LITTLE do the customers of the Spar shop on Slyne Road in Beaumont know that 5,000 miles away bets are being placed on the abilities of the man serving them.

For Andrew Stafford is a leading contender in the brand new motor sport of Eurocar circuit racing which is shown on television across the world.

Andrew explained what Eurocar racing is all about: "It's only been on the go for about four years. It started in America but it's called Nascar racing there. There's a Tom Cruise film about it called Days of Thunder. Basically it's circuit racing at a very high speed. People can come and see the same racers in the same cars on the circuit."

Andrew sometimes hits speeds of 155 or 160mph on tracks across the country from Dover to Scotland. He started up in the sport at its inception four years ago - just two years after he began driving as a sport.

And he's amazed by the support he's had locally: "People here have been fantastic. I'd especially like to thank everyone at Road and Stage Motorsport on the White Lund industrial estate. Without them I couldn't do this."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.