Goodwood Motorsport Round Up

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Goodwood's two motorsport events, the Festival of Speed and Revival continue their success into 2012. If you don't know what these events are about, then frankly we think you've been living under a rock for the last decade or so! The Festival of Speed continues to be a heady mix of classic racing cars (and bikes), bang up to date motorsport machinery, and the very latest road cars becoming the de-facto British motorshow. The Revival is an awesome retro themed race day where the organisers go to great lengths to re-create the spirit of the 1960s motorsport scene. Here's the round up of the recent Press day...

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LORD MARCH ANNOUNCES HIGHLIGHTS FOR
THE 2012 GOODWOOD MOTOR SPORT SEASON

Late last week the Earl of March – founder of the annual Festival of Speed (28 June – 1 July) and Goodwood Revival (14 – 16 September) – announced some of the news highlights for this season’s Goodwood events. These include:

2012 Festival of Speed Highlights:

Very young guns heading for the revival.

-At least seven current Formula One teams attending and in action, including the very first Goodwood appearance for double F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel, along with the Red Bull Racing team and his team mate Mark Webber. Expect to see other top teams and drivers at the Festival too, with more names due to be confirmed shortly. Sebastian Vettel’s Goodwood attendance links in perfectly with the 2012 Festival of Speed theme - ‘Young Guns – Born to Win’.

-The Cartier ‘Style et Luxe’ is one of the World’s finest automotive concours d’elegance car design competitions, and for 2012, a unique gathering of vehicles will be brought together to mark Her Majesty The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. All vehicles will have a direct connection with Her Majesty, with most never or rarely seen in public before. These will range from formal State limousines, through to personal cars, an aircraft and even a Royal train carriage.

Lotus will feature prominently

-The 2012 Festival of Speed will honour one of Britain’s most iconic and innovative sports car brands – Lotus. The Company’s past, present and future will be celebrated with the main Central Feature ‘installation’ outside Goodwood House, plus at least 50 significant Lotus race and road cars in action and on display during the Festival weekend.

Festival favourite, Dougie lampkin will perform.
Girls not nessasarily included.

-The 2012 Festival will see expansions and enhancements to the GAS (Goodwood Action Sports) arena, the relocation of the Goodwood Aviation Exhibition within the Festival Parkland, near the Moving Motor Show, plus the largest collection of two-stroke competition motorcycles ever assembled at the event.

2012 Goodwood Revival Highlights:

-An at-speed demonstration of the breath-taking Silver Arrows Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union competition cars 75 years after their memorable race in the UK at Donington.

The cobra will also be a main feature at the Revival.
Lord March and girls not necessarily taking part.

-Fiftieth anniversary celebrations for the Ferrari 250 GTO, with plans for a daily parade of at least half the total GTO production, plus an all-AC Cobra race to mark the first half-century of the iconic Anglo-American sports car.

-A daily tribute to American racer Dan Gurney, 50 years after taking his first Grand Prix victory.

-Two very special races, with the Nine Hours night race, 60 years after this first Goodwood race into the dark, plus a new Goodwood competition, the Settrington Cup, being held for young drivers in Austin J40 pedal cars!

There will be many other features and attractions to this year’s Goodwood motor sport event, with more details to follow over the coming weeks and months.

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JAGUAR TAKES ON THE GOODWOOD HILL AS 2012 FESTIVAL OF SPEED IS LAUNCHED

The Jaguar XF-R looks right at home on the Goodwood Hillclimb

The Jaguar XFR has taken on the notorious Goodwood Hill at the launch of the 2012 Festival of Speed.

The demonstration runs provided a suitably dramatic start to the preview event for the 2012 running of the Festival of Speed – set to take place between June 28 and July 1.

The theme for the 2012 Festival is 'Young Guns – Born to Win' celebrating young drivers, riders, designers and engineers in every aspect of the automotive world. This theme is echoed by the recent steps taken by Jaguar Land Rover to recruit hundreds of new graduates in every part of the business, encouraging them to contribute to, and play a key part in, JLR's ambitious plans for the future.

In 2011 the Festival celebrated 50 years of the E-type in spectacular style with a 28-metre sculpture of the iconic sports car forming the centrepiece of the event that saw significant Jaguars including the XJ13, C-, D- and, of course, E-type being driven in anger in front of crowds numbering in excess of 175,000 people.

Once again Jaguar is proud to play a role in the Festival of Speed with vehicles from the past and a little way into the future promising to take part in the notorious run up to Goodwood Hill.  

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Racing Ahead : Keeping Britain at the front of global motor sport

Lord March (Left) and Colin Hilton, MSA Chief Executive.

 A new initiative to promote the UK’s on-going position at the forefront of world motor sport was announced yesterday (Wednesday 14 March) at Goodwood.

Established by Motor Sports Association and Motorsport Industry Association – the two leading bodies in UK motor sport – as an integral part of National Motorsport Week 2012, the new scheme is titled ‘Racing Ahead – keeping Britain at the front of global motor sport’ and will reward and inspire a select band of this country’s most promising young drivers and engineers.

As the governing body of UK motor sport, the MSA will select six potential future world champions from junior karting, circuit racing and rallying. These will be joined by six of the brightest young engineers selected by the MIA, the world’s leading trade association representing the UK motor sport industry. The MSA’s group will be announced shortly while the MIA will be organising a special competition for gifted young engineers via the new National Motorsport Week website which also was launched at Goodwood’s media preview event.

The 12 members of the Racing Ahead initiative will experience a full programme of activities during National Motorsport Week (30 June-8 July) including visits to both the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Santander British Grand Prix at Silverstone. They will also enjoy exclusive tours of the UK’s premier Formula One factories and World Rally Championship teams aimed at providing invaluable insights into the sport and industry.

“National Motorsport Week is about raising awareness of the UK’s leading position in world motor sport, as well as giving people the chance to try our sport for the first time,” explained Colin Hilton, MSA Chief Executive. “We may have produced more Formula One World Champions than any other country, but we face increasingly strong competition from other nations, so we cannot afford to be complacent. The MSA is committed to investing in future champions because it is fundamental to our objective to lead and develop the sport at both international and grass roots levels.”

In 2011, the MSA joined forces with MIA to promote the annual National Motorsport Week and the creation of Racing Ahead is another product of this teamwork to promote the unrivalled status of UK motor sport.

“The UK motor sport industry is booming, during otherwise uncertain times,” said Chris Aylett, MIA CEO. “Customers, from all over the world, realising the exceptional quality, value and expertise of UK motor sport products and services, are spending their hard won budgets here in Motorsport Valley. Jobs are growing in engineering and the sport to meet this increased demand. We particularly need more young, well-trained, engineers and technicians so we stay ahead in this race for business. As part of National Motorsport Week, the MIA will shortly announce details of an exciting national competition for all young engineers looking to get into motor sport. The six selected winners will join this special Racing Ahead scheme and thus gain a great head start to their careers.”

Full details of the competition will be revealed on the new National Motorsport Week website which has been developed by web specialists mso.net and is launched simultaneously with Racing Ahead. The new look site includes information on how all involved in the sport can take full advantage of the promotional period and will also list all the special events taking place during NMW 2012. Appropriately the week commences with the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the world’s greatest celebration of past and present automotive culture.

“We are delighted that the Festival of Speed will kick off this year’s National Motorsport Week – more so as the Racing Ahead initiative, which is being set up to highlight many of the next generation of drivers and engineers, ties in so well with our own ‘Young Guns – Born to Win’ theme that we are celebrating at the Festival in June,” confirmed Lord March, founder of the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

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FORD FOCUS ST IN FILM STAR ROLE AT THE GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED

Lights, Camera, Action!!

Ford's first global performance car is previewing its starring role in new film blockbuster The Sweeney at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this summer.

The Focus ST and Jaguar waltz around Goodwood's hillclimb

Stunt drivers will take the place of famous Flying Squad detectives Jack Regan and George Carter as their black Ford Focus ST is pitted against a Jaguar XFR up the famous Goodwood hillclimb in an exciting chase sequence to whet the appetite ahead of the movie’s release in September.

Ford has been a major sponsor of the Goodwood Festival of Speed since its inception in 1993 and it is again supporting this prestigious event over the weekend of June 29-July 1, 2012. The Festival of Speed is Europe's premier historic motor sporting event – a combination of hillclimb, rally stage, garden party, and motor show, all in the grounds of Goodwood House, the Earl of March's ancestral home in West Sussex.

Ford Focus ST takes centre stage

In October 2011, special Ford Focus ST prototypes were secretly delivered to The Sweeney set, joining Ford Mondeo, Galaxy and Transit models also being used by the cast as unmarked Flying Squad vehicles.

Red and black... but black first. See, our colour scheme is right!

Director and co-writer, Nick Love, whose prior films include The Football Factory and The Firm, said: "It was important for me to collaborate with Ford on The Sweeney as their legacy with the original TV show is so strong – they're the perfect partner. I like the Ford Focus ST so much, I want one!"

Ford's strong link with the 1970s Sweeney TV series saw Regan, Carter and their Flying Squad colleagues using a string of Ford Granada, Consul and Cortina models to make the streets of London a safer place.

Production Companies Vertigo and Embargo Films, used six Ford Focus ST models during filming. Set in modern day Britain, The Sweeney stars Ray Winstone as Jack Regan and Ben Drew (aka Plan B) as George Carter and also features Hayley Atwell (from Captain America), Damian Lewis (Homeland), Steven Mackintosh (Underworld: The Rise of the Lycans) and Paul Anderson (The Firm).

The Sweeney will be released in the UK in September.

Ford at the Goodwood Festival of Speed

Ford's motorsport heritage is unparalleled: there were successful Model Ts in motor racing in the 1920s, Ford V8s won the Monte Carlo rally in the 1930s, and since the 1950s Ford has always been prominent in racing and rallying, often with specially-developed cars like the Le Mans winning GT40s, the Escort RS1600 and RS1800, the RS200, the Sierra RS500 Cosworth, and racing Mondeos. Ford-powered cars from all around the world will be reflecting this heritage at the Festival of Speed.

Visitors to Goodwood will see an astonishing variety of famous Fords, including those located on the Ford stands at the entrance to the festival and the main exhibition site inside the hillclimb track. Prominent in these displays, as well as on the Goodwood hillclimb, will be the Ford Focus ST with its powerful 2.0-litre 250PS four-cylinder EcoBoost engine.

The new Ford Focus ST goes on sale in 40 countries this year and was shown in final production-ready form at the Geneva motor show this month.

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Daniel Lloyd takes to the hill with a nervous passenger aboard his Porsche 911 GT3

Lloyd stars at Goodwood for Porsche Carrera Cup GB 

Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholarship driver Daniel Lloyd wowed the motoring and motor sport media during the annual press day for the Goodwood Festival of Speed (Wednesday 14 March).

Fresh from a stunning performance the day before when he ran fourth fastest in the Carrera Cup pre-season test day at Silverstone, the Huddersfield racer was in action on the famous Sussex hillclimb course.


Just ten days after his 20th birthday, Daniel ferried journalists up the Goodwood Hillclimb in a 450bhp 911 GT3 Cup as the Festival of Speed unveiled a ‘Young Guns’ theme for 2012. In addition, the livery of Daniel’s car celebrated the tenth anniversary of the Carrera Cup GB.


As well as getting to grips with the rather different environment of the hillclimb course, Daniel gave a first class account of himself as he handled media interviews and photograph sessions with aplomb.


Media including What Car? and the Daily Telegraph rode alongside Daniel in the car and the Telegraph has already featured an in-car video they shot on its website, as part of its role as media partner of Goodwood. The video can be watched at:


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/motoringvideo/9144498/Daniel-Lloyds-hillclimb-at-Goodwood.html


Meanwhile, Daniel and his crew at Team Parker Racing are now busy preparation for the opening races of the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Brands Hatch (31 March/1 April).

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The TWR prepared XJS is a regular at the festival of speed.

JAGUAR WINS 'MOST SPIRITED GETAWAY' AWARD FOR SECOND TIME AT GOODWOOD

A Jaguar has won the 'Most Spirited Getaway' Award for the second consecutive year at the launch of the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

The honour, won last year by Touring Car driver Anthony Reid in an XFR, was won at the 2012 event by Alex Buncombe at the wheel of an XJS TWR owned by JD Classics.

The light-hearted Award is given to the driver judged to have made the most enthusiastic, crowd-pleasing departure up the notorious Goodwood Hill.

The XJS meets it's big brother, the XJR-8/9 which is sure to be a quick car

The car, a 1984 Jaguar XJS TWR and chassis 005 of just seven produced was previously driven by Win Percy. It made a suitably dramatic start as the combination of slick tyres and a 485bhp, race-specification V12 and side-exit exhaust system ensured a visual and aural spectacle.

It was joined on the Goodwood Hill by the iconic Silk Cut Jaguar XJR-8/9 run by Don and Justin Law – the latter aiming to once again set the pace at the 2012 running of the event having completed the run in just over 44 seconds in previous years.

The 2012 Festival of Speed takes place between June 28 and July 1 with crowds expected to number in excess of 180,000 over the three days.  

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National Motorsport Week to include two major events

Goodwood Festival of Speed will kick start National Motorsport Week 2012

 Next year’s official National Motorsport Week (30 June-8 July) will feature the two most popular events on the UK motor sport calendar: the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Santander British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

The British Grand Prix date – 6-8 July 2012 – was confirmed last month by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body for world motor sport, while The Earl of March, patron of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, has just announced that the world’s largest celebration of motoring culture is provisionally scheduled to take place in the beautiful surroundings of Goodwood Park over the weekend of 29 June-1 July.

National Motorsport Week is jointly organised by the Motor Sports Association (MSA) and the Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) to celebrate the on-going success of British competitors, teams and companies as well drawing attention to less well-publicised parts of the sport in order to generate increased participation.

“We couldn’t have hoped for a better platform from which to promote UK motor sport,” says Colin Hilton, MSA Chief Executive. “Between them the Festival of Speed and British Grand Prix attract more than 300,000 fans and millions more followers via television and other media.”

“While these two high profile events will help us to put the spotlight on the UK’s world-leading achievements, it’s essential that we maximise the opportunity to engage with more people and encourage them to get involved. Whether it’s as a competitor at grass roots level, an active member of a local motor club, or a trackside volunteer – motor sport has so much to offer. There are lots of opportunities in so many different disciplines for those inspired and excited by these major events – and that’s what National Motorsport Week is all about.”

National Motorsport Week 2012 will build on the many accomplishments of this year’s initiative. The scheme generated a massive increase in activities and events ranging from open days at some of the county’s top teams to a plethora of novice taster days organised by motor clubs throughout the country.

The British Grand Prix at Silverstone will bring the week to a close

“National Motorsport Week is building the momentum deserved by both our world class UK motor sport industry and sport,” says Chris Aylett, MIA Chief Executive. “Right now, the UK needs good news from business and our industry beats the world in high performance engineering. We export more than 65 per cent of all we make, underlining our vital importance to this country’s revival and international standing. We sell nearly £10 billion of services and engineering each year, which underpins no fewer than 40,000 jobs. What’s more the high-performance engineering and motor sport sector inspires the next generation of world-class engineers, which is good news for the future of British industry. And, of course, UK motor sport success continues to promote the UK’s image for the best quality right around the globe.”

National Motorsport Week 2012 : 30th June - 8th July

Following the great success of this year’s National Motorsport Week, the Motor Sports Association (MSA) and Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) have confirmed that next year’s National Motorsport Week will run from Saturday 30 June to Sunday 8 July 2012.

This year’s initiative generated a massive increase in activities and events ranging from open days at M-Sport in Cumbria and fund raising cycle rides around Silverstone to a plethora of novice taster days organised by motor clubs throughout the country.

National Motorsport Week 2011 also achieved widespread exposure across TV, radio, print and online media. David Coulthard’s first experiences of grass roots motor sport aired to more than three million viewers as part of the BBC’s coverage of the European GP at the start of the week. Other national media carried dedicated National Motorsport Week stories including BBC Radio 5 Live, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mirror and The Sun, as well as specialist publications Autosport and Autocar.

Almost 10,000 enthusiasts entered a series of online competitions to win factory tours at the eight UK-based Formula One teams. These competitions were hosted on the MSA’s www.GoMotorsport.net website which enjoyed a ten fold increase in visitor numbers during National Motorsport Week.

It is hoped that National Motorsport Week 2012 will again coincide with the Goodwood Festival of Speed and take place during the immediate build up to the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, provisionally scheduled for Sunday 15 July.

“This year’s National Motorsport Week has exceeded everyone’s expectations,” says Colin Hilton, MSA Chief Executive. “We have celebrated the UK’s world-leading motor sport industry, we have drawn attention to less well-publicised parts of the sport and we have helped to attract new recruits to our clubs and events. We now need to build on this and we believe that the early announcement of next year’s dates will give everyone a better chance of getting involved.”

“I always believed that there was great potential in National Motorsport Week and I am delighted that, with the MSA’s support, we are now starting to build the momentum that both the sport and the industry deserve,” says Chris Aylett, MIA Chief Executive. “Motor sport is a great British success story; not only does it deliver £6 billion of sales each year and underpin 40,000 jobs, but the high-performance engineering sector can also inspire the next generation of world-class engineers and that has to be good news for the future of British industry.”

See Croft from the hot seat!

What a great idea for National Motorsport Week - Fast laps around an international racing circuit, and for only £2 a go! We'd certainly recommend heading for croft this weekend. Don't forget that there's loads going on during this year's National Motorsport Week - Check out www.nationalmotorsportweek.com for more info, and get out there and give something a go!

Croft Circuit is joining the likes of the Red Bull and McLaren Formula 1 teams in hosting a special event to celebrate the forthcoming National Motorsport Week (25 June to 3 July).

Public will be able to attend Croft between 10.00am-4.00pm on Friday 1 July and taken for an exhilarating high-speed passenger lap of the track by a qualified race instructor in a Caterham sportscar.

The minimum age for laps is 14 years and all Croft is asking in return is a £2 donation per ride towards its chosen 2011 charity, St Teresa’s Hospice in Darlington. Rides are strictly on a first-come, first-served basis.

Backed by the Motor Sports Association (MSA), the UK’s governing body of motor sport, and the Motorsport Industry Association (MIA), National Motorsport Week (25 June-3 July) exists both to highlight the UK’s on-going world-leading role in all areas of international motor sport as well as to showcase the wide range of opportunities open to enthusiasts at grass roots level throughout the country. A huge range of activities are taking place throughout the land with all UK-based F1 teams opening their doors for public tours. More details can be found at www.nationalmotorsportweek.com.

“It is hugely important that, as the region’s leading motor sport venue, we are involved in what is regarded as the country’s week of celebrating and raising awareness of what the sport gives back to people in terms of entertainment, inspiration for youngsters, job creation and even advancements in science. Motor sport is one of Britain’s most successful industries after all,” commented Tracey Morley, Croft Circuit Manager.

“What we are offering is a very exciting opportunity for both fans but also newcomers to the sport to experience just why so many professional racing drivers describe this as one of the most thrilling circuits to drive in the country. We’re putting this on absolutely free – all we ask in return is a small contribution to St Teresa’s to aid them in their fabulous work for the community.”

Meanwhile huge numbers of people filed through Croft’s main gate Last Sunday (19 June) for the region’s annual round of the UK’s premier motor racing series, the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. Honda driver Matt Neal won twice to consolidate his championship lead but rising star Mat Jackson took victory in the day’s third race in his Airwaves Ford Focus to keep up the pressure on Neal in the title battle. Among those keenly rooting for Jackson were the 20 members of the Croft Supporters Club – selected to meet him for an exclusive tour of his pit garage on the Friday evening. Earlier that day, some 30 pupils from the Highcliffe Primary School in Guisborough also attended Croft’s race paddock as VIP guests for a behind-the-scenes look at the BTCC, ‘Q&A’ sessions with some of the star drivers and even the chance to sit in a touring car.

Croft’s BTCC event received massive exposure nationwide with more than six hours of live television coverage on the ITV4 and ITV4 HD channels as well as ITV’s website. More highlights of the event are continuing to be shown this week across the ITV network, further adding to venue’s profile.

“We have been inundated with nothing but positive feedback from the public – both throughout the weekend and since,” added Morley. “In some areas our spectator banks were just a sea of colour as people showed their support for the different cars and drivers. The atmosphere was electric.

“It was also again wonderful to see so many families taking advantage of our ‘free for kids’ policy and bringing along their children to meet the drivers. We’d like to thank all public who attended and got behind the event as well as the volunteer stewards and trackside marshals who ensured both days ran like clockwork.

“The exposure on national television is of course great news for Croft and the area but we are also hugely grateful for the support shown by regional media – this is an area rich in motor sport heritage and it’s massively important and only right that we are able to compete with some of the bigger racing circuits further south and also able to shout about it. So many thanks to all the local TV, print, radio and internet journalists who also helped to make the event such a resounding success.”

A further eight top-class motor sport events are on the calendar at Croft this year. Two big dates for the diary are 6-7 August for ‘Nostalgia Weekend’ (a unique, two-day retro motor sport festival) and Saturday 3 December when the circuit hosts a competitive timed stage of the Roger Albert Clark Rally – one of the world’s best historic rallies featuring many of the cars that became a household name during the RAC rallies that toured the UK in the Sixties and Seventies.

For all event listings at Croft, ticket prices and booking details visit www.croftcircuit.co.uk or call the circuit office on 01325 721815.

Fans can further keep in touch with what’s happening at Croft Circuit online via Facebook (look up CroftCircuit), Twitter www.twitter.com/croftsupporters and even ‘own’ a little bit of the circuit by joining the Supporters Club. See www.croftsupportersclub.com or email enquiries@croftsupportersclub.com for more details.

Coulthard supports National Motorsport Week

BBC commentator and ex-F1 driver David Coulthard has visited two of Britain’s most famous venues to discover how accessible motor sport can be.

David Coulthard and Ian Wright

The Scotsman, 40, was filming a feature for the BBC's BAFTA-winning Formula One coverage, which will be aired during the European Grand Prix as a curtain raiser to National Motorsport Week.

National Motorsport Week is a joint initiative set up by the Motorsport Industry Association and Motor Sports Association to encourage newcomers into the sport, whether they are drivers, spectators, engineers or volunteers – a scheme which Coulthard fervently supports.

"Britain is the centre of the universe of motor sport. There is so much history and heritage here and success with British engineers and designers and racing drivers and we need to keep feeding that. Inevitably, the focus tends to be on F1 so it was great to see just how much more motor sport has to offer. What’s more just how accessible, affordable and fun it can be,” reported Coulthard.

Britain’s all-time top F1 points-scorer first visited a sold-out Club MSV Trackday staged on the historic Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in Kent and was impressed by what he found.

“Anyone who wants to give it a go can take their own car and find out if they have talent for driving or not. The open road is clearly not the place to do that, but properly organised events like these are. I would never have thought you could do this. I literally could have driven down to Brands Hatch in my Mercedes, paid as little as £25, put my crash helmet on and driven that car around one of the world’s most iconic race tracks. What a great way to start in motor sport.”

Coulthard then moved on to Shelsley Walsh, the oldest motor sport venue in continuous use in the world. With a history of staging hill climb events stretching back more than a century, Shelsley underlines the UK’s long-running position at the pinnacle of motor sport. After meeting double MSA British Hill climb champion Scott Moran and inspecting his British-built Gould GR61X single-seater that features a 3.5-litre Nicholson-McLaren V8 engine plus F1 style paddle-shift gearbox, the 13-time grand prix winner joined Moran for a blast up the hill in an entry level Lotus Elise.

Thereafter Coulthard experienced two very different forms of grass roots motor sport, once again with expert advice from reigning MSA champions. First he jumped aboard Ian Wright’s purpose-built lightweight Sherpa Indy for an insight into the world of sporting trials – a discipline, which involves competitors climbing, marked sections of steep hills. Rather than speed, trials are all about finding traction whatever the surface: grass, mud, loose gravel or deep rutted sand. It’s a real team effort, too, with passengers bouncing about the vehicle to create more grip.

David Coulthard enjoying some Sporting Car Trails

Finally, multiple MSA champion Alastair Moffatt in his Mini Special gave the Scot an autotesting master class. Handbrake turns, tightly controlled powerslides and amazing reverse flicks are the tricks of the trade as participants manoeuvre around a specially laid-out course as swiftly as possible.

“As well as celebrating Britain’s unrivalled achievements at the top end, National Motorsport Week is all about showing just how easy it can be for all-comers to have some really great fun. And as I found out all these disciplines create very accessible and affordable opportunities for people to get into motor sport.”

“I’ve discovered that there are people competing in these disciplines for as little as £25 an event, and for a full weekend away, you could do it for £150. Even the more specialist machinery I experienced isn’t going to burn a huge hole in your pocket. Because there are classes for everyday road cars in hill climbs, autotests and trials, there really is something out there for everyone.”

For more information on National Motorsport Week visit www.gomotorsport.net and/orwww.nationalmotorsportweek.com

Get on your bike and discover Silverstone

Speaking as someone who has cycled around the old Bridge GP circuit, I can honestly say it's one of the best ways to see the track - and appreciate how not flat it is! Plus you get fit whilst you're doing it. It's well worth going to MG Live too, it's a great event that provides a great starting point for National Motorsport Week.

We've tried to get as many events as possible on our Calendar, however it's not complete yet, so if you have something to add please get in touch with us via info@overdrive-uk.com

See Silverstone via Bicycle - It's how F1 drivers learn it!

Silverstone is the latest organisation to support National Motorsport Week, the nationwide initiative promoting all aspects of UK motor sport taking place from Saturday 25 June to Sunday 3 July 2011. To help celebrate this week of activity Silverstone and the MG Car Club are working together to open the full Grand Prix Circuit to all cyclists on Saturday 25 June from 19:00-20:00hrs, as part of the MGLive! weekend. As well as being able to cycle the Grand Prix Circuit and see the circuit’s world class new ‘Wing’ building close up, guests will be welcome at the MG party, which is also taking place at Silverstone that evening.

The Circuit will be open to all holders of a ticket to MGLive! and, after 18:00hrs on the day, will open its gates to all cyclists in order that they can access the venue free of charge for the evening. However, in return, a donation to support the Help the Heroes charity will be encouraged. The circuit will be open to cyclists from 19:00 until 20:00hrs and the MGLive! party will take place on the inside of the circuit, starting at 19:30hrs, and includes live music, family friendly entertainment and children’s funfair.

Richard Phillips, Managing Director of Silverstone Circuits Limited, commented: “We strongly support the National Motorsport Week initiative and wanted to get behind the campaign by offering motor sport fans the opportunity to get onto the circuit just 14 days before the 2011 FORMULA 1 SANTANDER BRITISH GRAND PRIX takes place. We are very grateful to the MG Car Club for working with us on this and hope many people take the chance to enjoy the event.”

MG Car Club General Manager Julian White said: “The MG Car Club is delighted to be working with Silverstone on such a worthwhile scheme as National Motorsport week continues to gather momentum.  This year, MGLive! falls on Armed Forces weekend and those cycling the Silverstone circuit can play their part by donating money to Help For Heroes.  After the cycle ride we’re inviting people to stay on site and be part of the MGLive! party which will cater for the whole family. MGLive! is the event where the whole family gets together to celebrate everything that’s great about MG cars and MG people. My message is simple - come and join in the fun!”

Backed by the Motor Sports Association (MSA), the UK’s governing body of motorsport, and the Motorsport Industry Association (MIA), National Motorsport Week exists both to highlight the UK’s on-going world-leading role in all areas of international motor sport as well as to showcase the wide range of opportunities open to enthusiasts at grass roots level throughout the country.

The full range of National Motorsport Week activities – including special Open Days, competitions to win F1 factory tours, circuit rides and novice taster events organised by motor clubs – are now listed under the events section on www.nationalmotorsportweek.com.

For more information on MG Live please visit www.mgcc.co.uk

For more information on National Motorsport Week visit www.gomotorsport.net and/orwww.nationalmotorsport.week.com