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Ast Signs' Nathan Aston

Cumbrian karter Nathan Aston has moved into the lead of the Formula Kart Stars British Championship after an excellent weekend in Wales saw him clinch two second places in some of the most closest racing the series has seen so far this year - with the winners being decided by just fractions of seconds.

Aston headed to the Glan-y-gors circuit in North Wales for rounds five and six of the FKS series - which is backed by the Formula One Management and is widely regarded as the proving ground for young racers aspiring to follow in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.

Aston had scored his debut FKS win at his home track in Rowrah on round one, but mechanical problems at Whilton Mill meant he was searching for renewed form and some podium finishes to get his championship battle back on track.

The determined 12-year-old started strongly on Saturday in his Fusion run Zip kart - he was fastest in qualifying and secured pole in race one. He continued to push hard and came away with a second place in race one and a third in race two which put him sixth on the grid for the A Final. But, in just four laps, he had moved up to second and was immersed in a battle which saw the top four racers all finish within the same second. In one of the closest finishes he’d experienced, Aston claimed second spot - a mere 0.06 seconds behind the leader.

This is only Aston’s second season of racing at this level and the young Appleby Grammar School pupil defied his lack of experience by setting the timesheets alight again on round six on Sunday.

He claimed fourth in race one and came out first in race two which put him third on the grid for the A Final. With a renewed level of confidence, he moved into the lead on the opening lap and led for most of the race. But a concerted effort by his team mate Darius Karbaley on the last corner of the race saw Aston slip back to second as Karbaley slid past to take the race win by 0.09 seconds.

But Aston had done enough and, with two second places, he came back to Cumbria as championship leader at the halfway point in the season.

The result has given the youngster a major confidence boost heading into the second half of the season and the next championship round at Genk in Belgium on 12-15 August.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:
“It’s a great feeling to be leading the championship and the results here will really help for the second part of the year. I had some great battles over the two days and I enjoyed every minute of it. It just shows how closely-fought the competition is – everyone is driving as fast as they can to just stay ahead of the other guys. I need to stay focused now and concentrate for the next rounds, I think the competition will get even closer.”

Ast Signs' Karting Star

Aston Maintains Fantastic Second in Kart Stars Championship

Nathan Aston’s incredible season in the Formula Kart Stars championship looks set to continue after a solid string of results on rounds three and four at Wilton Mill left him second in the battle for the series lead.

Aston headed to Daventry’s Whilton Mill track as FKS championship leader after an incredible first round victory at Rowrah – his debut win in a round of the FKS series.

After a six-week break, the championship field reconvened at the bumpy, demanding Midlands track where Aston delivered a strong performance in the race heats - making it easy to forget that this is only the 12-year-old’s second competitive season at this level.

His aim this season is to claim top-five finishes as continues to learn the tracks and get experience of his new AstSigns and 3M backed kart and team.

On round three, Aston in his Fusion run Zip kart started well, with a second and a fourth in the two heats. This placed him fourth on the grid for the A-Final and things were looking good for a follow-up victory. But in the middle of the race he got pushed off the track and re-joined the pack in 20th place.

He battled back to 15th by punching in some extremely fast laps but the hope of a top-five place was dashed.

But the following day brought round four and a fresh start. Again, the heats went well and he bagged another second and sixth - getting placed sixth on the grid for the A-Final.

Aston made his way up to third but quite unexpectedly, his kart’s carburettor malfunctioned, dropping him down on power and raising the engine temperature. He battled to repair it while still racing with the pack but the problem dropped him down to tenth place.

However, unwilling to give up, he got the problem sorted and fought back up through the field to claim fifth by the end of the final.

The result leaves young Aston, a pupil at Appleby Grammar School, a secure second in the series behind Whilton Mill winner Tom Harvey and still in a much stronger position than he could have imagined at the start of the year.

FKS is backed by the Formula One Management and has helped launch the careers of more than 100 racing drivers since its inception in 1996. The next championship round is at Glan-y-gors in North Wales during the first weekend of July.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:
“I didn’t have the best of weekends with two problems in the two races but the battles here are so close than you just can’t give up. After winning on my home track at Rowrah, I knew this was going to be much harder. I’m still concentrating on getting more experience and learning the tracks as this is only my second year racing in FKS so to be placed second after four rounds is still amazing.”

Championship Standings after round four:
1. Tom Harvey 738
2. Nathan Aston 720
3. Connor Jupp 690
4. Rory Cuff 686
5. Philip Rawson 681

Ping Trailer Wrap

PING, one of golf's leading worldwide brands, approached us to help with the re-branding of their trailer. They were looking for something eye-catching and classy to help promote their brand on the European Tour. Our designers came up with this great design which has the rear doors and the sides of the rigid wrapped with a simple part wrap on the Mercedes Actros cab. The wrap was completed using 3M materials and a matching 3M overlaminate meaning the customer receives a 3M warranty on the graphics.

The graphics were fitted at our premises in the North West by our approved fitters. If you're interested in wrapping your own vehicle feel free to contact us on 0845 4505544 or pop into one of our offices across the North West at Trafford Park in Manchester, Gilwilly estate in penrith or Kingmoor Park in Carlisle.

Ast Signs Karting Star

The opening round of the MSA British Cadet Championship saw 49 drivers and their teams brave the unseasonably chilly Easter weather to take in the breathtaking Lakeland Stadium circuit in Rowrah for a day that played out under increasingly bright and sunny conditions.

With snow peppering the surrounding peaks the first half of Rowrah’s doubleheader weekend got off to a damp start following plenty of overnight rain with drivers split into two qualifying groups for the first part of the revamped FKS race format. Following those ten minute sessions drivers took part in two heats of twelve minutes (plus one lap) which then decided the grid for the 15 minute (plus one lap) final. 26 drivers would automatically qualify for the main event with a further four getting in through the B Final.

On a slippery track Welsh Champion Tom Harvey was quick to pick up where he left off in FKS in 2009 (a winner at the final weekend at Whilton Mill) as he set fastest time in the first session in his Fusion run Zip. Stopping the clocks in a time of 58.44-seconds Harvey was eight hundredths faster than new Zip Young Guns recruit James Kellett with Kellett’s teammate Connor Mills a further tenth in arrears.

SAS Motorsport’s Jake Walker, one of a growing contingent of Wright mounted drivers, was next up and was the only other driver to break the 59 second barrier with Connor Jupp, driving for James Bean’s new Eclipse Motorsport outfit completing the top five.

Darius Karbaley turned a few heads in the second group by being the only driver to venture out on slick tyres but when he soon appeared near the top of the timesheets it seemed to be an inspired decision. However while the Fusion-run driver was fastest of all through the first two sectors of the 1030-metre circuit, the last sector was just a little too slippery for Karbaley to fully capitalise although third fastest time, half a second behind teammate Nathan Aston, was highly creditable.

In fact Aston’s best lap of 58.19-seconds was quick enough to give him combined pole position over the two sessions, pushing Harvey down to second overall. That meant that Aston would start both his heats from pole position with Harvey and Kellett (whose session one time was good enough for third overall) each starting one heat from the top grid position.

Max Vaughan, aboard an RL Race Team run Tonykart, was second fastest in group two and fourth overall ahead of the aforementioned Karbaley, American Santino Ferrucci in yet another Fusion run kart and FKS newcomer Daniel Ticktum in one of the official Team Wright entries.

Aston and Harvey shared the front row of the grid for the opening heat and after both safely negotiated the tricky first chicane the two teammates proceeded to pull away from the chasing pack. After applying some initial pressure Harvey started to fall away by the half way point of what was a 14 lap race leaving Aston to guide his kart home with a 1.7-second advantage.

Harvey too was clear of the rest in second place with Jupp, Ticktum, Luke Barker and Shanaka Clay completing the top six. In eighth place, Scottish Super Series champion Dean Macdonald was the best placed of the championship newcomers although for two other FKS debutants, Tom Weyer and William Taylforth there was less to smile about as Taylforth’s kart failed on the rolling lap and Weyer got bundled up in an incident.

Kellett had top spot for the second 14-lap heat and the race soon developed into a four way tussle with Kellett, Vaughan, Lando Norris and Rory Cuff disputing top spot. All four took turns at the head of the queue before Vaughan dropped back and Cuff charged to the front. Despite some frantic late action Cuff held on for victory by one tenth of Kellett and Norris with Ross Martin taking a superb fourth on his FKS debut narrowly ahead of Dan Zelos and the recovering Vaughan.

Further down the order there was disappointment for Ferrucci, who had to retire when his chainguard flew off with Thanassi Barnicoat, Mikey Doble, Dubai based driver Cyrus Engineer amongst the non finishers and James Manning failing to take the start.

The third head saw Aston on pole once more and although he led virtually from start to finish he didn’t have things as easy as the first race he was still able to hold off Cuff and Kellett, all three flashing across the line separated by less than three tenths.

Mills crossed the line in fourth, five seconds down on the leading trio with Philip Rawson, Macdonald, Greg McKenzie, Owen Griffiths, Ross Gunn and Clay rounding out the top ten.

The fourth and final heat saw Harvey start from pole and while the Welshman led the early exchanges he soon found his kart lacking the pace to stay at the front and was swamped by Jupp, Vaughan and Zip’s Trevyn Jay Nelson.

Nelson, who picked up some unique backing from Irish Artist Bradley during the off-season, was a man inspired after qualifying outside the top twenty and he scythed up the order, passing Ferrucci, Harvey, Jupp and Vaughan to take the win by less than half a second. Jupp scrabbled through to take second spot with Vaughan a close third, Harvey two seconds back in fourth and Ferrucci fifth.

Twenty six drivers automatically qualified for the A Final with four more set to join at the conclusion of the 14-lap B Final.

In the B Final itself it was Luke Barker who escaped into a comfortable lead with Connor Hall and Sterling Forster disputing second. Jamie Caroline initially held the fourth and final transfer spot but was eventually swamped by Cameron Roberts and James Manning who, after some dreadful luck in the heats, started from the back of the 23 strong grid.

With the top three clear it was Manning who eventually claimed fourth place, holding off Roberts by a kart length with Caroline, Harry Torpy, Thanassi Barnicoat, Lewis Taylor and Ryan Anderton completing the top ten.

In the 15-minute (plus one lap) main event Aston took full advantage of his hard earned pole position to take and early lead and after all the usual early race shuffling it was Jupp who emerged as his closest threat as the race wore on.

Working in perfect tandem Aston and Jupp pulled a two second lead over the rest of the pack with Jupp looking just as confident as the leader. After narrowly missing out on victory in the final round of 2009 at Whilton Mill Jupp appeared to be playing the waiting game to perfection as they started their 18th and final lap.

But as the duo raced through the tricky uphill first chicane Jupp got a little too aggressive over the kerbing, clattering across the middle portion of the complex, unsettling the kart and giving Aston a couple of critical kart lengths advantage. Although Jupp did everything he could to try and regain those lost lengths over the subsequent corners, Aston refused to let him back in the game and crossed the line two tenths of a second ahead for a hugely popular maiden FKS win.

Jupp was somewhat disappointed with second place, but with a new team around him and a good points haul to start the season, his emotions were somewhat tempered.

Two seconds behind Jupp Vaughan claimed the final podium spot just holding off Kellett, who claimed his best ever FKS result. Nelson completed the top five just a fraction behind Kellett with Cuff, Harvey, Rawson, Callum Ilott and Gunn rounding out the top ten.

Among those who looked like contending for a top placing but who missed out were Walker, who finished 14th, Ferrucci, who was 17th and Norris, who was challenging for a top five place until one of his sidepods broke free of its fixings which led to a mechanical flag and a heartbreaking DNF.

Home Interiors Exhibition

This weekend we're exhibiting at the Home Interiors Exhibition in Carlisle at the Sands Centre. We'll be featuring our wall wrapping materials, canvas prints and the 3M DI-NOC range.
You can design your own wallpaper by using providing us with your favourite images or you can work with our own designers. Your wallpaper design, unlike traditional wallpaper which uses repeated patterns, can be tailor made to fit the wall. It comes with a protective overlaminate offering more protection to scuffs and marks. It's also easier to fit than standard wallpaper as it is self-adhesive and doesn't require the use of wallpaper paste. See our wall art page for more examples of the work.
Our canvas prints are available in a number of different standard sizes or they can be made to measure. Again, we can use your photos or artwork or we can design something for you. The 3M DI-NOC finishes are the perfect substitute for, or compliment to, more expensive natural and synthetic finishes. With over 600 product variations, it is easy to match existing surfaces. It is self-adhering and can be applied to virtually any flat or curved surface, including walls, ceilings, floors, and furniture. See our 3M DI-NOC page for more info.

Car Wrap North West

One of our latest car wraps was done in the North West on the new Kick Fiesta rally car. This car was actually white when we started the vehicle wrapping process! The whole car was wrapped in a 10 year silver vehicle wrapping film including the bumbers, door handles and wheel arches. We then printed onto a clear vehicle wrapping film to enable the silver metallic film to show through the printed graphics. The car wrap was printed and fitted in the North West.

The vehicle wrap materials are removable meaning we can re-do the graphics or part of the graphics after each rally event or at the end of the season. Even if you view this vehicle wrap in person it is very difficult to tell that it isn't a silver car. The standard of the vehicle wrapping is very high and fortunately the customer was really pleased with the result. If you'd like to see more photos of the car during the vehicle wrapping process click here.

Ast Signs Employee of the Year Awards

The Christmas Party for 2009 was held at the Fantails Restaurant in Weatheral. As always the food was excellent and the snowy weather added to the Christmas spirit! Everyone works extremely hard over the year with long hours and challenging deadlines being the norm so it was time to let off some steam!

As has become tradition at these evenings we had a small award ceremony to acknowledge some of our star performers for 2009. Throughout the week prior to the party all staff voted for the annual awards which resulted in the following:
Janette Walton was awarded the Special recognition award to acknowledge her contribution to the team over the past 12 months
Breanne Cowburn was awarded Newcomer of the Year. Breanne has integrated in to her role in the company well and has become a valuable member of the team.
Gemma Lowis was recognised for her exceptional dedication, commitment, and passion by being awarded Employee of the Year 2009.

Everyone had a great night judging by the sore heads and red eyes witnessed in the hotel reception the morning after!

New Environmentally Friendly Vehicle Wraps

Near the end of last year we invested in the latest printing technology to enable us to provide our customers with higher quality, longer lasting prints. Our HP printer uses water-based, odourless, Latex inks meaning there is a large reduction in the environmental impact compared with traditional solvent printing and screen printing. The printer is perfect for vehicle graphics, as well as many other applications, enabling us, as a 3M Qualified Manufacturer and Approved Vehicle Wrapper, to offer a 5 year guarantee on all printed vehicle graphics. This 3M 5 year guarantee is the longest available in the vehicle graphics industry and uses the 3M IJ380 vehicle wrapping film with matching protective over laminate.

The printer enables us to react quickly to customers’ timescales due to the fact that we do not have to wait 48 hours drying time for the prints to outgas whereby the solvents from the inks are released. The HP Latex printer produces rich, saturated prints up to 1200 dpi. This latest investment shows our commitment to provide the best in class service for fleet graphics across the UK.

Cash for kids at Christmas

Every year there are thousands of kids who wake up on Christmas day with no presents to open. We've teamed up with CFM radio to help with their Christmas Appeal in association with ASDA. Anyone across Cumbria and South West Scotland can drop off a 'secret santa' present at one of our offices. By simply buying an extra present you can make a massive difference to a child this Christmas.

Here at AstSigns we decided to help the appeal by sponsoring the event and by supplying a vehicle wrap for the santa van. The van was wrapped using a 3M vehicle wrap material and matching protective overlaminate. The van wrap will hopefully help attract attention for what is a great cause.

The appeal is designed to help all children up to the age of 18 so all types of presents are welcome. The secret santa van which will be used to travel around all the collection points (see Cumberland Building society branches and Focus DIY as well as our offices). You can read more about the appeal by going to cfm's website at www.cfmradio.com

Aston excels on debut

AstSigns' Nathan Aston recently joined the Fusion Motorsport team and made a remarkable impression at the first meeting of the season.

Nathan showed what a transformation he has made since joining the team by completely dominating Round 11 of the MBKC Championship at Three Sisters, Wigan, winning all 3 heats and the final. Having consistently set fastest laps during testing, along with new team mate Darius Karbarley, the pair were joined at the front of heat one by Fusion’s Tom Harvey to record a 1-2-3 finish for the team. Nathan took victory in the remaining two heats, one from grid 25, with Darius and Tom scoring consistently to line up 2nd and 4th respectively for the final. At the start, Nathan dropped back to 5th with Darius taking an early lead. However, Nathan was soon into his stride and stormed back through to take a lead he would extend to the flag for a perfect result. Meanwhile accidental contact took Darius out of 3rd and delayed Tom, leaving him to chase Nathan home and pick up the final podium position, with Darius recovering well to finish 9th.

Fusion Motorsport was set up in 2003 by ex karting and single seater Champion, Dan Hazlewood. The team took victory in their fist season with new McLaren Mercedes protege Oliver Rowland, who won the Super One Championship, and repeated his success in 2004. Since then, Fusion have won a major Championship every year in the cadet category, and in 2008 achieved the ‘Grand Slam’, winning all 4 major Championships with driver Roy Johnson. In 2009, the team is expanding to produce a stepping stone from cadets to mini max and KF3, with the Fusion Junior Team, which will be run by ex-British Champion Chris Rogers.

Car Wraps for M Sport

The brand new Ford Fiesta S2000 was successfully launched this week at M-Sport. The highly anticipated rally car, which is the result of nine months hard work, was presented by M-Sport's MD Malcom Wilson. The S2000 will be M-Sport and Ford's first global rally car and will compete in the national rally championships around the world. We were asked to design, produce and fit the vehicle wraps, their embroidered clothing, the wall wrap and the banners.

The vehicle wrap used a combination of a new 10 year metallic blue vehicle wrapping material and some cut vinyl for the text. The ford logo was digitally printed on 3M material and covered in a 3M protective overlaminate.

Invited guests were given an opportunity to get a close-up look at the exciting new car which has been designed by M-Sport’s award-winning technical director Christian Loriaux and his team led by Chief Designer Anthony Brinkman and Test Engineer Chris Gray.

Continuing their close relationship with Ford, the team at M-Sport has worked in tandem with Ford’s Motorsport Technical Manager Mike Norton and the Ford small car design team that developed the acclaimed kinetic design of the Fiesta road car, to develop a dynamic and aggressive looking rally car.

The experience gained from developing the record-breaking Ford Focus RS WRC has been used by the M-Sport team to develop the Fiesta S2000 rally car while working within the new FIA sporting regulations which mean that this car can be used by customers at both national and international level.

The Fiesta S2000 has already completed nearly 3000kms of testing both in the UK and Europe and that extensive testing programme will continue into the start of the next year in readiness for the car’s competitive debut.

The Fiesta S2000 is the latest in a long line of rally cars produced as a result of the successful partnership between M-Sport and Ford, starting with the Escort Cosworth in the 1990s and moving on to the record breaking Ford Focus RS WRC and Ford Fiesta ST.

It follows hot on the heels of M-Sport’s extremely successful two wheel drive Fiesta R2, which was launched earlier this year and has already taken class victories in rallies across Europe.

The arrival of the Fiesta S2000 means that together Ford and M-Sport offer a complete ladder of opportunity for rally competitors to graduate with Ford from national level right through to the WRC in Ford cars.

If you'd like to see the launch party video click on the link to youtube

Aston ends season with strong performance

Cumbrian karter Nathan Aston produced one of his best performances of the season at the penultimate round of the Formula Kart Stars Championship at Whilton Mill in Northamptonshire, narrowly missing out on a top-ten finish in the final. But there was disappointment for the AstSigns youngster as he was taken off the track in the very first corner of the final round of the championship.

The Appleby Grammar School pupil was targeting a strong finish to his debut season in the prestigious championship, which launched the career of F1 Champion Lewis Hamilton, and got his weekend off the perfect start as he finished sixth in his opening heat, just one place behind more experienced team mate Matthew Graham.

Climbing 16 places in his second heat, the 11-year-old registered an impressive 11th place finish in his Tooley Motorsport kart and 12th place in the final heat qualified him comfortably for the A Final where he climbed six places from his starting position to finish 14th overall, one of his best results of the season. Graham meanwhile, posted a strong result in the final to finish seventh.

Aston had a solid start to Round 9, finishing 12th in his heat to go directly to the A Final, but his team mate was involved in a crash which meant he had to come through to the B Final before starting the A Final from the back of the pack.

Graham climbed 14 places in the A Final to finish in a credible 12th place overall, but Aston’s hopes of gaining another strong finish were dashed as another kart ran over the top of him in the first corner causing an abrupt end to his race.

The 11-year-old finished 19th overall in the championship, while Graham took second place after a strong season.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:

“It was disappointing to end the season the way I did, but it has been a really good learning experience for me. I was aiming to finish inside the top 20 overall and that’s what I did, despite some ups and downs over the year. I am already really looking forward to getting back out there next year and with everything I’ve learnt this season I will be aiming to score top-five finishes as often as possible and get on the podium when I can. We’ll be doing lots of testing over the winter and I’ll be ready to race hard again next year.”

AstSigns karter Matthew Graham said:

“Going into the weekend I was still in with a chance of winning the championship, but unfortunately some of the problems I had over the weekend meant that I missed out on the overall win. But it has still been an exceptional season for me and to finish second overall in the championship is a result that I am really pleased with.”

Fifa World Cup bid for Manchester

Manchester's campaign to be a host city for England's 2018 Fifa World Cup bid was held at the impressive Spinningfield's site this earlier this month. Spinningfield's, Manchester's very own Canary Wharf, was the hosting site for the Fifa delegates on Tuesday 1st September. We were asked to produce several banners, flags and vinyl graphics to help with the event.

During the evening a free event was arranged to help promote the bid. Manchester hip-hop band Kid British performed a live set at Hardman Boulevard in the centre of Spinningfields.

Council Leader Sir Richard Leese, said: “Manchester is renowned around the globe for its footballing and musical heritage so it’s great that this event is combining the two.

“The World Cup is arguably the greatest sporting spectacle on the planet and bringing it to Manchester would make for an unforgettable occasion. We believe we have impeccable credentials to be a host city, including a unique bid using the stadia of both Manchester clubs.

To pledge your support for Manchester's bid, visit http://www.manchesterworldsport.com/

Printed wallpaper creates wall art

Are you looking for a way of transforming a blank wall or bored of the normal wallpaper / pictures? By using a similar process that we use for vehicle wrapping we can transform any wall for you by using digitally printed material. This product is becoming more and more popular in coffee shops, restaurants, retail, reception areas, offices and even children's bedrooms.

As with our vehicle graphics and any digital printing, we can do the design work for your wall wrap or you can supply us with digital photos. These photos can be digitally enhanced, cropped, re-sized etc to enable us to re-produce the desired effect. You may wish to incorporate your company branding into the wall wrap or you can go for something completely different.

We use a 3M printable material with matching protective overlaminate meaning you get the best quality. The graphics will last up to 5 years and use a removable adhesive meaning there is no need to use wallpaper paste like other products. It generally means that the material also removes a lot easier than the other standard wallpaper products on the market. We also have a 3M wall graphics material that can be used externally on brick walls.

As well as the digitally printed wall graphics you may wish to add some company branded letters. One example, as we have used in one of our offices, is to use built up brushed silver letters.

Our digital wall wraps can be on a supply only basis or we can use any of our UK wide network of fitters to come and apply the graphics. Feel free to contact us if you'd like any more information.

New EU legislation for reflective tape on vehicles

ECE104 Regulation Vehicle Safety Markings

If you are a truck driver or fleet manager you ought to be aware of new legislation coming into effect next month regarding reflective tape. The new legislation is coming into force on trucks and trailers first registered after 10 October 2009, and these will affect various aspects of goods vehicle operation. The major changes come as a result of the UK's Department for Transport (DfT) reluctantly having to adopt United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN ECE) regulation 48. The reflective marking tape increases night time visibility and effectively reduces the chances of accidents.

Application of the markings:

Full contour marking partial contour marking

The Regulations, which don't apply retrospectively, cover trucks with a GVW exceeding 7,500kg and trailers exceeding 3,500kg, and can be separated into rear and side markings.

At the rear, unless the vehicle is a tractor unit or chassis-cab without a body, or is less than 2,100mm wide, it must display 'full contour' reflective tape that marks the vertical and horizontal edges of the body, The specification of the reflective tape is laid down in UN ECE regulation 104, but it must be between 50mm and 60mm wide and coloured yellow or red. It must be as close as practical to the body edge, but horizontal elements should cover at least 80% of the width of the body, except where it can be proven that this is impossible - this requirement can be reduced to 60%. There must be at least 200mm separation between the rear reflective markings and the mandatory stop light.

Where conspicuity tape is required, rear marker plates become optional, but if they are fitted, they must comply with the latest UN ECE 70.01 standard, which gives a better reflective performance than existing UN ECE 70.00. At the sides, the requirement is for 'partial contour' marking. This applies to vehicles and trailers exceeding 6,000mm in length, including the coupling length of drawbar trailers. It requires a single line of reflective tape, coloured yellow or white, to be applied along the lower edge of the body, as low as possible within the range of 250 to 1,500mm above ground, or up to 2,100mm above ground where technical conditions dictate, As with rear reflective tape, the line must cover at least 80% of the body or trailer length, or 60% if this is proven to be impossible, and must extend to within 600mm of the ends of the body or trailer. In addition, each upper corner of the body must be identified by two lengths of tape, minimum 250mm, at 90 degrees. In all cases, a dotted line may be used, provided that the gaps between blocks of reflective tape are no more the 50% of the length of the shortest block.

To summarise, any new vehicles registered on or after 10th Oct over 7.5 tonnes and trailers over 3.5 tonnes will need the conspicuity tape unles they are less than 2.1m wide. Reflective tape must be between 50 and 60mm, red on back and yellow on sides. It must cover 80% of the body length and the two top corners of each side must be covered. We have already had a few customers requesting that their trailers have the full perimeter on the sides and rear covered in the reflective tape.

If you need any more information, or you'd like to order the tape or arrange an appointment to have the tape fitted, please call us on 0845 4505544 or click here to leave us you details. We use the 3M tape so you can be assured of the highest quality!

NB: due to the recession in the UK the Government agreed to postpone the implementation of this legislation until 2011.

Coach graphics for Reays coaches

One of our long standing customers, Reays Coaches, recently approached us looking for a re-brand. As a well established company they were looking to update their overall marketing and branding to incorporate not only their coaches but also their stationery too.

We worked on a new vehicle graphics design for them which you can see in the photos of their coaches. We also designed, printed and supplied their new business cards, letterheads, compliment slips and vouchers using their new logo. Chris Reay was delighted with the work and is particularly happy with the look of his fleet of coaches.

Ford's world rally car wrap

M-Sport's Ford Focus World Rally cars have new graphics for their 3rd season designed by our team here at AstSigns. Munchi's Ford World Rally team is in the FIA World Rally Championship and it is named after a popular chain of ice-cream parlours in Argentina. We had to design and wrap the 2008-spec Ford Focus RS.

As you can see from the finished vehicle wrap the results were pretty impressive. As with many projects we often have to remove and replace parts of the wrap at short notice to help them maintain a pristine overall look!

Last weekend, Munchi’s Ford WRT driver Federico Villagra scored his fifth points finish of the season taking an impressive eighth place overall at Repco Rally Australia, round 10 of the FIA World Rally Championship. This helps cement his place in the top ten of the Drivers’ Championship going into the final event of his eight-rally campaign in Spain next month.

Current Argentine national rally champion Federico Villagra will contest eight rounds this campaign under the new, relaxed FIA rules which allow manufacturer teams to enter only one car on each event. The team began its campaign at Rally Cyprus and is contesting WRC rounds in Portugal, Argentina, Sardinia, Greece, Finland, Australia and Spain.

Both successful competitors in their home country of Argentina, Companc and Villagra were nevertheless two of the least experienced international rally competitors in the 2007 field. Unsurprisingly their goal for the season was to learn; to familiarise themselves with the rallies in the series, and to improve their pace as they went along. And looking back at the season that's exactly what they did.

Last year the best event for the Munchi's team was Rally Japan, when Companc and Villagra finished fifth and seventh respectively, their best WRC finishes to date. In fact, Companc only narrowly missed out on fourth place.

Vehicle wrap rebrand for Alliance and Leicester

Alliance and Leicester continue their re-brand to Santander with a brand new set of vehicle wraps. Alliance and Leicester is now part of the Santander Group, one of the world's largest banks. Previously we had designed and completed some vehicle wraps for them in their original Alliance and Leicester corporate colours so it was great to work with them on some new designs.

For a promotional event Santander wanted us to remove the previous Alliance and Leicester vehicle wrap, which you can see in the photo below, and replace it with our new Santander designs. Over the course of a few hours the old vehicle graphics were removed allowing us to apply the new material. The vehicle wraps were completed at our Manchester office on Trafford Park using 3M vehicle wrapping material and matching over laminate.

The customer was really pleased with the vehicle graphics and in particular liked the design and the finish. Since we completed it they've have lots of positive feedback which is great to hear.

The sun shone down on Cumbrian Triathlon

Sunday 30th August – It was the second annual Penrith Triathlon organised by Eden District Council and in partnership with Arragons Cumbrian Triathlon Club.

For many it was their first crack at a triathlon, including Anna Aston, who is one of the team here at AstSigns Ltd. The event also drew competitors from triathlon clubs across the UK - One Life Triathlon, the Royal Air Force Tri Team, one of the Team GBR squad as well as competitors from Carlisle and Tri Lakeland to name a few.

There was intrigue, too, from local sports clubs with several Eden Runners and Border City Wheelers represented. It is not surprising that triathlons are one of the fastest growing sports, enjoying an all-welcome atmosphere.

Starting with a 400m swim in the pool, competitors then mounted up for a 25k cycle taking in some of the Eden Valley’s finest views… and one or two challenging climbs. The last discipline was a 5k run round the school’s football and cricket pitches.

Speaking, event referee Phil Graham said:

‘We had a couple of records broken this year with Arragons Cumbrian Triathlon Club member Jon Fletcher taking the overall win in a course record time of 1hour6 minutes. The ladies winner was Diane Jackson who crossed the line in another ladies record time of 1hour 14.’

‘The support of marshals who gave up their whole day to ensure the smooth running of the event was greatly appreciated. Spectator numbers were also up by a great deal, which added to the tremendous atmosphere on the day. We look forward to working with Eden District Council again for the next event, which promises to be even bigger!

If you would like to join Arragons Cumbrian Triathlon Club, contact Sarah at the shop or by e-mailing arragonscycles@mac.com or visit www.arragons.com/CumbriTriClub

The club has an active training schedule including weekly swimming, cycling and coached running sessions. The club is open to everyone who fancies a go, but also encourages a good number of elite level competitors.

Aston's progress hit by pile up in Belgium

Youngster Nathan Aston put in an excellent qualifying performance in Round Six of the Formula Kart Stars Championship in Genk, Belgium, at the weekend but had his hopes of a strong finish in the final dashed as he was involved in a crash on lap one.

After some productive testing ahead of the race, 11-year-old Aston, who is in his first season in the championship, had a great start to the weekend taking three top-ten finishes in the Round Six heats to qualify well for the A Final. But a huge pile-up going into the very first corner of the final put him out of the race completely.

Following his strong showing in Saturday’s heats, the AstSigns karter was poised to build on that performance in Round Seven of the FKS championship on Sunday, but he struggled with the settings of his kart qualifying in 12th place for the final. The compromised set-up left him trailing in 23rd place in his Tooley Motorsport kart.

Meanwhile Aston’s AstSigns team-mate Matthew Graham had another excellent weekend. After finishing seventh in Saturday’s A Final, Graham started third on the grid for Sunday’s final climbing to first on the penultimate lap to take an impressive victory.

The final two rounds of the championship will take place at the start of October at Whilton Mill in Northamptonshire.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:

“I was really disappointed not to get a better result in the final on Saturday because my times in the heats had been excellent and the kart was going really well after testing. But my performances showed that I am improving and that the potential is there to get podiums next season. The kart did not feel good on Sunday but I was pleased with the way that I stuck in there and held my ground. This year is all about getting experience so every race counts towards that.”

Hall in Pirelli Star Driver contest

MSA British Rally Elite scheme driver Kris Hall was unable to make it through to the European final of the Pirelli Star Driver competition even though he delivered an impressive performance at the northern Europe shoot-out in Finland yesterday.

The Pirelli Star Driver scheme was initiated by the tyre manufacturer in conjunction with the FIA to help young drivers who have found success at a national level make the huge step up to competing in the FIA World Rally Championship. Hall, who is one of British rallying’s brightest young talents and the runner-up in last year’s Fiesta Sport Trophy International Shootout, was selected by the MSA to represent the UK in the competition.

During the two-day contest the 20-year-old from Appleby underwent tests of his fitness, media and presentation skills as well as a nerve-wracking interview with the judging panel. The final element of the contest was an assessment of the candidates’ driving skills over four runs of a 3.7km stage near to Rally Finland’s famed Ruuhimäki stage, where drivers were tested on both gravel and asphalt whilst being watched by the judging panel.

The panel of five Pirelli Star Driver judges comprised former World Rally Champion Ari Vatanen, Petter Solberg World Rally Team manager Ken Rees, current Pirelli Star Driver Mark Tapper from New Zealand, WRC journalist Reiner Kuhn and Pirelli’s motorsport manager Mario Isola.

Hall received training, advice and coaching using the MSA British Rally Elite scheme resources in preparation for the competition and was joined in Finland by last year’s UK nominee Adam Gould as he, and co-driver Seb Marshall, undertook the official recce for the classic WRC Rally Finland event.

Rally Elite scheme members have a busy week ahead as they join their counterparts from Race Elite for a joint sponsorship training workshop on Wednesday before heading to M-Sport, home of the BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, for a visit and mechanical workshop on Thursday.

MSA British Rally Elite scheme driver Kris Hall said:

“Obviously I’m bitterly disappointed not to have reached the European final but I really gave it my best shot. The driving element was a big learning curve for me as I really had to take what I picked up from the first pass and adapt my driving to be faster on the second run. I wouldn’t have done anything differently but going forward I need to ask the judges for feedback and improve on the areas where they scored me down.”

Aston proves potential despite early setback

Cumbria’s karting sensation Nathan Aston continued to show his star potential as he produced some strong results in the fifth round of the Formula Kart Stars Championship at the PF International circuit in Nottinghamshire.

The AstSigns karter was going into the competition on a high after an excellent result in the previous round of the championship at his home circuit Rowrah, where he earned the ‘On Fire Award’ for his performance.

But the 11-year-old had a disappointing start to the weekend as a mechanical failure caused him to miss the opening heat. Despite this set-back he showed great mental strength to put those problems behind him as he started day two running on his back-up engine.

The Appleby Grammar School pupil, who is in his first season in the championship, showed early promise posting the fastest time in the morning practice. He then gained six places in his second heat and a staggering 16 places in the third heat, beating other karters with two years’ experience in the competition.

After his engine problems on Saturday, Aston’s excellent results on Sunday were not enough to qualify him directly for the A Final. But yet another storming performance saw him take victory in the B Final to clinch a spot in the A Final.

Starting near the back of the grid, Aston was moving his way through the field in his Tooley Motorsport run kart when he was knocked off the track, eventually finishing in 21st place overall.

Aston’s AstSigns team mate Matthew Graham had another impressive weekend in the Formula Kart Stars championship. The more experienced karter finished second overall to maintain his title challenge.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:
“Obviously it was really disappointing to have an engine problem at the start of the weekend because it makes life much harder. But I was pleased with the way I bounced back from that. I’m gaining experience with every race and I am competing with many older, more experienced karters and holding my own. Hopefully in the next round we won’t have any mechanical problems and I can really show what I’m capable of.”

Hall leaps to victory

M.S.A Rally Elite Members Kris Hall and navigator Robbie Durant had a difficult start on the Manx International Rally but bounced back to take overall victory on his home event the day after.

The fifth round of the Kick Energy Fiesta Sporting Trophy was based in the seaside resort of Douglas, the event gave crews over 80 miles of some of the toughest tarmac stages the infamous motorsport renowned island has to offer. Before the event even began there was drama on the shakedown stage for Hall (19) from Appleby, clipping a bank and bending the rear beam. Some superb work through the night from the service crew allowed Hall to begin the event all be it with some light exterior damage.

With Friday morning came dry weather conditions for the eight tough stages of the day. However disaster struck again for Hall as exiting a slow 90 left, he clipped another bank but this time sent the car into a light roll. Suffering minimal damage apart from a heavily smashed windscreen the fourth round winner lost 3 minutes to rival Breen and with it the hopes of a second consecutive win. Stage two and three were less eventful however Hall was still dropping time due to poor visibility through the broken windscreen. At the first service of the day Hall was fitted a new windscreen whilst the other remaining crews reported no problems. Stage 4 was cancelled due to an earlier accident from an International competitor; Stage 5, Cringle at 13.66 miles brought Hall back in to contention with clear vision and an increased pace allowing him to take second quickest. Stage 6, Glen Roy at 4.66 miles saw Hall take his first stage win of the rally which was quickly mirrored on the penultimate stage with another stage victory.

This final push and a cool head gave Hall fourth in the FST Championship and despite a troubled beginning to the event Hall still stands strong in the overall championship in 2nd only 10 points adrift – a great result considering his two offs during the event!

Now Hall’s thoughts turned on to the challenge ahead. A quick ferry ride home and a few hours sleep saw the dynamic duo competing again on Sunday at the more familiar home ground of the Greystoke Stages. Taking advantage of the opportunity to gain some four wheel drive experience Hall competed in his father’s Red Mitsubishi Evolution 9 for the first time.

Only driving the car for a few miles on tarmac the week before Hall didn’t know what to expect from the car. Easing in gently Hall set respectable times over Stages 1 and 2 with no reported problems. In second place overall and in to the groove the young Cumbrian upped the pace catching out the rest of the field to take a commanding lead from fellow competitor, Peter Sinclair who was also competing in an Evo 9 to take 1st place from the third stage onwards. Hall never looked back impressively setting the fastest stage times on stages 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 building a comfortable lead to take victory by over 1 minute.

Hall Said “It’s been a hectic weekend to say the least. We didn’t have the set up quite right at first in Isle of Man but when we got it sorted we were the fastest its just a shame we made that mistake in shakedown other wise the car would have been right. I am pleased how we bounced back and we picked up some handy points with just 2 rounds left. Winning today has been great, this is my first overall win and it felt great. I didn’t know what to expect but the Evo is great to drive. It took a while to get used to the power but the times were good. I couldn’t have done this without the help of my Sponsors Stobart, Ast Signs and my dad so I just want to thank them”.

40 under 40 award

"Born since the moon landing battling to banish the dark side..........our 40 under 40s are fighting to bring about the recovery"

This was the strapline used at the recent awards evening at Manchester's Midland Hotel to honour the 40 businessmen and women from the North West that were recoginsed by Crain's Business. Our MD, Mark Aston, was one of the 40 entrepreneurs under the age of 40 that were featured. There were some very impressive companies in the top 40 all of which had achieved phenomenal growth and success despite the challenging economic circustances. According to Crain's:

"The demands placed upon them are greater, but the supply of entrepreneurs in this region is as plentiful as ever. Despite the recession, we had no shortage of aspiring, ambitious people to choose from when compiling our second annual 40 under 40 listing. If any of them feel aggrieved that the long boom came to an end just when they were growing their businesses and realising their potential, they are too positive to say so. For achievers like these, the present situation is just another opportunity."

To see more photos of the event or to read more about the 40 entrepreneurs go to www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk/apps/pbcs.dll/section

Hall Storms to Victory in Scottish Rally!

Stobart Motorsport driver Kris Hall got the result he was hungry for after dominating from start to finish on the 45 competitive stage miles of the RSAC Scottish Rally, the fourth round of the FST UK Championship. Hall finished 14th overall winning his class by 30 seconds whilst he held off fellow FST rival Craig Breen. He was also awarded the Castrol Hard Charger Award for being the most frequent stage winner in the Fiesta Crews.

Hall was greeted by overcast but dry weather conditions as they left the Dumfries Ceremonial start and headed for SS1, the 8.08 miles of Kinharvie. With the weather having been dry for a good length of time dust was the biggest worry for the competitors. Hall immediately set the pace stopping the clocks on 8:22, a superb time. The closest nearest rival was championship leader coming into this event Kyle Orr who was a considerable 14 seconds slower. Following a short service halt the competitors tackled the 0.7 mile spectator stage, Heathhall. Again Hall showed excellent pace being only 1 second adrift to rival stage winner Breen, however success was soon stolen back by Hall on stage three with an 8 second advantage. Stage four saw Hall drop time as he was held up by another competitor creating dust on the stage; nevertheless this did not hamper Halls extensive lead. Following a quick service the rally changed setting to Ae Forest where despite having a reported massive moment due to brake failure Hall stormed to victory, stopping the clocks on 12:58, nine seconds quicker than the closest competitor and sealing his second triumph of the year.

This is what Kris had to say, “I am absolutely delighted to win, this morning the times were coming fairly easy for us, but after we dropped time on one stage after being caught in the dust of another competitor we were worried Craig [Breen] may catch us so I had to up the pace a bit. The car worked perfectly and I
have to thank the team for preparing and running it so well. I really needed the win and I hope
this weekend’s result will help to get my championship chances back on track!”

With a win under his belt this awarded Hall maximum points taking him in to equal fourth place in the Fiesta SportTrophy. With only 3 points separating the top five places in the championship the fast approaching Isle of Man Rally will be a vital round in keeping Hall’s title hopes alive.

Fantastic fifth for AstSigns youngster

Nathan Aston scored a stunning result in the Formula Kart Stars championship at the weekend, achieving his best finish of the season so far to take fifth place in the A Final at his home circuit, Rowrah.

The 11-year-old AstSigns karter put his local knowledge to good use as he produced a string of fine results over the meeting before racing to fifth in the final in his Tooley Motorsport run kart. Aston produced two scintillating performances in his heats, moving up from 22nd to 10th in one and 16th to sixth in another, proving he really was on top form amongst the much more experienced field of young karters.

Another strong result saw the youngster take third in the B Final after having led for five laps and again advancing two places from his grid position. But the best was still to come in the main final of the weekend where Aston took on 26 other young aces. Starting from second last on the grid, Aston showed the remarkable improvements that he has made this season to scythe through the field finishing in fifth place.

It was a huge weekend of success for the Tooley Motorsport team with Aston’s team-mate Matthew Graham taking overall honours in the final – with improved performances from the pair of young stars helping to deliver the best results of the season so far.

Aston, who is competing in the FKS Cadet class for the first time this year, had a previous best result of 24th place in the third round of the championship at Glan-y-Gors.

The Formula Kart Stars Championship was established in 1996 by McLaren boss Ron Dennis to provide a path for young drivers who wish to pursue a career in motorsport. Today it is supported by Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and has been the proving ground for international motorsport superstars like Lewis Hamilton.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:

“I am really pleased with the result today as it shows how much I have learned over the season and the improvements that I have made since the start of the year. Rowrah is my home circuit, so I have more experience here than some of the other drivers and it was good to be able to use that today. A result like this is a big confidence boost for the rest of the season and I hope that I can keep it up for the next round.”

Manchester businessman award for Mark Aston

Mark Aston, our MD here at AstSigns Ltd, has been nominated as one of Manchester's most successful businessmen. Crain's Business has selected Mark as one of its '40 under 40'. This is an annual list of 40 people who have achieved success in business before turning 40. All of the final 2009 40 Under 40's will be profiled in the 29th June issue of the popular Manchester-based newspaper. There will also be a dinner and award ceremony at the Midland Hotel on 29th June to honour and recognise all of the 40's.

Details of the program and the event can be found at www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk.

Aston plans to make most of home advantage

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston will be hoping to make the most of home advantage as he tackles the latest round of the Formula Kart Stars championship at the Rowrah circuit in his native Cumbria.

The 11-year-old from Penrith is on a steep learning curve in his first season in the Formula Kart Stars championship, a competition that aims to launch new British motorsport talent into the limelight, and after three rounds he is excited to have the chance to race at his home circuit.

He is currently ranked inside the top 30 of the highly competitive national competition and will be looking to make yet more progress this weekend after reaching the A-Final in Glan-Y-Gors last time out.

Earlier this month he warmed up for the FKS event by taking part in round four of the Cumbria KRC Club Championship at Rowrah. Some highly impressive performances in his heats, including a six-place gain in his third race of the meeting, where he finished in an impressive fourth place overall gave him the perfect preparation for this weekend’s competition.

With over 70 competitors registered for the FKS series, Aston knows that he will be up against some stiff competition but is hoping that he can make home advantage pay to produce his best result yet in the series.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:

“I am really looking forward to competing at Rowrah. It’s my home circuit so I have a lot of experience there which will help with the set-up of the kart. It was good to race there in the Cumbria KRC meeting recently as it means I’ve got a really good feel for the place. The Formula Kart Stars championship has been a really good learning experience for me so far and I am looking forward to another exciting weekend of karting. I hope that my knowledge of the track pays off and I can produce a really good result.”

Hall has high hopes for Scottish debut

Kick Energy FST UK Round Four. RSAC Scottish Rally, 27 June 2009 Event Preview

Stobart Motorsport driver Kris Hall is hoping to get his Fiesta SportTrophy UK title bid back on track this weekend as he takes on the RSAC Scottish Rally, the fourth round of the FST UK competition, for the first time.

Hall’s last outing in Scotland, at the Jim Clark Rally, ended in disappointment as he crashed off the road on the final day after skidding off on cold tyres, but the Appleby-based driver is looking forward to kick-starting his campaign in Dumfries on Saturday. With the Fiesta SportTrophy UK reaching its midway point Hall is lying in fifth place overall, but there is still all to play for in the closely-fought championship.

This year’s Scottish Rally is set to be one of the biggest ever, with 130 entrants set to take on 44.93 miles of stages around the Dumfries and Galloway countryside. The rally is made up of six stages, none of which are repeated, meaning the drivers can look forward to fast, clear roads with minimal ruts. Two classic Scottish Rally stages, Castle O’er and Twiglees are also returning to the rally which will be based around the Ice Bowl arena in Dumfries.

Hall will again have co-driver Robbie Durant on board after returning from commitments in the USA. The pair will take part in shakedown in Dumfries on Friday giving Hall the chance to get a feeling for being back on gravel for the first time since April’s Pirelli Rally.

The 22-year-old will also be drawing on the knowledge and support that he has received from being part of the MSA British Rally Elite scheme this season as he aims to score his first victory since his win at the Malcolm Wilson Rally in March.

Stobart Motorsport driver Kris Hall said:

“It is a completely new rally for me, but I think a lot of the stages are quite similar to the Pirelli Rally. I’m expecting it to be quite abrasive and grippy and that should suit me. I’m really looking forward to it. I think that whoever stays out of trouble is going to do well here so that’s what I’ll be aiming to do.”

Vehicle wrap scania

We recently got approached by a vehicle owner to recreate a design he had seen whilst on his travels overseas. Based on the Scania Griffin the customer was looking for an eye-catching look for his Scania Tractor Unit.

The customer was purchasing the vehicle via Alliance and Leicester and was looking for a new paint job to work well with the vehicle wrap. Using a cast 10 year vehicle wrapping film we managed to wrap his cab with a bright orange vinyl to match his metallic silver paintwork. As with any vehicle wraps we applied the graphics in a covered premises and used the heat guns to ensure the vinyl stays in the recesses. The customer is delighted with both the great paint job and the vehicle wrap which is great news.

The vehicle wrap was completed at our Manchester office over one day.

European Vehicle Graphics Award

We have been recognised for the quality of our work - this time in a Europe-wide competition for our vehicle livery work.

FESPA, which promotes screen printing and digital imaging throughout Europe, covers 28 countries and in last year’s awards no British firms were recognised by the judges making AstSigns’ achievement this year even more significant. The award represents a huge milestone for us, on the back of winning the title of 2008 Sign Business of the Year in the UK. The FESPA jury recognised our interesting and innovative application of digital printing in awarding us the runner-up spot in the vehicle category for our work on over 1800 Eddie Stobart lorry cabs and trailers. Eddie Stobart, which is recognised as one of the UK's Business Superbrands by the global branding organisation, Superbrands, has long had a reputation for its style and image as well as it quality and service.

Stuart Day AstSigns Ltd Sales and Marketing Manager said:

“We are delighted to have won this latest award. Our success is a testament to the quality and dedication of our staff. We believe that the enjoyment we get from our work is reflected in high levels of customer satisfaction and that has contributed to our success in this award and the others that we have won in recent months.”

For any of you are interested in more information on the Eddie Stobart fleet feel free to look at the official Club Stobart website

Monthly offers

OFFERS FOR MAY AND JUNE 2009

Save even more on our everyday low prices by taking advantage of our amazing offers. But hurry – these offers are for a limited time only! For May and June we have offers running on our posters and our leaflets:

Big Posters, Bigger Discounts!
30% off Full colour Large Format Posters
30% off posters throughout May and June, its perfect timing to advertise yourself this summer!

Offer Code: BPBD30MJ09 *Offer applies to orders of litho printed large format full colour posters up to a quantity of 2,500. Offer ends 30th June 2009. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer.

Terms & Conditions apply.

The Great Leaflet Giveaway!
Buy two sets of leaflets in May and June, get a third set half price.
Offer applies to any litho printed full colour leaflets. Discount applies to lowest price leaflet set. Offer also applies to any finishing required on leaflet. This offer is available on standard stocks only.

Offer Code: LGA3MJ09. Offer applies to sets of leaflets when ordered at the same time. *Offer ends 30th June 2009. Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer.

Terms & Conditions apply.

Flatbed printing just got easier

As part of Ast Signs continual investment and expansion plans we have installed the latest Arizona flatbed printer. The Oce Arizona 250 GT adds to our collection of over twenty printers, plotters, flatbed cutters, routers, heat presses, embroidery machines and application beds. This new flatbed printer offers a real breakthrough in digital capability. It is a new generation 8ft x 4ft flat bed printer offering direct print to mediums such as card, rigid PVC, glass, plastic, acrylics, pre-stretched canvas, doors, ceiling tiles and wood. This will help us and you create outdoor point-of-purchase signage, second surface backlit displays, exhibit displays, customised estate agent signs, directional signage, event signage and more. It will also allow us to be highly competitive on large production runs. With no set up costs or protracted lead times it offers an ideal solution to cost effective bulk printing. If you'd like more information please contact us in the normal way on 0845 4505544 or e-mail us at info@astsigns.com.

Future star Aston makes leap forward in Wales

Young karter Nathan Aston proved that he is one to watch after reaching the A final of round three of the Formula Kart Stars Championship in Glan-Y-Gors, Wales while bagging some excellent heat results along the way and showing consistently good pace throughout his four races.

The 11-year-old AstSigns karter showed maturity beyond his years as he took on more experienced karters to qualify in 14th place for the final while his AstSigns team mate Matthew Graham qualified in fourth place for the final.

Following a difficult weekend at Kimbolton last month where they contested rounds one and two of the Formula Kart Stars championship and struggled with the set-up, Aston and Graham both switched karts for the Glan-Y-Gors event moving into Zip Karts and the move proved to be just what the doctor ordered for the pair.

Appleby Grammar School pupil Aston moved up six places in his opening heat to finish fourth, and gained an impressive 13 places in his second outing to grab tenth place. He was knocked off the track in the first lap of his final heat but kept his head and recovered well to finish in seventh place and book himself a place in the A final.

Graham was not to be outshone by his young team mate and gained a staggering 21 places in his second heat of the day before leading his final heat from start to finish to qualify in an excellent fourth place for the A Final.

Aston showed blistering pace in the final climbing up to 11th place, but a spin sent him to the back of the field and he eventually climbed back up to 24th, an impressive feat for a youngster in his first full season competing against karters who have several years of experience. Graham had a trouble-free run, dropping just one place to finish fifth, his second fifth place finish of the championship so far.

Aston is already looking forward to the next round of the Formula Kart Stars Championship which takes place at his home track Rowrah next month and will prepare with a club meeting the week before at the West Cumbria venue.

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston said:

“I really enjoyed myself out there and it was awesome to get into the final. The kart felt really good and I was able to prove that I have the ability to do well in this championship. It was disappointing to spin in the final but I recovered well from that and I am pleased with my results this weekend. My target for this season was to qualify for the A Finals and get close to the top 20 and I managed to do that so I’m happy with the way things have gone. The next round is at my home track so I’m looking forward to that. I’ve got a lot of experience there so hopefully that will help.”

Cup final fever

Match Report - Finals Day

Two weeks ago, Castletown won each of their respective finals to take home four trophies. Two weeks on, and playing in only two finals, Castletown's 100% record was kept alive. Castletown Whites defeated Hesket in the W. Jameson Under 12 Cup Final, whilst Castletown Whites overcame Keswick in the Under 14 League Cup Final. The Under 16 Ted Nanson Trophy went into the hands of Alston, who through Nathan Frazer, fought to a 3-1 win against Kingstown.

The opening 10 minutes to the W Jameson Cup Final began with an alarmingly fast tempo, whilst players from both teams were given little breathing space. It was the Whites who scored the opener, as Sam Pryke wriggled his was through a cloud of defenders to slot under Tom Lancaster's body. Hesket, rather than collapsing, were united through their captain Jack Holden, but despite their best efforts, couldn't find a way past Hamilton, McGleenan and Swainson.

The man who scored 6 goals in his previous final appearance, scored again before half-time for Castletown, taking the game to a comfortable 2-0. Callum Evens received the ball inside the box and with his ability, took a touch and drilled into the bottom corner with confidence.

Castletown showed off a good team performance throughout the second half, but Hesket's Lochlan Murtagh posed a threat with his pace on a couple of occasions. However, his well-worked crosses were constantly cleared by Castletown.

Late on in the game, Jack Lakes and Callum Evens were prevented by the arms of Tom Lancaster, who had an outstanding game in goal for Hesket. Congratulation to Castletown Whites for completing the treble; the league, the W.Jameson Cup and the Joe Fisher Cup.

As the Under 12's did, Castletown Whites Under 14's completed their treble to by beating Keswick in the League Cup Final.

George Burne, the Castletown Whites Under 14's Captain, with Jade Cooper from AstSigns Ltd.

Chris Rowley should have scored after only 20 seconds for Keswick, and his tame effort looked like it was going to ebe punished when George Burne was put through on goal, however he to uncharacteristiaclly blazed over the bar.

Keswick took the lead when Sam Clark's free-kick was knocked in by Josh Dowson. Their lead lasted only a matter of minutes though, as Donald Burrows deflected free-kick wrong footed Keswick's keeper Grant Thompson to crawl over the line. Burne then wasted another chance, before Thompson's clearance hit Matthew Bradley to send the ball goalwards, with the outside of the post saving Thompson from blushes.Kieran Gregory for Keswick should have given his side the lead going into half-time, but his half-volley flew over the bar.

The second-half brought about a torrential downpour of hail, which quickly transformed the pitch into a slippery mudbath. The long-balls were becoming deadly to deal with, which proved evident when Castletown's Luke Fraser was sent through on goal from a 'hoof', only for him to drag his shot wide.

Yet another 1-on-1 went to waste for the Whites, with substitute Alistair Craig hitting straight at Thompson. Eventually, Castletown found the back of the net. Burrows' cross missed both Burne and Craig, but Fraser was unmarked at the back-post to tap in. Soon after, Burne knicked a loose ball in the box, before lifting over the sprawling Thompson. Keswick deserved more from the game, but Castletown's defence proved to be the deciding factor.

The highly sought after Ted Nanson Trophy proved to be a very physicaly, yet sporting affair. Nathan Frazer for Alston hit the post after only two minutes and quickly after, Craig Ridley powered a header over from an Alston corner. Midway through the first-half and Alston got the ball in the back of the net through Frazer's head. However, he was deemed offside, cutting short the Alston celebrations.

The next set-piece was converted legally though, as Frazer climbed above everyone else to convert a Rose Thompson free-kick. The first-half proved to be poor in terms of chances made with very little creativity. On the other hand, the second-half got off to a flyer. Jason Bainbridge opened his body to whip a 25-yard effort high into the goal, taking the game to a stalemate 1-1.

The game turned into a long-ball one as both teams fielded very pacey strikers. However, both defences sat back deeply, and because of this, opportunities were few and far between. Alston took the lead for the second time in the game when Arron Collier headed from close-range. Celebrations from Alston were kept minimal, was they knew that full concentration was needed to see out the game.

The third goal sent the Alston players, fans and coaches into raptures. Nathan Frazers 30-yard wonderstrike curled into the top corner, leaving Matthew Duncan with no chance whatsoever. Frazer capped off a wonderful team effort, with centre-midfielder Jordan Norris shining.

Congratulations to Norman Currah's Alston for winning the Ted Nanson Trophy.

Ast Media update

We have recently expanded our range of products that are now available through Ast Media. This is the 'litho printing' part of our business which has a huge product range from letterheads, brochures, menus and business cards to leaflets and booklets. Over the past few years this has been the fastest growing part of our business so we've decided to expand the product portfolio even further.

Our latest products include printed paper carrier bags. This environmentally friendly option compared to plastic carrier bags is proving very popular on the high street. They are printed in full colour on tough 200gm silk card and can be gloss or matte laminated. They are available in three practical sizes and can be printed on every side. The base and cord panels are reinforced. We also now sell printed boomarks which make great promotional products. They come 180mm x 40mm with rounded corners, full colour printed, with or without lamination and with a specially designed centre split so that they cannot fall out of the book or disappear into it! Another new addition is the printable scratch cards which can be a great way to launch a campaign. You can either have a bespoke campaign or choose one of the existing designs. Our scratch cards are A6 size, printed on rigid 350gm card and come in single, multi-colour or full colour. For further information on these products either call us on 0845 4505544, e-mail us at info@astsigns.com or click on the link http://www.astsigns.co.uk/Ast-Media/Printing/

Hall relishes return to tarmac at Jim Clark Rally

MSA British Rally Championship

Jim Clark Rally, 22-23 May 2009

Event Preview

Stobart Motorsport driver Kris Hall has high hopes as he prepares for next week’s Jim Clark Rally, the third round of the MSA British Rally Championship. The Appleby ace has had a disappointing start to the MSA British Rally Championship by his own high standards and, after a six week break since his last competitive outing at the Pirelli International Rally, he is hoping to make a fresh start in the championship on tarmac, his favoured surface.

Hall, a member of the MSA British Rally Elite training scheme, has been working hard on all fronts since crashing out of the Pirelli International Rally last month. With his car now repaired he is hoping to put in some testing this weekend ahead of the Scottish event. He has also been working on both his physical and mental fitness ahead of what is set to be a gruelling event for the drivers.

The 19-year-old will have support from the Elite scheme’s sports psychologist and a physical trainer during the event. With drivers expecting to get around five hours’ sleep between Friday night’s late finish and an early start on Saturday, concentration will be at a premium. As part of his training Hall has also been working on his nutrition and hydration to try and maximise his focus during the long days.

He will also benefit from the knowledge and experience of British rally ace Guy Wilks. The 2008 MSA British Rally Champion will be offering advice ahead of shakedown before getting in the Ford Fiesta ST with Hall to offer some tips. After shakedown he will be on hand to talk about getting the best out of the pace notes, a crucially important aspect for all drivers as the Jim Clark Rally offers some of the most challenging and changeable conditions of the year.

After missing the Pirelli International due to commitments abroad Robbie Durant returns as Hall’s co-driver for this event, the first of three consecutive British Rally Championship events taking place on tarmac.

The rally will get underway on Friday evening with the ceremonial start taking place at Edinburgh’s Fountain Park before heading to the Lammermuir Hills near Duns with two stages run in the dark. Friday’s stages are tricky and technical testing the drivers’ concentration to the limit. On Day Two the crews will tackle around 100 miles of smooth, fast stages on the country roads around the Borders which include a number of spectacular jumps. Central Service for the event will be based at Kelso Racecourse.

Stobart Motorsport driver Kris Hall said:

“I haven’t had the best of starts to the British Rally Championship so I’m hoping that this weekend will be a fresh start for me. I really want to prove to everyone what I am capable of. I did the Jim Clark Rally last year in the same car and I really enjoyed the experience. A lot of the stages are very different so it’s a challenging event but I’m looking forward to getting out there and hopefully getting a good result.”

Information at www.stobartmotorsport.com, copyright free images at www.fiestasportingtrophy.co.uk

Press Manager: Glenn Patterson m: +44 (0) 7920 548976 or e: glenn@the-inside-line.co.uk

Customer file upload area

Due to popular demand we have now set up a customer upload area on our website. This means you can now upload any of your files without using e-mail. This can be very useful if they are particularly large files and save you lots of time. All you need to do is contact us for your individual password and then click on the word FTP in the top right hand corner of our website.

Castletown Whites victorious in Cup Final

There was great news at the weekend for Castletown Whites as they won their Under 14's League Cup Final. Playing at Penrith F.C's ground at Southend Road, Castletown Whites managed to beat Keswick 3-1. For more information on any of the teams in the Penrith and District League you can click on the following link www.goalnet.com

Sarah's Ironman Triathlon challenge

Sarah Graham will soon be heading to Lanzarote, but not for a holiday. She will be competing in one of the toughest challenges in sport, the Ironman Triathlon. Sarah, who runs Arragon's Cycle Centre in Penrith will be swimming 2.4 miles, cycling for 112 miles and then running a marathon! Due to the heat and the level of endurance required to tackle the mountainous course the event is considered by many to be the toughest Ironman challenge around. Not only that but Sarah will have to complete the course within 17 hours for it to be acknowledged by the judges.

The 31 year old from Calthwaite near Penrith said: "There will be men and women from all over the world who are all proper athletes, and that worries me a little! I know I will put the training in and I hope I can finish it and do everyone proud.”

Sarah, who helped set up the Arragon's Cumbria Triathlon Club http://www.cumbriatriclub.co.uk/ will be raising money for cerebral palsy.

Aston aims to advance at Glan-Y-Gors

AstSigns karter Nathan Aston is hoping that the experience gained from his first outing in the Formula Kart Stars Championship last month will stand him in good stead as he takes to the latest round of the series at the Glan-Y-Gors circuit this weekend.

The 11-year-old from Appleby struggled with set-up problems in the first round of the championship, which aims to launch new British motorsport talent into the spotlight, as changing weather conditions affected his performance. But the AstSigns youngster, who only took up karting a year ago, is on a steep learning curve and after two rounds of the championship, in his cadet Tony Kart run by Tooley Motorsports, at Kimbolton last month he is expecting to rise to the challenge at Glan-Y-Gors.

Aston’s AstSigns team mate Matthew Graham also suffered set-up problems in the changing weather conditions in the opening rounds of the series. He grabbed fifth place in round two of the Formula Kart Stars Championship and will be looking to build on that result at the Welsh track this weekend.

The championship, which has the backing of Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, is made up of 12 rounds over six weekends with Glan-Y-Gors forming rounds three and four.

Nathan Aston said: “This is my first season in the Formula Kart Stars Championship and I am getting a lot of good experience and learning the circuits. I showed some good pace in the last round but I was struggling with the set-up of the kart. I’m learning all the time and I’m hoping that this time round I’ll be able to show what I can do and put in some really good times. We have spent a lot of time in the last few weeks working on the settings for this race so I’m a bit more confident now.”

Aston aims to become Formula Kart Star

Cumbrian starlet Nathan Aston (11) is set to race in the UK’s most prestigious karting championship.

The youngster, who attends Appleby Grammar School, claimed second place in the Cumbria Kart Club championships in 2008 - and is now looking to take on the cream on Britain’s karting talent at national level, in 2009.

He will compete in the Formula Kart Stars series which has just been launched by Formula 1 Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone; who aims to launch the next British racing hopeful into the spotlight, with the plan to hold align the series more closely to Formula 1. Karting has produced top motorsport talent in the past such as DTM racer Paul Di Resta, McLaren test driver Gary Paffett and reigning F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton. Now a global superstar, Hamilton is Patron of the Formula Kart Stars series and continues to try and help those who wish to follow in his footsteps.

Nathan Aston is one young driver aspiring to do so, and has displayed the kind of form that marks him out as a potential star of the future. Having only taken up karting last year he was first novice home in his first four race meetings, racked up nine podium finishes from 13 race meetings and also won his class in the Lakeland Challenge.

In 2009 Nathan will race in the Formula Kart Stars championship as part of a two kart AstSigns team run by Tooley Motor Sport, using a cadet Tony Kart with a Comber engine, and partnered by Matthew Graham. The duo will also benefit from specialised sports science support throughout the year to boost their chances of success.

The series’ calendar will cover five events in the UK and one in Genk, Belgium. The flag drops on the first round of action at Kimbolton on April 10-12. With a visit to Cumbrian circuit Rowrah penciled in for June 26-28, Nathan Aston will look to use home advantage to make a big impression against his rivals. But he is fully aware of the challenge ahead and with over 70 competitors registered for the series his aim is to get experience and clinch some top-20 finishes; this would be a fantastic result for his rookie season at national level.

Nathan Aston said:

“I’m really excited about this season. I had a really good time last year and seemed to improve quickly and I’m hoping that what I learnt last year, and the speed, will continue when I step up to this important series. Learning a lot of new tracks will be a big challenge but great fun too and there will be a lot of other good drivers so the competition will be tough. I really want to be a racing driver so if I can do well in the Formula Kart Series I hope that will help me in my career.”

Kris Hall dominates Malcolm Wilson Rally

Rising MSA Rally Elite star Kris Hall stormed to victory on the opening round of the Kick Energy Fiesta SportTrophy U.K.

The newly appointed Elite driver was seeded first Fiesta on the opening round, the Cumbrian based Malcolm Wilson Rally. Hall had one aim coming into the event and that was to take maximum points on his local event.

Hall had planned to contest either the Riponian Rally or the North Humberside event as preparation for the opening round. Unfortunately both were cancelled, making the Malcolm Wilson Rally the young Cumbrian’s first outing since the Fiesta Shootout back in December. Despite no competing for 3 months it didn’t seem to phase Hall with a fantastic time on the first stage beating nearest rival Craig Breen from Ireland by 6 seconds in the short 3 mile stage. Hall’s dominance continued with 2 more convincing fastest times despite a small misfire. As the rally left the Lake’s stages in Whinlatter, there was a sting in the tail for Hall as the rally moved to the M-Sport owned forest of Greystoke for stage 4. This was to turn the competition on its head with Hall suffering from a fuel pump failure dropping over a minute and I turn demoting him to 3rd Fiesta. Breen’s rally also took a bad turn with gear box problems forcing him to retire robbing him of a great score for the opening round. In a comfortable 3rd at this point was Matt Edwards but a puncture dropped him a minute also. After both Barry Greer and Stevie Brown had driveshaft problems early on, their rally was an up hill struggle from the start.

Hall’s disappointment of losing the rally lead was obvious at service but he remained confident in his service crew to solve the problem in the short time provided. He said “It was a heart in mouth moment when the pump started going. I was unsure if we could get it to service but we have and hopefully we will get away on time. We had managed to pull a good gap on most of the lads but now we are behind by around half a minute so I will be pushing hard to get that 1st place back”. Sure enough the service team replaced the component and managed to get Hall out in time. In all the drama new man on the block Stefan Davies took a 36 second lead over Hall with only four stages to go. In second was Kyle Orr ten seconds ahead of Hall.

It was all to do for the local youngster as his 30 second advantage over the chasing crews earlier on now had reversed to over a 30 second deficit. None the less a committed charge from Hall saw him take back 31 seconds from Davies and 36 from Orr on stage 5 then a further 24 seconds on the penultimate stage, seeing Hall comfortably take back the lead. Winning the final stage confirmed that the Stobart and Ast Signs backed youngster took an emphatic opening round win. He was awarded the Castrol Hard Charger award for his 6 out of 7 fastest stage times and he took maximum points in the Championship. Hall won his class by a convincing 54 seconds to Matt Edwards despite the minute loss earlier in the day. Kyle Orr rounded off the top 3. Hall was also 3rd 2wd and 18th O/A on the event that attracted over 100 entries.

Hall now leads the Kick Energy Fiesta SportTrophy U.K 2009 heading into the second round, the Bulldog International Rally based in north Wales. Coverage of the Championship can be found on the Rally Zone television program on Sky Sports.

Supplied copyright free:

Driver contact: Kris Hall e-mail: krishallrally@hotmail.com mobile: 07725509976

For more information please visit www.stobartmotorsport.com or www.msabritishrallyelite.co.uk

And for championship info please visit www.fiestasportingtrophy.co.uk

Welcome to the ast signs news section

Welcome to our recently launched news section which we hope will keep you informed of all that is happening here at Ast Signs Ltd. We have had a busy year here as we've successfully expanded the business and our range of services. We now offer an enormous range of services above and beyond vehicle graphics, vehicle wraps and general signage that you would expect from a signmaker including embroidery services for a range of personal and work clothing, litho printing for business cards, brochures, leaflets, booklets, menus etc and flatbed printing for a range of rigid substrates such as glass, wood and textiles. Here you'll also find updates on the MSA British Rally Championships. We are also the proud sponsors of some local sporting teams including the Karting, Penrith Boxing Club and the local football teams so here you'll be able to find all their latest results and news. Enjoy the read and feel free to give us some feedback via the contact section.