On Wednesday June 13th at the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, ISPCC Childline ambassador and X Factor icon Louis Walsh got to grips with a Lamborghini Diablo and a BMW i8 along Cannonball founder Alan Bannon, Zane Blount Ronan (7) and Amelia Kavanagh (5) to announce that Childline will be the official charity partner for Cannonball 2018. This is a very special year for Ireland’s supercar spectacle as the 10th anniversary of the event approaches and all Cannonballers reunite for the ultimate supercar road-trip!
Cannonball, the action-packed supercar spectacle, is set to roll on September 7th – 9th with over 190,000 people expected to line the streets all around Ireland. Top mark cars including McLaren, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Porsche, Maseratti, Rolls Royce and Bentley will blaze a trail through Dublin, Cavan, Donegal, Mayo, Spanish Point, Blarney, Cork, Tramore, Kilkenny and Wexford taking in the Wild Atlantic Way, Hidden Heartlands and Ireland’s Ancient East.
Cannonball has already raised €960,000 for Irish charities and this year, the milestone of €1,000,000 raised for charities will certainly be broken. The official charity of Cannonball 2018 will be Ireland’s 24-hour listening service for children and young people, Childline. The Childline service answers over 380,000 contacts from children and young people across Ireland each year who may feel lonely, hurt or anxious, or who may simply wish to chat about their day. Childline volunteers listen to, support and empower children and young people, even when it may seem as though there is no-one else to listen. A call to Childline can change a child’s life.
Spectators will get up close and personal with 190 of the finest cars on the planet and enjoy the unique festival atmosphere that Cannonball is renowned for. The Brazilian Dancers will bring all the glamour of carnival and the Monster Truck will have fire breathers and some great tunes to get the party started and some great free giveaways. Doc and Marty McFly will be Back to the Future this year in the fully kitted out Delorean and the notorious NYPD, German Polizei, Fr Willie and colourful Cannonballers in crazy costumes add to the melee. From Spiderman to Star Wars, Cat Woman to Wonder Woman, Cheerleaders to Charlie’s Angels, Batman, The Joker and more, it is a totally unique free family day out.
Cannonball, sponsored by Hone, the revolutionary new renewable energy provider, is the brainchild of Kildare businessman Alan Bannon. The benefit to the host towns for this event is estimated at €2,567,000 per year but the last 12 months have been pretty exceptional for Cannonball. It went to America for the first time in October as well as making headlines in Scotland, Wales and across the Continent with the excitement and spectacle that Cannonball is renowned for. Bannon hopes to grow his event business in the US over the next twelve months and is also looking at new markets to bring supercar enthusiasts to Ireland to enjoy this very unique event. A BUGATTI CHIRON joined Cannonball for both his Grand Highlands and Lions Trip this year. This was a first for any organised road trip worldwide. For Cannonball to host this breath-taking automotive masterpiece, that came with its own bodyguard, was high praise indeed and there are high hopes it will make its debut appearance in Ireland for the 10th Anniversary along with some other hyper cars never in Ireland before.
Celebrity Cannonballers include Boyzone’s Shane Lynch who is a firm devotee and even has the logo tattooed on his leg! Other household names include former Miss World Rosanna Davison and husband Wes Quirke, Glenda Gilson, Rachel Allen, Kathryn Thomas, Miriam O’Callaghan, Georgia Salpa, Emma Quinlan, Holly Carpenter, Roz Purcell, Nadia Forde, Ryan Tubridy, Mick Galway, Gerald Keane, Andy Quirke, Nicky Byrne, Colm Hayes, Ryan Thomas, Dirty Sanchez, Jenny Green, former Taoiseach Enda Kenny and former President Mary Robinson. This is the year for milestones reached, records broken, the absolute wow factor and for all Cannonballers to reunite for the ultimate supercar road-trip! See www.cannonball.ie for further details, routes and events.
