|
Mach 1 Club roving reporter, Barbie McSean, (pictured right) helped out at the recent Tomorrow's World Live! exhibition at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham recently. She's recorded this impression for Mach 1 Club members who couldn't make it .... |
|
| Date: | 22nd March 1997 |
| Location: | National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham |
| Occasion: | ThrustSSC at Tomorrow's World Live! |
When it was suggested that ThrustSSC should be displayed at the "Tomorrow's World Live Show", one of the first thoughts was what a superb opportunity this would be to reach an audience we had not met before. The show would include many feats of engineering superiority and it was hoped that many new contacts would be made.
ThrustSSC, resplendent in BASF Supersonic Black, was displayed on the Year of Engineering Success (YES) stand with the merchandise counter to one side. This meant that people were able to view the car from all angles without the queues for merchandise getting in the way. Several TV screens showed the Pioneer Productions' new programme on the American and British Land Speed Record projects and also some footage taken by ITV. The simulator which Andy Green has used to practice driving at 850mph was next to the car and was fully booked each day. The Jaguar Firechase was also on display at the show, but in another part of the exhibition hall.
The merchandise counter is usually staffed by Sally Noble and a team of Mach 1 Club members and this show was no exception. Richard, Andy and other Project Team members were kept busy signing autographs and chatting to people about the project. From inside the enclosure around the car, other members of the Club and Team spent hours chatting to visitors to the show, who asked all manner of questions. Probably the most popular question was "Is it a model?" - people were genuinely surprised that the team had brought the real car to the show. I spotted Allan Read, a Mach 1 Club member, taking a blind girl around the car. She had been allowed into the enclosure and was feeling around the car to get a sense of the size and power. She seemed to be as excited as we all are about the project.
Although some would have come to the show just to see ThrustSSC, there were many who did not know about the project. More than £12,000 of merchandise was sold in 5 days and the Mach 1 Club has gained over 100 new members. Just as importantly, many valuable contacts were made which could lead to new sponsorship deals.
The Mach 1 Club has two aims - to raise money for the project (as Richard Noble has recently said this Club has now funded 17.5% of the project) and to involve as many people as possible in the project. By becoming a Club member you have the chance to visit the Team's base and Farnborough and see work on the car in progress as well as contributing financially towards it. At the show there were many comments about how approachable the Team members are and this feeling is always reinforced at the Open Days in Farnborough.
So the visit to the Tomorrow's World Live Show was very successful. The Project received national TV coverage on BBC Breakfast News, as well as being seen by many thousands of people. Money was raised and valuable contacts were made in the engineering world. Were you there?
A further report of the day can be found in ThrustSSC Shines At The NEC
 |
 |
 |
||
| Sponsored by | This site best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer 3 | |||
 |
 |
 |
||