Kirkistown Motor Racing Circuit Traditional Cache

Kirkistown Motor Racing Circuit

Kirkistown is situated near the fishing village of Portavogie on the picturesque Ards Peninsula in Co Down.

RAF Ballyhalbert opened officially on 28 June 1941 and the RAF Kirkistown satellite airfield opened in July 1941 as Fighter Command bases where the primary weapon was the Supermarine Spitfire. Other aircraft operated from the base were the Hawker Hurricane, Bristol Beaufighter, P-51 Mustang and Boulton Paul Defiant. The bases provided local protection from Luftwaffe raids on Belfast. In 1945 Ballyhalbert Airfield transferred to the Admiralty and became a Royal Naval Air Station commissioned as HMS Corncrake. On 17 July 1945 Kirkistown Airfield was commissioned as HMS Corncrake II. It was then passed back to RAF Coastal Command in 1946. The airfield was finally decommissioned sometime around 1948. It was bought by the 500 Motor Racing Club of Ireland soon after.

Kirkistown Motor Racing Circuit has been home to the 500 Motor Racing Club of Ireland since 1953. The Club, formed in 1948 to promote affordable motor racing, took its name and inspiration from the then-new 500cc Formula 3 for small single seat racing cars powered by motor cycle engines. Initially races were held at Newtownards Airfield, but the demands of motor sport were not really compatible with those of a working airfield and the Club soon decided that, if the sport was to make progress, a permanent circuit was needed. Fortunately the disused wartime airfield at Kirkistown became available at that time and the Club wasted no time in laying out a 1.5 mile circuit which was, in essence, the same circuit that is used today.

From the start a straight takes you to the quaintly-named Debtors Dip - the origins of the name have been lost in the mists of time! - and thence via another straight to the right-left Colonial complex. Another short straight leads to the long right hander at Fishermen’s (so-called because the fishermen in nearby Portavogie used to hang their nets to dry on the perimeter fence) and onto the back straight. Originally this was more than three quarters of a mile long, and led into the right hand Maguire’s Hairpin and thence back to the start/finish. Towards the end of the 1970s a chicane was added just before the midway point on the back straight, and this has been further modified since. Essentially though, the lap remains as it was at the start. The first race at the ‘new’ venue was held in 1953.

Many famous names in motorsport have raced at Kirkistown over the years, such as James Hunt, Ken Tyrrell, Eddie Jordan, Eddie Irvine and motorcyclists such as Joey and Robert Dunlop, Michael Swann, Jeremy McWilliams and Ryan Farquhar to name a few. The club runs around 8 race meetings a year but the track is also used for other race meetings, rallies and track days. More details about motor racing at Kirkistown can be found on their website. www.kirkistown.com

The Cache

The cache is an screw top alloy tube slightly larger than a 35mm film canister containing only a log. So bring a pencil with you. The cache is hidden outside the perimeter fence so there is no need to enter the circuit to retrieve it. Please take care in crossing the roads to the site as the roads around it can be quite busy at times, keep a close eye on children too. As this is an extremely public area ensure that you are very discrete in retrieving and replacing the cache. Also please put it back exactly where you got it from. It does not need to be detached from its hiding spot to be opened!