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Edwards claims final victory in 2013 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
 Matt
Edwards and Elliott Edmondson ended the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C Rally
Championship season in style with a hard fought win on the Trackrod Pre-87 and
Historic Cup (Friday/Saturday 27/28 September), beating Ford Escort Mk2 legend
Steve Bannister on his home Yorkshire stages.
The rally covered five stages on the North York moors and forests, with two
tests on Friday evening and three more on Saturday. Escort Mk2 driver Edwards
did all the hard work on Friday night's two stages in Staindale and Dalby,
opening a 30.7s overnight lead over Bannister in the Rob Smith Rallying Series
3.
"I did my homework," said Edwards. "I spent ages watching the route DVD,
studying the notes and triple-checking the light pods. We changed tyres between
the two stages too. I knew I could make a different in the dark, but I said I'd
have been happy to end the night 30 seconds behind Banner - not 30 seconds
ahead."
Bannister lost time with a stall, but admitted that he just couldn't get into
the rhythm, and was at a loss to understand why. He finished the night just 4.6s
ahead of Escort Mk1 crew Richard Hill and Pat Cooper, who were heading the
Capital Construction Series 2.
It was clear and surprisingly warm on Saturday, and with his handling now sorted
Bannister went on a charge in his favourite forests. He set fastest time on SS3,
Cropton, aided when Edwards dropped ten seconds with a half-spin. Bannister
reduced the gap again in SS4, Gale Rigg. But Edwards wasn't to be denied,
pushing hard in Langdale. While Bannister was fastest again, Edwards returned to
Pickering Showground the winner by 11.9s. For Edwards it marked a fine
turnaround from his last visit to Yorkshire, when his Escort Mk2's engine blew
on the opening stage of last year's Roger Albert Clark Rally.
"I nearly didn't come, to be honest," said Edwards. "Yorkshire hasn't been kind
to me in the past, but I knew I needed to confront my demons at some point.
Geoff Jones kindly gave me some tyres and helped me out, which is a big reason
why I could go, and it paid off. It's a rally man's ultimate ambition to beat
Banner in Yorkshire, and to be in that position is something I never thought
would be possible. I was mentally exhausted by the end of the final stage. It's
a unique experience and the highlight of my rallying career so far."
For his part, Bannister was gracious after a rare defeat: "It was much better
today," he said. "We had the odd scare here and there, but we struggled to catch
Matt. It was a really good fight for the whole event." Unfortunately, Hill's
fine efforts on Friday came to nothing when a mechanical failure put him out of
the third place he had held all event on the final stage in Langdale.
The beneficiaries of Hill's misfortune were local driver Tim Pearcey and his
Scottish co-driver Neil Shanks. They had ended Friday's leg in fifth behind
Tomas and Eurig Davies, having lost time with a fuel tank problem. "The foam
that sits at the bottom of the tank worked loose on stage one and was causing
the engine to misfire," explains Shanks. While the issue cleared for stage two,
Pearcey's team elected to change the tank overnight. They borrowed a replacement
unit, and worked until 1am to fit it. Their hard work was repaid when Pearcey
overtook Davies on SS4 to claim third. "Friday was a disaster, but we recovered
due to hard work by the team," said Pearcey. "The tank we borrowed didn't really
fit, so we had to bodge it in place a bit."
Warren Philliskirk and Nigel Hutchinson finished fifth in their Escort Mk2, with
Hutchinson admitting that Friday's night stages were a challenge. "We got caught
in Tim Pearcey's dust on the first test, which made it even harder to see," he
said. "We could do with a pair of 20-year younger eyes between us." James Potter
and Bob Duck, who were sixth of the WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship to finish,
also had visibility problems in their Escort Mk2, although these were caused by
Potter forgetting to switch his spotlights on for the second stage. "It's a
shame, because we had a brand new set of spotlights and they seemed very good,"
said Potter.
There was bad luck for rising star Ben Mellors and Alex Lee, who crashed heavily
on the fourth stage, Gale Rigg, in their Pinto-powered Escort Mk2. The stage was
stopped so that medical crews could attend, and Mellors was taken to hospital
with a broken ankle. He had been released from hospital by Saturday evening.
Maximum D3 points went to the Escort Mk2 of Paul Fry and Mike Steele.
With Hill's retirement, Porsche 911 crew Tim Mason and Graham Wild claimed
honours in Series 2 for cars built between 1968 and '74, finishing just over a
minute ahead of Vince Bristow and Tim Sayer's C2 winning Ford Escort Mexico.
Mason had his own mechanical dramas on the final stage. "We lost second gear on
the final stage, but we were able to nurse it home," said Mason. Close behind
Bristow were C3 winners David Kirby and Chris Rixon (Escort Mk1) after Terry
Cree and Richard Shores crashed out in their BMW 2002.
Steve Perez and John Millington had made a steady start in their Lancia Stratos,
but jumped up to third in class on Saturday's opening stage before a mechanical
problem sidelined him on the final test. Meanwhile, in C5 it was Barry Jordan
and James Gratton-Smith who won narrowly from Chris Browne and Ali
Cornwell-Browne.
John Everard/Mark Sharpley were the top WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
registered crew to finish in the Walker Diecastings Series 1 in their beautiful
Alfa Romeo Junior GT. "We lost the starter motor early in on Saturday, so we had
to push start it a few times," said Everard. "We had no service crew so we
didn't bother fixing it. The stages were superb."
Manx driver Stephen Higgins and Richard Simpson were second registered Series 1
finishers, and won Class B1 in their Saab 96 2 Stroke. They'd had a terrible
start when the only gear they could select on the start line of stage one was
reverse. They eventually found third and limped through the stage before the
problem fixed itself near the end of the test. "It was a bad start, but a
fantastic finish," said Higgins.
Peter Egerton and Alun Cook topped the Martin Jones Transmissions Series 4 for
FIA Appendix K cars in their Escort Mk2. Tom Coughtrie and Calvin Cooledge were
second in their similar machine after another of their increasingly impressive
runs.
The Trackrod Pre 87 and Historic Cup, organised by Trackrod Motor Club, ended
the inaugural WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship in style with a compact and
well-run event. The slick organisation won praise from competitors, who also
appreciated the lack of road mileage. The event also gave crews an early chance
to sample some of the Yorkshire stages that will form a key part of the Roger
Albert Clark Rally.
McCormack wins
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship thriller
 Marty
McCormack and Phil Clarke took their third win from four rallies in the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship after a superb battle on the Neath
Valley Stages (10 August).
After a fabulous day of competition, McCormack/Clarke headed the similar Ford
Escort Mk2 of Nick Elliott and Dave Price by just seven-tenths of a second after
44 flat out stage miles on superb stages in the Rheola and Margam complexes.
To show just how competitive things are at the head of the championship, Jason
Pritchard/Dale Furniss and Matt Edward/Sam Collis finished within 20 seconds of
McCormack. Other notable championship series winners included Terry Cree and
Richard Shores, who topped Series 2 in their BMW 2002 and Mark Spencer/Steve
Pugh who claimed Series 7 in their Ford Escort Mk2.
On a rally where every crew reported that the stages were in fantastic
condition, the lead battle ebbed and flowed and could easily have been won by
any of the top four crews. McCormack was immediately quick on the opening
10-miler in Rheola and went seven seconds clear of both Elliott and Pritchard
lost time with sideways moments. “We were a bit slow on SS1 with a couple of
silly mistakes,” said Pritchard, who dropped a critical 16s to the leader.
In SS2 McCormack dropped 14s with a big moment and after five miles in Margam
Elliott was 6.7s ahead at service. In SS4, the re-run of Rheola McCormack flew
to pull back 5.6s, and so Elliott went into the final stage, which linked Bryn
and Margam into one mighty 12-miler, ahead by just 1.1s. Incredibly, McCormack
was just 1.8s faster to grab victory by 0.7s as Pritchard made sure of third
with another mighty run.
 “We
pushed really hard and it was a tough battle,” said McCormack. “Marty must have
really been on it in Rheola to take five seconds,” added Elliott. However, both
Pritchard and Edwards had shown that they have the pace to match the big two.
The result assured McCormack another victory in the Rob Smith Rallying Series 3,
while Pritchard topped the Martin Jones Transmissions Series 4 for cars prepared
to FIA Appendix K regulations.
Next up was a big battle for fifth place as Terry Brown/Tomos Whittle headed
James Potter/Bob Duck and Will Nicholls/Nick Broom, while Jimmy McRae and
Pauline Gullick were not far adrift in a gaggle of Escort Mk2s.
Maximum points in class D3 went to an inspired performance by young Ben Mellors
and Alex Lee, who kept their Escort Mk2 within 10 seconds of the non-registered
Melvyn Evans/Gerwyn Barry. It took a big attack from Evans in the two long
afternoon stages to overcome Mellors’ early lead. Class D4 fell to the similar
car of James Stait/Glyn Thomas, who dropped time with an electrical gremlin in
the opening stage.
Making a welcome championship debut in class D2 was the Hillman Avenger of
Graham Thatcher and Robert James and they enjoyed a great run at the head of the
field. “Absolutely awesome,” said Thatcher of the fast and flowing stages.
In Series 7, for the open category cars, Mark Spencer and Steve Pugh had a great
run in their Ford Escort Mk2, despite some concerns about tyre wear. “That was
good fun, but a bit hairy on the tyres,” said Spencer. Meanwhile, running in
Series 6 for cars in close to historic specification was the Datsun 260Z of
Steve Perez/Sasha Heriot, with Perez using the event as a shakedown for the car
ahead of the Safari Classic in November. “It has been a really useful day,” said
Perez.
Victory in the Capital Construction Series 2 went to the BMW 2002 of Terry Cree
and Richard Shores who drove a storming rally to out-pace their rivals by over
20s. The Escort Mk1s of Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing and David Kirby/Chris Rixon
chased the BMW and Kirby showed tremendous pace to edge Slaughter back to third.
“The stages were the best I’ve done for a long time,” said Cree. Meanwhile, Nick
Jarvis and Craig Thorley won class C5. “The nicest stages I’ve driven on,” said
Jarvis after a clean run in his Ford Escort Mk1.
Engine dramas on the opening stage put the Escort Mk1 of Vince Bristow/Tim Sayer
out and left the way open for Robin Shuttleworth and Ron Roughead to win class
C2 again in their Escort Mk1 despite a detached throttle cable in Rheola 1.
The regular Walker Diecastings Series 1 pacesetters were out over the first leg
of stages. Fastest on the first run through Rheola, Ian Beveridge and Paul Price
retired their Volvo PV544 with axle damage, while engine dramas sidelined the
Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis and Graham Wride near the end of the second stage.
Instead, the Singer Chamois of Chris and Jo Tooze took maximum points in the
category despite a day-long problem with the car’s charging system. “The stages
were great,” said Tooze. Top of class B2 was the Alfa Romeo of John Everard/Mark
Sharpley. “The whole rally has been superb,” said Everard.
The WWRS R.A.C. Championship continues with round five, the Red Kite Stages on
Sunday 8 September.
Full results are available at
www.amcrallyresults.co.uk
Neath Valley Stages Final Results
Full results are also available at
www.amcrallyresults.co.uk
Neath Valley set for WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship round four
 The
classic Wales Rally GB stages of South Wales will be the setting for the Neath
Valley Stages, round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship (Saturday 10 August).
With 14 models of car from 11
manufacturers and a vast array of quality drivers, including five-time British
Rally Champion Jimmy McRae, it is another superb entry for the championship. The
historic cars will run first on the road, competing over prime gravel stages in
the Rheola and Margam forest complexes. The very compact route, based at Rheola,
covers 45 stages miles and just over 60 road miles and the forest tracks are
reported as being in prime condition.
The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club
has developed the R.A.C. Championship, which focuses on historic rally cars
complying with MSA and FIA historic regulations. But, significantly, it also
opens up the chance for the next generation of cars to join the historic
fraternity.
The 2013 championship is running over
six one-day gravel rallies in England, Scotland and Wales. The championship
caters for cars from MSA historic Categories One, Two and Three as well as cars
prepared to FIA Appendix K. Additional classes accommodate cars built up to the
end of 1986 as well as other pre ’87 cars that do not fully comply with historic
regulations.
Heading the main historic field away
will be championship leaders Marty McCormack/Phil Clarke and Nick Elliott/Dave
Price in a battle of the Ford Escort Mk2s and their respective pace in these
forests will be a talking point of the rally. Elliott has more experience than
McCormack of the area, but neither crew is on what can be described as familiar
territory.
Lining up against McCormack and Elliott
will be another leading contender in the form of the Viking Motorsport prepared
Ford Escort Mk2 of Jason Pritchard/Dale Furniss, who may elect to run in the
Martin Jones Transmissions Series 4 for cars prepared to FIA Appendix K
regulations. Whichever category Pritchard enters, he will be a very big rival to
McCormack and Elliott in overall terms, having shown increasingly strong pace in
recent rounds.
McCormack and Elliott head the entry
for the Rob Smith Rallying Series 3, but a gaggle of very quick Escort Mk2s will
be in pursuit, including the cars of Terry Brown/Tomos Whittle, James Potter/Bob
Duck, Will Nicholls/Nick Broom, Warren Philliskirk/Paul Wakely, Peter
Slights/James Whitaker, Jimmy McRae/Pauline Gullick, Tim Freeman/tba, Phil and
Mick Squires and event co-sponsor Jonathan Brace with Jonny Evans. All of them
add fantastic quality to another very strong field for the WWRS R.A.C.
Championship.
Class D4 within Series 3 promises to be
very interesting with the addition of an ex-Russell Brookes Sunbeam Lotus for
Irish ace Owen Murphy and highly experienced co-driver James O’Brien. Although
lacking experience in these forests, Murphy’s pace in Ireland suggests he could
be a big contender. Similarly mounted are former BHRC champion James Stait and
Glyn Thomas on Stait’s first outing of 2013.
A tremendous seven-strong entry for
Class D3 makes it the best D3 field of the season in British historic rallying
so far and the addition of asphalt ace Melvyn Evans in his Escort Mk2 adds
further quality. Evans, who is an infrequent competitor on gravel, will go up
against championship pacesetters Ben Mellors/Alex Lee (Escort Mk2) and the Opel
Kadett of Peter Smith/Graham Wild. More rapid Pinto-powered Escorts are entered
for Paul Fry/Mike Steele, Duncan Waite/Keith Garton and Ben Friend/Jonathan
Jackson.
The Ford Escort Mk1 of Nick
Jarvis/Craig Thorley should set the standard in the Capital Construction Series
2 (1968-74), where an excellent entry of 2-litre Pinto-powered Escort Mk1s will
take on the BMW 2002 of Terry Cree/Richard Shores. The Escort pack includes the
ever-spectacular Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing and David Kirby/Chris Rixon.
The WWRS R.A.C. Championship has
pioneered a move to allow the 1600cc cars from Series 2 and 3 to run first on
the road along with the Series 1 cars and this trial will be repeated on the
Neath Valley Stages. The Ford Escort Mk1s of Vince Bristow/Tim Sayer and Robin
Shuttleworth/Ronnie Roughead will run at the very head of the rally with the
flying Bristow set to be first on the road for his debut rally this season in
the Escort. Also running in this group will be the Hillman Avenger of Graham
Thatcher/Robert James.
In the Walker Diecastings Series 1, the
Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis/Graham Wride will set the benchmark in an
encouraging field of pre ’68 cars. In hot pursuit will be Ian Beveridge/Paul
Price (Volvo PV544) and John Everard/Mark Sharpley in the lovely Alfa Romeo GT.
Now rebuilt after rolling on the Tour of Hamsterley, the Alfa will be a real
crowd pleaser and will be chased by Les Allfrey/Sasha Herriott (Mini Cooper),
Chris and Jo Tooze (Singer Chamois) and welcome converts Callum Barney/Ron
Channon (Ford Cortina GT).
The Neath Valley Stages is organised by
the Three Counties Car Club. For more details about the event please visit
www.threecountiescarclub.co.uk.
Stunning entry for WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round two
A truly sensational entry will line up this weekend for the SG Petch Tour of Hamsterley
(Sunday 28 April), the second round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship. With Steve Bannister, Marty McCormack and Nick Elliott at the head
of the historic field, it is going to be fiercely competitive and with a total
historic entry of 65 cars, it is one of the best fields ever seen in the north
of England.
The quality of entry runs right through the field as over 50 crews from the WWRS
R.A.C. Rally Championship are joined by a strong contingent from the Motoscope
Northern Historic Rally Championship. Add in a quality 26-car field of modern
cars, and fans will be in for a superb day in the Hamsterley forest complex in
County Durham.
The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club has developed the R.A.C. championship,
which focuses on historic rally cars complying with MSA historic regulations.
But, significantly, it is also opening up the chance for the next generation of
cars to join the historic fraternity.
The championship is running over seven one-day gravel rallies in England,
Scotland and Wales. The championship caters for cars from MSA historic
Categories One, Two and Three as well as cars prepared to FIA Appendix K.
Additional classes accommodate cars built up to the end of 1986 as well as other
pre ’87 cars that do not fully comply with historic regulations.
The big talking point of the rally will be the continuation of the fabulous
contest between the Ford Escort Mk2s of McCormack and Bannister from last year’s
Roger Albert Clark Rally. McCormack narrowly won that contest, but Bannister
will be determined to level the score in Hamsterley. Louise Sutherland partners
Bannister this time around. When they tackled a stage in Hamsterley on the
November event, Bannister beat McCormack by a single second, so it is going to
be very close.
However, Elliott and Dave Price will head north as the current championship
leaders after a thrilling victory over McCormack on the season-opening Mid Wales
Stages. Elliott does not know Hamsterley very well at all, but will be right in
the thick of what promises to be an epic contest. In fact, his only prior
experience of Hamsterley was in the dark and snow of the 2010 Roger Albert Clark
Rally.
Of course, this is certainly not only a three-way battle in the Rob Smith
Rallying Series 3 and it is another Northern Ireland crew of Ryan Barrett and
Barry Ferris who will be leading the chase of the top three. Add in more very
quick Escort Mk2s for Jason Pritchard/Dale Furniss, Will Onions/Dave Williams,
Matthew Robinson/Nigel Hutchinson, Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks, Matt Edwards/Sam
Collis and Rob Smith/Alun Cook and the spectacle is going to be stunning. But
that’s only the top 10 crews and many more quick crews pack out the entry.
Pritchard is running his car in the Martin Jones Transmissions Series 4 for cars
prepared to FIA Appendix K regulations and his speed on the Mid Wales, first
time out in an Escort MK2, showed that he is going to be a major contender.
While the top-flight Escort Mk2s dominate Class D5, the superb Vauxhall Chevette
of Steve Magson/Geoff Atkinson joins the championship to head class D4 and is
the only non-Escort in the top 30.
At the top of Class D3, the Opel Kadett of Peter Smith/Patrick Walsh will go
head to head with the Ford Escort Mk2 of Ben Mellors/Alex Lee, while crews like
Alan Hughes/Richard Wardle and Paul Fry/Mike Steele could get into the mix in
their Escort Mk2s.
In the Capital Construction Series 2 (1968-74), championship newcomers Richard
Hill and Pat Cooper join the contest in their Ford Escort Mk1 and will be quick,
but they face a big challenge from the similar car of round one winners Chris
Browne and his wife Ali Cornwell-Browne. Another front-running crew joining
Class C5 are Simon Tysoe and Cliffy Simmons in their Escort Mk1 and Nick
Jarvis/Alan Carfrae will also be quick.
Meanwhile, the battle for Class C3 will be just as hard-fought. Iwan and Aled
Rees started with a maximum score on the Mid Wales in their Pinto-powered Escort
Mk1 and will go up against the similar car of Dick Slaughter as well as the
potent BMW 2002 of Terry Cree/Richard Shores. In Class C2 for the 1600cc cars,
the Escort Mk1 of Robin Shuttleworth and Ron Roughead is the car to beat.
In the Walker Diecastings Series 1 for the pre ’68 cars, the field will be
headed by the Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis/Graham Wride and they will set a
cracking pace. Leading the chase will be the gorgeous Alfa Romeo Junior of John
Everard/Mark Sharpley and the Singer Chamois of Chris and Jo Tooze. Pete Gunson
and Jonny Haynes field their Lotus Cortina, while the wonderful Saab 96 of Steve
Higgins completes the R.A.C. field.
The Holton Homes Series 5 caters for cars built up to 1987 and is very much a
family affair in Hamsterley as the Toyota Corollas of John Midgley/Geoff Maybank
and Will Midgley/Paul Slingsby enact a father versus son battle. Meanwhile,
Series 7 for open pre ’87 cars is going to be a contest between the Ford Escort
Mk2s of Mark Spencer/Steve Pugh and Robert Cholmondeley/Dave Evans.
The Tour of Hamsterley is organised by Stockton & District Motor Club in
association with Teesside Motor Sport Group. More details at:
www.tourofhamsterley.co.uk
Elliott wins first WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship round
 Nick
Elliott and Dave Price were the big winners on the opening round of the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, yesterday’s Rally Marketing
Mid-Wales Stages (Sunday 3 March).
The Cheltenham crew took victory by just 3.7s after a glorious battle of the
Ford Escort Mk2s with Marty McCormack and Phil Clarke. “He’s too quick,” said
Elliott of his rival after a battle that ebbed and flowed across five epic
stages. Into third came Ryan Barrett to make it two drivers from Northern
Ireland in the top three.
With records crowds of spectators packing into the stages and a real buzz around
the opening event of the WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship season, it could not
have been a better start to the championship. A fabulous atmosphere among the
crews and fierce competition on some of the finest gravel stages in the country
was a truly winning combination.
Elliott and McCormack went head-to-head for the first time and Elliott thought
that an overshoot on SS2 Myherin had wrecked his day. But he battled back and
took time from McCormack on the 16-mile Hafren stage. McCormack flew the final
Pikes Peak stage and clawed the gap back to less than four seconds after a
wonderful contest. However, victory went to Elliott both in overall terms and in
the Rob Smith Rallying Series Three.
On a day when the pace was ferocious, Barrett and Barry Ferris had a great run
on unfamiliar stages to take third as just 20 seconds covered the next five
Escort Mk2s. In among them should have been Geoff Jones and Andrew Edwards, but
a first stage puncture cost them a chance of rivalling Barrett for third.
Instead, Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies, Jason Pritchard/Dale Furniss, Will
Onions/Dave Williams and Kevin Davies/Eurig Davies packed out the top seven,
with Pritchard going exceptionally well on his first rally in an Escort.
Fresh from contesting the previous day’s Malcolm Wilson Rally in their Ford
Escort, Peter Smith and Patrick Walsh won class D3 in their Opel Kadett. “It was
all good until the last stage when we lost the rear brakes,” said Smith.
However, they had been chasing the Escort Mk2 of Guy Woodcock/Cliffy Simmons
until cam belt failure ended Woodcock’s rally on the penultimate stage. Lynden
Jones and Bryan Glass won class D2 in their Talbot Sunbeam Ti.
In the Capital Construction Series Two, Chris Browne and Ali Cornwell-Browne
drove a mighty rally to take the spoils. “I’ve been smiling all day,” said
Browne as they finished clear of class C3 winners Iwan and Aled Rees in their
Escort Mk1. However, the Welsh crew had to push hard to stay ahead of class
rivals Dick Slaughter and Geoff Dearing, with only five seconds in at the
finish.
Robin Shuttleworth and Ron Roughead had a trying day on the way to taking class
C2 in their Escort Mk1. Starter motor failure forced them to keep the car
running or bump start it through the day and a spin or overshoot could have
ended their rally.
The new Holton Homes-backed ‘pre ’87 Series Five fell to the BMW 325 of Simon
Wallis/Graham Wride, who reported a trouble free run on fantastic stages, while
Nev Jones and Chris Davies bagged the Martin Jones Transmissions Series Four for
FIA Appendix K cars. In Series Seven, for other pre ’87 cars, Dylan Davies and
Llion Williams came home in front their Escort Mk1, though Mark Spencer and
Steve Pugh chased hard in their Mk2 and could have been even closer had they
found more suitable rubber for the early stages.
“The car was as good as gold and the driver was average,” said Alfa Romeo Junior
driver John Everard after taking victory in the Walker Diecastings Series One.
Their main rivals were Chris and Jo Tooze in their Singer Chamois, but an
electrical gremlin stopped the engine four times in Hafren and they collected a
maximum. However, Tooze was more than pleased with his first event in the car.
“That’s one of the best days on gravel I’ve ever had,” he said.
Sensational entry for opening R.A.C Rally Championship round
 A
truly sensational entry has been assembled for the opening round of the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C Rally Championship, the Red Kite Stages (Sunday 20
January), with the field headed by Julian Reynolds, Mark Higgins and Nick
Elliott.
More than 50 registered crews will line up in Llandovery for the first of seven
rallies and the quality of historic entry is being described as the best ever
seen for a British championship event. The final count shows 29 BDA/BDG engined
Escorts in a field that also includes cars from Volvo, BMW, Hillman, Opel,
Austin, Alfa Romeo, Sunbeam and Triumph.
Heading the field away will be reigning BHRC champions Julian Reynolds and
Patrick Walsh in their Ford Escort Mk2. Reynolds has won the modern section of
the Red Kite three times and the historic section twice, but it is still
uncertain if he will be there when the rally starts at 9am on Sunday. They are
attending the MSA Night of Champions in London on Saturday night and face a race
against time to get back to West Wales.
Three-time British Rally Champion Mark Higgins and co-driver Ieuan Thomas are
second away in the main field in an Escort Mk2 from Historic Rallysport, with
the flying Nick Elliott and Dave Price next up. In a stunning entry, quick
Series 3 cars pack out the top 20 in the hands of drivers like Kevin Davies,
Will Onions, Thomas Davies, Terry Brown, Rob Smith, Alan Walker and Seamus
O’Connell.
New to the historic arena for the event will be Jason Pritchard in a Viking
Motorsport Escort Mk2, while Matt Edwards has worked non-stop for the last six
weeks to get his Escort Mk2 ready after a first stage retirement on the Roger
Albert Clark Rally. Variety in Series 3 is provided by the Sunbeam Lotus of Guy
Anderson and the Triumph TR7 V8 of Peter Jones, while Guy Woodcock heads the
Pinto-powered Escorts Mk2s in Series 3. More Escort Mk2s will contest Series 4
for cars running to FIA Appendix K regulations, including those of Barry Jordan
and Neville Jones.
Among the Escort Mk1s at the head of Series 2 is the car of Richard Hill, while
the Pinto-powered cars include Dick Slaughter, Neal James and Nick Jarvis who
will go up against the Opel Kadett of Peter Smith. From the 1600cc ranks comes
the rapid Escort Mk1 of Robin Shuttleworth.
At the very front of the rally will be the pre ’67 cars in Series 1, with Ian
Beveridge/Paul Price first away in their Volvo PV 544. Leading the chase will be
Clive King/Bob Ward (Mini Cooper) and John Everard/Mark Sharpley (Alfa Romeo).
A major feature of the new championship are the classes for other pre ’87 cars
and Series 5 is set to grow in popularity as the season develops. Simon Wallis
and Graham Wride lead the way in their BMW 325, while Series 7 caters for all
pre ’87 cars regardless of specification. Ben (son of former British champion
David) Llewellin will make his rallying debut in a Ford Escort Mk2, and will
line up against more Escorts for Mark Spencer, Roger Taylor and Robert
Cholmondeley. Expected to join the Series 7 field are the very rapid Matthew
Robinson (Escort Mk2) and Dylan Davies (Escort Mk1).
The Red Kite Stages is organised by Amman and District Motor Club. More details
are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
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