Myerscough proudly hosts Legend Fires North West Stages

Images: Flat Shift Media

Myerscough’s state-of-the-art Motorsport Centre proved to be the perfect choice for hosting the Central Service & Scrutineering areas for the rally, comprising of a number of special stages on closed public roads across the borough of Wyre.

The event saw 130 crews tackle the challenging roads surrounding Myerscough, including a stage around nearby, Beacon Fell.

Myerscough had a significant presence throughout the event, with students and staff acting as marshals and other event staff, as well as a number of cars competing in the event itself. Meanwhile, the campus itself was completely transformed with cars and pit crews working throughout the day.

The rally began with a ceremonial start in Garstang town centre, before a full day of competition for the field on Saturday, followed by a winner’s ceremony.

This year the Legend Fires North West Stages was the first round of the British Rally Championship, which brought many of Britain’s top flight rally drivers enter the event. Chris Ingram, 2019 European Rally Champion and previous event winner, took his VW Polo R5 to the overall win again this year, fending off a field full of potential winners.

Above: Chris Ingram

Myerscough students got the chance to support eight cars on the event, machinery ranging from car 35, Rob Hughes and Sion Cunniff’s M-Sport built Fiesta R5 to car 103, the mighty, student-built, Talbot Samba driven by FE lecturer Danny Cowell. The students all performed incredibly and professionally on the event and delivered a first-class service to the crews competing on the event.

Myerscough supported cars also picked up awards during the event. Robert Proudlock and Steven Brown, ran by our HE students, secured second place in the Junior British Rally Championship, on his British Championship debut, narrowly missing out on the top step. Danny Cowell, ran by our FE students secured second in Class H, bringing home another trophy for the collection.

Students were not only heavily involved on the technical side of the event, second year FdSc Motorsport students were heavily involved in the atmospheric ceremonial start and finish in Garstang, and delivering the awards ceremony back at our own, Stumble Inn. Third year BSC student, Mari Roberts also managed the Myerscough Motorsport social channels, delivering pictures, videos and interviews with drivers and teams throughout campus.

Chris Boyle, HE Lecturer in Motorsport, said: ‘’The Legend Fires North West Stages is an incredible experience for our students, developing skills that can be used in many careers in Motorsport.

‘’Students were an integral part to the successful running of the service area on campus, supporting with the management, marshalling and car parking duties. Without the support and dedication of our students, the event wouldn’t have seen the same success.’’

Myerscough Motorsport supported crews:

Car 35- Rob Hughes & Sion Cunniff (Fiesta R5)

Car 56- Lee Hastings & Cole Hastings (Subaru Impreza)

Car 60- Howard Price & Carl Williamson (Mitsubishi Evo 9)

Car 69- Steve Cotton & Mick Brichall (Subaru Impreza)

Car 79- Robert Proudlock & Steven Brown (Peugeot 208 Rally 4)

Car 103- Danny Cowell & Mark Standen (Talbot Samba)

Car 106- Rob Cotton & Ethan Kidd (Subaru Impreza)

Car 126- John Livermore & David Terry (Chrysler Avenger)

Myerscough College continues to offer students experiences of working at prestigious events on the motorsport calendar in addition to their course studies as part of their enrichment.

Occasions like this give the students crucial real life experience on events where they'll be working alongside potential employers. The students get to experience, first hand, a major event and such experience looks great on their CV when they apply for jobs within the industry.

Myerscough also boasts a strong rally heritage having a long-established motorsport department with stage rallying a core element of their activities and a number of lecturers having strong links to the sport. It has long established links with a number of Lancashire based Motor Clubs who have been instrumental in the organising of the event for many years.

By bringing the rally to Myerscough and engaging with staff and students, that in itself provides valuable educational benefits, providing first-hand experience of the running of a major motorsport event.

Read more and see more photos and videos of the event on our Myerscough Motorsport Facebook page

Browse the full range of Motorsport study programmes available at Myerscough College and University Centre