Nicky Grist Stages raising funds for Tirabad Village Hall, Brecon Rotary Club and Wales Air Ambulance

Spectators visiting the Nicky Grist Stages over the years have helped raise valuable funds for two local charities, the Tirabad Village Hall and the Brecon Rotary Club – and the event organiser, Quinton Motor Club, is proud to announce that these fund-raising ventures will continue this year when the event takes place on Saturday 14 July. In addition, the annual collection made at competitors’ signing on, together with a donation from Quinton Motor Club, will also continue, with all proceeds donated to Wales Air Ambulance.

Funds raised by the event have contributed to extensive repairs and renovations to the Tirabad Village Hall – with its members selling event programmes (750 programmes were printed last year, the cost of production generously paid for by Brettex Site Services) and manning car parks. The Hall has also given Nicky Grist Stages officials a warm place to stay and a very early breakfast, as it’s very close to the stages.

Brecon Rotary Club, like all Rotary clubs, brings together dedicated individuals to exchange ideas, build relationships and take action. Rotary is an international organisation with nearly 33,000 clubs worldwide, in 200 countries with 1.2 million members. In Britain and Ireland, there are more than 53,000 men and women who, as members of over 1,830 Rotary clubs, volunteer their time, talents, professional skills and energy to improving the lives of people within their local communities and in those around the world.

Since its launch in 2001, the Wales Air Ambulance has attended a number of incidents involving motorsport competitors across Wales. The charity recently upgraded its fleet of helicopters based in Llanelli, Welshpool and Caernarfon to the latest Airbus Helicopter H145 and now operates an Airbus H135 aircraft from Cardiff Heliport that specialises in adult and paediatric transfers throughout the UK. Thanks to its collaboration with the ‘flying medics’ of the Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service (EMRTS), the charity’s helicopters now carry some of the most up to date equipment, drugs and blood products used by any air ambulance service in the UK and are crewed by advanced doctors and Critical Care Practitioners. The next challenge for the charity is to move to a 24/7 operation so that it can continue to deliver advanced medical care during the hours of darkness.

Anthony Jeffreys, Tirabad Village Hall Committee Secretary, said: “Over the past five years the Tirabad Village Hall Committee has been privileged to have been able to raise much needed funds by supporting rally sport on the Epynt hills and surrounding forests. Our income now depends on fundraising, and one of our main event benefactors has been the organisers of the Nicky Grist Stages. It’s been very timely, as the past five years have been particularly tough, as we have had to carry out extensive repairs and renovations to our hall to the tune of £130,000 – a daunting task for such a small isolated community such as Tirabad. However, the improvements made have enabled us to cater for overnight stays, bed, breakfast and evening meals for rally personnel who need that early start, and who appreciate that the Epynt stages are but a few hundred metres from the village hall.

Owen Hughes, President of Brecon Rotary Club, said: “Over the last three years, by selling programmes at the Nicky Grist Stages, Brecon Rotary Club has raised over £5000, which has been added to our fund and distributed to various local good causes.

Mark James, Wales Air Ambulance Trustee, said: “The motorsport community has always been very supportive of Wales Air Ambulance, as they know only too well the difficulty in getting advanced medical support to the most rural parts of Wales when it’s most needed. The expansion and enhancement of our service is only possible thanks to the support of individuals and organisations across Wales. I’m personally delighted that the Nicky Grist Stages has donated to us in this way and I hope that relationship will continue into the future.

Neil Cross, Nicky Grist Stages Clerk of the Course, said: “Events like the Nicky Grist Stages rely on the goodwill of the local communities we pass through and we are delighted that we have been able to contribute to three very worthy groups over the last few years. Both Tirabad Village Hall and Brecon Rotary Club take a huge amount of pressure off our shoulders on rally day, knowing that they are there to welcome and direct our spectators is a huge comfort and knowing that the money raised goes back to the heart of the community we pass through is both an honour and a privilege. The one thing we hope we never need to use is the Wales Air Ambulance, but knowing it is there is an important part of the Event Safety Plan and so being able to make a small contribution to its running costs is the least we can do.

Local charities set for annual rally boost, as full 180 car entry gears up for the Nicky Grist Stages

Local charities are set to benefit from a capacity 180 car field and increased spectators numbers watching Britain’s top rally drivers when the Nicky Grist Stages (9-10 July) takes place next month.

Each year the event raises money for three local charities. The revenue received from all the spectator car parking charges and rally programme sales are split evenly between the Tirabad Village Hall and the Brecon Lions Club, while a collection is made at competitors’ signing on which, together with an additional donation by the event-organising Quinton Motor Club, is given to the Welsh Air Ambulance. And this year the event will be raising money for the BRC’s official charity partner, the Gareth Roberts Fund (www.garethrobertsfund.com) – which was set up in the memory of the 24-year old Welsh rally co-driving star who was tragically killed in a freak accident on the Targa Florio Rally in Sicily in June 2012.

In recent years the Nicky Grist Stages has been a one-day event, hosting a round of several championships, including the Ravenol BTRDA Rally Series and the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship. For the first time in the event’s 36 year forest rally history, it will be a two-day event this year – as it also hosts a round of the MSA British Rally Championship. It is hoped that the best British rally drivers, tackling many of the best UK gravel and Tarmac stages, will attracted a record number of spectators to the Epynt military ranges – and in turn generate a record-breaking amount of money for the chosen charities.

The Wales Air Ambulance is celebrating its 15th birthday this year, and from small beginnings with one helicopter operating from Swansea airport, the charity now operates three state-of-the-art EC135 helicopters from Dafen near Llanelli, Welshpool and Caernarfon. The cost of operating these helicopters, currently around £6M a year, is funded by charity donations.

Mark James, one of the Wales Air Ambulance Trustees, said: “The rallying community has always been hugely supportive of the Wales Air Ambulance, possibly because of the awareness of getting urgent medical help to an incident miles away from the nearest hospital or ambulance station. Since we launched in 2001, we have become one of the most successful air ambulance charities in the UK and it’s thanks to donations from individuals and events like the Nicky Grist Stages that we’ve been able to expand and improve our service. Our next targets are the introduction of new, larger H145 helicopters in 2017 and a move towards 24-hour operations, so every penny we receive is vital. Thank you to everyone involved in the event for their support.

Neil Cross, Nicky Grist Stages Clerk of the Course, said: “Supporting local charities is very important to Quinton MC and the Nicky Grist Stages as it puts something back into the local community. We are pleased to work with both The Rotary Club and Tirabad Village and wish them every success with their fundraising this year. We support the Welsh Air Ambulance in the hope we never have to use its services, however it’s good to know that they are there should we need them.

 

Regulations and entry forms are available in the Competitors’ section of www.nickygriststages.co.uk