Mention motor racing to the average person in the street and they will probably get images of Fernando Alonso spraying champagne at Monaco, or Michael Schumacher's scarlet Ferrari winning again. But the reality of racing is very different.

The Pembrey Circuit near Llanelli is a facility with a chequered history as it went from decrepitude to touching that Formula One glamour. WRDA founder member and secretary Rob Allender takes up the story: "The late Seventies and early Eighties were a bleak time for Welsh racing. In 1977, shortly after Tom Pryce died, Llandow lost its track licence and then in 1980 Pontypool Park Hillclimb closed too

"This seemed to be the death knell for Welsh racing, all the national clubs had gone back to their bases in England and the only regional centre had closed. I was convinced that a new initiative was needed and I approached other drivers of the day with a view to setting up a new club, which could work towards finding new venues in Wales. Luckily I found many people who felt the same and we banded together to form the WRDA in 1981.

"Initially I approached the Sports Council of Wales who were kind enough not to laugh out loud. They were encouraging and agreed to help, and at least keep an eye for suitable sites if one comes up. Later that year I got a call asking, 'Do racers like racing at old airfields?' I said yes, but didn't know of any. Llanelli Borough Council had purchased the then-derelict Pembrey airfield.

"Since being abandoned by the RAF, Pembrey had been used as a chicken farm by Ross Chickens, and there were derelict chicken sheds littering the site. We were invited to put forward a case for establishing a racing circuit on the site and fortunately they grasped the potential of the concept."

The site began to be used for race meetings in 1983, with some of the banking on the track edge being made from the abundant chicken guano around the site, while the tarmac began to be laid. "The layout wasn't planned as such," says Allender. "It was just that they wanted to get as far away from any homes as possible and that meant using the far end of the airfield. Fortunately the existing taxiways led into a natural layout much as it is today.

"As news of the circuit spread, it became a major secret test venue, not only because of a wide variety of corners (giving teams the chance to test various mecanical and aerodynamic packages without wearing engines out with long straights), but its relatively remote location gave teams a degree of secrecy not possible at venues like Silverstone or Donnington Park."

The early 'rustic' nature of the facilities - including an old army tent used for scrutineering that could collapse without warning in any gust of wind - gave way to a more serious set-up after the circuit was leased to the British Automobile Racing Club (BARC), who have remained as tenants ever since.

As the Eighties ended, Formula One teams, as well as teams from other major formulae, continued to use Pembrey, but, "As testing restrictions came in, the heyday of Formula One teams regularly using the circuit came to end, but other testing seems to have filled the gap" explains Allender.

"Plans for a track extension and a Technium Centre have long been mooted and detailed plans have been drawn up, but progress to bring it to reality has been slow. What is certain is that Pembrey is a splendid facility and a circuit that Wales can be proud of. Some day we may see another Welsh F1 star emerge; let's hope so."