Santa Pod Presents THE FIA UEM European Finals 2013

Santa Pod, the home of European Drag racing, is just days away from opening its gates once more to the unmistakeable sight and sound of literally hundreds of thousands of angry horsepower charging down its famous quarter mile. The FIA/UEM European Finals is the event, and this prestigious closing round of Drag Racing’s equivalent to Formula 1 always guarantees an impressive spectacle for the capacity crowd. The date for your diaries this year is the 5th to 8th September.

Fully televised, The European Finals will see over 300 teams and 16 race classes assembling from all over Europe, ready to go head-to-head to find the fastest racecars and bikes on the face of the planet. Unrivalled for both the quality and quantity of racing, you can expect to see 300mph Top Fuel dragsters, flying up the strip in less than 5 seconds, 5 second Pro Mod doorslammers and Supertwin Drag Bikes literally fighting the laws of physics and good old common sense to beat the freshly re-laid tarmac into submission. It’s simply the loudest, fastest and craziest experience in drag racing, where the most brutal machines in Europe fight for the winning title in a rubber-burning haze that is guaranteed to delight even the most hardcore racing enthusiast!

If the racing wasn’t impressive enough, in-between the track action Santa Pod has laid on an equally insane array of real-life cartoon vehicles and superheroes that you won’t see together at any other venue. Car-crushing Monster Trucks Podzilla and Swamp Thing have an appetite for fresh metal and will be devouring parked scrap cars in the Live Action Arena. Top Freestyle Motocross riders will be performing gravity-defying tricks as they jump between ramps and give you your very own slice of ‘X-Games’ action. For the first time at Santa Pod Raceway, Herve Franquin’s slightly unhinged Peugeot 205 Jet Car will be coming over from France to literally warm up the crowds and former Stunt Riding world champion Zoltan Angyal will be performing his wild bike show. In between shows, why not take a ride in the back of the red Dragon Monster Truck and crush a few cars of your own?

On track, the Jet-Set pairing of Martin Hill in his 10,000 bhp Fireforce Funny car and Eric Teboul on his Rocket Bike will be literally firing their way up the strip using jet engines. Until you have seen a huge drag car being propelled up the strip to a speed over 270mph in a shade over 5 seconds, you haven’t lived!

Many showgoers choose to make a weekend out of it by enjoying camping on-site. Not only does this make a real experience out of the whole thing, but it allows you to sample the fine array of catering and fully-licensed bar facilities available, before relaxing with full evening entertainment and live bands in the Fuelers Bar. Santa Pod welcomes families by providing a wealth of kid’s entertainment, including fun fair rides, a radio-controlled car track and fireworks display but best of all, kids under 16 can go for free!

If being airborne is more your style, look out for the helicopter pleasure flights that will be running all weekend, as well as the stirring sight of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight on the Saturday and Sunday.

Advance tickets for the event start at just £25 to enjoy all of Friday’s race action, or £30 for Saturday or Sunday. You can enjoy both days (Sat/Sun) for £59, or go for it, and purchase a 4 day ticket for just £65. As the kids go free, it could be one of the best value weekenders of the year for you and your family! Corporate packages look similarly good value, with VIP packages starting from just £89 + VAT per head, including lunch – or if you have already booked your ticket, you can simply upgrade to enjoy the VIP experience.


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