Soapbox derby to help young homeless

A charity which works to reduce homelessness among young people in Sheffield said the city will "love" its fundraising soapbox race.

Called Krazy Races, the event will see up to forty teams design, build, and race their own handcrafted soapboxes, all powered by gravity alone.

Krazy Races is a national touring soapbox derby event and Roundabout's fundraising manager Emily Bush said they saw it and thought "this is a bit of us".

The event begins in Barkers Pool at 10.45 BST with a procession and runs until 17:00 BST on Sunday.

Bush said the charity works with young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness across Sheffield and Rotherham.

"We work with more than 400 young people every single day," she said.

The charity also does outreach on the streets to prevent homelessness, and to help those who were homeless to achieve independence and a brighter future.

Bush said the event would be "tremendous fun".

"The charity's supporters are going to love it and we know that Sheffield is going to love it."

Students at University Technical College Sheffield have been making a soapbox kart to be driven in the event by BBC Radio Sheffield's Ellie Colton, who said the city was not ready for their creation.

"Seriously, we can't wait to take part in such a brilliant fundraiser for a charity that is a lifeline for young people in South Yorkshire.

"Huge thanks to everyone at the UTC who've worked so hard to help the cause."

Colton said there had been a "few glitches" along the way.

"I couldn't reach the brakes, and the steering wheel wouldn't turn, but we will be ready come the day."

Krazy Races said the race route would be down Barker's Pool and onto Fargate, with the finish line halfway down the precinct.

It added that there would also be a pit area outside the town hall "where spectators can get up close to the teams and their outrageous creations before race time."

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