Future of racing in doubt at Oliver's Mount as second race weekend is cancelled

The organiser of race weekends at the famous Oliver's Mount circuit in Scarborough has been forced to cancel its second meet of the year.
By Tony JohnsonBy Tony Johnson
By Tony Johnson

The famous Cock O' The North bike race was due to be held on June 23 and 24 but last night, after days of speculation, the Auto 66 Club confirmed what racing fans had long feared.

In a statement published on social media the Auto 66 Club said: "It is with utmost sadness that we have to inform road race fans, riders, teams and the media that the 2018 Oliver’s Mount Cock O’The North road races on June 23rd/24th 2018 have had to be cancelled.

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"Auto 66 Club and its team of volunteers have been working with Scarborough Borough Council for the last 6 months trying to bring the circuit up to the new strict, safety standards that will ensure not just the road races in 2018 continue, but also future events at Oliver’s Mount.

"So far, the new required safety levels have not been achieved and so it is with a heavy heart that we have to cancel the 2018 Cock O’The North road races.

"With regards to ticket refunds we will continue to try and resolve this complicated situation as soon as possible.

"We continue to work closely with Scarborough Council to try and rectify the current situation and will update with any news in the coming weeks."

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It is the second cancellation of the year, with April's Spring Cup also being cancelled after the motorcycling governing body, the Auto Cycle Union (ACU) refused to grant the circuit a Race Licence.

Earlier this week, the ACU confirmed to the Scarborough News that it had also not granted a licence for the Cock O' The North at that time.

Following the announcement, many fans took to social media asking if any races would be held at the circuit this year.

Others spoke of their anger at the way the cancellations had been handled.

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Gary Bond‏ (@bondyamaha) wrote on Twitter: "£560 in lost hotel bookings for the 2 races, no email to tell those that have paid for tickets about the cancellation but put it on Twitter, what about those that don’t do social media, very poor handling of this mess."

Glenn Vieira‏ (@sandrider69) added: "Any news on the £180 refund I've been asking for from the Spring Cup cancellation? Are you just going to ignore this too? 5 emails all ignored and same old fob-off on the phone. I've been supporting you for over 25 years and you now do this. Disgraceful."

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