Totally agree with you about the 20 pages. The AIC definitely needs to go on a diet, as I said on the FFF thread. Apart from being a pain it scares people off. I've never found flying in to the Rally a problem, but then I learned to fly in gliders where you get used to having other aircraft near you and not having someone on the ground directing you.
Re the IMC bit I flew in on Saturday from Popham. Just under the base at around 2000 ft until South Marston, then we got down to around 1500 ft just north of the Malmesbury VRP. Got on the Northside racetrack with no problem, spotted a Jodel inside us and followed him in. Straightforward and all legal.
Return trip we departed at 18:00 and had around 1800 ft cloudbase most of the way. We were well above the top of the Membury mast and passed about 3nm abeam. Again all legal.
I understand that to the north it was a different story with most people returning.
Certainly the weather I saw to the south of Kemble was not IMC providing you were legally able to stay below the cloud. The visibility was 10k+ below cloud and only slightly less in the drizzle.
Mike