Three students from Mid Cheshire college headed to Oulton Park recently to get an insight into careers in Motorsport. Organised as part of National Motorsport Week, the day showcased some of the career opportunities available, while also showed that motorsport is not a male-dominated industry.
Students Carol Spencer, Samantha Royle and Louise Doyle spent the morning working on cars used for Oulton's driving experiences, supervised by the circuits Engineering Team Leader Sophy Owen. They were rewarded in the afternoon by being given a chance to experience the circuits YoungDrive! Introductory driving course.
Mark Wheatley of Mid Cheshire college said: “Our course primarily looks at motorcycle maintenance, however many of the students end up working with performance cars and motorsport as the techniques are so similar.”
Student Louise Doyle said “I had a fantastic day at Oulton Park on Friday and was given a fabulous insight into the world of motorsport. The staff were friendly and made the day very relaxed, whereby we were not afraid to ask more questions.
“My personal highlights were at the beginning of the day when we had a look at the single seater race car, the rally car and then the BMW M3, and then in the afternoon I had the experience of driving round a rally circuit. I had no idea how much I had already learnt when the staff were explaining the mechanics behind the vehicles and the checks that they do to make sure the cars are safe.”
Colleague Samantha Royle commented: “The whole day was absolutely fantastic. The team at Oulton Park made us feel very welcome and took time to go into great detail with the vehicles. It became clear how similar they are to the bikes we work on and I was surprised how much I understood and learnt. Although I am an aspiring motorcycle mechanic, a career change into car racing would definitely be an option and a great experience in the future.
“The highlight for the day I have to say was the YoungDrive experience, as I had never driven a car before and the instructor completely made the experience fun. Being introduced to this side of engineering has opened new doors for me and set me targets for the future I would not have even considered setting myself up until this experience.”
