The national charity Speed of Sight hosted a track day for disabled people at the end of April to enable them to drive at Jurby Autodrome on the Isle of Man.
People with disabilities had the chance to drive themselves and an instructor around the autodrome thanks to Speed of Sight which hosts similar experiences all over the UK.
Speed of Sight is run by blind race car driver and multiple World Record holder Mike Newman and his co-founder John Galloway. Interested participants can have any disability, and the team is trained to help everyone in and out of the cars (two racing cars and two all-terrain buggies), which are designed to allow people of all ages with disabilities to enjoy the excitement and thrill of driving.
The vehicles, named after Mike’s guide dogs, are specially designed with dual controls and twin steering wheels and the buggies are equipped with hand controls. The track day has been in the planning since 2022 and residents, local council and businesses of the Isle of Man fully supported the day.
John Galloway, Co-founder of Speed of Sight, said:
“This was our first time holding a track day in the Isle of Man and what a success it was! We held our driving experiences over two days at the track and had a lot of happy faces from the participants, their families, the volunteers and local people who have supported us.
“This event has only been possible because of our membership of BITA IOM, which is a dynamic network of businesses who want to help people through collaborative connections and relationships. I want to say a special thanks to Brendon Kenny and his team and sponsors for making this event a reality, this is a great example of businesses making a difference.
“There were so many businesses that supported this event, including, The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, Celton Manx Limited, Endor Consultants LLC, Ellanstone Ltd, New Earth, MMC, Mooch Digital and BCC Cars.im, all such incredible businesses that were so helpful to us in the lead up and during this event. We can’t thank them enough. We hope that they saw the value in their support, because these track days really do change the lives of the participants and their families.
“We wouldn’t be able to do this without our amazing supporters and volunteers, so we just want to thank them and everyone who is involved in our track days.”