VIDEO: Dramatic crash hands victory to team of cows at debut Lancaster soapbox derby

Monday, 18 September 2023 07:33

By Greg Lambert @greglam72

Cockerham Krazy Cows, winners of Lancaster Krazy Races

A team of men dressed as cows won the first ever Lancaster Krazy Races soapbox derby after a dramatic last-bend crash by their opponents.

Cockerham Krazy Cows were crowned winners of the event which was watched by a huge crowd in Williamson Park on Sunday.

Teams raced home-made soapbox karts on a specially-made track at the park down the hill from near the Butterfly House to the bottom of the Ashton Memorial.

And the day had the most dramatic finish possible, as leaders North West Air Ambulance Charity crashed their helicopter-shaped kart within seconds of victory.

There was initial concern as the kart veered off the track and ploughed through barricades into a spectators' area.

WATCH the video of the dramatic crash here.

However the driver, air ambulance paramedic Andrew Duncan, walked away unscathed and it is believed there were no serious injuries among nearby fans.

Speaking to Beyond Radio afterwards, Andrew said: "No-one was hurt. We had a chat with people who were at the barriers and everyone has walked away."

Cockerham Krazy Cows, who completed their final run of four in a winning time of 18.93 seconds, said they were "ecstatic" to win.

The Krazy Cows really got into the spirit of things all day with their cowskin-patterned kart, 'moo loo' and even a team-mate dressed as a farmer to herd the cows to the start line!

The team represented a biogas plant in Cockerham which turns manure into gas - hence the cow theme!

Balmoral Garage from Morecambe - pictured below - came second (19.18 seconds) and Phoenix Flyers ice hockey club from Chorley (19.91 seconds) were third.

The Buddy Buds, who were in second place going into the final round, also crashed towards the end of their final run, again with no injuries.

North West Air Ambulance Charity (pictured below) won the Best Team Spirit Award, and there were also awards for Ripley St Thomas CE Academy (Most Entertaining Team), Headline Sponsors' Choice (Team TC) and Best Designed Kart (Mums F'Tea), whose driver was dressed as a chicken in a gravy boat shaped-kart!

Other teams, who wore fancy dress costumes in their custom-made karts, included a squad of people dressed as characters from the film Toy Story (pictured below), an outer space themed kart from Danger Labs, a 'tank' driven by members of the Duke of Lancaster Regiment, Morecambe Fire Crew complete with a siren on their kart, Ripley St Thomas CE Academy's sea-themed kart driven by teacher and former Commonwealth Games medallist Jamie Quarry, a Morecambe Bobsleigh Team based on the hit film 'Cool Runnings' and an adapted canoe belonging to addiction charity Red Rose Recovery.

Teams raced three times down the hill during the day and then the Top 10 fastest raced one final time to decide the winner.

There were some other spectacular prangs during the event - again with nobody seriously hurt.

The free event, organised by Krazy Races, pulled tens of thousands to the park on Sunday.

Danny Scoffin from Krazy Races, speaking to Beyond Radio during the event, said: "It's been an incredible day.

"This is the last event of our race season and what a way to finish in stunning Williamson Park. The crowds have been out in force, the teams have been amazing and have done Lancaster proud.

"We've started launching events for 2024. We haven't got Lancaster on the list yet. What we find is with new events, once people have been, we tend to get an outcry. We've had several teams come up to us today, asking when we're coming back.

"I think being here today, looking out at the sea, is so special, and I think the Ashton Memorial is such an iconic location. We're so grateful to be here."