A Kirkby man has paid a record breaking £234,000 for a tracksuit on popular auction website 'e-bay'. The tracksuit was one of the first La Coste tracksuits off the production line and comes with its own glass frame which holds the tracksuit for display purposes.

Billy Windsor from Southdene Kirkby bought the tracksuit after over 4500 bidders took part in the e-bay auction which was only open for 48hrs. Billy told Kirkby Times that he had stayed awake for the entire 48 hours bidding online using his home computer. "The auction was fast and furious" said Billy speaking in the Pingwood Public House, "The auction opened and I bid the first £1, but after that the auction went insane, with a virtual war between hundreds of Scouser's desperate to get the prized tracksuit". During the auction, Billy had to re mortgage his home plus cash in savings for a new car as well as selling his BMW. Billy told us that "I even sold my dog in the last hour of the auction".

After the auction Billy received an email confirming he had won the auction. "I broke down and wept" he confessed "It was a special moment, I felt like life had got some meaning back again, like I was special". Billy quickly arranged for the tracksuit to be flown from the Lacoste Museum in France and received delivery the next day. "I was cut up with emotion" he stated, "I can remember the feeling I had when my first daughter was born, but that was nothing compared to this" Billy shed tears as he opened the parcel and literally broke down when he opened up the box to reveal the Tracksuit in its glass case.

Once word got round Kirkby, thousands of people made there way to Southdene for a glimpse of the Tracksuit. It was Billy's wife who decided to set up a 'La Coste Grotto', and she cleared out the garden shed, lined it with 'posh curtains, (£40 from argos), and hung the framed Lacoste original tracksuit up, with a small uplight to tastefully highlight the Tracksuit. Billy told us that he wept again when he first saw the Lacoste Grotto. "It was fu**** beautiful" he told us. "The missus made a lovely job of it"

Kirkby Times put the question to the people - and asked them what they thought of this Lacoste Grotto.

"Ah hey, did yeh see it like? It wuz custy kidda, sorted, like. Plus, with the Lacoste Grotto like, I get, like, loads of fares mate, like, so I can buy, like, another Lacoste Tracky myself like, laughing innit?" Alan Allen, Kirkby Cabby and dedicated Lacoste tracksuit wearer. Aged 56.

"It was sound. I wish I had it to wear, I'd be like, it's hard to describe it innit? Can I say hello to my mates? Hiyyyaaa!!!!!!" … (Ed, sorry, the list of 1258 names was too long) Daniel Angelica Daniels aged 13, hanging round by the shops, Westvale.

"I'll tell you what, it was worth every penny, I'll never forget the Lacoste Grotto ever." Tony Chesterton, Care Worker and Armed Robber, Tower Hill.

"It wuz boss mate, dead sound, the biz like. Felt like a bit religious and that like, not like a laugh, more like a bit serious. Do you know warra mean like?" Tony Feltworth, sociology student, Northwood.

"I thought it was sound, dead sound, sound as a pound." Terry Terralds, Bricklayer, Towerhill.

"Ar ay la, They do make a good tracky though, don't they though, eh mate?" Dessie Dezzer Desmonds Security Guard, Gym User and dedicated follower of La Coste, aged 44, Southdene.

"Well my feller had been five times so bought me along with our baby Nettola. I thought it was great, and a really nice family day out. We only live 2 doors away." Denise Dylan, mother of 3, Southdene.

"This Illegal Structure and the subsequent crowds are a nuisance to the community. I just don't see what the fuss is about. These people are ignorant peasants and would do better to get themselves a suit like me and my mates in Knowsley Council. Tracksuits are for losers. These people are chavs. I'd hang the lot of them. Stalin had the right idea you know!" Local Councillor: Ted Grannel Back to Top