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10th September 2005 - Event Report: Cruise Control, Bangor (for Flat 2 The Mat Magazine)

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Event: Cruise Control, Bangor, Northern Ireland

Dates: Saturday 10th September 2005

Saturday saw us heading for Bangor where the local lads from Bangorcruise had teamed up with North Down Borough Council and the PSNI. For the couple of weeks previous if you turned on your radio you would have heard the likes of Sonia Mac and others talking about the event, as Cool FM themselves were in attendance providing music and entertainment throughout the day as well.

The Marina was chosen as the venue, and this would turn out perfect in the end as not only did it cater for all of those showing off their cars and bikes but it also meant that with the town centre being only a short walk away the crowds of shoppers taking a look around was also very high.

All cars on show during the day gave £10 to the chosen event charity – Road Trauma Support, which included with the raffles etc managed to raise over £1000 on the day for a more than worthy cause.

The Fire Brigade were along in the afternoon to perform a car cutting demonstration where they carefully removed the roof and doors from an old Renault 19 and gently removed the driver from the vehicle to show the massive crowds of onlooking public how they would deal with such a real life situation during their normal work.

The PSNI brought along 3 of their vehicles which you would probably have walked right past without realizing what they were had it not been for the large PSNI stand behind as all 3 cars were unmarked undercover cars – An Evo, R32 Golf and Astra – all of which had very subtle additions of blue lights hidden away behind the grilles and other kit used to fight crime.

Next to the PSNI’s stand a smashed Renault Clio was left on it’s roof to show everyone just what happens when a car is crashed, which is more of a shock than anything when the general public see just how little of the car is left intact and how much smaller the passenger compartment becomes as the vehicles shape deforms.

As this show was aimed at everyone and not just the cruising community there were a number of Harley Davidson’s in attendance with many sporting more chrome than I’ve seen on a bike before, as well as several of Eddie Irvine’s cars and a family play area with a bouncy castle etc.

For those that forgot to bring their bottle of polish or cloths there were a number of local shop stands there to cater for everyone’s needs, and judging by the steady crowds around they all seemed to do well on the day.

Iceman, who are well known around the modified car scene had set up a marquee which throughout the day had cars showing just how loud their ICE systems were while having their SPL (Sound Pressure Level) measured across 2 runs. Both of these runs were recorded and their highest SPL’s added together to give an overall score. There were some seriously loud cars in attendance and it was good to see an unusual winner on the day – a WV Caddy van which ran a 304.7db total across both runs.

A great turnout to an awesome show where everyone enjoyed themselves, and if this is anything to go by for a first attempt then next years show is definitely going to be one for the diary where hopefully even more money can be raised for charity.

Prize Winners:-

Car of the Show

Clive - BMW M3

Best Performance Car

1st - Neil Sinclair - Subaru Impreza

2nd - Chris Nissan Skyline

Classic Cars

1st - Brian Hannah - HSR Chevete

2nd - Eugene McGarrity – Mits Starion

Best ICE Install

1st - S Hagan - Rover

2nd - Dean Iceworx - VW Golf