Festival of Speed 2024
Mission Motorsport attends Festival of Speed, Goodwood (11th – 14th July 2024)
Attended by over 145 beneficiaries thanks to the generosity of Thakeham Homes
Families from Scotty’s Little Soldiers enjoy a day of family fun
One of the highlights of Mission Motorsport’s calendar and most eagerly awaited event (aside from Race of Remembrance) is the fantastic Festival of Speed , the world’s greatest celebration of motorsport and car culture.
Thanks to the generosity of our great friend and supporter Thakeham, who donated over 145 tickets to the charity, the team were able to host beneficiaries including families from Scotty’s Little Soldiers, to enjoy a weekend of action-packed family fun.
Located near the cricket pitch, it was the first outing for Project Pleiades, the Cat N damaged Subaru BRZ lovingly restored by MM beneficiaries and converted to hand controls. Attracting a lot of attention, it proved a great talking point for the general public to find out more about our work supporting veterans rebuilding their lives after service. Alongside this, we were incredibly lucky to have the New Caterham Seven 360R built with repurposed components from a Puma HC2 helicopter and the RAF Stem team who built the incredible car. Another eye-catching car, we were thrilled to have long-term supporter The Little Car Company’s latest build the Tamiya Wild One Max on display.
Throughout the four-day event, the Mission Motorsport tent served as a basecamp for beneficiaries old and new, who were able to access free drinks, take a five minute breather away from the hustle and bustle of the show, sit, chat or even charge phones. For those with young families, the Thakeham area proved a big hit with a variety of children’s activities including the diggers and eBay, kindly hosted a Mission Motorsport hour on the climbing wall. For those lucky enough to attend on the Thursday, long-time supporter Ferrari made dreams come true with unforgettable high-speed passenger laps up the famous Goodwood hill.
With the aid of a buggy, mobility was not an issue and those disabled or just purely exhausted were able to access parts of the show, which they may not necessarily have been able to otherwise.
Amy, beneficiary said, “Big thank you to the MM team for being so kind to us and letting our oldest, Ev, hang out at your tent. It made a huge difference to both the kids as they both managed to have a good day as a result. . ”
In addition to our own beneficiary families, Mission Motorsport was thrilled to host families from Scotty’s Little Soldiers, the charity for bereaved British Forces children. Over 47 adults and 43 children attended. Holding a special place in the hearts of the team, it was incredible to see so many children and young adults enjoy the day.
William’s mother said, “I cannot thank you enough for our tickets. Cars are his passion and I’ve never seen him as happy as I did yesterday. He said it was the best day of his life. To see my boy so happy made it one of mine too.
“I just wanted you to know that whilst it’s only a few tickets, it’s so much more to the people that benefit. Thank you so much for an unforgettable day and for giving my son so much joy.
All in all, yhe weekend was a great success with everybody leaving tired, but smiling. We are incredibly thankful to Thakeham Homes, without whom, we would not have been to provide families with a day of happy memories. We’d also like to say a huge thank you to all our volunteers for giving up their time to help, and the RAF team and the Little Car Company for providing us with such eye-catching and interesting cars!