Tasty treat debuts on race track

Oct 15 2009 by Stewart Watkins, The Journal

THERE'S a storm brewing in the world of motor racing and this weekend will bring it to a head. I’m not talking about Jenson Button's attempts to hold onto his lead in the Formula 1 championship. I'm referring to a completely new type of car that will be racing at Brands Hatch for the first time. And this car runs on chocolate!

The WorldFirst Formula 3 racing car is an anomaly in the motor racing world. Capable of running entirely on biofuels produced from the waste products of vegetable oil, cooking oil, oilseed rape and even waste chocolate, this weekend the car will be put to the test against normal petrol-powered racers.

What is more the WorldFirst is largely built from natural products with a carrot-based steering wheel, soya bean-filled seats and bodywork built from potatoes.

But before I conjure up too many images of something from a garden fête, this car is a serious contender in the race and has been built to win. Recording speeds of up to 145mph so far, Durham-based Scott Racing which built and tuned the engine of the car has been pushing it to its limits and hopes to reach greater speeds.

And the ethos behind the car is to move towards improving the green credentials of motor racing as a whole. While a sport like motor racing is never going to be entirely environmentally friendly, it can be made a great deal more sustainable, something that will filter through into the conventional car market.

Companies like Scott Racing, developing innovative green technology right here in the North East, are perfect examples of the developing strength of our region in the green and renewable sector.

The work being done by the New and Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC) and the steps taken by Nissan and others in the development of electric car technology demonstrate the efforts being made in our region to innovate within the green agenda.

What is more, earlier this month funding of £1.6m was secured to make it a lot easier for businesses in the North East to access energy from renewable sources.

While renewable energy certainly holds the potential to supply more of our energy needs in the future, what is not so easy is picking which technology will come out on top. But unlike motor racing where there can only be one winner, the future of the renewable energy sector is likely to rely on a combination of different energy sources that could encompass everything from wind and solar power to chocolate-fuelled cars!

Stewart Watkins is managing director of the County Durham Development Company.