Racing for charity

Wing Commander Brian Watson supports the RAF Benevolent Fund in a unique way. He races a Mini proudly emblazoned with our famous heart roundel. Brian tells us more in this blog.

I have now served 22 years, and I am currently stationed at Shrivenham where I am a Communications Engineering Officer. I race with the RAF Motorsports Association in the RAF Race Challenge.

RAF Motorsports Association is one of the 42 recognised sports, supported by the RAF Sports Board. I take part in both circuit racing and tarmac stage rallying. This car is a purpose built circuit racing car that was built by John Cooper Garages for Mini and has competed in Dubai before ending up with me.

All the cars in the race series are owned and maintained by the drivers, with some assistance from the RAF Sports Lottery. We race once a month with the Race Challenge Series, taking the Mini round the country visiting various race circuits.

It is a development series aimed at delivering cost effective and well managed racing to RAF personnel of all ranks. We have raced at circuits from Pembrey in South Wales to Croft in North Yorkshire and of course our show piece at Silverstone.

Our next event is our flagship six hour relay race at Silverstone on the 27 October. This is the oldest club race in Britain, and the RAF Motorsports Association has won a record three times.

As RAF sportspeople we felt that we could help promote the RAF Benevolent Fund, the RAF's charity. This is a modern sport that many youngsters identify with, and we felt that we could enjoy our sports and help promote the charity to a wider audience.

By Brian Watson