Home Community Events Motorfest comes to Ormskirk on Sunday 27 August

Motorfest comes to Ormskirk on Sunday 27 August

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People of all ages can enjoy a fantastic day out at one of the biggest free family events in the North West as the Ormskirk MotorFest comes to town on Sunday 27 August.

About 300 fabulous cars and motorcycles from all eras of motoring will line up on the town centre streets and in Coronation Park.

This year the fantastic motoring extravaganza offers visitors a rare chance to see one of the most significant cars in British motor racing history.

The Vanwall VW5/11 was driven to victory by Tony Brooks and Stirling Moss in the 1957 British/European Grand Prix at the Aintree Circuit Club. This was the first time British drivers had won the British Grand Prix in a British-made car. It was a big turning point in the growth of the British Motor Sport Industry.

The Formula 1 theme continues with a classic BRM car which was raced by Graham Hill at Aintree in its last Formula 1 race in 1964, also being brought to the MotorFest. Hill finished second in the race behind Jack Brabham, who was driving a Brabham-Climax.

There will be a huge range of other wonderful cars on display, including the Jaguar XK120 driven by leading female racing driver of the 1950s Betty Haig to many  notable victories, such as the Ladies’ Championships at Goodwood and Shelsley Walsh.

The Jaguar Project 7 car will also be at Motorfest. This is the modern day equivalent of the D-type Jaguar and  the name acknowledges Jaguar’s seven victories at Le Mans between 1951 and 1990; its striking blue paintwork is reminiscent of the victorious Jaguar D-types of 1956 and 1957. Although not intended for production, Project 7 is not merely a static concept, but a fully-functional, high-performance sports car.

An exciting extra attraction at the event will be the Makers’ Market at the bus station car park. A great selection of stalls will be set up selling art and crafts, retro, vintage and up-cycled wares and there will also be music, games and children’s activities including face painting. A Charlie Chaplin walkabout will delight and surprise with his cheeky antics and the Vintage DJs will have your feet tapping to the charming sounds of a bygone era.

Don’t forget to visit the Chapel Gallery and view the amazing Lancashire Open Exhibition with over 200 artworks.

There will be more music in Coronation Park provided by the Merchant Taylor’s Saxophone Group.

The MotorFest fun starts about 11am and runs through until about 5pm. MotorFest visitors can see many of the cars in action and hear the roar of the engines during parade laps around Ormskirk town centre between 2.30pm and 4.30pm.

Ormskirk MotorFest is a free event organised by Aintree Circuit Club, supported by West Lancashire Borough Council.

Councillor John Hodson, portfolio holder for Planning, said: “Don’t miss the magical MotorFest, which really has something for everyone. This will be a fantastic day for everyone who comes along, and we hope local businesses will take advantage of so many people being around to open their doors for the day.”

Mike Ashcroft, Aintree Circuit Club chairman, said: “We are really excited about all the marvellous cars and motorcycles coming to Ormskirk MotorFest. It will be a fantastic day out for people of all ages, so come along and enjoy the fun.”

Northern Rail is providing additional trains from Preston to Ormskirk especially for Ormskirk MotorFest so motoring fans can come to the extravaganza from the Preston area. More details can be found at www.journeycheck.com/northern.

A regular park and ride vintage bus service, priced at £5 per car, will operate from Edge Hill University for the MotorFest, starting at 10am. The service will take a break for the parade laps from 2.10pm and then resume for a short time at 4.30pm until MotorFest finishes.

For more information about Ormskirk MotorFest please visit www.westlancs.gov.uk/motorfest or www.ormskirkmotorfest.com.

Find out more about Ormskirk and the surrounding area by visiting the great new website www.discoverormskirk.com. You can also find Discover Ormskirk at www.facebook.com/DiscoverOrmskirk.

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