Taking motorsport back to its roots

'Repackaged' was the word of the day at Motorsport UK when it launched StreetCar, its latest initiative.

Motorsport UK is not, it readily acknowledged, reinventing the wheel with StreetCar but putting a new spin on grassroots motorsport.

Outside the glass-fronted building in the Command Works at Bicester Heritage waits a MINI Cooper, the vinyl wrap apparently hiding a fairly ropey car – "It has a new exhaust," appears to be Hugh's highest compliment.

Clearly appearances can be deceiving because it looks an appealing way to get a budget competition fix. You could take it on an autosolo, a treasure hunt-type rally or trialling. Perhaps all three on the same day. All without needing to fork out for an ARDS licence test, any safety gear, or anything at all, in fact, except your entry.

The licence required for StreetCar-affiliated contests, for motorsport in your everyday road car to quote the slogan, is completely free. And, as Motorsport UK is at pains to reinforce, it always has been. When the RS Clubmans licence was introduced it formalised MSUK’s links to what was an unknown quantity of people actively engaged with motorsport, but doing so without any connection to the body that oversees the whole thing. It was a pool MSUK was almost inadvertently alerted to – it knew it was there, but it didn’t really know how big it was until tens of thousands signed up.

StreetCar is a means of helping that group, expanding it and about putting the emphasis on grassroots motorsport, committing support and changing the perception of the likes of autotests and trials. Repackaging it all, to continue to bring in fresh blood. “We want to fill the funnel,” says Hugh, “get kids and teenagers involved.”

“We need to make sure the clubs are able to cope with an influx of new members,” cautions Claire Kirkpatrick, Motorsport UK’s head of club & community development. “What we don’t want is newcomers to come, not get the support and not enjoy it. We want to support them and make sure they have a positive experience and fall in love with motorsport.”

Importantly, Motorsport UK is acutely aware that this is not a way to find its next superstar. This is about competing for fun. “Life and sport doesn’t have to be a staircase,” Hugh offers. “There are hundreds and thousands of people out there happy to play badminton at club level. The pyramid is always going to have a wide base and we should embrace that.”

Acknowledging that ensures that costs are kept low – if there are no upper echelons, there’s no need to go mad with budgets. You can use your road car on your road tyres and not bolt in rollcage and not feel obliged book in any costly (money and time) testing.

“If you turned up a Ferrari 458 you wouldn't do very well,” points out Hugh. "What you want is a Suzuki Swift or old Mini."

What happens next is really to ensure the momentum continues. A new website has been launched outlining the various categories that are packaged into StreetCar and a select group of clubs have backed it. Motorsport UK acts as the finder, passing all who register through the website to the most relevant local club. And then the club does what it has been doing for more than a century, in some instances.

By the time the newcomer pulls away on some airfield or up some muddy bank, Motorsport UK's job has long been done. It has bolstered the ranks.

“If we do nothing, motorsport is going to shrink," admits Hugh. "The pressures on motorsport are not terribly favourable: we haven’t got a following wind, we’ve got a headwind. We need to do proactive things to bring new people into the sport and we need to make it easy and cheap.”

Find out more at streetcarmotorsportuk.com