The victorious team in the Britcar 24 hours at Silverstone covered 595 laps in 24 hours. That’s 3,058km, the same as driving from Land’s End to John O’ Groats and back – and then some.

A massive entry list saw 63 cars with hundreds of drivers competing in six different classes. Trackside’s Keith Collantine went along to the second running of what is becoming a highlight of the British racing season.

When my editor told me I would be off to Northamptonshire to cover the Britcar 24 Hours I was instantly conflicted.

Thrilled, because I’d never seen a proper day-and-night endurance race live before. And wary, because although last year’s Britcar race was an innovative new addition to British motor racing, it lashed with rain almost without cease.

So I packed the car with thermals, waterproofs and a thermos and headed off to Silverstone. And found a warm, almost balmy afternoon.

The weather was good news for competitors and spectators alike and when the race finally got underway the drivers were attacking the awesome high-speed sweeps of Silverstone with much more confidence than last year, when the place was virtually waterlogged.

Up front, last year’s winners Rollcentre Racing with their 7.0-litre Mosler were fighting a rearguard action against Duller Motorsport, who wielded BMW’s exciting new Z4 M Coupe in its first competitive outing.

BMW may have entrusted the debut of an important new car to a private team, but Mazda supplied its own factory operation with three RX-8s. The lead car was piloted by four drivers including former Formula One driver Martin Donnelly and ex-touring car star Ian Flux.

The large and varied entry list was a recipe for exciting racing up and down the field. The racers up at the front may have had Porsche GT3s, Marcos Mantis V8s and Ford Falcons at their disposal, but others were racing Honda Civic Type Rs and even a Volkswagen Beetle.

Endurance racing is at its most dramatic when night falls and the cars turn into bright streaks of headlights flashing past, zipping around corners at improbable angles.

The racers disappeared into the darkness of the Northamptonshire countryside before returning each lap to the illuminated start/finish line and pits. In the pits, fatigued mechanics scrabbled over faulty cars and resting drivers tried to get vital hours’ sleep.

By morning a few giant-killing performances had come into focus. TH Motorports’ humble Volkswagen Golf diesel ran to an impressive 15th having made fewer stops than any other car.

But up front the Duller Motorsport Z4 of Jamie Campbell-Walter, Tim Mullen, Dirk Werner and Dieter Quester had broken clear of the pack to romp home to win by a crushing margin – 16 laps.

The Britcar 24 hour race is still in its infancy but happily the European Endurance and Racing Club President James Tucker is set on bringing it back in 2007. Don’t miss it.