The BRSCC FF1600 Formula Ford event on the Ards Peninsula this weekend saw the Libre saloons Kirkistown visit 2017, with a series of predominantly Northern Irish saloon racers competing at the county Down circuit over the course of the weekend. The field is made up mainly of BMWs, with Seats and Hondas also in the mix. The series had two races over the course of the weekend, one on Friday and one on Saturday, with dry but windy conditions, which is not unusual being so close to the coast. Kirkistown, like many racing circuits, is a former RAF base, and after seeing action during the 1940s, it was transferred to the Royal Navy, before becoming a racing circuit in 1953.
The series was part of a very impressive support package for the BRSCC Formula Ford event, with the 500 Motor Racing Club of Ireland, who operate Kirkistown, providing an impressive and busy day and a half of action. The FF1600 visit was the first UK national car racing event to visit Northern Ireland for several years, and hopefully the quality of the support events, including the HRCA Historic Sports Cars, the BOSS Ireland (Big Open Single Seaters) and superkarts, and the racing spectacle will mean it will not take so long before there is a return visit.
Here are a few photos of the saloons on track.
