Major outdoor motocross event halted due to winds

The event is held annually on Weston-super-Mare's beachfront

The biggest outdoor motocross event in the country has been paused due to high winds from Storm Amy.

Up to 100,000 people had been expected to descend on Weston-super-Mare's famous beachfront for a day of off-road motorcycle races and demonstrations.

The event opened on Friday, but the event's organiser posted on its website on Saturday morning high winds that pose a risk to life had forced them shut the beach race site.

"Do not attend site - stay indoors," RHL Activities said, and it urged people to "stay safe" during the storm.

Gareth Hockey, director of RHL Activities, said: "We are concerned the wind will get worse at 11:00, that is why we are asking you to stay in your hotels, stay in your campers and stay away from site.

"Your bikes are safe and we will still have security on the bikes irrespective of what the weather is."

He added that from Sunday morning at about 06:00 he was "going to need a whole load of bodies to rebuild the track," and asked anyone who could help to get in touch.

"It's going to be a big challenge at 06:00 in the morning, but I know as a group of people we can do this," Mr Hockey said.

An updated race schedule is due to be posted on the event's website between 15:00 and 17:00 BST on Saturday.

'Large waves'

An amber wind warning is in place for parts of northern and western Scotland, while a lower level yellow warning for wind has been issued for the rest of the UK until Saturday evening.

The Met Office said it is "likely that some coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities will be affected by spray and/or large waves."

A temporary six-mile racing circuit has been built on the sand south of the Grand Pier on Weston's beachfront.

The 125/250cc races at had been due to kick off at 10:30, followed by the vintage class at 11a:00 with the quads and sidecar races beginning at 13:00.

The event has been running for 42 years, and is the largest of its kind in the UK.