Woodvale Rally organisers bid to bring 2013 event back to RAF base

By Natasha Young, The Southport Champion

ORGANISERS of the Woodvale Rally are hopeful that it can return to its RAF airfield home next year, amid fears that having to find a new location could spell the end for the event.

Earlier this year the annual two-day festival of aircraft and motoring displays and demonstrations, as well as camping and family attractions, was forced to make a last minute move to Southport’s Victoria Park after asbestos was discovered at the RAF Woodvale site.

The 2011 Woodvale Rally at its traditional home at RAF Woodvale

As the dates for the August event were moved back to July, and the new venue meant that some of the attractions such as flying displays could no longer take place or had to be scaled back, the team behind the rally remained determined to put on a good show.

However, the event brought a financial blow for organisers as it only took around a third of its usual takings on the gate, and the loss of some popular attractions is thought to have put some regular visitors off.
Rally manager Peter Wood has now confirmed to the Champion that they are waiting for a report to by the Ministry of Defence to arrive any day, which will determine whether or not asbestos-hit RAF Woodvale is now safe to be used for such an event.

If the report, which is being put together after Southport MP John Pugh raised the issue in parliament, confirms the airfield is safe, Mr Wood said they will aim to take the rally back to the site.

"The thing is the who event is built around RAF Woodvale, and we need a runway," said Mr Wood.

"We hope we can go back because if we can’t get back it could be the end of the Woodvale Rally."

The 2012 Woodvale Rally at Victoria Park in Southport 

Since this summer’s Victoria Park event, Mr Wood said other locations such as Leisure Lakes and the Riverside Caravan Park have been considered for 2013, when the rally will be in its 42nd year, however organisers are keen to maintain the character and all the popular features of the event.

He added: "The only other site we could use is Leisure Lakes , but it’s not the same and it wouldn’t be the Woodvale Rally.

"Victoria Park was a nice site but the problem was we couldn’t have the model aircraft so people didn’t go."

As the organisers continue to secure the future of the Woodvale Rally, they are still getting preparations underway for a 2013 show by booking stalls and attractions.

"We’ve got to keep the ball rolling in the hope we can get Woodvale," said Mr Wood.

"People have been coming to the event from all over for 40 years. They love it."

Southport motoring quiz raises £126 for the National Autistic Society

From The Southport Champion, November 21, 2012

A full-throttle fundraiser organised by one of The Champion's reporters managed to rev up more than £100 for charity last weekend.

The Petrolhead Pub Quiz, organised by our motoring correspondent David Simister, managed to raise a total of £126 for he National Autistic Society when dozens of car and bike enthusiasts took part in a motoring-themed quiz at the Cheshire Lines Inn, in Southport, last Sunday night (November 18).

David told The Champion: “It really was a great night, and not only did we a raise a lot of money for a very good cause but a lot of people came up to me afterwards and told how much they'd enjoyed the event.

"With several members of my family living with autistic spectrum disorders, it's long been a cause that's close to my heart and so it only seemed natural to use my passion for all things automotive to help raise funds for the National Autistic Society."

Several teams took part in the quiz and answered questions on everything from motoring-related music to driving and motorsport, with a team from the Alfa Owners North West taking the top prize on the night.

Rebecca Bohling, Head of Supporter Fundraising at the National Autistic Society, said: "We're so grateful to all the people who came together to make the pub quiz such a success. Autism is a serious, lifelong and disabling condition that affects around one in one hundred people in the UK.

"Thanks to the fantastic support of fundraisers like David, the NAS is able to provide vital support and services to people with autism, their families and carers."

If you'd like to find out more about the quiz, and for an in-depth look at motoring news and events from across the region, check out David's blog at www.lifeoncars.blogspot.com

UPDATE: An earlier version of this article credited the winning team as "Alfa Romeo Owners Club" rather than Alfa Owners North West. This has since been amended.

The Footman James Classic Motor Show was enormous but enjoyable

CLASSIC cars in industrial quantities. That's what you would have got if you'd joined me and thousands of others at the NEC last weekend.

Anyone familiar with the Footman James Classic Motor Show will know it's a big deal - it is, arguably, the only show that caters for fans of all things a bit old and oily on a national scale - but this year the organisers, freed from the constraints of having to share a gig with Top Gear Live, really pulled out the stops to make it bigger and bolder than ever before. It was massive.

Simply getting in is quite unlike any other show I've been to. You park up and get on a bus, which takes you to an elevator, followed by a Heathrow Airport-style moving walkway that seems to go on forever, which leads on to a labyrinth of corridors which in turn brings you to the back of the queue for tickets. This, I think, is deliberate; it's to prepare you for the sheer amount of walking the show itself involves.

Last weekend was a giddying array of just about every vaguely old vehicle ever made - yes, there were Hillman Imps and Ford Anglias at one end and Astons and Ferraris at the other, but if you're the sort of person who lies awake at night dreaming of owning a Vauxhall Nova then you were well catered for too. But our party must have walked miles checking out the seemingly endless sea of classic cars. If anything, it was slightly overwhelming. I stopped taking photos after the 175th click out of sympathy for my camera, but one classic car buff I spoke to had taken hundreds of shots.

I emerged seven hours later with cream-crackered feet and weighed down with bags of freebies, and with the prospect of the long drive back from Birmingham to look forward to. If I'd known just how big it was going to be I would've made a weekend of it - one day for the cars, another for the autojumble - because just the one day is nowhere near enough to take it all in.

It's great to think that even in an age when Britain's turned its back on national motorshows, with the motor makers favouring Frankfurt and Geneva instead, we can still put on an automotive extravaganza on this sort of scale. I'll just make sure I bring comfier shoes next time.

Life On Cars raises £126 for the National Autistic Society

ANYONE who attended the motoring-themed pub quiz held in Southport this evening will appreciate why I've put a picture of Nigel Mansell with this article.

Despite the best efforts of a technical problem with a microphone and a slightly pissed Nigel Mansell fan, dozens of people took part in the event, with the total raised on the night for the National Autistic Society coming to a whopping £126.

It's only second motoring event Life On Cars has organised directly, after the not-entirely-successful Mini display and Italian Job cinema screening two years ago, but thanks to a great turnout at the Cheshire Lines Inn in Southport and some very generous contributions from the region's petrolheads, the night was a great success.

Congratulations to the winners, the Alfa Romeo Owners team, and the runners-up, Six Dons and A Ginger.

Best of all, not only was a lot of money raised for a very good cause, but quite a few people came up to me afterwards and said, despite the minor setbacks, that they really enjoyed it and had a great night out.

Should I do another one in the future, perhaps?

Footman James Classic Motor Show 2012

THOUSANDS of motoring fans will be making the trip to Birmingham this weekend to check out one of the nation's biggest classic car shows.

The  Footman James Classic Motor Show, held at the National Exhibition Centre, attracts scores of traders, clubs and enthusiasts from all corners of the country to see classic cars and bikes of all ages, in a show guaranteed to have something for just about everyone.
  
Life On Cars took these pictures at the event:

 

The show continues tomorrow (November 18). For more information visit the show's website.

Ormskirk MotorFest 2013 event confirmed for August 25

PLANS to bring hundreds of cars and bikes to West Lancashire for a motorsport spectacular have got into gear after a 2013 Ormskirk MotorFest was confirmed this week.

Aintree Circuit Club and West Lancashire Borough Council have both confirmed that following the success of the motoring event in bringing thousands of people into the market town a 2013 event will take place in the town centre and at Coronation Park on Sunday, August 25.

Mike Ashcroft, chairman of Aintree Circuit Club, told Life On Cars: "We're delighted that we've been able to get the council to ratify next year's event and to agree the date, which means we've got a head start on making the 2013 MotorFest a big success.

"The extra months of preparation we've got will help to make it an even better event than the first two MotorFests, because we can improve on what we offer visitors and we can attract an even higher quality of entries, and get some great racing cars and bikes onto the streets of Ormskirk."

The 2011 and 2012 MotorFest events helped to give Ormskirk its two best ever trading days, with this year's event bringing 15,000 people into the town centre to see more than 300 classic cars and bikes and to witness the spectacle of F1 cars taking to the town's one-way system as part of a series of parades around the town.

West Lancashire Borough Council also confirmed to Life On Cars that a date had been given the green light, and that it was keen to make the 2013 event a success.

A spokesperson for the local authority said: "The council is delighted to confirm that we will be working with Aintree Circuit Club on MotorFest 2013. The event will be held on Sunday, 25 August.

"The first two Motorfests were hugely successful and more than 15,000 people visited Ormskirk. We are confident the 2013 event will also be a fantastic event. We are talking to the Circuit Club about exciting plans for MotorFest 2013 but at this stage it is too early to talk about the details."

The council also said it is seeking sponsorship to help make the 2013 MotorFest a success. Any organisations, companies or individuals who are interested in sponsoring the Motorfest should contact the Council’s Technical Services Manager Colin Brady on 01695 585125.

Life On Cars gets a new logo

THE Mini is out and the open-top sports car is in.

Eagle-eyed readers might have spotted a few changes on Life On Cars this week; that's because, for the first time in more than three years, the logos for both the online blog and the column printed in The Champion newspaper have been changed. Where for the past three years the car pictured in the logo has always been my old Mini, now it's a Morgan Threewheeler, and what you see above is what will accompany the Champ column from next Wednesday onwards.

It's been a good week for The Champion, which last night was named as the North West's best free newspaper at the prestigious O2 Media Awards. Given that Life On Cars is a small part of that - and one which I know has got quite a following locally - I'd like to thank all the motoring enthusiasts who regularly turn to our titles for supporting us!

Finally, a quick reminder that a motoring event not to be missed - the Life On Cars Petrolhead Pub Quiz - is taking place in Southport next Sunday night (November 18). Whether you're winding down after next weekend's National Classic Car Show at the NEC, keen to show off your motoring knowledge or just happy to help raise some funds for the National Autistic Society, it should be a fun night and well worth the £2 it costs to take part.

See you there...

How not to give a talk about motoring

THE projector was definitely taking the day off.

In a crowded hotel suite last night I was a picture of nervousness, because the technology rigged up to help me was doing exactly the opposite. It was the monthly meeting of the Sefton Institute of Advanced Motorists and I, as that bloke who does that column for The Champion, was the speaker. Or at least I was supposed to be, anyway.

Because public speaking definitely isn’t my sort of thing what I’d done is prepared a short film detailing my three-and-a-bit years of writing about cars for two different newspaper groups, aptly titled Confessions of a Motoring Journalist. The idea was to raise a few quid to help the Petrolhead Pub Quiz I’m holding next month, show the 35-minute film, and use the crowd as guinea pigs for one of the rounds of the quiz.

But, as is so often the case, it didn’t quite work out like that. The quiz element was going really well, but for whatever reason, the projector just wasn’t playing ball and taking a feed from the laptop we’d brought along.

The technical whiz helping me suggested I swap for his and once we did that, I thought we’d cracked it. It picked up the feed straight away, the film was ready to roll, so I gave the introduction to my speech. Lightning surely, couldn’t strike twice, but it did.

“Windows Media Player Has Encountered a Problem and Needs to Close”. The error message made my heart sink, and it wasn’t a one-off. Every time I tried, the film which had played perfectly on countless different computers was a no-go. All the while, a crowd of Sefton Advanced Motorists were waiting anxiously to see the presentation they’d heard so much about.

So I blagged it. I binned the laptop, the film, and gave a rather different talk. A talk with no notes, no autocue, nothing. It was just me, a crowd of people, and my best efforts to waffle through a subject I know rather well; motoring journalism.

Amazingly, I lasted the full hour and even got a round of applause at the end. How, to be honest, I’ll never know!

It did at least teach me a valuable lesson I’d forgotten since I’d sold my last Mini. Never rely on technology…

Confessions of a Motoring Journalist, the original presentation, will be available to view on Life On Cars later this week

Life On Cars presents The Petrolhead Pub Quiz

A FULL-THROTTLE competition to help raise funds for the National Autistic Society is being put on for petrolheads of all ages next month.

David Simister, Champion motoring correspondent, is holding a pub quiz with a twist - all the questions are motoring-related - to help raise funds for the National Autistic Society. If you reckon you know your Maseratis from your Mitsubishis, or you've got an encyclopedic knowledge of historic motorsport victories, or just know a thing or two about driving, then you could be in with the chance to win some great petrolhead prizes by showing off your automotive knowledge.

The quiz takes place on Sunday, November 18, at the Cheshire Lines Inn, on King Street in Southport, and starts at 7.30pm, and costs £2 per person to enter.

If you'd like to find out more about the event, or if you can donate any prizes to help make the quiz a success, send an email to david.simister@champnews.com or call 01704 392404.

Goodwood Revival breaks attendance records with 2012 show

MORE than 140,000 motorsport fans have helped make an automotive extravaganza with a retro twist into a record-breaking event.

The organisers of the Goodwood Revival, a celebration of motorsport of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s at the West Sussex circuit, said that this year's attendance figures made it their most successful show to date, with 146,000 petrolheads and retro fashion fans alike attending between September 14 and September 16.

I wasn't one of them but Life On Cars reader Judy Dix was, and has very kindly agreed to share a few pictures from the event:

If this trip down motoring's Memory Lane is your sort of thing, then you'll be probably be interested in a one hour documentary on the event being shown later this week. The programme will be shown on ITV4 this Thursday (September 27) at 8pm, then the following night at 7pm, and then on ITV1 at 12.05am on Wednesday, October 3.

All pictures courtesy of Judy Dix

Honda GoldWing riders take to the streets of Southport

ALTHOUGH I'm still grinning from ear to ear about my adventures in North Wales, my trip meant missing a great event in Southport last weekend when a parade of brightly-lit motorbikes took to the resort's streets to help raise hundreds of pounds for charity.

Members of GoldWings North West brought their brightly-decorated Honda GoldWing motorbikes into the resort for the Light Parade event last Saturday, which not only gave residents a chance to see the strobe lighting and the unusual colours of the machines but also helped to raise money for Queenscourt Hospice.

Club member Peter Rodgers told Life On Cars: “The event was a huge success, and it was great to see the public turn out in their droves to see all the GoldWings taking part in the parade and in the static displays.

"The weather was absolutely perfect for us, Queenscourt Hospice were delighted with the response the event had, and we were really pleased to see that everywhere we stopped we were swamped by members of the public keen to see more of these unusual bikes. It really was a brilliant occasion."

Members of the public were treated not only to a static display, in which riders showed off the bikes on Chapel Street last Saturday (September 22) but also to a night-time display when the bikes were decorated with strobe lighting and the riders donned fancy dress costumes for the event.

Although collections from the event are still being counted, the club said that it has raised over £500 to help Queenscourt Hospice. GoldWings North West is now discussing whether a similar event can be held in the resort next year.

For more information about GoldWings North West and their Light Parade events, visit the club's website at www.goldwingsnorthwest.co.uk.

Chris Evans has a hit with CarFest North

CHRIS Evans pulled up alongside us in a golf cart, prompting a moment of comedy genius. 

Someone in the crowd turned to the Radio 2 DJ, gave him a cheeky glance and shouted “It’s nice to see you’ve brought your car to show, mate”. It was hilarious but I think Chris saw the funny side.

Say what you want about Chris Evans but even if you didn’t like his stint on The Big Breakfast you can’t deny he’s a proper petrolhead, through and through; a car connoisseur rather than someone who just throws their millions at any old Ferrari or Lambo. That’s what made CarFest North far better than I could’ve expected it to be, because Chris wasn’t hiding backstage. He was out there gawping at supercars, just like everyone else.

I turned up at Cholmondeley last Saturday with the same exasperated question as everyone else – sounds great, but it costs HOW much? Even bearing in mind it was a fundraiser for BBC Children In Need, with a third of the price going straight to charity, at £60 for a day ticket it’s nearly as twice as much as Cholmondeley’s other show, the Pageant of Power, which until now has been the priciest automotive outing I’ve enjoyed. On the basis you can actually buy a secondhand supermini for the cost of some of the VIP weekend glamping packages, I was ready to declare it a bit of a rip-off in these pages.

But here’s the rub – I can’t, because even with the price in mind it was a truly enjoyable car show quite unlike any other. There was all the stuff you’d expect to see at a high end car show – supercar sprints, Group B rally cars, classics being auctioned off and so on – but at the point when I’d normally trapse out of the gate, overloaded with freebies for the long drive home, the car show ended and the music,  Chris’ other passion, began.

Life On Cars took these pictures at the event, which continues today (September 9, 2012):

Admittedly, I stayed right to the raggedy end because Texas, one of my favourite bands, were headlining, but it’s amazing to think that I met Chris Evans, sang Say What You Want with 20,000 other people and saw hundreds of shiny supercars, all at the same show. If this the future of charity fundraising, count me in.

I’m already planning on making a weekend of next year’s event, when Chris inevitably confirms it. Time, I think, to dig the tent out...

 

Councillors say they won't put the brakes on Ormskirk MotorFest in 2013

ANOTHER Ormskirk MotorFest is set to be revved up for next summer, even if Labour snatch control of the borough council at the next local elections.

Both the Tory-controlled local authority and the opposition Labour group have said they are keen for the motorsport-themed event to continue next year, even though both sides say they are keen to increase the amount of private sponsorship in order to reduce the burden on West Lancashire taxpayers to fund the show.

A spokesperson for West Lancashire Borough Council said: “The 2012 Ormskirk MotorFest was a huge success, attracting 15,000 visitors to see magnificent displays of motor vehicles. West Lancashire Borough Council was very pleased to see this success built on the achievements of the inaugural MotorFest in 2011.

"In principle, the Council would like to see the Ormskirk MotorFest take place in 2013. However, if some sponsorship could be secured than this would enable the Council to help ensure it can go ahead in the future. We will be looking into potential funding arrangements and also having discussions with Aintree Circuit Club, who organise the MotorFest, about how best we can work together to run the event in the future. We would certainly welcome any parties interested in sponsoring all or part of the event to contact us at this early stage."

Life On Cars asked the council's Labour group - who were 29 votes away from winning control of West Lancashire at the local elections in May - whether they would support a 2013 Ormskirk MotorFest, given their decision to call in funding for this year's event and suggestions from Ormskirk Conservative councillor Adrian Owens that had Labour been in control the event would not have taken place.

Cllr Owens said: "Firstly, at the beginning of the year they tried to strangle the MotorFest at birth by arguing that much of the council money underwriting the event should be withdrawn.

"There would have been no MotorFest if we had followed Labour’s line."

The Labour group responded by saying that it is keen to see the event being held in 2013, but said it was keen to see the private sector offer up more sponsorship and reiterated support for a ‘West Lancashire Show', which could be instigated using funds previously earmarked for the MotorFest.

Councillor John Fillis, leader of the council's Labour group, said: “Labour has always supported Ormskirk's MotorFest and will continue to do so, but we see a bigger role being played by the private sector in the form of sponsorship. At present the Tories are increasing the funding by 75% annually for the one day event, if this continues as the event grows then by 2014 they will be spending over £50,000, while cutting back on vital service for local people by 30%.

"Many local retail businesses that I have spoken to are willing to support the show due to the amount of custom the festival drew. This we believe could be reflected on a bigger scale if only the council were to be more ambitious and take the initiative."

Would you like to see a 2013 Ormskirk MotorFest take place? Share your thoughts by sending an email to david.simister@hotmail.co.uk or leave a comment below...

CarFest North - a motoring show organised by Chris Evans - set for Cholmondeley this weekend

AN EVENT organised by a Radio Two DJ which blends his two passions - music and motoring - is being held in Cheshire this weekend.

CarFest North, one of two shows organised by DJ and Ferrari fanatic Chris Evans, will be held at Cholmondeley Castle, a venue already well known to north west petrolheads due to its annual Pageant of Power motorsport event.

The DJ and petrolhead said: "CarFest is my dream of the perfect family festival starring three of my greatest passions – cars, live music and scrumptious food.

"CarFest South which took place a week and a bit ago was just utterly awesome and, from the moment it opened, took on a whole brand new personality of its own. And the best news is, we now get to do it all over again at Cholmondeley Castle."

The event, which is being held to help raise funds for BBC Children In Need, will not only feature exotic cars and motorsport machines, but performances from bands too, with Texas headlining on Saturday, September 8 and Razorlight playing the main performance the following day.

The show follows a similar event held last month, CarFest South, which drew in thousands of spectators when it was held at Laverstoke Park Farm in Hampshire. Although the main tickets have already sold out for CarFest North, a limited number are still available via the event's website at www.carfest.org.

For full coverage of the show check out Life On Cars this weekend.

Oulton Park Gold Cup 2012

YOU simply can't say no to the sight of a rally-prepared MK2 Escort going sideways.

Yes, I know that the Oulton Park Gold Cup was held last weekend - an eternity ago in news terms. I also know that, despite numerous invitations to go, I couldn't make it because newspapers don't really do Bank Holidays, so while everyone else was getting soaked at a race circuit in Cheshire I was in Southport, typing away at my desk.

Petrolhead and friend of Life On Cars Katie Massam did make it to the event, though, and sent these pictures over for anyone into a Scandinavian flick:

Have you got a story you'd like to share with Life On Cars send an email to david.simister@hotmail.co.uk or simply leave a comment below...