130 GIRLS GET
ON TRACK WITH MSA & D2BD SILVERSTONE
The MSA
and Dare to be Different (D2BD) got 130 girls behind the wheel at
Silverstone yesterday (28 October) as part of the FIA’s Girls
on Track, an international initiative aiming to promote and develop
young women in motorsport.
The girls, aged 13 to 18,
had registered online for the free opportunity, with all available
places filling up in just three days after a surge of interest.
Once
at Silverstone the girls set timed laps around a kart track, and the
top ten from each session were interviewed for the chance to take part
in the European final at Le Mans next spring. Three girls were selected
to go through and will be announced on the MSA’s social media
channels at 16.00 on Wednesday (31 October).
Not
only were the girls able to hit the track, but they also gained an
insight into various aspects of motorsport through a series of
challenges. They included STEM (science, technology, engineering and
maths) activities, while the Renault Sport Formula One Team challenged
the girls to change the wheel of an F1® car in the same garages
used by teams at the British Grand Prix.
Tobii Pro
ran a road safety-based activity, using eye-tracking glasses to
highlight the negative impact of everyday distractions on awareness and
attention to surroundings. The data collected from the event will be
used to aid future research projects.
Meanwhile
PerkinElmer showcased the science behind the sport, challenging the
girls to analyse three fuel samples and identify the problematic one.
The F1 in Schools programme was also on hand to test reactions with a
practice race start activity and a BATAK machine.
Dare to
be Different ambassadors Jamie Chadwick, Louise Goodman, Nathalie
McGloin, Cristiana Pace, Natalie Pinkham, Alice Powell and Kathryn
Richards joined the girls for the day, offering advice from their own
motorsport careers and experiences. There were show cars, too,
including a Nio Formula E car and a Mini WRC machine, which were used
to inspire the girls and highlight the fact that a motorsport or
engineering career is both achievable and desirable.
Jamie
Chadwick, the British F3 race winner and D2BD Ambassador, said:
“The Girls on Track event was a great opportunity for lots of
young girls to get involved and enjoy their first taste of motorsport.
It was brilliant to see so many girls enjoying the karting and all the
other activities on offer – it’s an opportunity I
wish I’d had when I was starting out!”
Among
the girls taking part was 13-year-old Fern Mangeveld, who said:
“My favourite part was the karting; it’s not
something you get to do very often, so it was really fun to get the
opportunity. My dad competes in motorsport as a hobby and I’d
love to continue in the sport and follow in his footsteps.”
Suze
Endean, MSA Development Manager, added: “The event at
Silverstone really opened the girls’ eyes to everything that
motorsport has to offer, not only as an accessible and fun sporting
activity but also as a potential career choice. It was really rewarding
to be able to introduce so many young women to new ideas and
possibilities, and to see so many smiling faces at the end of the
day.”
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