Chesterfield’s Ginetta race ace car driver Seb Perez celebrated his 18th birthday in style just over a week ago at Brands Hatch where he finished the championship tenth overhaul in the season finale of the Michelin Ginetta GT4 Supercup.

The Kent circuit saw the last three races of the season and where it all started back in April, with a new car and race series for Perez after promotion from the smaller Ginetta Junior Championship he had been competing in for just over two years.

Perez would make the best of the qualifying session on Saturday. The longer GP circuit meant that the prime tyre window would be a short one and offered just a handful of laps to nail a decent starting position.

Ninth in qualifying gave Perez some work to do in the opening race of the weekend but couldn’t make the most of the damp conditions saw him slip down the order to finish 12^th.

Race two would almost be one to forget for Seb, sliding off the circuit onto the grass and re-joining at the back of the field. but his fight back to 13^th was an impressive sight and offered a glimpse into his raw ability as he continued to learn and get to grips the G55 Ginetta race car as he has been doing all season and a good job at it too.

Chesterfield ace Perez would endure another challenging third race of the weekend deep inside the top ten and stayed out of the trouble to secure ninth spot in the final race of the season.

His result would net him tenth overall in the Pro Category of the GT4 Supercup in his debut year in the G55 Ginetta’s.

Reflecting on his season,

“It’s been a super tough season but of course all part of the learning process,” said Perez.

“I think pretty much like my team mate George (Gamble), we never really got the breaks that we needed to convert the potential into grid places and subsequent results. Being on the back foot was always hard work but it makes you a stronger and more rounded racer in the end. Big thanks to my sponsors Simpson and Amigos for their backing this season, now it’s time to concentrate on the rallying I have planned in the next few months”.

He started his first  season in the Michelin Ginetta GT4 Supercup Championship in April and has seen him in action at 8 very demanding race circuits across the Country including Silverstone, Donington Park and Oulton Park  in a very busy race year for him.

Starting in April at Brands Hatch on the ultra fast Indy Circuit saw him take 6th, 8th and 5th places before moving to local circuit Donington Park at Easter.

Donington was a tough weekend of mixed emotions and sadness both on and off track for Perez, to see his JHR Developments team mate and good friend, Billy Monger, involved in the horrific British Formula 4 crash and to learn that Billy had lost both lower legs.

Perez was  still getting to grips with gaining more experience every time her was out on track and saw him take an excursion into the gravel to finish his session but qualify 11th, finishing 9th, 10th and 11th in a very wet last race of the weekend and teething problems didn’t help in at all over the weekend.

In May, qualifying drama at Oulton Park started the weekend off where he missed a 5 minute window whilst in the pits currently sitting in 5^th with a potential 2^nd place that never happened. he finished 9th and 11th that put him eighth place in the Pro Championship.

A trip to Croft in North Yorkshire in June saw the Chesterfield race ace take an eighth, eleventh and seventh to remain in eighth place in the series, before the usual 7 week break from racing.

It was back to racing after the break at the end of July and a trip to Snetterton in Norfolk, both races one and two saw him finish 10th, race three a different story not managing to finish the race.

During the beginning of August a nightmare was to emerge un be knowing to Seb, he had to find a new team ahead of the next round at Rockingham. Sebs team JHR Developments, who were the leading team in the Championship, were suspended from all Ginetta competitions for the remainder of the 2017 season pending an investigation by the Yorkshire manufacturer.

The row started when three of JHR’s junior drivers were excluded from a meeting in May over apparent irregularities with the engines in their Ginetta G40 cars.

Perez wasting no time who was tenth in the series, switched to the reigning champions team of, Lincolnshire-based Rob Boston Racing, Perez commented “After a crazy week, myself and teammate George Gamble will stick together as we join Rob Boston Racing. Now (it is) onwards and upwards”

August Bank Holiday weekend saw Rockingham on the calendar, a new team and things needed to change. That was not the case, Perez’s best qualifying time was removed for exceeding track limits, Perez started from 10^th on the grid for race one, Perez duly delivered in the dash off the line.  In a stunning start, Perez moved from P10 to P4 and was eying up third when he was hit from behind and sent into the midfield and out of contention finishing 14th

Eleventh and ninth would be the order for races two and three and tyre wear caused its issues too during the weekend.

Silverstone the “Home of British Motorsport” was next up in mid September, qualifying saw Perez miss the optimum slot by a few minutes, meaning starting with opening race later in the day down in tenth. Struggling with the appearance of rain mid way through race one saw him finish 12th. Torrential rain, thunder and lightning put pay to race two and a re-scheduled Sunday saw Seb take the choice to use slicks for the drying track on the early re-arranged race two, which would sadly not work out the way he wanted and headed backwards to 16^th at the flag. Race three saw him finish 12th place, “I just couldn’t make the car work the way I wanted it to,” said Perez.

Last race of the season at Brands Hatch,  at the beginning of October saw Perez 12th, 13th and 9th, after a massive slide into the grass in race two saw Seb fight back in his usual impressive style from back of the field to 13th place.

Editorial and photography to Paul Horton Photography

The Mayor of Chesterfield will join organisers of the 2017 Redbrik Chesterfield Half Marathon at a special event for the race partners as a thank you for their support.

The event will see organisers MLS Contracts, title sponsors Redbrik Estate Agents and official charity partners, Ashgate Hospice and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, as well as other race partners, come together to celebrate their involvement in this year’s half marathon.

John Timms, director of MLS Contracts, said: “We have had an unprecedented amount of  support this year since taking over the organisation of the event and this celebration is our way of saying thank you to those who have backed the race through sponsorship or partnership. We look forward to everyone coming together.”

More than 800 runners have already signed up for the event, which will take place on 22 October in aid of Ashgate Hospice and Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, among other good causes.

As well as the main race, which will start and finish in Queen’s Park in Chesterfield town centre, more than 200 people will also take part in a one-mile Peak FM Fun Run, plus catering stalls and entertainment within the park.

Chesterfield and Sheffield-based Solicitors, Banner Jones, has raised over £1,500 to support the work of Ashgate Hospicecare, following participation in the Ashgate Hospicecare Free Wills Month in May.

The multi-award-winning law firm, which offers tailored no-nonsense legal advice across South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire, as part of the campaign, offered members of the public the opportunity to have their Will written, or updated free of charge, in return for a donation being made to the charity.

The culmination of donations for the Free Wills Month follows on from Banner Jones recently presenting Ashgate Hospicecare with a cheque for £1,000 following a sponsored walk by the company.

Ashgate Hospicecare, an independent registered charity which provides care to patients across North Derbyshire at its hospice, in the community and at Chesterfield Royal Hospital, relies on the generosity of the local community and a team of volunteers to provide a range of vital services offered free of charge to those with a life-limiting illness.

Katie Woodward, Head of Wills at Banner Jones, said:-

“We’re delighted with the success of the Free Wills Month. Some of the clients who wrote Wills through the campaign also left legacies in their Wills which is great news for the hospice. Supporting the invaluable work of Ashgate Hospicecare is important to our business.”

“It’s also been a fantastic opportunity to help and guide people through the process of writing a will, many of whom had not had one before. A will is such an important document – both in terms of ensuring that your wishes are carried out and making the process of dealing with your estate easier for your family and friends – and it’s therefore great that our latest charity campaign not only benefited such a wonderful cause, but also helped those who so generously donated.”

Josanne Richardson, from Ashgate Hospicecare, adds:-

“As the demand for our services grows, so does the need for funding which is why the support that local businesses provide through events such as this is absolutely crucial.

“We have a longstanding relationship with Banner Jones and are so grateful that they continue to support our work with their impressive fundraising efforts – it makes an incredible difference to the lives of so many, both the people that we care for and those closest to them.”

St Peter & St Paul School had a special visit from Olympic swimmer, James Kirton, in partnership with Sports for Schools at the end of September.

James led an energy fueled fitness circuit for the students at the independent school, who did a magnificent job of spotty dog strides, star jumps, step ups and press ups as part of a sponsored campaign to raise money for Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

James also gave an inspiring and motivational talk to the children about his learning journey and life lessons of training hard and never giving up which led to him reaching an elite level of competition including the Beijing Olympics.

Jacqui Ottewell Cole, Marketing & Admissions Manager at St Peter & St Paul’s School, said:-

“Thank you so much to James and Sports for Schools for his inspirational visit . In total our students have raised a fantastic £2,000 for Team GB athletes training hard for Tokyo 2020 and beyond.”