this I gained a little experience of rides and theme park structure and i wish to bring all my awesome skills to bear in the case of Lightwater Valley. Discounting the great weather (which was a plus but for which I am giving LWV no credit) I am still enamoured of this wonderful place. We went for a family day out and being a family of 6 (now comprising 4 adults and 2 children) these trips are never as cheap as a miserly Yorkshireman would like but we had come by a discount voucher so admission for the whole family was £89.70. The pricing structure seems fairer than some other parks as it is based on height and therefore on how many rides a person can use (this is good as my son is quite petite for his age) A great selection of rides meant that every member of the family left happy (and in some cases quite shaken) and it's always a plus that the whole thing is set in nice countryside. I dropped a star because the catering (in common with most theme parks) lets them down portions being small and prices high. I couldn't finish without a word concerning the staff. I imagine that operating these rides over and over again can become quite disheartening and perhaps downright boring and indeed this is often clear by the facial expressions and demeanour of the staff but I am pleased to say that all the staff here seemed happy and even at the end of the day they allowed 'just one more ride' rather than sullenly chasing everyone away.