FF1600 at Kirkistown June 2017

BRSCC FF1600 Kirkistown 2017

The ever popular FF1600, the Formula Ford series, made its way over the Irish Sea this weekend to the splendidly picturesque Kirkistown on the Ards Peninsula in County Down, with the 500 Motor Racing Club of Ireland, for the BRSCC FF1600 Kirkistown 2017.  Northern Ireland is much better known for its motorbike road racing, with the NW200, the Cookstown 100, the Armoy Road Races and the Ulster Grand Prix, but there is a healthy car based racing tradition there too.  The Kirkistown circuit is an old RAF base, which saw action from the summer of 1941, until 1945 when it transferred to the Royal Navy and became HMS Corncrake II, just down the road from RAF Ballyhalbert which became HMS Corncrake I.  By 1953, the site had become a race track, and has remained so ever since, now in the ownership of the 500 Motor Club.

 

The weekend saw three FF1600 races, with one on Friday and two on Saturday.  There was plenty of blue sky to be seen, but with an intermittently blustery wind, which is neither surprising or unusual on the peninsula.

 

The support races included the BOSS Ireland (or Big Open Single Seaters), HRCA Historic Sports Cars, Libre Saloons, Fiesta Zetec and Superkarts as well as the Dawson WAM FF1600, the Northern Ireland Formula Ford championship.

 

It was great to see all the cars on track, and particularly good to see the return of a national BRSCC series at Kirkistown.  Here are a few photos of the Formula Ford series from the weekend.