Ireland’s biggest motorshow in Ballykelly this weekend

Somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 people are expected to descend on the former Shackleton army site in Ballykelly for the multi-disciplinary motorsport event.

Adam McAllister, one of the team behind the event, said that it is on course to be the biggest multi-disciplinary event ever held in Ireland.

“We had previously used locations such as Bishop’s Court in Downpatrick, but the sheer acreage available at Shackleton means we can do so much more with it.

“That event at Bishop’s Court - we had it packed out - attracted a big enough crowd. In Ballykelly, though, we are able to do so much more. The size of the space available means we are able to put on different events running simultaneously.

“We are going to have so much going on - drag racing, rally sprint, show and shine, track day grip / drift track, arrive and drive drift track, and more. What it means is that if you are interested in the drag racing, there will be so much going on that if you wanted you could literally stay all day and only watch the drag racing. Likewise for the other disciplines.

“We are expecting somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 people to come down for it - that is in line with the numbers we have been working on.

“We’re also going to have a digital screen stage which will play host to coverage of all the action from one central view point. Live coverage from multiple cameras positioned and manned around the event will ensure full live coverage of all the day’s activities.

“We’ve got guys coming from all over - from the USA, France, all over the world.”

Asked what attracted Car Culture NI to Ballykelly, he said: “It is really about the space available at Shackleton. It really is so big we can have all disciplines running simultaneously throughout the day, uninterupted and that is something we aren’t really able to do elsewhere.

“Aside from this being something for car enthusiasts in the local area to get involved with, we are also bringing a lot of revenue into the area. You take the likes of the Drummond Hotel and other local businesses, they are going to be getting a lot of extra rooms because of this. That is aside from the local shops and other businesses who are going to see the benefit from such a large number of people coming along. It is going to put a lot of revenue into the local area.”