Rescheduled loose surface autocross takes place next Sunday
Mayo & District Motorsport Club return to action next Sunday (August 9) when the first loose surface autocross for 2020 takes place in the Valley.
The first LS event for 2020 was originally scheduled to take place on May 10 last but was postponed due to the Covid-19 lockdown. The club also postponed two subsequent events which were scheduled for June 7 and July 19.
Earlier this year the club ran a very successful event when, on March 8, the Mayo Stages Rally took place in Castlebar. This was one of the last motorsport events to take place in Ireland before the country went into lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, five months on, Mayo & District is one of the first motorsport clubs back in action since the country started to open up and sporting organisations attempt to get back on track.
The Mayo & District Motor Club autocross events are exceptionally popular and attract competitors from all over the country. Monaghan’s Derek Mackerel, who won the Frank Harrington Championship in 2018 and again in 2019, has been competing in Mayo for many years, with competitors travelling from Limerick and Kerry as well.
The event is also an opportunity for club members to test their driving skills as autocross is a perfect introduction to motorsport, where competitors get to test their driving and car handling skills in a controlled and safe environment.
Many club members have progressed on to competitive rallying after perfecting their skills in autocross. The winner of the Mayo & District Motorsport Club Young Driver Championship in 2018 and again in 2019 was Castlebar’s Patrick McEveney Jnr who, together with his father Pat and sister Shauna, are regular competitors in the Valley.
Current Covid-19 restrictions require every sporting organisation to put additional measures in place prior to running an event. Mayo & District Motorsport Club officials have been busy over the last few weeks putting these measures in place to ensure that this event is run in keeping with both government and Motorsport Ireland guidelines.
Entry forms are to be completed and submitted electronically and will all be in place in advance of the event; no entries will be accepted on the day of the event; and unfortunately, on this occasion, no spectators will be allowed.
Mayo & District Motorsport Club would like to thank Frank Harrington and Victor Tenor for their ongoing support and their cooperation in facilitating this event.
The revised 2020 autocross schedule includes an extra date this month, with the next event taking place on August 30, followed September 27 and the fourth and final event of the year on October 18.
*Pictured above, the winner of the Frank Harrington Championship in 2018 and 2019, Derek Mackarel. Photo: Alan McGuire