From left, Craig Dickinson, Clare Clifford, Selco Soapbox driver Joe Tucker, Laura Smith and Sunny Lal.
A WOLVERHAMPTON builders merchant combined a trade theme with a nod to the famous Jamaican bobsleigh team when it lined up for the annual soapbox racing event in the city centre on August Bank Holiday Monday.
Selco Builders Warehouse Wolverhampton, based on Stafford Road, took part in the Krazy Races event in Queen’s Square from 11am on the Monday.
The soapbox design is based around a Selco vehicle, complete with crane, while the team were racing under the banner of ‘Tool Runnings’, taking inspiration from the Cool Runnings bobsleigh film.
The team was hoping to raise £2,500 which will be split three ways between Selco’s nominated charity Cancer Research UK and two local good causes — Wings and Paws Animal Rescue and Every Family Counts.
Craig Dickinson, branch manager of Selco Wolverhampton, said the build-up to the event had captured the imagination of colleagues, customers and suppliers alike.
Selco Soapbox driver Joe Tucker is cheered on by colleagues (left to right) Clare Clifford, Laura Smith, Marvin Butta, Craig Dickinson and Sunny Lal.
Speaking before the event, he said: “It’s been brilliant getting everyone involved in preparing the vehicle. Given we are a builders merchant, we wanted a trade theme to be at the heart of our design and we are confident we have achieved that and produced something which will grab attention on the day. We’ve taken the vehicle out for a few test runs on skate ramps at local parks and we are confident it will go fine.
“We are delighted to be raising a significant amount of money for three charities close to all our hearts. Cancer Research UK is the organisation we raise money for at Selco all year and Wings and Paws Rescue and Every Family Counts were selected by our branch team.
“It would be great to win one of the prizes at the event but the three things we set out to do at the start were to raise money, bring the team together on a project and to have fun and we have achieved all of those.”
Joseph Trucker, a van driver at Selco Wolverhampton, drove the soapbox and was supported by four of his colleagues in the pit team — Laura Smith, David Beck, John Campbell and Sunny Lal.
With hundreds of trade brands always in stock, Selco’s 75 UK branches are firmly focused on helping tradespeople complete their jobs as quickly and effectively as possible.
As well as offering trade services, Selco also has a strong digital presence including Click & Deliver and Click & Collect services and a new app — as well as a ‘Dial & Deliver’ telephone service — to make life as convenient as possible for tradespeople.
See page 16 of our October/November 2023 issue on our Back Issues page.
