WOMEN IN MOTOR SPORT
MEET THESE RACING PERSONALITIES!
12:30pm!
Don't miss it!
Where: Near the main pedestrian entrance / opposite Eco Centre and Park & Ride
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1903 Racing driver Dorothy Levitt lookalike /
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2021 International W-Series racing driver Sarah Moore /
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1903 Gladiator car /
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plus Italian 1930s driver Tazio Nuvolari lookalike!
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Promoting the ethos of women in motor sport, two contrasting eras will come together at Southport Classic and Speed…this is your chance to meet them!
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1. Southport-born teacher Hannah Gomersall will be dressed in full Edwardian style costume as worn by the pioneering racing motorist 21-year old Dorothy Levitt when she won her class in the Southport Speed Trials on the promenade in 1903. She became known as “The Fastest Girl on Earth”...but it all started in Southport!
2. Alongside Hannah, wearing her modern day race suit and hi-tech helmet, will be current pioneering racer Sarah Moore, a leading competitor in the women-only W-Series championship which takes the form of a support race at many of the Grand Prix events across the world.
3. With Hannah and Sarah, a rare example of the Gladiator car similar to that driven by Miss Levitt in 1903 will be on display for the first time since those Speed Trials in Southport 118 years ago.
4. Illustrating the broad spread of motor sporting history at the event, another star guest will be 1930s Tazio Nuvolari lookalike Graeme Hardy. Nuvolari was the top legendary driver of the pre-war era, his notable success in the UK being his drive to victory in the dramatic 1938 Donington Grand Prix.
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For more information contact:
John Bailie / Event PR and Creative
M: 07860 255485
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Andrew Brown
Founder, Stand Up For Southport
M: 07919 112582
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The Classic and Speed event has attracted an amazing array of 250 cars from three centuries of motoring - veteran, vintage, historic, racing and modern classics - to the 34-acre Victoria Park, in celebration of Southport’s motor sporting heritage. A free day out for all the family, there will also be food and drink stalls, a Routemaster catering bus and shopping village.
The parade at 5:30pm will thread its way along Lord Street and the promenade, the scene of the 1903 Speed Trials. Opposite the Bliss Hotel, the Mayor of Sefton, Cllr Clare Carragher, will perform the ceremonial flag drop. A commentary unit will also be in place.
The Speed Trials on the promenade in which Dorothy Levitt competed attracted over 50,000 spectators, many of them accommodated in grandstands erected along the one kilometre course in front of the many hotels and boarding houses. It was a truly landmark event and one of the very first competitive speed events in the country, predating such well known venues as Brooklands, Donington Park and Goodwood.
Southport Classic and Speed is organised by #Aintree Circuit Club, presented by #Cataclean and supported by #Porsche Centre Preston, #Sefton Council, #Southport BID and #Victoria Park Events.
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The event complies with full Motorsport UK Covid protocols to ensure optimum safety for all those attending.