Borough Life Spring 2006: Life In The Fast Lane
Chief mechanic Neil Boardman has the winning formula.
Have you got the winning formula?
Borough Life has teamed up with the Three Sisters Race Track to offer one reader the chance to join the driving elite by taking a top racing car for spin as part of the Formula 1 Experience.
The prize consists of a full day at the track with full tuition, practice laps, demonstrations and then the chance to get behind the wheel of the F1 Forti FG03.
It’s truly the driving experience of a lifetime and a prize worth £1,200!
All you have to do is answer the following question:
Q. Who is the current Formula 1 World Champion?
Send your answers by April 21st on a postcard to: Borough Life Three Sisters Competition, FREEPOST NWW3502A, Wigan, WN1 1XZ or hand it in at your local library.
You can also e-mail your answers to: boroughlife@wigan.gov.uk
The winner will be the first correct entry pulled out of the hat.
HOLD onto your hats because we’re about to take a spin in a supercar around a top-notch racing circuit. No, we’re not in Monaco. This is Wigan, and we’re at one of the borough’s hidden gems, the Three Sisters race track. It’s a place where there’s non-stop, heart pounding action week after week with some of the biggest names in the business reaching for racing glory. But it’s also a place where ordinary mortals get to play out their driving dreams, and a breeding ground for local heroes. Borough Life went for a test drive and found we were definitely living...
AS we hit the first bend, the wet weather and sharp turn join forces and we begin to lose traction. Then begins that short surreal sideways moment as the back end starts to drift. The laws of physics play on the car pulling it where they want it to go.
But this is no ordinary car.
This is a 380 brake horse power, V8 Ferrari F355. It’s got a top speed of 185 and would cost you a cool £110,000 to drive off the forecourt.
We slingshot out of Lunar Bend and into the Conrod Straight where the car hits 110. Behind the wheel is Neil Boardman. He’s the chief mechanic at Ashton-in-Makerfield’s Three Sisters and he can race a bit as well.
Earlier Neil, who hails from Leigh, described motor racing as a passion verging on obsession.
“Once you’ve been bitten by the bug you’ll find it very difficult to walk away,” he says.
The 29-year-old former Bedford High School pupil first came to Three Sisters as a teenager. He quickly became involved through a succession of odd jobs at the site.
At one time he was the man who waved the checkered flag at the end of races.
Today he’s responsible for Formula 1 engines worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, and when he’s not doing that he’s taking the next generation of racers round the track as a fully qualified instructor.
Having started his racing career on karts, last year Neil was crowned NorthWest Formula Ford Champion, in his first year of driving at that level.
“It was a great thrill to win,” he says, “although it was a close run thing and came down to the last second of the last race of the season.”
When it comes to grass roots motorsports, Three Sisters is hard to beat. The venue plays host to more than 40 meetings a year and boasts the longest and fastest karting track in the country.
The likes of David Coulthard and Jenson Button cut their teeth on the Three Sisters kart track, and recently former F1 champ Nigel Mansell paid a visit to watch his sons Leo and Greg follow in his footsteps and get their race licences.
Peter Barnes has been managing director at the Three Sisters for the past two years, and for him it’s a labour of love.
“The track is one of Wigan’s best kept secrets,” he says. “And we find that we are better known in other countries than we are on our own doorstep.
“We are one of only seven venues where you can drive a Formula 1 car so we regularly have visitors from Japan, America and South Africa coming to try us out.”
This top notch track is owned by Wigan Council and managed by Aintree Racing Drivers School.
In the not so distant past it was the site of a coal mine, and the Three Sisters of the title were in fact three giant spoil heaps – also known as the Wigan Alps - that used to dominate the landscape before being reclaimed by the old Greater Manchester Council.
“It began life as a small leisure area in the early 1970s,” says Peter. “ Wigan council managed it until the early 1990s and then the lease was put up for tender. The tender was won by the Aintree Racing Drivers School and we now operate the track on a long-term lease.”
Peter and the team have spent significantly on the track and plan to invest another £250,000 on improving the facilities even more.
“We have a good relationship with the council and have given a commitment to protect grass roots motorsport at the track,” says Peter. “We also have a great relationship with the community, although there are still some issues over noise at the site which we are working with the council to resolve.”
Three Sisters also has a good ‘track record’ when it comes to worthy causes. Charity events at the site have helped to raise many thousands of pounds for Wigan & Leigh Hospice.
And as well as the competitive side of things the Three Sisters offers a great day out for thrill seekers across the country.
“We put together special packages giving people the chance to drive around the track in cars most of us could only ever dream about,” says Peter.
Hence the Ferrari lesson and there’s also a Porsche 911 Turbo with a top speed clipping 200.
“The ultimate is the Formula 1 car,” Peter says. “It is the elite and few people can say they’ve actually driven one, which makes it so attractive. We get a lot of businesses from all over the country coming down to the track, and we also have families and individuals who want to do something a little different for a birthday or special occasion.”
Peter adds: “We bring a lot of fun and enjoyment to many people and we’re helping to encourage more young people to get involved in a great sport.”
For more information about the Three Sisters Race Track visit you can visit the website – www.racing-school.co.uk E-mail: info@racing-school.co.uk or call 01942 270230.