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Icom Supports Scalextric World Record Stunt!

Leading slot racing brand Scalextric, owned by Hornby Hobbies Ltd, set a new Guiness world record on Sunday 16th of August 2009 by recreating the famous Brooklands banked circuit entirely out of Scalextric! This incredible stunt was re-created with Scalextric for James May’s new television show "Toy Stories" to be shown on BBC2 later this year. Icom UK supported the challenge with 36 IC-F15 commercial handheld radios and a SRP radio repeater.

Brooklands was built in 1907 as the world’s first purpose-built motorsport venue and hosted its last race in 1939 along it’s 2.953 mile circuit. James May and 300 volunteers used approx 20,000 separate sections of track to recreate the circuit. Scalextric shattered the current Berlin record for a slot car track by 2,189.82 metres. Once the mammoth challenge was completed, two Scalextric model cars; a maroon Aston Martin DBS and a silver Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren roared around the newly created track in celebration.

The Brooklands circuit is divided up into a mixture of 15 - 20 commercial lots, housing estates, shopping areas and the original banked race circuit. The Scalextric marshalls were distributed along the track and the Icom radios were used for communication between 15 - 20 main marshalls who were overseeing the objectives of 10 smaller teams who were distributed in each of the above areas. The communications were vital to the team as the track was spread across such a large distance and the support teams needed to be in constant contact with each other and their respective team coordinators.

Paul Chandler, Scalextric Marketing Manager, commented on the new world record: “Many doubted whether this could really be done but we are delighted James and the team have pulled it off. To recreate the Brooklands circuit, the birth of Motor racing, was a dream for James and Scalextric fans in general. This shattered the previous world record and a lot of hard work went on behind the scenes to make this all possible”.

Icom UK would like to congratulate all the participants in this fantastic world record attempt!

Icom UK Marketing - marketing@icomuk.co.uk