A new ground-breaking Festival in Yorkshire was meant to make its debut in 2020, but was forced to cancel due to lockdown.
Now, The Yorkshire Motorsport Festival (YMSF) has been given the green light to go ahead by Motorsport UK and, Kirklees Council, subject to compliance with national COVID restrictions. The Festival was recently awarded the ‘We’re Good To Go’ COVID-19 industry standard and consumer mark, given by Visit Britain, providing a ‘ring of confidence’ for the Festival, as well as reassurance to local residents and visitors that clear processes are in place.
The Yorkshire Motorsport Festival is the first of its kind to be held in the region, and will attract motoring enthusiasts and festival goers alike.
- The three-day family-friendly Festival will take place as planned on the 25th, 26th and 27th of June 2021 near Holmfirth. Covering an area of 125 acres, the Festival will be a spectacular outdoor event.
At the heart of the Festival are three days of closed-road hill-climbing, featuring mainly pre-1986 cars, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of hill climbs in the Holmfirth area.
Competing cars include Bentleys, Jaguars, Special Saloons, Sports-Racing and GT cars, some helmed by champion drivers and top names in motorsport. The Wolfstones Hill-Climb is a first for Yorkshire, being the first-ever Motorsport UK licensed hill-climb in the county to have road closures put in place. It will be a draw for diehard petrol heads and new spectators alike, with over 80 classics and high-profile drivers a day competing to set the fastest-time-of-day or win their class by setting the quickest time up the hill. With a focus on the Benjafield Bentleys on Friday and an Aston Martin Owners Club on Sunday the event brings historical value to Kirklees. For those new to the hill-climb it is a must-see spectator sport, set in some of Yorkshire’s most breath-taking countryside.
Families and enthusiasts can enjoy displays of vintage vehicles, rally cars, stock cars, trucks, tractors and plant machinery, American hot rods, supercars, hyper cars and The Palmer Engineering village. There is a Yorkshire shopping village, artisan food and drink stalls, a beach and fun fair. Demonstrations and parades include thrilling stunt shows, aerial displays, sheep theatre, cheerleaders, Formula One demos, driver simulators, and much more. Early evenings feature a full line-up of live music, for which tickets can be purchased separately. The line up is due to be announced shortly.
The event is supporting Yorkshire Air Ambulance, who will also have a presence over the weekend.
Michael McErlain, CEO of the YMSF:
We are delighted to have the full support of Motorsports UK and all of the local residents. We are in full throttle as we prepare for the Festival. We are delighted to announce our Festival ambassador, ex- F1 driver and television presenter Karun Chandhok and special guest Sarah Crabtree from UKTV’s Bangers & Cash. This is something truly spectacular that people can look forward to in the near future that combines the best of the country’s motorsport attractions with the bonus of family entertainment.
Most of the activities take place outside, and we are putting every precaution in place, going the extra mile, to ensure that our event is safe for everyone. We are operating no cash event, with all transactions completed by contactless payments, and we ask all visitors to comply with our safety directions and advisories. It is encouraging that the car and truck displays are almost full but there are opportunities for traders to book stands in the Yorkshire Shopping Village.
