Record crowds turn out for classic car showcase in Waterford
On Saturday, July 8th over 150 classic cars and motorbikes along with 30 vintage tractors rolled into the WWETB Waterford Training Centre at the IDA Industrial Estate on the Cork Road, Waterford for a free showcase hosted by the on-site instructors of the Classic Car Restoration Course and Agricultural Mechanics Apprenticeship.
Visitors enjoyed the event in their droves with over 500 people attending the Saturday morning fun as they enjoyed the showcase of vintage and classic vehicles and got a peek into the classic car restoration and the agricultural mechanic's workshops at the centre.
The showcase was hosted to celebrate and demonstrate of the works completed by the course participants who have taken part in either the Classic Car Restoration day or evening courses and the Agricultural Mechanics Apprenticeship courses.
The Classic Car Restoration Course was launched in 2016 at the Waterford Training Centre part of the Waterford Wexford Education and Training Board (WWETB) and it is the only course of its kind in the entire country. Over 250 people have taken part in the course to date in order to gain the course qualification. The course participants who completed the recent day and evening courses were awarded their certificates at the car showcase event.
The Agricultural Mechanics Apprenticeship on offer at WWETB is a four-year level six apprenticeship where participants gain qualifications in fault-finding, repair, overhaul and maintenance of farm tractors and farm machinery. The Waterford Training Centre is the only one in the country to deliver agricultural mechanic apprenticeships.
Visitors got to enjoy tours of the hugely impressive workshops and even try their hand at some skills required in each course using virtual reality gaming technology. They also had the opportunity to meet with course instructors and former course participants to learn more about each course, the modules and the technologies used in each one.
Commenting on the event Shay Cummins Assistant Manager at the Waterford Training Centre says, “It has been brilliant to welcome so many visitors into our training centre today and share with them a little about what we do here. It has also been really heartening to meet a large number of young people interested in taking up an apprenticeship or a place on our Classic Car Restoration Couse. So, not only has the occasion been a very enjoyable event, it has been a great success for future generations of motoring expertise.”
Vehicle owners who attended and put their classic or vintage on display were able to vote for the ‘best in show competition. The winner of the best Classic Car was Anton Tams from Ennis with his Jaguar, the winner of the best Tractor was CJ Hickey from Waterford and the winner of the best Motorbike in the show was James Power from Kilmacthomas with his Trimuph.