As previously mentioned I was spending the May bank holiday at the in National Kit Car Show in Stoneleigh (Warwickshire) manning the club stand and helping with our display at the show, helping with setting up and take down and camping on-site for 2 nights. Given the weather we have had recently – rain, hail, snow and freezing temperatures I was more than a little apprehensive about a 2 night camping trip, particularly as space for equipment and provisions was limited.
However Saturday morning saw a break in the weather and the sun appeared, giving me time to get the car out, give it a clean and pack for the trip.
I set off about midday to meet Nic (Shropshire and mid-Wales AO) en route in a layby on the A5. Whilst waiting the heavens opened and luckily I had packed my trusty umbrella!
We set off in glorious sunshine but that wasn’t to last. By the time we hit the M6 the heavens opened with rain then hail stones. Driving conditions in an open top car were terrible and the visibility reduced so much that at one pint I was crawling along at no more than 50mph. I was also getting soaked as although my clothes were keeping me dry the hail and rain was pooling in the seats. The weather cleared again at Coventry and I arrived on site with a wet bum, as the sun was out again I soon dried as did the car.
Saturday was set-up and once the stand was ready and my tent pitched we had a BBQ and a drink. It was a great opportunity to get to know some of the other club members who had also volunteered to help run the stand for the show. Sunday was the first public access day and saw an early start for the team to complete the final prep before the gates opened. As one of the largest clubs we are given a significant amount of space and can therefore have a large marquee and an ‘avenue’ of cars so one of the first jobs was to position the existing cars that were on site and then ensure any arriving club members parked up correctly.
We had a great turnout with around 150 cars from all across the UK and the rain stayed away. Sunday evening was the annual AGM for the club followed by another, larger BBQ and just a few drinks!
The Westfield factory team were also on-site with a great display, including the ‘Drift experience’ which was great fun and being adjacent to our site helped to draw the crowds in.
Westfield Drift Experience Video 1
Westfield Drift Experience Video 2
Monday was a quieter day with the poorer weather discouraging people a little. The rain returned around 1pm so we started some packing up a little early. By 3pm I was on my way home, through another hail storm and soaking. Having looked at a few other peoples wet weather setup I had decided to get a half hood for the car, but new from Westfield they are £250! By happy co-incidence a club member was selling a used one for £50 so i snapped that up. Just need to wait for it to arrive by post now.
Theres a few more of my show pictures here and a thread of other peoples on the WSCC site here
shropshirewestie 