Pupils at Cheltenham College Preparatory School, looking to become motorsport champions, have been offered the support of former Formula 1 driver, Mark Blundell. For the first time in its history, boys and girls at the school have designed and built their own electric kart.
The Karting Club, in its inaugural year, has allowed pupils to learn about construction and maintenance, electronics, materials, race driving and teamwork. Under the direction of George Boyd, Head of Design and Technology, their hard work culminated in success at their first ever Greenpower Racing event, winning awards in several categories.
Mark Blundell said: “I am delighted to be supporting the Cheltenham College Preparatory School karting project, and sadly can’t attend the forthcoming fete as I have to be at the Le Mans 24 hour race supporting my drivers. The world of motorsport is an inherently difficult one for young people to get involved in and programmes such as this are needed to make it more accessible. I am delighted that we have girls taking part, too, as our industry is very keen to open opportunities for women joining motorsport and engineering roles in the future.”
Cheltenham College has a number of former-pupils already racing in national categories. This year, Jamie Chadwick, best known for being the first ever female and youngest winner of the British GT Championship, is racing in British Formula 3 and presenting for Sky Sports.
