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Nearly £5,000 raised for prostate cancer in Sussex and Hampshire

By Christopher Darwin

A track day at Goodwood Motor Circuit near Chichester on Wednesday 22^nd September raised £4925 for the treatment of prostate cancer in Sussex and Hampshire.

The track day itself was for mainly older cars, whose drivers were able to stretch their legs on the famous circuit, recently the venue for the internationally popular Revival Meeting. After paying for hire of the circuit and insurance, this activity raised over £2,000.

A further £1020 was raised from the drivers of parade lap cars; for £20 per vehicle drivers took their own cars for two laps at moderate speed. Besides modern saloons, cars on track included a VW Camper van and a Landrover from the 1960s as well as old MGs and newer sports cars.

A similar sum was raised from passengers who took faster rides in the track day cars in return for a paper-money donation.

Organiser Christopher Darwin said: ‘This was our best result – last year we raised £4325 for prostate cancer treatment. This year’s £4925 will help fund an ultrasound printer for a brachytherapy unit being set up by Chichester and Portsmouth hospitals.

Many thanks to your readers for making this success – and I apologise to the afternoon parade lap drivers. The response to publicity was more than I expected and there were too many cars on track, leading to stop-start driving. Next time I will split the parade into several smaller parades, which will make the experience more enjoyable.’

Over 600 high-quality digital photographs of the cars were taken by EDP of Bognor Regis; these can all be seen on the website www.edpphoto.com - ‘Photo Galleries’. Drivers of parade laps and passengers in the track day cars can buy photographs of the cars they travelled in as a memento of an enjoyable and unusual experience.

The next track day will be at Goodwood on Friday 10^th December and will raise funds for the Goodwood Marshals’ Club. This is not a subsidy for Lord March – the club is one of many throughout the country whose unpaid volunteers support motorsport whether rallies, sprints or races – the funds raised will help the acquisition of a new rescue vehicle. Contact 01403 783458 or c.darwin@virgin.net .

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