Top of the podium! College motorsport team bags first win of the Scottish C1 Cup Season
Edina Ecosse Racing, Edinburgh College’s motorsport team, is celebrating after scooping a first win of the season in the SMRC C1 Cup at Knockhill Racing Circuit this past weekend. Marc Nisbet, driving car 117, converted pole position into his first victory of the year, strengthening his second-place position in the championship with just five races remaining.
Since first getting involved with the competition back in 2019, which draws competitors from all across the UK, the College has entered a team every year, with drivers competing out on the track in Citroen C1s which are built and maintained by the College’s Automotive and Engineering students. There’s been a fair amount of success too, with the College producing several winners in previous editions of the Cup.
While the students don’t get behind the wheel themselves, the day provides a rich wealth of experience for them in other valuable ways. In addition to enjoying a trip over to the Kingdom of Fife to Knockhill, students get to work in the paddock and act as a pit crew for the day for some of the drivers. As the only College in Scotland providing this sort of hands-on training, it ensures Edinburgh College’s learners are leaving with rare, hard-to-get motorsports skills.
Brian Alexander, Curriculum Leader for Automotive Engineering and Edina Ecosse Team Lead, says there's a wide range of benefits the College gains from being involved with the Scottish C1 Cup:
“The whole process begins with a bog-standard Citroen C1 being stripped back to a bare shell, which allows our students to carry out the process of fitting it out for racing from start to finish. It’s a different, maybe more engaging way of putting their practical skills that they learn in the classroom to use. It’s also important to mention that while it does grow their technical skills, it allows them to grow as people too. They’re working as a team, in a high-pressure environment, and it’s really hard to get that sort of experience elsewhere.
“It’s something all the students are really proud to be involved in too, knowing they’re helping put together cars which can go out and win races and bring home trophies. I’d say there’s a bit of inter-class rivalry too, as everyone wants their car to be the best! Normally, you’d have to go down south if you wanted to get that sort of real-life hands-on motorsports experience, so it’s something we’re really grateful to be part of.”
There are two race meetings still to take place before the conclusion of the season, with the first taking place on the weekend of 12 and 13 September at Knockhill. Everyone at the College wishes Edina Ecosse Racing the very best of luck with their remaining events.