Motorsport students at Wiltshire College & University Centre’s campuses at Castle Combe Circuit and Chippenham, will be centre stage at one of the region’s most prestigious motorsport events.
They will be showcasing the routes into a career in motorsport for thousands of visitors to the Masters of Motoring event at Castle Combe on 7 June. The show is a celebration of motorsport and the men and women who live and breathe it, featuring track and static displays, entertainment and refreshments, starring classic cars, competition cars and supercars.
Among the marques on show will be Ferrari, Lotus and Aston Martin – with one 1962 DB4GT Zagato valued at £14 million – as well as drivers and owners.
On 8 June the show continues at Bowood House with an automotive day and afternoon tea.
Organiser Steve Bishop said he wanted the college at the show because the future of motorsport is one of its themes. He wants people interested in the sport to realise there are many ways to become a part of it and a team for the college will be on hand to talk to visitors about the opportunities at Castle Combe and Chippenham.
“We’ve got such a diverse range of cars at the show that represent both motoring history and the future and for me what’s important is that we encourage the next generation of experts, not just the drivers, but team managers, mechanics, aerodynamicists, strategists, fuel innovators and all the people who keep the sport running,” he said.
“The college has an excellent range of courses and I hope having it here will help encourage the next generation of people into the industry that I love.
“If we can give it a platform so that anyone who is interested in the sport but thinks it is unreachable can have a conversation and realise how big and diverse an industry it is and what the opportunities are, that’ll be fantastic.”
The college has 120 students on its level one to three motorsport engineering courses at Chippenham, as well as motorsport engineering and motorsport technology degree courses at its pioneering trackside workshops at Castle Combe Circuit.
Centre Manager, David Campion, said being part of such a high profile event will be good for the college. “To protect the future of motorsport obviously we need to develop the students and bring them through, and we need to try and attract as many students as we possibly can. So being part of this will help us show there are different forms of entry into motorsport.
“It’s not just racing, there’s the engineering behind it and we’ve got to develop more engineers in the UK to try and push that development further and further.”
Degree student, Charlie Longstaff, who is studying motorsport engineering at Castle Combe, said the course is ideal preparation for a career in the sport. “I love the motorsport and I want to carry on and get a career in it so this is the best place for it,” said the 20-year-old from Southampton.
“I really enjoy the workshop side of it the most because you are working on actual race cars and learning how to set them up, which is awesome. The fact that you make a lot of the parts is really enjoyable and if you make a part for the car that goes out to race you can say ‘I’ve helped build that car’. You feel the responsibility of that but also the rush of it, it’s really cool.”
Young car enthusiasts finding a career in motorsport is something organiser Steve wants to the weekend to achieve. “One of the standout opportunities at this year’s show is meeting the team from Wiltshire College & University Centre, who will be showcasing how their Motorsport Engineering programmes can launch careers right from the heart of the action,” he said.
Tickets for the two days are available at www.mastersofmotoring.com. Find out more about motorsport engineering courses at WCUC at www.wiltshire.ac.uk.
