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Press release – 21 August 2015
Changes to asphalt tyre
regulations
The Motor Sports Association
(MSA) has announced regulation changes that widen the range of eligible tyres
for use on asphalt events in historic stage rallying. The changes take effect
immediately, ahead of the next round of the 2015 Mintex MSA British Historic
Rally Championship, the Rally Isle of Man Classicagh (17-19 September).
The issue of the
availability of tyres meeting existing regulations instigated a meeting of the
chairmen of Historic and Rallies Committees, the Stage Rally Tyre Working Group,
representatives from the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, tyre
manufacturers/suppliers and the MSA Executive. Proposals from that meeting have
now been approved for immediate implementation.
ob Jones, MSA Chief
Executive, said: “This regulation change will give competitors a wider choice of
suitable and eligible tyres, and will make the administration and application of
the regulations easier to understand and apply. Mindful of the need to address
this fundamental issue, we have expedited this for immediate implementation
ahead of the final asphalt round of this year’s Mintex MSA British Historic
Rally Championship, the Rally Isle of Man.”
BHRC championship manager
Colin Heppenstall said: “We are delighted that this situation has been resolved
for the good of the competitors. I’d particularly like to thank John Cooper and
Alan Walker from the BHRC team for all their work on this. We can now look
forward to some great competition on the asphalt roads of the Isle of Man next
month.”
The new regulations are as
follows:
Wheels, Tyres and Brakes
49.10.1. Wheels and tyres
must be fitted in compliance with L3., 49.6. except as follows, 48.5.1.,
48.5.2., 48.5.4., 48.5.6-8. and 48.5.10.-14. and;
49.10.2. For Categories
One, Two and Three the diameter of wheel may not differ from that originally
fitted by more than 10%.
49.10.3. For Categories
One, Two and Three the complete wheels (flange + rim + tyre) are free providing
that they are housed within the permitted bodywork and that they do not exceed
the following widths in relation to the cubic capacity of the car:
Up to 1150 cc: 7in
Over 1150cc and up to 1600
cc: 8in
Over 1600 cc: 9in.
49.10.4. For Category Four,
and vehicles competing under 49.2., wheels and tyres must comply fully with FIA
Appendix K Regulations for Cars in Rallies.
49.10.5. The fitting of a
dual master cylinder or any other type of device providing a simultaneous action
on all four wheels and divided action on two wheels is permitted, provided the
original brake pedal and pivot point are used and they cannot be adjusted to
affect brake balance by either the Driver or the Co-Driver when normally seated
in the car.
Loss of Service - 29 July 2015
Those of you, who follow the West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, will know that sadly it recently lost one of
its greatest supporters in Steve Higgins.
Steve sadly passed away in June very suddenly and
this has left the event trying to fill the void left behind.
He was responsible for editing and updating the
website and as such we have been struggling to obtain access to all the required
information in order to keep the service working. This has inevitably led to a
loss of service for a while, but we hope that we are able to have the site back
to something like normal shortly. In the meantime we are attempting to keep all
updates on our official Facebook page
Malcolm Higgins
Press release – 27 July 2015
Burton claims WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round six
Phil Burton and Mal Capstick
won again in the sixth round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship, the Harry Flatters Rally (Sunday 26 July).
Despite it being his first visit to the Epynt ranges and his first asphalt rally
for 22 years, Burton set a cracking pace in his Ford Escort Mk2 to win
convincingly as persistent rain hit the event. “We set off level headed and
slowly built our speed,” said Burton, who made excellent progress and finished
ninth overall in the modern event.
The victory for Burton and Capstick has set them up as strong contenders for the
overall R.A.C. title when the season concludes on the Trackrod Rally in
Yorkshire in September.
With the Toyota Starlet of local crew Layton Waters and Tudor Jenkins posting an
early retirement, second place among the R.A.C. contenders went to Barry
Stevenson-Wheeler and John Pickavance, another crew making their Epynt debut.
“That was enjoyable,” said Stevenson-Wheeler. “Our aim was to do nothing daft
and try to learn the place a bit for the next time.”
Among the historic crews in the R.A.C. Championship, Grahame Standen and Jane
Edgington (Ford Escort Mk2) were expected to set the pace, but slid off on wet
grass and hit a large boulder. Though there was considerable damage to the car,
the crew members were okay.
Instead, Malcolm Bayliss and Siobhan Pugh battled home despite worries over the
gearbox in their Escort Mk1. It was the first experience of asphalt rallying for
the Welsh crew, with the prime target being to finish and pick up a good haul of
championship points.
The Harry Flatters Rally was organised by Brecon Motor Club.
Press
release – 22 May 2015
WWRS R.AC. Championship goes back to Wales
 The
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship heads backs to Wales for round
four, the Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 30 May).
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, runs in
parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed at
clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category. With
containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a six-tyre
rule on all events.
For the return to Wales after the foray to Kielder a month ago, crews will
tackle 45 classic stages miles in the Crychan region. Heading the R.A.C.
contenders from the championship’s Open Category are Phil Burton and Mal
Capstick in their Ford Escort Mk2 and they will surely set the pace once more
despite limited knowledge of these stages. Ranged against the Lancastrian crew
will be Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance (Ford Escort Mk2) and Welsh crew
Layton Waters/Tudor Jenkins (Toyota Starlet). Joining the Open Category for this
event in a Toyota Corolla will be former Category 1 contender Graham Waite with
Mike Reynolds co-driving.
James Potter and Bob Duck head the historic R.A.C. crews in their Escort Mk2 and
will go up against championship newcomers Gary Cooper/Jon Riley (Sunbeam Lotus)
in Category 3.
Among the 1600cc Category 3 cars are Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington (Ford Escort
Mk2) and David Hopkins/Tony Vart (Talbot Sunbeam). Standen has been particularly
impressive this season and will be aiming to get his title bid back on track
after an early retirement in Kielder.
Category 2 historic cars chasing R.A.C. points will be led by the Escort Mk1 of
Aziz Tejpar/Phil Sandham. In the 1600cc class are the Ford Escorts of Malcolm
Bayliss/Siobhan Pugh and Stuart Cariss/Linda Cariss, but the pace will surely be
set by the Escort Mk1 of Vince Bristow/Tim Sayer. They’ve had a disastrous start
to the season with two non-finishes, so will head to Builth Wells determined to
get to the finish. If they do finish, they will certainly humble some faster
cars.
The rally will be based at the Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells. The first
car will start at 8.30am and return to the finish at around 3pm.
The Severn Valley Stages is organised by Midland Manor Motor Club. For more
details about the event please visit
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Championship newsletter: 4/2015 – 30 April 2015
Welcome to newsletter 4 for the 2015 WWRS RAC Rally Championship
 Congratulations
go to Phil Burton and Mal Capstick for heading the R.A.C. contenders on the
Pirelli Carlisle Rally to move into the overall championship lead. We also
congratulate the other category and class winners and commiserate with those who
did not reach the finish. It is clear that the weather led to stage conditions
that were not usual for the Kielder region. Our thanks are due to Brian Kinghorn
and his team for a warm reception in Carlisle.
Obviously the recent cancellation of the Neath Valley Stages has given us a
longer summer break than expected, but we still have some superb events to look
forward to over the balance of 2015, starting with the Severn Valley Stages on
30 May.
Of course, the whole issue of running order is a major
topic in historic rallying at the moment. I do not think there will be any
change for 2015, but I am in regular dialogue with the MSA to see what is
possible for 2016 and beyond.
Entries are now open for round five, the DMACK Carlisle
Stages (Saturday 13 June). Entries are filling fast, with 30 received in the
first week, so please don’t delay in you want to secure a place.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Friday 30 April
2015
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
Championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
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Press
release – 28 April 2015
Awards confirmed for WWRS RAC Round three
The special award winners for the third round of the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship have been announced following the Pirelli Carlisle
Rally (Saturday 25 April).
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, runs in
parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed at
clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category. With
containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a six-tyre
rule on all events.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ award, which is a set of axle brake pads from Mintex,
went to brothers Simon and Alister Crook. They are dedicated championship
supporters in their Open Category Opel Manta and were pushing hard in the second
stage when caught out by a deceptive crest. Sadly the Manta, which had been
rebuilt after an accident on the Red Kite, was damaged once more.
Husband and wife crew Stuart and Linda Cariss collected the Fuchs Lubricants
product award for the ‘Best Improvement on Seeding’. They took their Ford Escort
Mk1 to eighth place in the National B section of the rally from a start number
of 93.
The Pirelli Carlisle Stages was organised by the Cumberland Sporting Car Club.
The 2015 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship continues with round
four, the Severn Valley Stages on Saturday 30 May.
Press
release – 25 April 2015
Burton blitzes WWRS RAC Rally Championship round three
 Phil
Burton and Mal Capstick were the big winners on the third round of the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, today’s Pirelli Carlisle Stages
(Saturday 25 April).
Burton was in fighting form to be top R.A.C. finisher in his Open Category Ford
Escort Mk2, while James Potter and Bob Duck were leading historic finishers in
their Ford Escort Mk2. Barry Stevenson-Wheeler and John Pickavance were third
overall and second in the Open Category.
On a day of tough conditions and high attrition, Stuart and Linda Cariss did
well to be first Category 2 crew home as notable non-finishers included Grahame
Standen/Jane Edgington (Escort Mk2), Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta), Tim
Mason/Graham Wild (Porsche 911) and Bob Bean/Malcolm Smithson (Escort Mk1).
Category winners were:
Category 1: no finishers
Category 2: Stuart Cariss/Linda Cariss (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: James Potter/Bob Dick (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Phil Burton/Mal Capstick (Ford Escort Mk2)
The Pirelli Carlisle Stages was organised by the Cumberland Sporting Car Club. A
more detailed event report will be circulated during Monday (27 April).
Press release – 21
April 2015
More awards for the R.A.C and BHRC Championships
 Four
competitors from the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will each win a £500 discount on
the entry fee for this year’s Roger Albert Clark Rally (27-29 November).
The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club will
present the winners of Category 1, Category 2 and Category 3 in the BHRC as well
as the overall champion in the R.A.C. Rally Championship with a £500 voucher to
be used against the entry fee for the November event.
The vouchers will significantly reduce the entry
fee for the 12th running of the Roger Albert Clark Rally and underline the
strong links between the championships and the rally.
Championships and rally manager Colin Heppenstall
said he was pleased to confirm the awards: “The club wants to recognise the
leading crews from both championships,” said Heppenstall. “This award will give
four crews a significant discount on the entry fee for this year’s Roger Albert
Clark Rally.”
Full details of the 2015 Roger Albert Clark Rally
will be announced shortly.
Press release – 20 April
2015
WWRS R.A.C. Championship heads for Kielder
 The
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship heads north to Kielder for
round three, the Pirelli Carlisle Rally (Saturday 25 April).
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, runs in
parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed at
clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category. With
containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a six-tyre
rule on all events.
After an eight-week break since round two, crews will gather in Carlisle for a
new-look event that covers nearly 50 stage miles in just four and a half hours
of competition in the central block of Kielder forest. Once the run out from
Carlisle is complete, the route covers six special stages and just 25 road miles
before the finish at Kielder Castle.
Heading the R.A.C. contenders in the championship’s Open Category are Phil
Burton and Mal Capstick in their Ford Escort Mk2. Now back on more familiar
territory, they will surely set the pace against regular rivals Simon and
Alister Crook (Opel Manta 400) and Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance (Ford
Escort Mk2).
James Potter and Bob Duck head the historic crews in their Escort Mk2 and will
go up against championship newcomers Gary Cooper/Jon Riley (Sunbeam Lotus) in
Category 3. Among the 1600cc Category 3 cars are Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington
(Ford Escort Mk2), Keith Davison/Henry Richardson (Chrysler Avenger) and David
Hopkins/Tony Vart (Talbot Sunbeam). Standen has been particularly impressive
this season and will be aiming for some more giant-killing in Kielder.
Category 2 historic cars chasing R.A.C. points will be led by the Porsche 911 of
Tim Mason/Graham Wild and the Escort Mk1 of Aziz Tejpar/Phil Sandham. In the
1600cc class are the Ford Escorts of Malcolm Bayliss/Siobhan Pugh and Stuart
Cariss/Linda Cariss, but the pace will be set by the Escort Mk1 of Vince
Bristow/Tim Sayer. They had a disastrous start to the season on the Mid Wales
when engine problems sidelined the car on the way to the opening stage, so they
deserve better fortune in Kielder.
In Category 1, the pace will be set by the Lotus Cortinas of Bob Bean/Malcolm
Smithson and they are joined by the Saab 96 of Stephen Higgins/Don Bramfoot.
Finally, running in Category 4 is the Toyota Corolla of Will Midgley/Graham
Wride.
The rally will be based close to junction 43 of the M6 in Carlisle and the
service area will be in the close to Kielder Water. The first car will start at
10am on Saturday and finish at 3.30pm.
The Pirelli Carlisle Rally is organised by the Cumberland Sporting Car Club Ltd.
For more details about the event please visit
www.pirellicarlislerally.co.uk
9 April 2015
Spectacular spectating
on stunning stages
The Pirelli Carlisle Rally will offer spectators,
and the hundreds of enthusiasts who flock to watch the competing cars, an
unprecedented view of the high speed action with some superb venues which have
been specially selected so that everyone can get a really good look as the cars
speed by, while knowing that they are viewing from a safe and secure location.
The organising team behind the rally have gone
out of their way to find some great vantage points and they have been assisted
in no small way by Forest Enterprise who have been busy trimming trees back to
open up wider viewing angles, in some cases almost 2 miles of the stage is
visible, constructing footpaths, and in some cases even bridges, so that
spectators can access the best viewing locations.
All the designated viewing areas are located just
a short walk from the conveniently located forest car parks making getting to
the action a very simple and straightforward affair. There will be car parking
and viewing facilities on every stage of the Pirelli Carlisle Rally and with the
cars passing over each stage twice, spectators can look forward to over 3 hours
of non-stop high speed action.
A spokesman for the rally organisers said, “ We
are very conscious of the added atmosphere that spectators bring to the Pirelli
Carlisle Rally and we have done our very best to cater for them. We want
everyone to have a great day out but above all, we want them to be safe, so we
have chosen the spectator areas, not only for the great view that they give but
also because they are in safe locations. With the superb entry that this year’s
rally is attracting we are sure it is going to be a wonderful day out for
everyone”
The Pirelli Carlisle Rally takes place on
Saturday 25th April, the cars leave the start ramp in Carlisle city centre at
10:00am with all the rally’s “Special stages” located in the Kielder Forest
complex. The first car is x to cross the finish ramp, outside Kielder Castle
just after 3:00pm. For further information visit the event website at
www.pirellicarlislerally.co.uk
13 March 2015
Championship newsletter:
3/2015
Welcome to championship newsletter number 3 for
the 2015 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Once again crews faced tough conditions on round
two, the Mid Wales Stages, and I’m pleased to report that the event ran smoothly
without any major incidents despite some wet and slippery stages.
Conditions in Sweet Lamb were also tough for the
service crews and they all deserve credit for carrying on in wind, rain, sleet,
snow, thunder and lightning! Finally, I’d also like to thank the organisers and
marshals for keeping the even running so well despite the weather.
I am pleased to confirm that Mintex and Fuchs
Lubricants have extended their support to the R.A.C. Championship. Details of
awards from the Mid Wales Stages are in this newsletter.
Now we have a little breather before round 3, the
Pirelli Carlisle Rally on Saturday 25 April. Full details of this event are in
this newsletter and we’re really pleased with the format of the rally and the
very compact route. Regs will be out within the next week for this event and
round 4, the Severn Valley Stages on Saturday 30 May.
Updated championship points should be available
on the website by the time this newsletter arrives.
Best
regards
Colin
Heppenstall
Friday
13 March 2015
E-mail:
colin@racrallychamp.org
Championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
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Press release: 5 March 2015
2015 DMACK Carlisle Stages is announced
 Outline
details of the 2015
DMACK
Carlisle Stages (Saturday 13 June) have been
announced, with the event offering 43 stage miles in the Kershope and
Newcastleton complexes for a competitive entry fee of £470. The entry fee
reduces to £420 for Rally First contenders.
The rally will feature three major championships: the REIS/Ravenol BTRDA Rally
Series, the MSA English Rally Championship and the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship. The event will also be a round of the S G Petch
Association of North East and Cumbria Car Clubs Stage Rally Championship and the
Association of Northern Car Clubs Forest Challenge.
Building on the success and excellent competitor response to the first two
Carlisle Stages, the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club will run a compact
event based close to Carlisle and running over superb stages. It will be the
first time that a round of the BTRDA Rally Series has visited the Kielder since
the 1992 Hadrian Centurion Rally.
The rally will again be based at the premises of the R J Murray & Sons Haulage
Company in Longtown, Carlisle and will cover 43 stage miles and just 99 road
miles. Only eight miles of stage will be double-used, thus ensuring the best
possible road conditions. The first car will start at 8.30am and be back at the
finish at around 3pm on this compact event.
Clerk of the Course Nicola Heppenstall said: “We’re very pleased to have been
invited to host round five of the BTRDA Rally Series and I think the BTRDA crews
will really enjoy the format of the event and the quality of the stages. It will
be a new challenge for many of the regular BTRDA contenders, while some of the
R.A.C. Rally Championship crews will be back for the third time. We are very
grateful to
DMACK
for its continued support.”
The route will cover six forest special stages, with visits to the main service
area after stages three and five. Management service will be available after all
stages bar stage one. The rally will finish with a spectacular 14-mile stage in
Kershope. “The stages are in beautiful condition,” said Heppenstall after a
recent route survey. None of the stages will be used in 2015 ahead of the
Carlisle Stages.
Scrutineering and documentation will run from 2pm until 7pm on Friday afternoon.
The
DMACK
Carlisle Stages will be organised by the Roger
Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
Press release
– 3 March 2015
Awards confirmed for WWRS RAC Championship round two
The special award winners for the second round of the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship have been announced following the Viking
Motorsport/Links Electrical Mid Wales Stages (Sunday 1 March).
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, runs in
parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed at
clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category. With
containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a six-tyre
rule on all events.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ award, which is a set of axle brake pads from Mintex,
went to Bob Bean and Malcolm Smithson, who made a late change of entry to switch
to Bob’s Ford Escort Mk1 after their regular Lotus Cortina suffered gearbox
failure a week earlier on the Riponian Rally. Bob, who will celebrate his 77th
birthday on Saturday (7 March), hadn’t driven the Escort for nearly two years
but still claimed class C3 victory among the R.A.C. contenders.
Leading R.A.C. historic finishers Grahame Standen and Jane Edgington collected
the Fuchs Lubricants product award for the ‘Best Improvement on Seeding’. They
took their Ford Escort Mk2 up to 27th place overall in the historic section of
the rally.
The Viking Motorsport/Links Electrical Mid Wales Stages was organised by the
Newtown and District Automobile Club.
The 2015 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship continues with round
three, the Pirelli Carlisle Rally on Saturday 25 April.
Press release
– 1 March 2015
Crook & Standen star in WWRS RAC Rally Championship
 Simon
and Alister Crook and Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington were the major victors on
the second round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship,
today’s Mid Wales Stages (Sunday 1 March).
The Crook brothers were highest R.A.C. finishers in their Open Category Opel
Manta, while Standen turned in a superb performance to finishing leading
historic runner in his 1600cc Ford Escort Mk2.
On a day when the weather conditions and slippery stages delivered a real
challenge, the Crooks moved ahead in the Open Category when the Escort Mk2 of
Phil Burton/Mal Capstick slid off in Hafren and got beached.
Standen, meanwhile, was one of the stars of the rally with his pace in the
1600cc car and he finished ahead of the more powerful Category 3 cars of James
Potter/Bob Duck and Leigh Armstrong/Chris Armstrong.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Gwilym Roberts/Don James (Lotus Cortina)
Category 2: Bob Bean/Malcolm Smithson (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category 4: Will Midgley/Jonathan Driver (Toyota Corolla)
Category O: Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta)
The Mid Wales Stages was organised by Newtown and District Motor Club. A more
detailed event report will be circulated during Monday (2 March).
Press
release – 23 February 2015
Mid Wales next for WWRS R.A.C. Championship
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will continue with round
two, the Viking Motorsport/Links Electrical Mid Wales Stages (Sunday 1 March).
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, runs in
parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed at
clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category. With
containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a six-tyre
rule on all events.
The Mid Wales is always one of the most popular events on the calendar, offering
crews the chance to tackle superb stages in the Pikes Peak, Myherin and Hafren
forest complexes.
Heading the R.A.C. contenders after the opening round are Phil Burton and Mal
Capstick after a fine run on the Red Kite Stages in their Ford Escort Mk2. They
don’t have much prior knowledge of these stages, but will surely be very quick
once more as they contest the championship’s Open Category. Ranged against
Burton in the Open ranks will be two more very quick crews: Simon and Alister
Crook in their Opel Manta 400 and Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance (Ford
Escort Mk2).
Several crews in historic cars will make their seasonal debut on the Mid Wales
and should be prominent championship contenders. James Potter and Bob Dick are
back in their re-shelled Escort Mk2 following a roll on the Trackrod Rally last
September and they will go up against brothers Leigh and Chris Armstrong (Escort
Mk2) and Gary Cooper/Graham Riley (Sunbeam Lotus) in the Category 3 ranks. Among
the lower powered Category 3 cars are Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington (1600cc
Ford Escort Mk2) and David Hopkins/Tony Vart (Talbot Sunbeam).
Category 2 historic cars chasing R.A.C. points will be led by the Porsche 911 of
Tim Mason/Graham Wild and the Escort Mk1 of Graham Samuel/Val Thompson. In the
1600cc class are the Ford Escorts of Malcolm Bayliss/Siobhan Pugh and Stuart
Cariss/Linda Cariss.
In Category 1, the battle is likely to be between the Lotus Cortinas of Bob
Bean/Malcolm Smithson and Gwilym Roberts/Don James, with Bean currently ahead on
points after the Red Kite. Finally, running in Category 4 is the Toyota Corolla
of Will Midgley/Jonathan Davies.
The rally will be based in Newtown with Rally HQ at The Hafren and the central
service area will be at Sweet Lamb. The first car will start at 9am on Sunday
and return to the finish just after 3pm.
The Viking Motorsport/Links Electrical Mid Wales Stages is organised by the
Newtown and District Motor Club. For more details about the event please visit
www.newtown-mc.co.uk.
Press release – 22 February 2015
TV date for first WWWRS RAC Rally Championship round
 The
TV coverage of the opening rounds of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship and the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship
will first be screened on Friday 27 February at 9pm on Motors TV.
The 90-minute programme on Motors TV will cover the full story of the Red Kite
Stages, the first round of both championships. The programme reports on a very
tough event after overnight snow and a hard frost made conditions really testing
over the first stages of the rally.
Then, as the day progressed the battle for overall BHRC victory came down to the
dramatic last stage as a mighty charge from Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke took
them from fourth to first in the final run through Caeo. In the R.A.C.
Championship, Phil Burton and Mal Capstick took an impressive debut win.
After the initial broadcast on Friday at 9pm, the programme is due to be
repeated several times including at 9.30am on Saturday 28 February and at
11.30am on Monday 2 March.
Olly Dickinson is leading the BHRC TV project and will present the programmes
and on-event interviews. Each championship round will be covered in detail in a
90-minute programme on Motors TV with multiple repeats to give the championship
around 50 hours of TV coverage.
Alongside the TV coverage, the programmes will again be available on iRally. The
free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and offers
an incredibly popular rally video channel. The programmes will also be available
via the championship’s YouTube channel.
Support for coverage of the 2015 Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship
comes from TV partners Chris Browne Builders, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road
Surfacing, Rally and Competition Equipment, Robinson Road Planing, Sherwood
Engines, Skipton Ford, Swift Leisure and Wales Motorsport Fabrications.
5 February 2015
Championship newsletter:
2/2015
Welcome to championship newsletter number 2
for the 2015 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
We were all delighted with the opening round, the Red Kite
Stages, which delivered a true challenge in some tough conditions. I’d like to
record a big vote of thanks to all the team at Amman and DMC as well as the
marshals, radio crews, timekeepers and rescue and recovery crews for coping with
all the challenges thrown at them. To their great credit, we were all able to
enjoy a fine day’s sport.
Best Regards
Colin Heppenstall
E-mail:
colin@historicrallying.org
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Press release – 1 February 2015
Beveridge stars in WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship opener
 Ian
Beveridge/Paul Price and Philip Burton/Mal Capstick were the major winners on
the opening round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship,
today’s Red Kite Stages (Sunday 1 February).
While Capstick and Burton marked their championship debut with victory in the
Open Category in their Ford Escort Mk2, Beveridge and Price turned in a mighty
performance to win Category 1 in their rare Volvo PV544. An inspired tyre choice
for the opening snow and ice-bound stage in Crychan set Beveridge on course for
victory.
The Red Kite was a great start to the new R.A.C. Championship season and the
hard work and professionalism of the organising team at Amman and DMC was
rewarded with a fine day’s sport. Great credit is due to all the marshals and
officials out on the stages for keeping the event running smoothly in
challenging conditions.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Ian Beveridge/Paul Price (Volvo PV544)
Category 2: Stuart Cariss/Linda Cariss (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Grahame Standen/Jane Edgington (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Philip Burton/Mal Capstick (Ford Escort Mk2)
Press release – 28 January 2015
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Championship starts
 The
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will burst into life on the
Red Kite Stages (Sunday 1 February) with the first of eight rounds for the
championship aimed at clubman competitors.
The championship, organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, will run
in parallel to the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship and is aimed
at the clubmen historic crews as well as those running in the Open Category.
With containing costs for clubmen as a prime aim, the championship runs to a
six-tyre rule on all events.
The WWRS R.A.C. Championship covers seven first class gravel rallies as well as
the Harry Flatters Rally on the asphalt of the Epynt ranges.
Notable contenders lining up this weekend include several Category 1 crews as
well as crews from Category 2 and 3 in 1600cc cars, while more contenders are
expecting to start their campaigns on round two of the championship, the Mid
Wales Stages (Sunday 1 March).
In Category 1, the battle is likely to be between the Lotus Cortinas of Bob
Bean/Malcolm Smithson and Gwilym Roberts/Don James along with the Volvo PV544 of
Ian Beveridge/Paul Price. Category 2 contenders include the Ford Escorts of
Malcolm Bayliss/Siobhan Pugh and Stuart Cariss/Linda Cariss, while in Category 3
the contest is between David Hopkins/Tony Vart (Talbot Sunbeam) and Keith
Davison/Henry Richardson (Chrysler Avenger).
The Open Category features three leading crews from the 2014 season including
defending champions Simon and Alister Crook in their stunning Opel Manta 400.
They will be keen to get their title bid off to a strong start after a
non-finish a year ago.
Leading the chase of the Crook brothers will be the Ford Escort Mk2 of Barry
Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance and Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota
Starlet), who won the Open Category on the 2014 Red Kite. However, the real dark
horse should be championship newcomer Phil Burton with Mal Capstick co-driving
in the very rapid Ford Escort Mk2.
The rally will be based in Llandovery with Rally HQ at the Castle Hotel and the
central service area at the adjoining Llandovery Mart. The first car will start
at 8.30am on Sunday and return to the finish just after 2pm.
The Red Kite Stages is organised by the Amman and District Motor Club. For more
details about the event please visit
www.redkitestages.co.uk.
24 January 2015
Championship newsletter:
1/2015
Welcome to championship newsletter number 1
for the 2015 West Wales R.A.C. Rally Championship.
We are less than two weeks away from the
opening event of the 2015 season and we are delighted with the response for the
opening round, the Red Kite Stages (Sunday 1 February). We also have a number of
crews who plan to start their season at round two, the Mid Wales Stages (Sunday
1 March).
We have included outlines of the
championships in this newsletter, please double-check that you have entered for
the right championship and if you have any questions, please give us a call.
Best Regards
Colin Heppenstall
E-mail:
colin@historicrallying.org
| |
Read the
newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
|
|
2 January 2015
Championship Regulations Now Available
 Happy New Year from the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club
Please see below the Championship
Regulations for the MSA British Historic Rally Championship and
the R.A.C. Rally Championship, and the necessary registration
form.
You can come and see us at Autosport
International and register, or send the registration form back
to us in the post.
We look forward to
seeing you all once again in 2015.
Colin & Nicola
Heppenstall
Download Regulations and
Registration Form here:
| |
Championship Regulations |
|
| |
Registration Form |
|
24 December 2014
Championship newsletter:
14/2014
We would like to take this opportunity to
wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
2014 has been a very productive year for the
Club which has seen a lot of achievements especially with the appointment as the
MSA British Historic Rally Championship promoters for the next 5 years.
You will find more information in the attached newsletter.
To remind members that your club membership is due from the 1st January through
to the 31 December at £15. The renewal form for membership is now available
here.
We look forward to meeting up with members during the year either at Autosport
International or during Championship rounds.
Regards
Colin and Nicola
| |
Read the
newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
|
|
| |
2015 Membership Renewal Form |
|
|
Press release – 19 December
2014
2015 BHRC and R.A.C. on show at the NEC
 The
2015 MSA British Historic Rally Championship and the 2015 West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will be unveiled to the public at Autosport
International at the Birmingham NEC (8-11 January).
The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club will be there with a major presence on
stand 6814 to take the wraps off its 2015 programme, which has four major
elements:
The nine-round 2015 MSA British Historic Rally Championship
The eight-round 2015 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
The 2015 Roger Albert Clark Rally (27-29 November)
The 2015 Carlisle Stages (13 June)
The start of the 2015 season heralds a new era for the BHRC as Britain’s leading
championship for historic cars starts a new five-year term under the management
of the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
Organisers, headed by Colin and Nicola Heppenstall, will be on hand to meet
current and prospective competitors. “We are keen to talk to anyone with an
interest in the championships or the rallies,” said Colin Heppenstall. “This is
also a chance to meet the marshals and fans who support our events.”
Championship eligibility scrutineer John Cooper will be there on Thursday,
Friday and Saturday to answer technical questions, and championship
registrations and club membership renewals will be available to visitors.
Meanwhile, the DVD of the 2014 Roger Albert Clark Rally will be available for
purchase from the R.A.C stand. The two-hour DVD of the rally, produced by Olly
Dickinson, was filmed from six cameras and numerous on-boards cameras and is
priced at £20.
The 2015 MSA British Historic Rally Championship and the WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship start on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 1 February and more details
are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
More details about the MSA British Historic Rally Championship can be found at
www.historicrallying.org
Follow the championship on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/MSABHRC and on Twitter: @MSABHRC2015
Issued by Paul Lawrence, tel 01952 510382 (e:
paul@tfmpr.com)
High-resolution images available on request for editorial use.
Press release – 15 December 2014
West Wales Rally Spares continues backing for R.A.C. Rally Championship
 West
Wales Rally Spares will continue to be title sponsor for the R.A.C. Rally
Championship in 2015, marking a third year of support for the championship from
the Ceredigion-based company. The partnership is a perfect fit for both WWRS and
the championship organisers, the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
West Wales Rally Spares, headed by competitor and enthusiast Gareth Lloyd, is a
renowned specialist in the supply of parts for Mk1 and Mk2 Ford Escorts, from
clubmans cars through to full to Group 4 specification cars. In addition, WWRS
is a stockist for many of the leading brands of rally equipment and accessories
and is an official Sparco distributor.
“We are very pleased to continue our support for the R.A.C. Rally Championship,”
said Lloyd. “The championship has gone from strength to strength and its new
position alongside the MSA British Historic Rally Championship is very good news
for everyone involved.”
Championship manager Colin Heppenstall was delighted to confirm the extension of
the partnership into a third year. “West Wales Rally Spares is the perfect
sponsor for the R.A.C. Rally Championship,” said Heppenstall. “Gareth and his
team understand exactly what competitors need and WWRS is one of those
specialist companies that make rallying happen.”
WWRS operates from a purpose-built 8000sq ft base in Llandysul, with a dedicated
showroom. With experienced competitors on the staff, WWRS is the perfect point
of information for hundreds of active competitors across the UK and Europe. The
company can be contacted on 01559 363731 and its website is at:
www.westwalesrallyspares.co.uk
The 2015 championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 1 February and
event regulations are now available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
More details about the WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship can be found at
www.racrallychamp.org Follow the
championship on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/RACrallychamp
and on Twitter: @RACRallyChamp.
Press release – 14
December 2014
Regs out for 2015 R.A.C. Rally Championship opener
 The
regulations for the opening rounds of the 2015 MSA British Historic Rally
Championship and the 2015 R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Red Kite Stages (Sunday
1 February), are now available from event organisers Amman and District Motor
Club.
The first major gravel rally of the 2015 season will herald a new era for the
BHRC as Britain’s leading championship for historic cars starts a new five-year
term under the management of the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
The Red Kite has proved to be an extremely popular rally over the last two
seasons with outstanding special stages and a compact format, covering 45 stage
miles and around 80 road miles. The entry fee is £504 and the organisers are
offering the facility to pay the entry fee in two instalments.
The rally will, as usual, be based in Llandovery with Rally HQ at the Castle
Hotel and the central service area at the adjoining Llandovery Mart. The first
historic car will start at 8.30am on Sunday and return to the finish at 2.35pm.
Scrutineering and documentation will be held from 1pm to 6pm on Saturday 31
January.
Regulations for the event are available from the event’s website:
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press release – 30
October 2014
BHRC and R.A.C. Championship Guide published
The Championship Guide covering both
the 2015 MSA British Historic Rally Championship and the R.A.C. Rally
Championship is now available.
The 2015 Championship Guide includes:
The Championship Guide has been
designed and produced to give prospective competitors comprehensive information
about the coming season for both the MSA British Historic Rally Championship and
the R.A.C. Rally Championship and includes data aimed at supporting competitors’
sponsorship proposals.
The Guide is now available in pdf
format for download from the championships websites,
www.historicrallying.org and
www.racrallychamp.org, and printed
copies are available upon request.
| The Guide can be
downloaded in pdf format here: |
 |
Details of the 2015
championships are subject to MSA approval.
More details about the MSA
British Historic Rally Championship can be found at
www.historicrallying.org
Follow the championship on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/MSABHRC
and on Twitter: @MSABHRC2015
Press release –
27 October 2014
Calendar revealed for 2015 R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
schedule for the 2015 R.A.C. Rally Championship has been unveiled, with a
programme of seven one-day gravel rallies and one asphalt event. The
championship will be organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club and
will run in parallel to the MSA British Historic Rally Championship, sharing the
same infrastructure and organising team.
While the BHRC will run at National ‘A’
level, the R.A.C. Championship will run as a National ‘B’ championship and will
be a more club-level series. Importantly, alongside the traditional historic
classes, the R.A.C. Championship will include classes for cars from up to 1990
running to period homologation as well as an Open Category for pre ’87
non-historic two-wheel drive cars.
“We’re working with the MSA on the next
generation of historic cars, up to the end of 1990,” said organiser Colin
Heppenstall. “The R.A.C. Championship is the perfect place for this group to
develop. It’s good for the sport to allow people who have got those cars
somewhere to go rallying. We wanted to keep the R.A.C. aimed at clubmen and that
is reflected in the calendar and the six-tyre rule.”
An important development is that the
2015 R.A.C. Rally Championship will adopt a six-tyre rule for all contenders:
crews may use no more than six tyres per rally. This initiative from the Roger
Albert Clark Rally Motor Club was introduced on the 2014 championship and proved
to be a successful way of containing costs for competitors as well as making a
contribution to reducing damage to gravel roads.
The R.A.C series will share the BHRC
dates, with just one exception: the Isle of Man Classic in September will be
replaced by the Carlisle Stages on 13 June. The Carlisle Stages, organised by
the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, has already been confirmed as round of
the BTRDA Rally Series for 2015.
The full R.A.C. calendar is:
| Sunday 1 February: |
|
Red Kite Stages |
| Sunday 1 March: |
|
Mid Wales Stages |
| Saturday 25 April: |
|
Pirelli Rally |
| Saturday 30 May: |
|
Severn Valley
Stages |
| Saturday 13 June: |
|
Carlisle Stages |
| Sunday 26 July: |
|
Harry Flatters
Rally |
| Saturday 15
August: |
|
Neath Valley
Stages |
| Fri/Sat 25/26 Sep:
|
|
Trackrod Historic
Cup |
More details about the R.A.C. Rally
Championship can be found at
www.racrallychamp.org Follow the championship on Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/RACrallychamp
and on Twitter: @RACRallyChamp.
Issued by Paul Lawrence, tel 01952
510382 (e: paul@tfmpr.com)
Press release – 26
October 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship awards presented
 The
award winners for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship
were celebrated in style on Saturday night (25 October) during the end of season
awards’ dinner at the Casa Hotel in Chesterfield.
Over 130 crews, sponsors, guests and families gathered for a night of
celebration after a fabulous season of rallying. Over 200 crew members contested
the 2014 season and people travelled from all over the UK and Ireland to collect
their awards.
Guest speaker Yuk Hodgson set the tone for the evening with his wonderful take
on rallying through the decades before championship manager Colin Heppenstall
announced nearly 50 award winners.
The biggest awards and biggest cheers were saved for overall champions Nick
Elliott and Dave Price, while others to collect major awards were category
winners Ray Cunningham, David Stokes/Guy Weaver, Richard Hill/Steffan Evans and
Simon Crook/ Alister Crook.
The winners of two special awards were announced on the night, with Matthew
Robinson taking the Martin Jones Transmission Hard Charger Award. Meanwhile, in
memory of TV producer David Winstanley, the award for the ‘TV moment of the
season’ went to Ford Escort Mk2 driver Mike Reed for his colourful in-car
commentary while upside down in a ditch in Kershope.
Elliott paid tribute to the work that goes into running the championship. “We’ve
had a brilliant season and we’d like to thank Colin and his team for running a
fabulous championship. The competition has been superb and that’s only going to
get stronger next year,” said the 2014 champion.
“We want to thank every crew that supported the championship this season and all
our sponsors and partners for making it all possible,” said Heppenstall. “We
hope to see all of you back on the stages next season,” he added before giving
an exclusive preview of exciting plans for 2015 from the Roger Albert Clark
Rally Motor Club. The full details of the coming year will be revealed over the
next three days.
Press release – 20
October 2014
TV date for R.A.C. Rally Championship round seven
 The
television coverage of the seventh and final round of the 2014 West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Trackrod Historic Cup, will be broadcast
on Motors TV on Friday (24 October) starting at 9pm.
The 90-minute programme, produced by Olly Dickinson and narrated by David
Addison, covers the full story of the event as contenders tackled fast and
flowing stages in the classic Yorkshire forests including Dalby, Gale Rigg and
Langdale. The programme will be repeated several times on Motors TV, including
at 7.45am on Saturday 25 October and again at 11.30am on Monday 27 October.
Richard Hill/Steffan Evans claimed a superb victory after a mighty battle with
the similar Ford Escort Mk2 of Matt Edwards/Paul Morris. The programme includes
interviews with 2014 champion Nick Elliott and fellow front-runner Matthew
Robinson.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally. The free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and
Android devices and offers an incredibly popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
Issued by Paul Lawrence, tel: 01952 510382 (e:
paul@tfmpr.com)
Press release – 3
October 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship winners announced
 The
full list of champions and award winners for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship has been announced following the final round, the
Trackrod Historic Cup (26/27 September).
“We would like to congratulate all our
winners after a season of intense competition in a sporting and friendly
atmosphere,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “But we would also
like to acknowledge the support of each and every crew that took part in 2014.
In total, 206 people scored points: 102 drivers and 104 co-drivers. We will
celebrate the winners at the end of season awards’ dinner on Saturday 25 October
at the Casa Hotel in Chesterfield.”
The winners are:
Overall West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Champions
| Driver: Nick
Elliott |
Co-Driver: Dave Price
|
Walker Diecastings Category 1
| First driver: Ray
Cunningham |
First co-driver: Gill Cotton |
| Second driver:
Graham Waite |
Second co-driver: Gary
McElhinney |
| Third driver: Paul
Mankin |
Third co-driver: Graham Wride |
Capital Construction Category 2
| First driver:
David Stokes |
First co-driver: Guy Weaver |
| Second driver:
Chris Browne |
Second co-driver: Ali
Cornwell-Browne |
| Third driver:
David Kirby |
Third co-driver: Ron Roughead |
Rob Smith Rallying Category 3
| First driver:
Richard Hill |
First co-driver: Steffan Evans |
| Second driver:
Meirion Evans |
Second co-driver: Iwan Jones |
| Third driver: Tim
Freeman |
Third co-driver: Gwynfor Jones |
Holton Homes Category K
| First driver: Tom
Coughtrie |
First co-driver: Calvin
Cooledge |
| Second driver:
Jason Pritchard |
Second co-driver: Phil Clarke |
| Third driver:
Tomas Davies |
Third co-driver: Alan Walker |
Category O
| First driver:
Simon Crook |
First co-driver: Alister Crook |
| Second driver:
Barry Stevenson-Wheeler |
Second co-driver: John
Pickavance |
| Third driver:
Layton Waters |
Third co-driver: Kevin Bowcott |
Kumho Clubmans Challenge
Champion: Barry Stevenson-Wheeler
Geoff Jones Motorsport Welsh Challenge
| First driver:
Peter Smith |
First co-driver: Eurig Evans |
Northern Challenge
| First driver:
Graham Waite |
First co-driver: Phil Clarke |
Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup
| First driver:
Chris Tooze |
First co-driver: Jo Tooze |
Weir Laundry Equipment best under 25
| First driver:
Jason Pritchard |
First co-driver: Liam Carfrae |
Rally Xtreme best over 55
| First driver:
David Stokes |
First co-driver: Phil Clarke |
Issued by Paul Lawrence, tel 01952 510382 (e:
paul@tfmpr.com)
2 October 2014
Championship newsletter:
13/2014
Welcome to championship newsletter number
13 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Our final championship round was the
Trackrod Historic Cup (Friday/Saturday 26/27 September) and it ended the season
on a very high note with a superb entry, great stages, faultless organisation
and warm sunshine. The Trackrod team worked hard to deliver an excellent value
for money event with some stages in the darkness of Friday evening and it was
all very well received. The only downside was some issues with spectators on
Friday night in Staindale: if anyone has any information at all on this, please
contact Rod Parkin from the organising team.
I am pleased to report that our plans the
MSA British Historic Rally Championship in 2015 are now well advanced and we
plan to unveil the programme at our awards’ dinner on 25 October, followed by a
series of press releases in the days after the awards. I’m delighted with what
we will have to offer and I’m very grateful to the organising clubs for their
support.
Meanwhile, at the end of November we have
the Roger Albert Clark Rally, which promises to be one of the best yet! Entries
for the main event and the two support events are already coming in well and
we’ve had a great response from overseas crews for the main event. Event
regulations are available for download from
www.rogeralbertclarkrally.org
On a very sad note, we were all very sorry
to hear of the death of Greg Strange, rally broadcaster and founder of iRally.
We have worked closely with Greg over the last couple of years and were very
grateful for the support he gave to the championship. I am pleased to hear that
there are plans to continue his great work with iRally.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Friday 2 October 2014
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
| |
Read the
newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
|
|
Press release – 30 September 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the seventh and final round of the 2014 West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship have been announced following the
Trackrod Historic Cup (26/27 September).
Brothers Simon and Alistair Crook were unfortunate enough to post the first
retirement of the rally when gearbox problems sidelined their Open Category Opel
Manta early in the opening stage in Staindale. The last retirement was the Opel
Ascona of Peter Smith and Patrick Walsh, with halfshaft failure on the final
stage. Both crews will receive a £100 voucher from West Wales Rally Spares, as
will Ford Escort Mk1 crew Alan and Liam Carfrae after their number came out of
the hat in the draw for a third voucher.
Meanwhile, Talbot Sunbeam crew Pip Coulson and Daniel May will receive a cheque
for £300 from Holton Homes after their number came out in the draw for a refund
of 50% of the event entry fee.
The run-away success of the Kumho Clubmans Challenge continued for cars using no
more than six tyres during the event. Tim Freeman and Paul Williams (Ford Escort
Mk2) were the highest-placed overall finishers from the Challenge contenders
with a mighty run to fifth place, while James Potter and Bob Duck (Ford Escort
Mk2) won a pair of Kumho tyres in the draw for contenders in the Challenge.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award from Fuchs Lubricants went to Ben
Mellors after a fabulous debut for his Toyota Celica RA40. The immaculate car
drew widespread acclaim and Mellors achieved his ambition of a good finish in
the car that was only completed the night before the rally.
Phil Jobson and Arwel Jenkins had a great run in their Ford Escort Mk1 and won
the Best Improvement on Seeding, which is a set of axle brake pads from Mintex.
Finally, event winner Richard Hill won the ‘Hard Charger’ award of a 20-litre
jerry can from Green Valley Industrial Supplies. His pace in his Ford Escort Mk2
was outstanding as he battled ahead of Matt Edwards on the final stage to secure
victory.
Press release –
28 September 2014
Hill wins WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round seven
 Richard
Hill and Steffan Evans claimed a superb victory on the Trackrod Historic Cup
(Friday/Saturday 26/27 September), the seventh and final round of the West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
A fabulous field of historic rally cars tackled the classic Yorkshire forest
stages, including Staindale and Dalby in the darkness of Friday evening and it
was Matt Edwards and Paul Morris who made the early pace in their Ford Escort
Mk2. However on Saturday morning Hill/Evans started a major attack to try and
claw back Edwards’ 15-second overnight lead.
Going into the final stage in Langdale, the gap was down to just two seconds and
Hill pushed hard to secure victory by seven seconds after a fine performance by
both crews. Next up were the Escorts of Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks and Tim
Freeman/Paul Williams
Ray Cunningham and Phil Clarke (Mini Cooper) took championship victory in
Category 1 for the Irish ace, finishing clear of the Volvo Amazon of title
rivals Graham Waite and Gill Cotton. Like many others, Waite lost time with an
off in the slippery conditions of Friday evening. Category 1 victory on the
event went to local legend Bob Bean with Malcolm Smithson (Lotus Cortina).
David Stokes and Guy Weaver turned in yet another strong performance to win
Category 2 in their Ford Escort Mk1, Category K went to Tom Coughtrie/Calvin
Cooledge (Escort Mk2) while in Category O it was Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John
Pickavance on top in their Open Category Escort Mk2.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Bob Bean/Malcolm Smithson (Lotus Cortina).
Category 2: David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Richard Hill/Steffan Evans (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance (Ford Escort Mk2)
The Trackrod Historic Cup was organised by the Trackrod Motor Club.
A more
detailed event report is available
here.
Press release – 19 September 2014
Fiat 131 to make debut on WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
Fiat 131 built by Rally Sport Developments is due to make its
eagerly-anticipated debut on the final round of the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Trackrod Historic Cup (26/27 September).
An entry for the Yorkshire event has been confirmed for former British Historic
Rally champion Julian Reynolds and co-driver Ian Oakey. Following a successful
test session at Sweet Lamb earlier this week, it is all systems go for the
Trackrod.
The Fiat, which replicates the late 1970s works cars, is the result of more than
two years of work by Kevin Theaker at RSD in Malton and was first unveiled to
widespread acclaim at Autosport International in January. Theaker’s outstanding
engineering ability has been used to faithfully recreate the best-loved rallying
Fiat and includes re-manufacturing many key components, including engine block,
cylinder head and suspension.
Reynolds says it is an honour to be entrusted with giving the car its
competition debut on the event that starts in Pickering, just a few miles from
the RSD base. “What Kevin has done is amazing,” said Reynolds. “It’s a fantastic
project.”
14 September 2014
Trackrod Historic Cup Spectator Guide Now Available
The West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship spectator guide for the Trackrod Historic Cup is now available for download.
Includes information on the championship and an introductions to the event from Championship Press Officer, Paul
Lawrence. Also included are an event timetable, a spectator map and the
seeded entry list.
| |
Read the
Trackrod Historic Cup
Spectator Guide |
|
|
Press release – 1
September 2014
TV date for R.A.C. Rally Championship round six
 The
television coverage of round six of the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, the Zutec Neath Valley Stages, will be broadcast on Motors
TV on Friday (5 September) starting at 10pm.
The 90-minute programme, produced by Olly Dickinson and narrated by David
Addison, covers the full story of the event as contenders tackled superb fast
and flowing stages in Rheola, Bryn and Margam. The programme will be repeated
several times on Motors TV, including at 7.15am on Sunday 7 September and again
at 11am on Monday 8 September.
Nick Elliott and Dave Price emerged to take a fine victory on the rally despite
a stern challenge from the Ford Escort Mk2s of Richard Hill/Steffan Evans and
Meirion Evans/Iwan Jones.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally. The free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and
Android devices and offers an incredibly popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure
28 August 2014
Championship newsletter:
12/2014
Welcome
to championship newsletter number 12 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
Round six of the season, the Zutec Neath Valley Stages (Saturday 9 August), was
another first class event with everyone really enjoying some superb quality
stages. Our thanks go to Den Golding and his team for organising an excellent
rally.
I am delighted to confirm that victory on the Neath Valley Stages was enough to
secure the overall 2014 championship title for Nick Elliott and Dave Price. They
are worthy champions and we offer congratulations from all of us involved in
running the championship. They will receive their awards at the end of the
season awards’ celebration on 25 October.
However, there is still much to be won and lost on the final round of the
season, the Trackrod Historic Cup (Friday/Saturday 26/27 September). The
Trackrod team has worked hard to deliver an excellent value for money event with
some stages in the darkness of Friday evening. Entries are now open and we hope
lots of championship contenders will support this first-class rally.
We are continuing with plans for the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club running
the MSA British Historic Rally Championship in 2015 and beyond. We are moving
towards a definitive calendar and hope to be able to announce more details over
the coming weeks. Please rest assured that the wishes and needs of our
competitor base have been uppermost in our calendar discussions.
Finally, elsewhere in this newsletter are more details about the 2014 Roger
Albert Clark Rally, which promises to be one of the best yet! Event regulations
will be available for download during this weekend (30/31 August).
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Friday 29 August 2014
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
| |
Read the
newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
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Tuesday 19 August 2014
For Sale
TALBOT SUNBEAM LOTUS – a real classic!
 Class-award
winning Category 3 Stage Rally Car built by ex-Talbot engineer Jim Little. Fully
dry-sumped 2.2 Lotus 16V twin cam engine built by Phil Davison; 4HA axle; ZF
close-ratio gearbox; Bilstein dampers; Salisbury LSD; aeroquip fuel and brake
system; aircraft spec wiring loom; foam-filled alloy fuel tank, AP calipers all
round. Full spec available on request. Small spares package with wheels and
tyres. £49,500 ono.
Contact James Stait on 07908 214518 or
james.stait@gmail.com
Press
release – 13 August 2014
Elliott and Price take WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship title
 Nick
Elliott and Dave Price have been confirmed as overall 2014 champions in the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship following the Zutec Neath Valley
Stages (9 August).
The Cheltenham-based Ford Escort Mk2 crew bounced back from rolling out of the
opening event of the season, the Red Kite Stages, to take five top results on
the subsequent events and victory on the Neath Valley Stages put the title out
of reach of their closest rival Richard Hill.
Elliott has been one of the absolute pacesetters in historic rallying in recent
seasons and is renowned for his speed and spectacular style. He is already
plotting a repeat campaign in 2015 when the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club
takes over the running of the MSA British Historic Rally Championship.
“It’s a good feeling and we did it without last round pressure,” said Elliott.
“We’re very pleased to be outright champions and after what was a poor year for
me last year.
“The Red Kite shunt was a big blow. It would have been a great start to the
year, but when I won Mid Wales I knew I could do it if I stayed consistent.
We’ll still do the final round, the Trackrod Historic Cup and are sure to chase
BHRC in 2015. I’m keen to see the calendar, with a fresh BHRC and the standard
of competition that it is sure to bring. The BHRC next year could be the best
ever year!”
Elliott added his thanks to everyone who played a part in the success, including
co-driver Dave, the service team of John, Paul, Mark1, Mark2, Kevin at RSD,
Peter at Jondel, Dan at Dunlop, and his wife Anna for being so supportive.
Press release – 12 August 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the sixth round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship have been announced following the Zutec Neath Valley Stages
(9 August).
Owen Murphy and James O’ Brien were
unfortunate enough to post the first retirement of the rally when electrical
problems stopped their Sunbeam Lotus early on the opening stage. The last
retirement was the Ford Escort Mk2 of Gareth Lewis and Dan Holley. Both crews
will receive a £100 voucher from West Wales Rally Spares, as will Ford Escort
crew Simon Pickering and Colin Jenkins after their number came out of the hat in
the draw for a third voucher.
Meanwhile, Talbot Sunbeam crew David
Hopkins and Tony Vart will receive a cheque for £250 from Holton Homes after
their number came out in the draw for a refund of 50% of the event entry fee.
The run-away success of the Kumho Clubmans
Challenge continued for cars using no more than six tyres during the event. Tim
Freeman and Paul Williams (Ford Escort Mk2) were the highest-placed overall
finishers from the Challenge contenders with a superb sixth place, while David
Kirby and Tom Hutchings (Ford Escort Mk1) won a pair of Kumho tyres in the draw
for contenders in the Challenge.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award
from Fuchs Lubricants went to Ford Escort Mk2 crew Ben Friend and Sean Kennedy
after scoring their first victory in the hotly-contested class D3. They also won
the Best Improvement on Seeding, which is a set of axle brake pads from Mintex.
Finally, event winner Nick Elliott won the
‘Hard Charger’ award of a 20-litre jerry can from Green Valley Industrial
Supplies. His pace in his Ford Escort Mk2 was outstanding as he thrilled the
spectators with his attacking style.
Issued by Paul Lawrence e:
paul@tfmpr.com
Tuesday 12th
August 2014
Regulations now available fo r
Trackrod Historic Cup
 Rally
Yorkshire 2014 presents a unique opportunity for the whole rallying community to
participate in a variety of events which use all of the classic Yorkshire
stages. This year competitors in the Rally Yorkshire, featuring The Trackrod
Historic Cup will compete over two stages in Dalby Forest in the darkness of
Friday night.
The organisers of the Trackrod Historic
Cup welcome participants in the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship and the Motoscope Northern Historic Rally Championship and have
enhanced the opportunity to compete with historic cars by fully respecting the
existing Category 1,2,3 & 4 classes which run to full MSA Historic Regulations
plus the increasingly popular Category K for all FIA appendix K cars registered
before 31.12.85.
By running a modern permit the organisers are also able to offer the opportunity
to run extra classes to cater for older cars registered prior to 1986 which do
not comply fully with the Historic Regulations – these extra classes will
compete only in their own classes within the Trackrod Historic Cup.
The event is returning to Pickering
Showground, which will play host to Rally HQ, together with Scrutineering
facilities and the Ceremonial Start for all events.
Rally Yorkshire is also working hard
towards its inaugural Motor Fair, with exhibitions by owners clubs, a rally
simulator, trade stands, displays both inside and outside, and fun fair –
literally “Something for Everyone”! The Rally Simulator is already booked and
the question is can the Service Crews set a quicker time than their drivers?
Overall, the organisers hope that the
attractions will provide something of interest for the Service Crews based at
the Pickering Showground and for families visiting the event.
Regulations available from the Trackrod
Rally Yorkshire website:
http://bit.ly/1kyvuuk
Wednesday 6th
August 2014
Neath Valley Spectator Guide Final Version Available
The final version of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship spectator guide for the Zutec Neath Valley Stages is now available for download. Read introductions to the event from
Clerk of the Course, Den Goulding;
Championship Manager, Colin Heppenstall and Championship Press Officer, Paul
Lawrence. Also included are an event timetable, a spectator map and the
final seeded entry list.
| |
Read the Zutec Neath Valley
Stages Spectator Guide
FINAL |
|
|
Press release – 04
August 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Championship heads for Neath Valley
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship switches focus to the
superb stages of South Wales for round six, the Zutec Neath Valley Stages
(Saturday 9 August). Another cracking entry, covering 50 championship
contenders, will tackle some of best stages of the season as the title races
head for a final showdown.
Read More on the Event Preview page
here
The Neath Valley Stages is organised by the Three Counties Car Club. For more
details about the event please visit
www.neathvalleystages.co.uk.
28 July
2014
Thomas and Martina Schulz satisfied with start at Carlisle
 In
the end there was a DNF instead of seeing the finish ramp at the DMACK Carlisle
Stages Rally. But the German couple Thomas and Martina Schulz weren't upset, far
from it! “It was worth going there”, said 44 year old Thomas. “We now have
British historic papers for our Escort and we gained lots of experience. The car
and crew are now well prepared for the Roger Albert Clark Rally in November.”
Three gravel stages, used twice, were on
the program in the Scottish border area and with temperatures into the high
twenties on the stages there was lots of dust hanging in the air.
Schulz: “We couldn´t do the speed of the
well experienced British drivers, but we got better from stage to stage. On SS 3
we sadly had an overshoot after a long straight because my breaking point was a
little bit optimistic…
The front of the car was stuck in a ditch with the rear axle still on the road.
Luckily there were some spectators at that point and about a dozen of them
pushed the car back onto the road but we lost about five minutes.”
SS 4 and SS 5 were good. “But at the
finish of SS 5 we saw oil under the car”, said Schulz. “During the last part of
the stage we damaged the underfloor on a bump. After that the oil sump had a
small leak. To protect the BDA engine from bigger injuries we decided to load
the Escort on the trailer.”
The German couple has now four months to
prepare for the RAC Rally. Like many other amateur rally drivers from all over
Europe this three-day-event will be their season highlight.
Reporting by Jörg Ufer
25 July 2014
Championship newsletter:
11/2014
The main purpose of this newsletter is to
give everyone a reminder to get your entries in for round six, the
Zutec Neath Valley Stages
(Saturday 9 August).
There
is already a strong entry coming together, but we’d certainly
like to see more registered contenders added
to the list. So, please do get your entry in as soon as possible, as this helps
organisers with their final planning.
This is the latest update from clerk of
the course, Den Golding:
"I checked all the stages last week before
Pattersons came over to make the note. They are all in prime condition, having
not been used since last year’s Neath Valley. The Margam jump will not be used
this year (it was a bit rough on landing). Instead, cars will be diverted to the
left of the jump as will be shown in the road book and route notes."
The report from Pattersons is that the
stages being used on the Neath Valley are the best quality stages they have seen
this year.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Wednesday 23 July 2014
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
| |
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newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
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Update - 23 July 2014
Zutec Neath Valley shakedown and test
stage
Event sponsor John Leahy has arranged a
shakedown and test stage for Friday 8 August at Walters Arena, only a couple of
miles from rally HQ for the Zutec Neath Valley Stages.
It will run from 8am to 12 noon on a good
quality two-mile stage and up to 10 places are available. Several leading crews
are already booked in and the final price will depend upon numbers.
For more details, please call John on
07838 777114.
Press release – 7
July 2014
TV date for R.A.C. Rally Championship round five
 The
television coverage of round five of the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, the DMACK Carlisle Stages, will be broadcast on Motors TV on
Friday (11 July) starting at 10pm.
The 90-minute programme, produced by Olly Dickinson and narrated by David
Addison, covers the full story of the event as tremendous field of R.A.C. crews
tackled stages in Kershope, Newcastleton and Ash Park. The programme will be
repeated several times on Motors TV, including at 12.40pm on Saturday 12 July.
After a fabulous battle run at a fierce pace among the leading championship
contenders, Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke took a hard-earned overall victory.
The stages were in superb condition as the sun shone on this extremely compact
and successful event.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally. The free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and
Android devices and offers an incredibly popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
24
June 2014
Championship newsletter:
10/2014
Welcome
to championship newsletter number 10 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
I am very pleased to report that everyone seemed to enjoy the DMACK Carlisle
Stages. We had very positive feedback about the format, stages, organisation and
barbecue and I’d like to say a big thank you to the many people, including all
the marshals, for their support.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Tuesday 24 June 2014
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
| |
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newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
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Press release
– 21 June 2014
Pritchard wins WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round five
 Jason
Pritchard and Phil Clarke emerged to take a fine victory on the
DMACK Carlisle Stages (Saturday 21 June), the fifth
round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
From a field packed with quality, Pritchard (Ford Escort Mk2) topped a fierce
battle that raged over six dry and dusty stages in the Kershope region as the
top three crews were covered by 23 seconds and less than a minute covered the
top six.
Second to Pritchard were the very rapid Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis, while
Meirion Evans and Iwan Jones turned in a fine performance on unfamiliar stages
to take third overall. Crews were fulsome in their praise for the event, with
first class forest stages and a compact format that included limited road
mileage. The pace at the head of the field was tremendous and it could have been
a different result had stage one pacesetter Matt Edwards not gone out on stage
two with ignition failure.
Graham Waite and Gill Cotton had a fine run in their Volvo Amazon to take
Category 1 from the Lotus Cortina of Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell. However, a battle
with the Mini Cooper of Ray Cunningham and Andrew Bushe ended when the Mini
suffered a broken driveshaft on the penultimate stage.
David Stokes and Guy Weaver turned in another accomplished performance to win
Category 2 in their Ford Escort Mk2, while in Category O brothers Simon Crook
and Alister Crook (Opel Manta) took another victory.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Graham Waite/Gill Cotton (Volvo Amazon)
Category 2: David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Matthew Robinson/Sam Collis (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta)
In the concurrent DMACK Carlisle Modern Stages, victory went to the Ford Focus
WRC of Quintin Milne and Martin Forrest from the Subaru Impreza of William
Bonniewell and Neil Ewing.
The DMACK Carlisle Stages was organised by the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club Ltd. A more detailed event report will be
circulated during Monday (23 June).
Saturday 21 June 2014
Results service for DMACK stages now online
The live results service for the fifth
round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, the
DMACK Carlisle Stages is now online and can be
accessed via the dedicated event website or by following this
link.
Press release – 16 June
2014
RACMRC confirmed as preferred bidder for BHRC
 The
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club Ltd has been announced as the preferred
bidder for the MSA British Historic Rally Championship for the next five years,
starting in 2015.
The Club currently promotes the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship, the Roger Albert Clark Rally and the DMACK Carlisle Stages.
The Motor Sports Association (MSA) has recently undertaken an exhaustive tender
process to conclude the award of contracts to organise and promote the major UK
rally championships from the start of 2015.
The MSA is pleased to announce that the tender lodged by the Roger Albert Clark
Rally Motor Club Ltd for the MSA British Historic Rally Championship has been
selected to go forward and is currently in the negotiation stage. The MSA
stresses that these negotiations remain subject to contract, but both parties
are optimistic that they will result in a positive conclusion for historic
rallying.
Rob Jones, MSA Chief Executive, said: “The MSA British Historic Rally
Championship was a difficult decision. The MSA has an excellent relationship
with the Historic Rally Car Register and they have done a great job with the
championship in recent years. The growth in popularity of historic rallying has
brought more cars and more competitors to the sport, which has been great news
for event organisers and, of course, spectators.
“However, having considered a number of tenders for the BHRC, the selection
panel made a unanimous decision regarding the preferred bid. A subsequent
meeting with Colin Heppenstall was very positive and although we have yet to
conclude an agreement, I am very encouraged by the progress of negotiations for
this important championship.”
“We are very pleased to be the preferred bidder for the BHRC,” said Colin
Heppenstall. “We’re looking forward to working with the MSA on the next chapter
in the BHRC story.”
16 June 2014
DMACK Carlisle Stages
Seeded Entry List Now Available
The complete seeded entry list for the
2014 DMACK Carlisle Stages, round 5 of the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is now available online. Click
here to see the listing.
8
June 2014
Championship newsletter:
9/2014
Welcome
to championship newsletter number 9 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
Round four of the championship, the Severn
Valley Stages (31 May), was another excellent day of rallying with 70 registered
contenders lining up in the sunshine in Builth Wells. A full report follows in
this newsletter along with details of the championship award winners. I’d like
to thank the organisers and marshals involved in running the Severn Valley for
all their hard work in delivering this very popular event.
Please see further on in this newsletter
for a reminder about management vehicles.
Entries are open for round five, the DMACK
Carlisle Stages (21 June), and please don’t forget that we are running a test
stage on the Friday before (20 June), with up to six runs of a 3-mile stage on
offer for just £90. We hope you will support this new initiative from the
championship. Entries are coming in well for the DMACK Carlisle Stages and don’t
forget that the rally is less than three weeks away, so please get your entries
in as soon as possible.
Regs for round six, the Neath Valley
Stages (9 August), have just been mailed out to all registered contenders.
Finally, I would just like to record our
sympathy for all those involved in the tragic accident during the Jim Clark
Rally last weekend. It is a terrible reminder of the inherent danger in motor
sport and we hope that those still in hospital will make good recoveries.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Tuesday 3 June 2014
E-mail: colin@racrallychamp.org
| |
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newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
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Press release: 5 June 2014
All systems go for DMACK Carlisle Stages
 It
is all systems go for the 2014 DMACK Carlisle
Stages (Saturday 21 June) as entries build for the rally that covers 45 stage
miles in the Kershope and Newcastleton complexes for a competitive entry fee of
£480.
Entries are coming in well for both elements of the rally: the
DMACK Carlisle Stages Rally will form round five of
the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, while the
DMACK Modern Carlisle Stages Rally will be open to
all other competitors, including those in four-wheel drive cars.
“We are expecting another strong field of R.AC. Championship contenders but I’m
also very pleased with the response to the modern event, where numbers are
already well up on 2013,” said rally manager Colin Heppenstall. “We are well on
target with entries and everything is looking good.”
Heppenstall reports that the stages are in prime condition and route notes will
be made early next week by the Pattersons’ crew. The rally will again be based
at the premises of the R J Murray & Sons Haulage Company in Longtown, Carlisle
and will cover 45 stage miles and just 60 road miles. The first car will start
at 9.30am and be back at the finish at 2pm on this very compact event.
The rally starts with a ten-mile stage in Kershope followed by seven miles in
Newcastleton and then a four-mile test in Ash Park. After service at Longtown,
the three stages will be repeated.
The DMACK Carlisle Stages will be organised by the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
Press
release – 3 June 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the fourth round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship have been announced following the Severn Valley Stages (31
May).
Paul Mankin and Desmond Bell were unfortunate enough to post the first
retirement of the rally when head gasket failure sidelined their Lotus Cortina
even before the opening stage. The last retirement was the Ford Escort Mk1 of
Warren Philliskirk/Nigel Hutchinson, which went off on the penultimate stage of
the rally. Both crews will receive a £100 voucher from West Wales Rally Spares,
as will Toyota Starlet crew Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott after their number came
out of the hat in the draw for a third voucher.
Meanwhile, Ford Escort Mk2 crew Adrian Young and Gwynfor Jones will receive a
cheque for £237.50 from Holton Homes after their number came out in the draw for
a refund of 50% of the event entry fee.
The run-away success of the Kumho Clubmans Challenge continued, with 26 crews
electing to contest the Challenge for cars using no more than six tyres during
the event. Gwilym Roberts and Don James (Lotus Cortina) won a pair of Kumho
tyres in the draw for contenders in the Challenge.
Category winners in the Kumho Clubmans Challenge were Simon Wallis/Graham Wride
(Lotus Cortina) in Category 1, Phil Jobson/Arwel Jenkins (Ford Escort Mk1) from
Category 2, James Potter/Bob Duck (Ford Escort Mk2) in Category 3, Tom Coughtrie/Calvin
Cooledge (Ford Escort Mk2) in Category K and Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota
Starlet) from Category O.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award from Fuchs Lubricants goes to Ford
Cortina GT crew Callum Barney and Ron Channon on their return to the
championship after re-shelling their car following a roll on the first round of
the season.
Nick Danks and Martin Corbett won the Best Improvement on Seeding, which is a
set of axle brake pads from Mintex, after a very good run in their Ford Escort
Mk1 to win class C3. Finally, Ben Llewellin won the ‘Hard Charger’ award of a
20-litre jerry can from Green Valley Industrial Supplies. His pace in his Ford
Escort Mk2 was outstanding as he finished third in a very strong field despite
very limited experience.
Press release – 1 June 2014
Elliott wins WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round four
Nick Elliott and Dave Price took their second championship win of the season on
the Severn Valley Historic Stages (Saturday 31 May), the fourth round of the
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
 From
a field packed with quality, Elliott and Price (Ford Escort Mk2) revelled in
stages in Crychan, Cefn and Halfway but had to keep pushing hard to see off a
concerted challenge from the similar car of Richard Hill/Steffan Evans. However,
one of the drives of the rally came from young Ben Llewellin and co-driver Paul
Williams on their first full historic outing. They took third overall in their
Ford Escort Mk2, just nine seconds adrift of Hill.
Ray Cunningham and Andrew Bushe were mighty in their Mini Cooper S to win
Category 1, but only by 14 seconds from the Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis and
Graham Wride. Cunningham also took maximum points in the Aldon Automotive Mini
and Imp Cup.
Championship newcomers and father and son crew Ernie and Will Graham (Ford
Escort Mk1) took a fine victory in Category 2. Meanwhile, other category winners
included Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke (Ford Escort Mk2) in Category K and
brothers Simon Crook and Alister Crook (Opel Manta) in Category O.
With 70 registered contenders starting the rally, the Builth Wells-based event
maintained the high level of entries for the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
and also marked the third round of the Geoff Jones Motorsport Welsh Challenge.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Ray Cunningham/Andrew Bushe (Mini Cooper S)
Category 2: Ernie Graham/Will Graham (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta)
The Severn Valley Stages was organised by Midland Manor Motor Club. A more
detailed event report will be available later today (Monday 2 June).
27 May 2014
RSD Fiat 131 Abarth tests in Sweet Lamb
Looking forward to seeing (and hearing)
the much talked about Rally Sport Development Fiat 131 Abarth in action?
So are we so here's a short taster courtesy of Mad Bob Media
https://www.facebook.com/Mad.Bob.Media
27 May 2014
Championship newsletter:
8/2014
Welcome
to championship newsletter number 8 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
This is intended to be a fairly brief newsletter in the run-up to round four,
the Severn Valley Stages on Saturday (31 May). Once again we have a tremendous entry with
just under 70 registered contenders in a field that has 78 historics and an
overall entry of 117 cars. This is a great result for an event that ran on a
financial knife-edge last year with 87 entries.
I am pleased to note that we have several
established historic crews joining the R.A.C. Championship for the first time on
the Severn Valley and I would like to extend a warm welcome to all of them.
Please come to the championship base in the service area for a chat, a welcome,
tea, coffee and cakes!
The regs are out for round five, the DMACK
Carlisle Stages (21 June) and regs for the Neath Valley Stages (9 August) will
soon be available. Please don’t forget that we are running a test stage on the
Friday before the Carlisle Stages, with up to six runs of a 3-mile stage on
offer for just £90. We hope you will support this new initiative from the
championship.
As many of you will know, our eligibility
scrutineer John Cooper sealed the dampers on three leading cars after the Tour
of Hamsterley. I am pleased to report that checks have been completed by
licensed MSA scrutineers based near to the relevant cars and we have now
received their reports. Everything was found to be in order and in accordance
with MSA regulations.
Best regards
Colin Heppenstall
Monday 26 May 2014
| |
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Press release
– 24 May 2014
Fiat 131 to make debut on WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
Fiat 131 built by Rally Sport Developments is expected to make an
eagerly-anticipated debut on round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, the Severn Valley Stages (31 May).
An entry has been placed for former British Historic Rally champion Julian
Reynolds and co-driver Ian Oakey and, subject to a shakedown test in the run up
to the rally, the car will start the rally from Builth Wells on Saturday
morning.
The Fiat, which replicates the late 1970s works cars, is the result of more than
two years of graft by Kevin Theaker at RSD in Malton and was first unveiled to
widespread acclaim at Autosport International in January. Theaker’s outstanding
engineering ability has been used to faithfully recreate the best-loved rallying
Fiat and includes re-manufacturing many key components, including engine block,
cylinder head and suspension.
Reynolds says it is an honour to be invited to drive the car, on what will be
his first rally for 18 months, but says it will be a journey into the unknown.
“What Kevin has done is amazing,” said Reynolds. “It’s a fantastic project. I
actually looked at buying a 131 a few years ago, so to now get the chance to
drive one is amazing.”
Reynolds has so far only seen photographs of the car and says that he is keeping
expectations in check for the Severn Valley. “I’m keeping a very open mind on
it,” he said. “It is so new and Kevin has built it from nothing, so I have no
big expectations at this stage. But I have no doubt that it will be competitive
in due course.
“I have a passion for Escorts but it will be nice to see something out there
challenging them, just like Owen Murphy is doing with the Sunbeam Lotus. I can’t
wait to see what the Fiat is like!”
Reynolds’ last rally was the 2012 Roger Albert Clark Rally, which only lasted
around four miles, so he will also be playing himself back in to competitive
driving.
Would you like to hear what the car sounds
like? See video below:
Press release –
23 May 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Championship heads for the Severn Valley
 The
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship heads back to Wales for round
four on the Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May). The classic stages in the
Crychan region will deliver another great event for 70 championship contenders
on a rally that is one of the most popular on the schedule.
The event will mark the third event in the Geoff Jones Motorsport Welsh
Challenge as well as the next round of the highly successful Kumho Clubmans
Challenge for crews competing on a maximum of six tyres for the event.
Once again, there is a tremendous line-up of 19 pre ’68 cars in the Walker
Diecastings Category 1, which includes contenders in the Aldon Automotive Mini
and Imp Cup. Heading the field away, thanks to two victories in Wales already
this season, is the Mini Cooper of Ray Cunningham and Gary McElhinney and the
Irish crew will fly on these stages. However, Tour of Hamsterley winners Graham
Waite/Gill Cotton will be hurling the Volvo Amazon around in fine style and a
trio of Lotus Cortinas will be right in the mix in the hands of Gwilym
Roberts/Don James, Simon Wallis/Graham Wride and Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell.
Ranged against the Cortinas in class B4 will be the Volvo PV544 of Ian Beveridge/Paul
Price and the Alfa Romeo Junior GT of John Everard/Mark Sharpley.
Class B3 should be a battle of three classic Fords: the Cortina Mk2 of Bob and
Dale Gibbons, the Ford Anglia of Peter Stimson/Mark Butler and the Cortina Mk1
of Callum Barney and Ron Channon, who make a welcome return after rolling out of
the opening event of the season.
Adding tremendous depth to the Mini and Imp Cup are the Minis of Ross and Arron
Forde and Clive King/Bob Ward as well as the Sunbeam Imp Sport of Geoff
Taylor/Steve Greenhill. With the Porsche 911 of Edmund Peel/Jane Edgington and
the Saab 96 of Stephen Higgins/Don Bramfoot, it is another glorious Category 1
entry for the R.A.C. Championship.
In the Capital Construction Category 2, David Stokes and Guy Weaver are in fine
form in their Ford Escort Mk1 and head to an event they know well on the back of
two victories. Offering opposition in the category and class C5 are similar cars
for Warren Philliskirk/Nigel Hutchinson, Chris Browne/Ali Cornwell-Browne, Roger
Matthews/Paul Morris and welcome championship newcomers Ernie and Will Graham.
Class C3 is enjoying a great season of varied competition and the entry is
topped by the Opel Ascona A of Peter Smith/Paul Spooner, who will expect a tough
challenge from the Pinto-powered Ford Escort Mk1s of David Kirby/Chris Rixon,
Peter Egerton/Alun Cook, Simon Pickering/Colin Jenkins and championship
newcomers Nick Danks/Martin Corbett and Ian Drummond/Hu Kent.
Class C2 is home to the 1600cc cars in Category 2 and the benchmark is the
Escort Mk1 of Robin Shuttleworth/Mark Midgley. But the Leeds crew can expect a
big challenge from similar cars of Paul and Daniel May and Stuart and Linda
Cariss as well as the fresh Hillman Avenger in the very capable hands of Barry
Jordan/James Gratton-Smith.
The very fastest cars are spilt across class D5 in Category 3 and Category K for
FIA specification cars and the event has drawn a stunning entry of most of the
leading contenders in this type of car.
From the Holton Homes Category K comes the very rapid Ford Escort Mk2 of Jason
Pritchard/Phil Clarke, who will be fresh from victory on the Isle of Man in
their Ford Focus WRC. Other Category K Escorts include those of Tomas Davies/Eurig
Davies and Darren Moon/Tim Sayer and all three crews are capable of a top
overall result.
Nick Elliott and Dave Price head another superb entry for the Rob Smith Rallying
Category 3 in their Ford Escort Mk2 and will be keen to repeat their victory on
round two, the Mid Wales Stages. Tour of Hamsterley winner Matt Edwards, with
Sam Collis back in the co-driver’s seat, will head the chase of Elliott along
with Richard Hill/Steffan Evans, Meirion Evans/Iwan Jones and Talbot Sunbeam
Lotus crew Owen Murphy/James O’Brien, who head the class D4 runners. Add in
accomplished Escort pilots like Terry Brown, Tim Freeman, James Potter, Gareth
Lloyd and Richard Lane and it all makes for a sensational entry.
Class D3 for the Pinto-engined Escort Mk2s is enjoying a great season of
competition and is wide open going into the Severn Valley. Gareth Lewis/Dan
Holley, Mike Reed/Joe Sturdy, Adrian Young/Gwynfor Jones, Ben Friend/Sean
Kennedy and Paul Fry/Mike Steele are all in the mix is this very open and
competitive class.
Meanwhile, class D2 for the 1600cc cars in Category 3 is set to be a contest
between the Hillman Avengers of Keith Davison/Henry Richardson, Graham
Thatcher/Robert James and the Sunbeam Talbot of David Hopkins/Tony Vart.
Running alongside the historics are the cars in R.A.C. Category O for open
two-wheel drive cars and the entry includes the lovely Opel Manta of Simon and
Alister Crook. They face the rapid Toyota Starlet of Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott
and the Escorts of Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance, Alan and Liam
Carfrae and Neil and Simon Dwyer.
The rally will be based at the Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells. The first
historic car will start at 8.30am and return to the finish shortly before 3pm.
The Severn Valley Stages is organised by Midland Manor Motor Club. For more
details about the event please visit
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Press release: 23 May 2014
Bumper entry for Severn Valley Stages
A fantastic field of over 115 cars will contest the 2014 Severn Valley Stages
(Saturday 31 May), which is the 41st running of this famous event. The
organisers have been thrilled to receive an entry that has both quality and
quantity across the modern and historic sections.
Three different crews in the Pirelli MSA Welsh Rally Championship have taken
maximum points on the opening three rounds, but it is the consistent pace of
Paul Davy and Roger Allen that has taken then to the head of the championship in
their Subaru Impreza. Leading the chase should Luke Francis/John Roberts
(Mitsubishi Evo 9) and Alex Allingham/Chris Williams (Subaru Impreza).
A sensational entry for the historic event includes all the front runners in the
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship and a gaggle of very quick
Ford Escort Mk2s will battle for victory. The cars of Nick Elliott, Matt
Edwards, Jason Pritchard, Richard Hill, Meirion Evans and Tomas Davies head a
stunning top 20. Category 2 is headed by the Ford Escort Mk1 of David Stokes,
while Ray Cunningham tops a 19-strong field of Category 1 (pre ’68) cars in his
Mini Cooper.
The event is also a round of the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic Rally
Championship. The rally will once again be based at the Royal Welsh Showground
at Builth Wells. The first historic car will start at 8.30am and return to the
finish shortly before 3pm.
Spectators are welcome at two locations: one in Crychan Forest (first car due at
09.57 and 13.47) and one in Halfway Forest (first car due at 09.36 and 13.26).
The Crychan spectator area should only be approached by leaving the A483 at
Cynghordy and travelling east for approximately four miles. The Halfway
spectator area is directly off the A40 approximately six miles east of
Llandovery.
The event running order will be:
First group: Category 1 historics (approx 20 cars)
10-minute gap
Second group: Category 2 and 3 historics (approx 60 cars)
10-minute gap
Third group: Modern cars (approx 40 cars)
Spectator information will be available for download from 27 May
Press release: 20 May
2014
Prime stage conditions for DMACK Carlisle Stages
 Competitors
on the 2014 DMACK Carlisle Stages (Saturday 21
June) can expect prime forest conditions for the event that covers 45 stage
miles in the Kershope and Newcastleton complexes for a competitive entry fee of
£480.
Rally manager Colin Heppenstall completed a route survey over the weekend (17
May) and says that competitors are in for a real treat as the forest roads are
already in peak condition.
“The stages are lovely: they’ve been regraded and rolled since last being used,”
said Heppenstall. “Only some sections of Kershope were used on the recent
Pirelli Rally and they have been regraded, while Newcastleton has not been used
since the Roger Albert Clark Rally last November. Ash Park has not been used
since last year’s Carlisle Stages and is very fast and smooth.”
The rally starts with a ten-mile stage in Kershope followed by seven miles in
Newcastleton and then a four-mile test in Ash Park. After service at Longtown,
the three stages will be repeated.
Regulations are now available and entries are already coming in for both
elements of the rally: the DMACK Carlisle Stages
Rally will form round five of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship, while the DMACK Modern Carlisle
Stages Rally will be open to all other competitors, including those in
four-wheel drive cars.
The rally will again be based at the premises of the R J Murray & Sons Haulage
Company in Longtown, Carlisle and will cover 45 stage miles and just 60 road
miles. The first car will start at 9.30am and be back at the finish at 2pm on
this very compact event.
The day before the rally (Friday 20 June) will start with a three-mile shakedown
forest stage, which will be open to all competitors on the rally as a chance to
give sponsors, service crews, family, guests and media a taste of forest
rallying. The shakedown will have two sessions, the first running from 10am
until 12.30pm and the second from 1pm until 3.30pm. The cost will be just £90
per car for a maximum of six runs.
The DMACK Carlisle Stages will be organised by the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
Press release – 19
May 2014
TV date for R.A.C. Rally Championship round three
 The
television coverage of round three of the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, the SG Petch Tour of Hamsterley, will be broadcast on Motors
TV on Friday (23 May) starting at 10pm.
The 90-minute programme, produced by Olly Dickinson and narrated by David
Addison, covers the full story of the Co Durham event as another tremendous
field of R.A.C. crews tackled stages in Hamsterley forest and Raby Castle. The
programme will be repeated several times on Motors TV, including at 11.30am on
Bank Holiday Monday (26 May).
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally and will build on more than one million views achieved in
2013 for the championship and the Roger Albert Clark Rally. The free iRally App
is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and offers an incredibly
popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release: 15 May 2014
All systems go for Severn Valley Stages
 It
is a case of all systems go for the 2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May),
which has already bucked the general trend in 2014 of lower entry numbers on
gravel rallies.
With a week to go until entries close on 23 May the event has already taken 90
entries with around another 20 expected next week. The 2013 event received 87
entries in total and the event organisers are thrilled with the response to the
41st running of the rally.
Meanwhile, the forest stages in Cefn, Crychan and Halfway forests are reported
to be in prime condition, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for
10 months by the time of the 31 May rally.
The event is a round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship,
the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship and the Brian Dennis Motorsport
Welsh Historic Rally Championship. The rally will once again be based at the
Royal Welsh Showground at Builth Wells.
 “We’re
absolutely delighted with the way entries have come and we’d like to thank each
and every crew for supporting our rally,” said Secretary of the Meeting Steven
Tibbetts.
The event’s closing date for entries of Friday 23 May has been set to allow
Pirelli MSA Welsh contenders competing on this weekend’s Plains Rally to wait
until after the event before entering the Severn Valley. However those requiring
route notes will need to order them by 19 May to allow for printing and posting.
Midland Manor Motor Club has refreshed and re-branded the Severn Valley Stages
for 2014 and will deliver a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage miles for
£475.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
The event’s new website is at:
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Follow the Severn Valley Stages on Twitter (#SVS2014) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/severnvalleynational).
Press release: 7 May 2014
First 50 entries for Severn Valley Stages
The
2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May) moved past an important landmark
yesterday (6 May) when the 50th entry arrived, two and a half weeks ahead of the
closing date of 23 May.
Now, the event organisers have set an ambitious target of doubling the entry to
100 cars for the 41st running of this famous event. The event is a round of the
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage
Rally Championship and the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic Rally
Championship. The rally will once again be based at the Royal Welsh Showground
at Builth Wells.
“We’re delighted to have taken our 50th entry and we’d love to see that figure
double by the time the rally starts,” said Secretary of the Meeting Steven
Tibbetts. “We’d be very pleased to have 90 cars and 100 entries would be
brilliant. We’d like to thank all those who have entered to date for their
support.”
 The
event’s closing date for entries of Friday 23 May has been set to allow Pirelli
MSA Welsh contenders competing on the Plains Rally on 17 May to wait until after
that event before entering the Severn Valley.
Midland Manor Motor Club has refreshed and re-branded the Severn Valley Stages
for 2014 and will deliver a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage miles for
£475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and Halfway
forests, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for 10 months by the
time of the 31 May rally.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Press release: 1 May 2014
Drummond back in action for Severn Valley
Seasoned
competitor Ian Drummond has chosen the Severn Valley Stages (31 May) as his
first rally for nearly a year and will team up with Hu Kent as co-driver in his
Ford Escort RS2000.
Drummond is delighted to be going rallying for the first time since the 2013
Harry Flatters and only tackled two events last year due to some health issues.
However, he is now raring to go rallying again and has registered for the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Championship with a plan to do as many of the
remaining rounds as possible.
The Northampton-based driver will field his regular class C3 Escort Mk1 with
support from T and K Precision Ltd (Northampton). He says the Severn Valley is
always one of his favourite events, with top stages in the Crychan and Halfway
region.
“The car continues to be maintained by GB RallyPrep in Kettering and the engine
is now back to full strength after attention by Pete Jones of Jondel Race
Engines,” reported Drummond. “My only concern is being more than a bit rusty
after my enforced lay-off and we are planning to test the car and driver before
the Severn Valley to ensure fitness for both!”
The Severn Valley Stages Rally is a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage
miles for £475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and
Halfway forests, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for 10 months
by the time of the 31 May rally. The rally will once again be based at the Royal
Welsh Showground at Builth Wells.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Pritchard Clinches third after an impressive performance at Hamsterley
Jason Pritchard and co-driver Phil Clarke
had to overcome a number of challenges on Saturday as they impressed in the
North Road Garage backed Ford Escort RS 1800 by clinching 3rd place and winning
the FIA class in the historic section of the Tour of Hamsterley Rally.
The Tour of Hamsterley Rally set an
interesting challenge for all crews on Saturday (26th April) with slippy
conditions across all the stages however it was a problem with the starter motor
that was causing Pritchard and his team to worry, before the race had even
started:
“Before the start of the event we
experienced a problem with the starter motor and it wasn’t until Stage 6 when we
managed to repair the fault. So to finish 3rd and to win the class was a real
achievement by the whole team and I’m so grateful for their support, especially
Phil Clarke who supported me so well in the car but also with all the obstacles
we faced out of the car as well.”
The rally consisted of 9 stages with 6
inside the Hamsterley Forest complex and the other 3 in the Raby Castle estate
(a new addition to the rally) and Pritchard was relieved to complete Stage One
at a good pace, especially after going off on this stage last year. After very
little seat time in the last five months, the young man from Wales was conscious
that he was probably losing time on his rivals but also careful not to push
himself and the car too hard in the early stages:
“I was aware that I had only completed 2
stages in the last 5 months and the surfaces across the first three stages were
constantly changing so I had to adapt to how the car was dealing with each
stage. I wanted to finish the rally so it was crucial not to push too hard in
the early stages of the event.
“The following 2 stages were runs around
Raby Castle which was a real testing experience and new not just to myself but
all the drivers . The stage had 2 miles of tarmac and 1 mile of gravel, so as
you can imagine on my gravel tyres this was rather entertaining and the tarmac
was very wet and slippy so again the cautious approach had to be taken.”
The starter motor was replaced at service
and this was a weight off Pritchard’s shoulders, allowing him to concentrate on
the final stages and improve his times:
“Stage 6 was our best stage of the day and
I felt a lot more comfortable and more importantly, a lot quicker in the car. It
was fantastic having Phil as co-driver for the event and I really benefited from
his experience and assistance throughout the day.
“As always, I wouldn’t have finished in
such a good position if it wasn’t for all my excellent service crew who helped
me get to the finish line. It really was a team effort and I’m delighted with a
3rd place finish and to win the class. I’m already looking forward to the next
event and to improve on Saturday’s performance.”
Now watch Jason and Phil through stage
eight of the Tour of Hamsterley
Press
release – 29 April 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the third round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship have been announced following the Tour of Hamsterley (26
April).
Mike Tomkinson and Shaun Whitehurst were unfortunate enough to post the first
retirement of the rally when their Ford Escort Mk2 developed problems on the
opening stage. The last retirement was the Alfa Romeo of John Everard/Mark
Sharley, which slid into a muddy ditch less than a mile from the end of the
rally. Both crews will receive a £100 voucher from West Wales Rally Spares, as
will Ford Escort crew Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance after their number
came out of the hat in the draw for a third voucher.
Meanwhile, Ford Escort Mk1 crew Stuart and Linda Cariss will receive a cheque
for £240 from Holton Homes after their number came out in the draw for a refund
of 50% of the event entry fee.
The success of the Kumho Clubmans Challenge continued, with 27 crews electing to
contest the Challenge for cars using no more than six tyres during the event.
Once again, the top overall finishers in the Challenge were Tim Freeman and Paul
Wakely (Ford Escort Mk2) who finished a superb seventh overall.
Category winners in the Kumho Clubmans Challenge were Simon Wallis/Graham Wride
(Lotus Cortina) in Category 1, David Kirby/Tom Hutchins (Ford Escort Mk1) from
Category 2, Freeman/Wakely in Category 3, Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford
Escort Mk2) in Category K and Dave Hemingway/Simon Ashton (Ford Escort Mk2) in
Category O. Keith Davison won two tyres from Kumho for his Hillman Avenger in
the draw for Challenge contenders.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award from Fuchs Lubricants goes to Ford
Escort Mk2 crew Robert Cholmondeley and Dave Evans for scoring their first
finish in five years of trying.
John Baker and Ian Jones won the Best Improvement on Seeding, which is a set of
axle brake pads from Mintex, after a very good run in their Ford Escort Mk2.
Finally, Matt Edwards won the ‘Hard Charger’ award of a 20-litre jerry can from
Green Valley Industrial Supplies. His pace in his Ford Escort Mk2 was
outstanding as he took outright victory against a very strong field.
Press release
– 27 April 2014
Edwards wins WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round three
 Matt
Edwards and Kim Baker scored a fine victory on yesterday's SG Petch Tour of
Hamsterley historic rally (Saturday 26 April), the third round of the West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
The 45-mile event made use of the Hamsterley forest complex as well as the mixed
surface stage at Raby Castle and it was Edwards who took control from the start,
despite feeling unwell. Edwards and Baker went into the final loop of three
stages just 12s up on the similar Ford Escort Mk2 of Matthew Robinson/Sam
Collis, but when Robinson hit electrical dramas on the penultimate stage,
Edwards was clear of Nick Elliott/Dave Price by 47s.
Graham Waite and Gill Cotton had a strong run in their Volvo Amazon to win
Category 1 while brothers Ross and Arron Forde took maximum points in the Aldon
Automotive Mini and Imp Cup. David Stokes and Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) won
Category 2.
Other category winners included Tomas Davies/Carl Williamson (Ford Escort Mk2)
in Category K and Dave Hemingway/Simon Ashton (Ford Escort Mk2) in Category O.
With 65 registered contenders starting the rally, the Shildon-based event was
another strong event for the WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship and also marked the
opening round of the championship’s Northern Challenge.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Graham Waite/Gill Cotton (Volvo Amazon)
Category 2: David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Matt Edwards/Kim Baker (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Jason Tauber Pritchard/
Phil Clarke (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Dave Hemingway/Simon Ashton (Ford Escort Mk2)
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
The Tour of Hamsterley was organised by the Stockton and District Motor Club in
association with Teesside Motor Sport Group. A more detailed event report will
be pubished on his site during Monday 28 April.
Saturday 26th April 2014
Drama today at Raby Castle
After a wet and cold start at Shildon, the weather brightened by the time
that crews reached Raby Castle. Unfortunately the stage got the better of
some of our competitors including Bob Bean who had an argument with bales in the
chicane and Terry Cree who decided to shut down his engine to stave off further
damage after hearing unusual noises. For a view of the stage take a look at the
video clip below.
Friday 25th April 2014
Scrutineering underway for Tour of Hamsterley
Press release: 24
April 2014
Regs to be released for DMACK Carlisle Stages 2014
 Regulations
for the 2014 DMACK Carlisle Stages (Saturday 21 June) will be released early
next week with 45 stage miles in the Kershope and Newcastleton complexes for a
competitive entry fee of £480.
The rally will feature two elements: the
DMACK Carlisle Stages Rally will form round five of the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship, while the DMACK Modern Carlisle Stages Rally will be
open to all other competitors, including those in four-wheel drive cars.
The rally will again be based at the
premises of the R J Murray & Sons Haulage Company in Longtown, Carlisle and will
cover 45 stage miles and just 60 road miles. The first car will start at 9.30am
and be back at the finish at 2pm on this very compact event.
The action starts with a challenging
ten-mile stage in Kershope followed by a seven-mile stage in Newcastleton and
then a four-mile test in Ash Park. After service back at Longtown, the three
stages will be repeated.
The day before the rally (Friday 20 June)
will start with a three-mile shakedown forest stage, which will be open to all
competitors on the rally as a chance to give sponsors, service crews, family,
guests and media a taste of forest rallying.
The shakedown will have two sessions, the
first running from 10am until 12.30pm and the second from 1pm until 3.30pm. The
cost will be just £90 per car for a maximum of six runs.
Scrutineering and documentation will run
from 2pm until 7pm and will be followed by a barbecue for all crew members,
including families and service crews. This mid-season social event is expected
to be very popular as competitors, organisers and service crews all get together
in a relaxed atmosphere.
The DMACK Carlisle Stages will be
organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
Press
release: 23 April 2014
Great early response to entries for Severn Valley Stages
The
2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May) has already attracted its first 20
entries even though the rally is still nearly six weeks away.
With round three of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship
running this weekend (26 April), the Severn Valley organisers are expecting a
big run on entries over the following two weeks. To date, the R.A.C.
Championship has drawn an average of 65 entries to each event and many of the
100 registered contenders are expected to enter the Severn Valley, including
several crews making their first appearance of 2014.
In addition, contenders in the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship and
the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic Rally Championship are starting to
enter the event.
 “We
are very encouraged by the early level of interest in the 2014 event,” said
Secretary of the Meeting Steven Tibbetts. “We know that many R.A.C. contenders
will enter after the Tour of Hamsterley. We have also designed the closing date
for entries to allow Pirelli MSA Welsh contenders competing on the Plains Rally
on 17 May to wait until after that event before entering.” The final closing
date for entries is Friday 23 May.
Midland Manor Motor Club has refreshed and re-branded the Severn Valley Stages
for 2014 and will deliver a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage miles for
£475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and Halfway
forests, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for 10 months by the
time of the 31 May rally.
The Severn Valley Stages is round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, round five of the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic
Rally Championship and round five of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally
Championship. The rally will once again be based at the Royal Welsh Showground
at Builth Wells.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Press release – 16
April 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship hits 100 contenders
 The
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship has today (Wednesday 16 April)
hit a major landmark with the arrival of the 100th championship registration.
Against a backdrop of a generally difficult time for forest rallying, the
championship has enjoyed outstanding competitor support for the first three
events of the seven-round 2014 championship.
The opening event, the Red Kite Stages, attracted 60 registered contenders while
round two, the Mid Wales Stages, set a new record for the championship with 75
contenders. The entry list for round three, the Tour of Hamsterley, shows 62
registered contenders.
While the number of drivers registered has now hit the championship’s ambitious
target of 100, a further 83 co-drivers are registered so the championship has a
total of 183 competitors to date, with still more likely to come.
Significantly, the registrations are from across the historic categories and
include 21 in Category 1 for the pre ’68 cars. The list takes in 26 models of
car from 19 manufacturers, showing the great diversity of historic rallying.
Championship manager Colin Heppenstall said: “When we launched the 2014
championship we set ourselves the goal of reaching 100 registered contenders in
2014 and I’m delighted that we have hit that target before round three. We had
90 registrations last year so a 10% increase for 2014, so far, is very pleasing
and I’d like to thank each and every competitor for supporting the
championship.”
The 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship continues on the Tour of Hamsterley (26
April) and more details are available from
www.tourofhamsterley.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
9th April 2014
R.A.C. Rally Championship YouTube Channel launched
 You
might have noticed (if not why not?) that a new YouTube button has appeared on
the championship website. This is now the gateway to a dedicated R.A.C.
Championship YouTube Channel. It's our intention to publish all the
on-event videos from the championship in one place for you to re-live events
whenever you feel the need.
We have links here to all the films that
master rally film maker, David Winstanley produced during 2013 together with
short films produced by the championship media team and the aim is to add the
2014 coverage produced and edited by Olly Dickinson with narration by renowned
motor sport commentator David Addison. Uploaded to the the channel if you've
not already seen it is the coverage of the 2014 Mid Wales Historic Stages which
can be found
here.
Championship YouTube Channel:
www.youtube.com/channel/UC6cWqMfjBbTV4gdNEvRS79Q
Press release:
2 April 2014
Fairfield Motorsport partners with Severn Valley Stages
 Fairfield
Motorsport will support the 2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May) by
providing a special award for the best performance for a crew travelling across
the Irish Sea to get to the event.
The organisers of the Severn Valley Stages have thrown out an invitation to
crews from Ireland and the Isle of Man to come and sample some of the finest
gravel stages in the UK. The Fairfield Motorsport Award will be presented to the
leading visiting crew.
The event comes at a perfect time of the season to attract crews from across the
water and Fairfield Motorsport can arrange special ferry deals. Details of the
ferry deals are available from Judith Morgan at Fairfield Motorsport:
judith@fairfieldmotorsport.com Tel: within UK, 01656 725 000 Outside the UK,
00 44 1656 725 000. Discount deals are also available to spectators travelling
to the rally.
Although the event is still two months away, entries are already coming in for
both the modern and historic sections of the rally. The Severn Valley Stages is
round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, round five
of the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic Rally Championship and round five
of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship.
The Severn Valley Stages Rally is a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage
miles for £475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and
Halfway forests, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for 10 months
by the time of the 31 May rally. The rally will once again be based at the Royal
Welsh Showground at Builth Wells.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Press release – 2
April 2014
R.A.C. Rally Championship Clubman Challenge is a hit
 The
all-new Kumho Clubman Challenge within the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship has been judged a great success after the opening two rounds,
with 37 crews in a wide range of cars already contesting the challenge.
Running within the main championship, the Kumho Clubman Challenge is aimed at
recognising the crews competing on limited resources and to be eligible for the
challenge drivers must use no more than six tyres per rally. The Kumho Clubman
Challenge is a class and category-based challenge, allowing crews from any of
the categories to be the Clubman Challenge champions.
The R.A.C. Rally Championship organisers have always pledged to try and contain
costs and maintain a level playing field and the Kumho Clubman Challenge is a
major part of that commitment.
After the opening two events, the Red Kite Stages and Mid Wales Stages, two
drivers are tied at the head of the points. Tom Coughtrie (Ford Escort Mk2) and
Layton Waters (Toyota Starlet) are level on 86 points, while cars from Category
1 take the next four places in the form of Gwilym Roberts (Lotus Cortina), Peter
Stimson (Ford Anglia), Chris Tooze (Singer Chamois) and Simon Wallis (Lotus
Cortina).
However, one driver worthy of particular mention is class D5 driver Tim Freeman
who has successfully contested both events running his Ford Escort Mk2 within
the Clubman Challenge. Freeman’s overall results prove that it is possible to be
competitive at the very front of the field while running on a limited number of
tyres.
“We are very pleased with the way the Kumho Clubman Challenge has already become
an established part of the R.A.C. Rally Championship,” said Championship manager
Colin Heppenstall. “It is important that everyone involved in gravel rallying
works to reduce tyre consumption and we are delighted to have taken a lead with
the Clubman Challenge.”
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 27
March 2014
More awards for the WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
 Competitors
in the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will have a chance of
winning a £500 discount on the entry fee for the Roger Albert Clark Rally (28-30
November) under a new initiative announced by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor
Club.
The winners of Category 1, Category 2 and Category 3 in the WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship will each receive a £500 voucher to be used against the entry fee
for the November event.
The vouchers will significantly reduce the entry fee for the eleventh running of
the Roger Albert Clark Rally and further highlight the strong links between the
championship and the rally.
Championship and rally manager Colin Heppenstall said he was pleased to make the
announcement: “I said as part of the build up to the announcement of the new
Roger Albert Clark Rally for 2014 that the club wanted to recognise the category
winners from the championship for their achievements.
“With five championship rounds still to run the championship is all to play for.
We now have 97 registered drivers and the motor club is keen to give something
back to the crews as a thank you for making the championship one of the best
supported in the UK today.”
Full details of the 2014 Roger Albert Clark Rally will be announced shortly.
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 26
March 2014
TV date for R.A.C. Rally Championship round two
 The
television coverage of round two of the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, the Mid Wales Stages, will be broadcast on Motors TV on
Friday (28 March) starting at 9.35pm.
The 90-minute programme, produced by Olly Dickinson and narrated by David
Addison, covers the full story of the Welsh event as a record field of 75 R.A.C.
crews tackled the epic Pikes Peak, Myherin and Hafren stages. The programme will
be repeated several times on Motors TV, including at 5.45pm on Wednesday 2
April.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally and will build on more than one million views achieved in
2013 for the championship and the Roger Albert Clark Rally. The free iRally App
is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and offers an incredibly
popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
The Severn
Valley Stages 2014
Press release: 26 March 2014
Irish crews encouraged to enter 2014 Severn Valley Stages
The
organisers of the 2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May) have issued an
invitation to crews from Ireland and the Isle of Man to come and sample some of
the finest gravel stages in the UK.
The event comes at a perfect time of the season to attract crews from across the
water and the organisers have arranged special ferry deals with Fairfield
Motorsport. Any visiting crews will be able to scrutineer on Saturday morning if
required and the organisers will do everything possible to ensure that crews can
get away promptly on Saturday afternoon for return ferries.
“Ireland and the Isle of Man unquestionably have some of the finest asphalt
stages, but we think we’ve got some of the best gravel stages,” said Clerk of
the Course Chris Ashley. “We’d love to see more Irish and Isle of Man crews on
our event. We know we will have several crews coming over with the R.A.C.
Championship, but we’re keen to welcome more.”
 A
special award will be presented for the best performance for a crew travelling
across the Irish Sea to get to the Severn Valley Stages. Details of the ferry
deals are available from Judith Morgan at Fairfield Motorsport:
judith@fairfieldmotorsport.com
Tel: within UK, 01656 725 000
Outside the UK, 00 44 1656 725 000. Discount deals are also available to
spectators travelling to the rally.
The Severn Valley Stages Rally is a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage
miles for £475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and
Halfway forests, and both Cefn and Halfway will not have been used for 10 months
by the time of the 31 May rally.
The Severn Valley Stages is round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, round five of the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic
Rally Championship and round five of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally
Championship. The rally will once again be based at the Royal Welsh Showground
at Builth Wells.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
The event’s new website is at:
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Follow the Severn Valley Stages on Twitter (#SVS2014) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/severnvalleynational).
7 March 2014
Driver seeking Co-Driver
We have heard from Tim Jones who is
searching for a suitable co-driver to sit alongside him on the upcoming Severn
Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May). If anyone can help, Tim can be contacted
by email at
jones.timothyg@virgin.net or by telephone on
07938-785959
Press release
– 7 March 2014
Revised TV plan confirmed for R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
new television package for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship has been confirmed following the sad loss of David Winstanley last
month.
Olly Dickinson will take over the project and will lead the programme editing
and production as well as presenting and on-event interviews. He will be
supported by renowned motor sport commentator David Addison, who will deliver
the narrative to the programmes.
“We can never replace David Winstanley, who has a special place in the
affections of all rally fans,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall.
“However, we are very pleased with the new arrangement. I’m sure that Olly is
going to be a great addition to the R.A.C. team and he brings a real passion for
historic rallying. I’m also very pleased that we have been able to give a
hard-working young guy this opportunity.”
“I’m delighted to have the chance to come on-board with this rapidly growing
championship and I look forward to producing quality TV coverage,” said
Dickinson.
Addison, meanwhile, is best known as the lead voice for live ITV4 coverage of
the British Touring Car Championship and has extensive experience of
commentating and narrating right across the sport and up to the highest level.
“This will be a new challenge for me,” he said. “I’ve always been a real fan of
rallying and historics in particular, and I’ve heard a great deal about the
strength and popularity of the R.A.C. Championship.”
The new team will start its coverage with the action from round two, the Mid
Wales Stages, which is scheduled to air on Motors TV on Friday 28 March. Details
of the coverage of round one, the Red Kite Stages, will be announced shortly.
Each championship round will be covered in detail in a 90-minute programme on
Motors TV with multiple repeats and there will also be an end-of-season review
programme to give the championship over 50 hours of TV coverage. Initial
broadcasts will run in prime-time slots, typically three weeks after the rally.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally and will build on more than one million views achieved in
2013 for the championship and the Roger Albert Clark Rally. The free iRally App
is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and offers an incredibly
popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release: 7
March 2014
Great response to launch of 2014 Severn Valley Stages
The
organisers of the 2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May) are delighted with
the early response to the rally after meeting many crews at last weekend’s Mid
Wales Stages.
“We had extremely positive feedback about our plans for the 2014 event,” said
Secretary of the Meeting Steven Tibbetts. “Going to the Mid Wales to meet our
customers proved to be very worthwhile.”
With nearly three months to go to the event, the first entry is already in and
marks a new record for the earliest entry in the 40-year history of the rally.
Twenty-three years after he last rallied, Northampton motor sport accountant
Phil Harris will make a comeback to the sport in his Mini Cooper. “I bought my
Mini when I was 19 in 1976,” said Phil. “We built it into a rally car and had a
whale of a time. I re-shelled it in 1989 and then I started a business and had
to stop rallying.”
“I gave the car to Rob Smith Rallying to sort out and it has now had a bare
shell rebuild. I hadn’t thought about rallying it for 23 years but now I can’t
wait!” He will contest the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup within the WWRS
R.A.C. Rally Championship and will be co-driven by his niece Jenny Bradshaw.
Midland Manor Motor Club has refreshed and re-branded the Severn Valley Stages
for 2014 and will deliver a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage miles for
£475. The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and Halfway
forests, and both Cefn and Crychan will not have been used for 10 months by the
time of the 31 May rally.
The Severn Valley Stages is round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, round five of the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic
Rally Championship and round five of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally
Championship. The rally will once again be based at the Royal Welsh Showground
at Builth Wells.
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
Press
release – 7 March 2014
David Winstanley to be remembered by R.A.C Rally Championship
 Motor
sport TV filmer and producer David Winstanley will be remembered by an annual
award within the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
At the end of the championship season, a special trophy will be awarded to the
driver judged to have delivered the championship’s best TV moment of the season,
whether in or out of the car. Competitors, marshals and fans will be invited to
cast their votes in the process of deciding the winner of the award.
David, who died from natural causes in the middle of February, will be
remembered by the David Winstanley Award and the winner will receive the trophy
at the championship’s awards’ night at the Casa Hotel in Chesterfield on
Saturday 25 October.
“We wanted an award to remember David and all he did for rallying,” said
championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “This seems an appropriate way of
deciding the winner and it means that any driver, in any car, could win the
award. We hope David would have approved of this.”
Later in the season, more details about the voting process will be confirmed.
However, in view of the widespread popularity of David and his TV programmes,
the R.A.C. Championship organising team felt it would be a good idea to invite
votes from right across the sport so that the fans can have an important say in
deciding the winner.
5 March 2014
Championship newsletter: 5/2014
Welcome
to championship newsletter number 5 for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
The Mid Wales Stages was another cracking event, with everyone enjoying the
stages despite the rain that made the going very slippery. A particular vote of
thanks from the championship goes to all the marshals who stood out in the
conditions to ensure that the event ran very well.
For any championship contenders who won awards on the rally but were unable to
stay for the prize-giving, we will have your awards at signing-on for the Tour
of Hamsterley.
I am delighted to report that the Mid
Wales marked another record for the championship with our biggest field to date.
We had 75 registered contenders on the entry list and 73 starters, which is more
than a 30% increase over the 2013 rally. We now have 95 registrations and expect
to hit our target of 100 crews by round three, the Tour of Hamsterley.
| Read the
newsletter in full
here
in Adobe PDF format. |
 |
Press
release – 4 March 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the second round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship have been announced following the Mid Wales Stages (2 March).
Robert Cholmondeley and Dave Evans were unfortunate enough to post the first
retirement of the rally when their Ford Escort Mk2 developed problems on the way
to the opening stage. The last retirement was the Ford Escort Mk1 of Chris
Browne/Ali Cornwell-Browne, which went off on the final stage of the rally. Both
crews will receive a £100 voucher from West Wales Rally Spares, as will Toyota
Starlet crew Layton Waters and Kevin Bowcott after their number came out of the
hat in the draw for a third voucher.
Meanwhile, Ford Anglia crew Peter Stimson and Mark Butler will receive a cheque
for over £300 from Holton Homes after their number came out in the draw for a
refund of 50% of the event entry fee.
The new Kumho Clubmans Challenge was another great success, with 28 crews
electing to contest the Challenge for cars using no more than six tyres during
the event. Once again, the top overall finishers in the Challenge were Tim
Freeman and Paul Wakely (Ford Escort Mk2) who finished just outside the overall
top 10.
Category winners in the Kumho Clubmans Challenge were Gwilym Roberts/Don James
(Lotus Cortina) in Category 1, Terry Cree/Richard Shores (BMW 2002) from
Category 2, Freeman/Wakely in Category 3, Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford
Escort Mk2) in Category K and Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota Starlet) in
Category O. Tim Freeman won two tyres from Kumho for his Ford Escort Mk2 in the
draw for Challenge contenders.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award from Fuchs Lubricants goes to Darren
Moon and Alan Walker for a tremendous sixth overall in their Ford Escort Mk2. It
was Walker’s first time co-driving for many years and his first time on route
notes, so their performance was all the more creditable and they had a lot of
laughs with other crews in the process.
Mike Tomkinson and Shaun Whitehurst won the Best Improvement on Seeding, which
is a set of axle brake pads from Mintex, after an excellent run in their Ford
Escort Mk2. Finally, Owen Murphy won the ‘Hard Charger’ award of a 20-litre
jerry can from Green Valley Industrial Supplies. His pace in the Talbot Sunbeam
Lotus was outstanding and he finished fourth overall, right up among the fastest
Ford Escorts.
Press release –
2 March 2014
Elliott wins WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round two
Nick Elliott and David Price took a resounding victory on today’s Mid Wales
Historic Stages (Sunday 2 March), the second round of the West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Over 55 miles of classic Welsh forest stages, made slippery and extremely
challenging by steady rain, Elliott and Price took control from the opening
stage at Pikes Peak. With a 28s lead going into the final stage, Elliott took a
steady approach and that helped Matthew Robinson/Sam Collis to pull back 10s to
leave the margin of victory at 17.6s. Meirion Evans and Iwan Jones made it three
Ford Escort Mk2s on the overall podium before the flying Sunbeam Lotus of Owen
Murphy/James O’Brien.
With 75 registered contenders starting the rally, the Newtown-based event set a
new record for the R.A.C. Rally Championship and fans packed the stages to watch
the action despite poor weather.
Once again, Ray Cunningham and Gary McElhinney (Mini Cooper) were the stars of
Category 1 as they saw off a very strong field to take the spoils and maximum
points in the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup. Meanwhile, David Stokes and Guy
Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) made a strong championship debut to win Category 2.
Other category winners included Darren Moon/Alan Walker (Ford Escort Mk2) in
Category K and Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta) in Category O.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Ray Cunningham/Gary McElhinney (Mini Cooper)
Category 2: David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Nick Elliott/David Price (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Darren Moon/Alan Walker (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Simon Crook/Alister Crook (Opel Manta)
The Mid Wales Stages was organised by Newtown and District Automobile Club. A
more detailed event report will be circulated during Monday (3 March).
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
For full report see our 'Reports' page
here
Press release: 26 February 2014
2014 Severn Valley Stages is launched
The
wraps have come off plans for the 2014 Severn Valley Stages (Saturday 31 May),
which will be a competitor-focused event offering 44 stage miles for £475.
The team at Midland Manor Motor Club have worked to refresh the event for 2014
and will build on the success of last season’s 40th anniversary. The rally has
been re-branded and new members have joined the hugely experienced core team of
rally organisers.
The route will take in special stages in Cefn, Crychan and Halfway forests,
offering crews the chance to compete over some of the finest gravel roads in
British rallying. With 44 stage miles and 93 road miles, the compact event will
start at 8.30am and have the first car back at the finish before 3pm.
 The
Royal Welsh Showground at Builth Wells will once more provide an unrivalled
venue for rally HQ, scrutineering, attended overnight parking, camping
facilities, start, finish, service and refuel area as well as the setting for
the end-of-rally awards’ ceremony. Scrutineering and documentation will be held
primarily on Friday afternoon but, by prior arrangement, there will be the
chance to complete scrutineering and signing-on during Saturday morning, so
avoiding overnight accommodation costs.
The refresh for 2014 includes the inclusion of the event as round four of the
West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, while the organisers are
delighted to retain the Brian Dennis Motorsport Welsh Historic Rally
Championship and the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship.
“Our new branding and fresh approach, together with a high-profile new
championship, are aimed at revitalising this firm favourite in the rally
calendar,” said Secretary of the Meeting Steven Tibbetts. “Over the years we
have endeavoured to offer some of the best rally stages that Wales has to offer.
We aim to provide a value for money rally whilst maintaining the quality of
organisation that crews have come to expect from this event. At a cost of £10.80
a stage mile and with payment by instalments, we believe we have achieved just
that.”
The Regulations and Entry Form can be downloaded from
www.severnvalleystages.co.uk
from 1st March 2014.
Issued by Paul Lawrence (01952 510382 |
paul@tfmpr.com)
on behalf of Midland Manor Motor Club.
Press release – 24
February 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Championship heads for Mid Wales Stages
 The
epic stages of Pikes Peak, Myherin and Hafren will form the perfect setting for
the second round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, the
Mid Wales Stages (Sunday 2 March).
By any measure, the hugely popular event has attracted a fantastic line-up
including many of the fastest drivers in historic rallying. The rally will also
set a new record for the R.A.C. Rally Championship with no less than 77
registered contenders gathering in Newtown. It marks the biggest field of
historic championship entries for up to five years and underlines the enduring
popularity of historic rallying.
Sadly, the Mid Wales will be missing a key part of the historic rallying
fraternity following the recent death of TV film-maker David Winstanley and his
absence will be felt very strongly on what was always one of his favourite
rallies. The organisers of the R.A.C. Rally Championship plan to honour David’s
memory during the rally.
Heading the field away from Newtown on Sunday morning will be another tremendous
line-up of 18 pre ’68 cars in the Walker Diecastings Category 1. This includes
contenders in the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup, which got off to a flying
start on the Red Kite Stages. On round one, the competition in Category 1 was
incredibly fierce and it took a tie-break to split Ray Cunningham/Gary
McElhinney (Mini Cooper S) from Simon Wallis/Graham Wride (Lotus Cortina) after
nearly an hour of competition. Battle will be rejoined as soon as the leading
crews attack the Pikes Peak stage on Sunday morning.
However, this is far from a two-way battle as newly-registered Dessie
Nutt/Geraldine McBride (Porsche 911) and Graham Waite/Gill Cotton (Volvo Amazon)
are more potential winners, as is the redoubtable Bob Bean in his Lotus Cortina.
For a rare foray into Wales, veteran Bob will again be partnered by Malcolm
Smithson, while the similar car of Gwilym Roberts/Don James was right on the
pace on the Red Kite.
Chasing Cunningham in the Mini and Imp Cup will be his elder brother Frank,
co-driven by Arron Forde, and Clive King/Russ Joseph, while the Sunbeam Imp
Sport of Geoff Taylor/Steve Greenhill is a welcome addition to the R.A.C.
Championship to head class B1. In class B3, the Ford Cortina Mk2 GT of Bob and
Dale Gibbons should set the standard.
In the Capital Construction Category 2, husband and wife crew Chris Browne and
Ali Cornwell-Browne got their R.A.C. campaign off to a perfect start on the Red
Kite, but they face a fresh challenge this time around in the form of new R.A.C.
contenders David Stokes and Guy Weaver in their similar Ford Escort Mk1 within
class C5. The newly-built Escort Mk1 of Warren Philliskirk and Eurig Evans is
another leading contender, while welcome championship newcomer Jeremy Easson
tops class C4 in the Datsun 240Z owned by co-driver Mike Reynolds.
The pace of Northern Irishmen Stanley Orr and Brian Cairns on the Red Kite
suggests that they will be close to the overall Category 2 pace and are strong
contenders for class C3 in their Pinto-powered Escort Mk1. However, there is
plenty of opposition in this super-competitive class including Terry
Cree/Richard Shores (BMW 2002), Peter Smith/Patrick Walsh (Opel Ascona), David
Kirby/Chris Rixon (Escort Mk1) and Steve Magson/Darren Smith (Escort Mk1).
Heading class C2 will be the 1600cc Escort Mk1 of Robin Shuttleworth/Ronnie
Roughead.
Last year’s Mid Wales winners Nick Elliott and Dave Price head a sensational
entry for the Rob Smith Rallying Category 3, with most of the very quickest Ford
Escort Mk2s packed into the top 10. Running second on the road will be Red Kite
winner Richard Hill and his new co-driver Steffan Evans, while Matthew Robinson
and Sam Collis run at number three and head to Wales fresh from two victories in
February.
Out for the first time in 2014 to chase overall glory are crews like Jason
Pritchard/Phil Clarke and Kevin Davies/tba, while Terry Brown/Den Golding, Tomas
Davies/Eurig Davies and Meirion Evans/Iwan Jones add to a fabulous field. Ranged
against the Escorts is the Sunbeam Lotus of Owen Murphy/James O’Brien, which
heads class D4 and is joined by two more examples in the very capable hands of
Guy Anderson/Kim Baker and James Stait/Mike Harris.
Another strong field will contest class D3 for the Pinto-powered Escort Mk2s and
the pack is headed by Shawn Rayner and Declan Dear, who will hope for a clear
run after problems on the Red Kite. It was Gareth Lewis and Dan Holley who took
maximum points on the Red Kite and they will be very strong along with other
contenders like Adrian Young/Gwynfor Jones, Paul Fry/Mike Steele and Ben
Friend/Sean Kennedy.
Class D2, for the 1600cc cars in Category 3, has an encouraging entry and is
headed by championship newcomers David and Nenah Goose (Ford Escort Mk2). They
will go up against the Hillman Avengers of Graham Thatcher/Robert James and
Keith Davison/Henry Richardson and the Talbot Sunbeam of David Hopkins/Tony Vart.
The Holton Homes Category K for FIA specification cars has more support this
time around as the Escort Mk2 of Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge is joined by two
more examples for Rob Smith/Alun Cook and Darren Moon/Alan Walker. Smith and
Moon will both be chasing top six overall finishes, though Moon has a novice
co-driver who is more used to driving than reading the notes.
Running alongside the historics are the cars in R.A.C. Category O for open
two-wheel drive cars and heading the pack is the spectacular Toyota Starlet of
Leyton Waters and Kevin Bowcott. Rivals to the flying Welsh crew include Escorts
for Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance and Dave Hemingway/Simon Ashton and
the Opel Manta of brothers Simon and Alistair Crook.
The rally will be based in Newtown with the central service area at Sweet Lamb.
The first historic car will start at 9am on Sunday and return to the finish at
3pm. The Mid Wales Stages is supported by Viking Motorsport and Links Electrical
Supplies Ltd.
The Mid Wales Stages is organised by the Newtown and District Automobile Club.
For more details about the event please visit
www.newtown-mc.co.uk
David Winstanley
19 February 2014
 Colin
Heppenstall, championship manager, has this evening issued a newsletter on the
untimely passing of David Winstanley of Rally TV.
"I am extremely saddened to have to report
the death of David Winstanley, who has filmed both the Roger Albert Clark Rally
and R.A.C. Rally Championship. David was found dead at his home yesterday and it
seems that he died from natural causes.
David joined us in the early days of the
Roger Albert Clark Rally and was then the obvious person to film the
championship when the 2013 season started. He consistently delivered superb
programmes which captured the atmosphere and appeal of historic rallying. His
passion and enthusiasm for the sport always shone through in his programmes and
his work was an important factor in the growth of both the rally and the
championship.
Throughout all his work, David retained
his great sense of humour and always had time to chat to crews, wherever they
were in the running order. The sport has lost a real character and a great
advocate.
I am very pleased that he was able to
return to driving for last year’s Roger Albert Clark Rally and it is sad that he
will not see his Alfa Romeo project come to fruition.
We send our sincere condolences to David's
family and many friends in the sport. He delivered great TV programmes and his
coverage of the 2013 championship was truly outstanding. Rest in peace, David,
you will be greatly missed"
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Press release
– 12 February 2014
More backing for Mini and Imp Cup in R.A.C Championship
 There
is more good news for contenders in the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup within
the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship for 2014, with
confirmation of a media partnership with love-mini.co.uk and a new arrangement
for tyre support.
The website www.love-mini.co.uk will
support the Mini and Imp Cup with regular coverage on the website and in its
free digital bi-monthly magazine for the Mini community. The on-line magazine is
read by around 7000 Mini enthusiasts every issue.
Meanwhile, after many miles of development by renowned Mini driver Clive King,
Kingpin’s 145 x 10 (ultra grip) tyre is now available to WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship contenders via motor sport tyre specialists Mr Tyre (Motorsport)
Ltd. The dedicated and experienced team at Mr Tyre will provide an on-event tyre
service for Mini drivers on all rounds of this year’s R.A.C Championship.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship continues on the Mid Wales Stages on Sunday 2
March and more details are available from
http://www.newtown-mc.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
10th February 2014
Championship newsletter: 3/2014
Welcome to championship newsletter
number 3 for the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship 2014.
The Red Kite Stages (Sunday 2 February)
got the season off to a great start and all the feedback we have had from the
event has been very positive. Despite the prevailing weather, the stages were in
excellent condition and with 60 registered crews on the rally it was a busy
weekend for the championship.
I’m delighted to report that we have now
taken 78 championship registrations and we know of plenty more still to come, so
our target of 100 registered crews for 2014 is looking achievable.
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Press release 6 February 2014
DMACK Carlisle Stages to be ‘summer party’ for R.A.C. Championship
 The
2014 Carlisle Stages (Saturday 21 June), which will again be backed by DMACK,
will form the core of a ‘summer party’ for the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship.
Following on from the runaway success of the inaugural DMACK Carlisle Stages in
2013, round five of the 2014 R.A.C. Championship will run on Saturday 21 June
and cover 45 stage miles in the Kershope and Newcastleton forest complexes.
The day before the rally (Friday 20 June) will start with a shakedown forest
stage of up to two miles, which will be open to all registered championship
contenders as a chance to give sponsors, service crews, family, guests and media
a taste of forest rallying. There will be a modest charge for cars taking part
and there will be no limit on the number of runs.
When the shakedown stage closes, the focus will turn to pre-event documentation
and scrutineering on Friday afternoon at R J Murray & Sons Haulage Company in
Longtown, Carlisle: just five minutes from junction 44 of the M6.
Then, as scrutineering closes late on Friday afternoon there will be a
championship barbecue for all crew members, including families and service
crews. This mid-season social event is expected to be very popular as
competitors, organisers and service crews all get together in a relaxed
atmosphere.
This compact rally, with 45 stage miles and less than 70 road miles, will give
crews a rare chance to tackle some of the most famous gravel stages in the UK
during the summer months. The DMACK Carlisle Stages will be organised by the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club.
“We wanted to have a mid-season social get together for everyone involved in the
R.A.C. Championship and the DMACK Carlisle Stages is the ideal event,” said
Colin Heppenstall, championship manager. “Crews can shake the cars down and give
some passenger rides on Friday morning, complete scrutineering on Friday
afternoon and then enjoy the barbecue. On Saturday, the rally will finish from
around 3pm to allow crews to start the journey home in good time.”
Further information on the DMACK Carlisle
Stages will be posted on the official event website at:
http://www.racrallychamp.org/Carlisle_Stages/carlisle_stages_home.htm
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release –
5 February 2014
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship award winners announced
 The
special award winners for the first round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship have been announced following the Red Kite Historic Stages (2
February).
Graham Thatcher and Robert James posted the first retirement of the rally with
gearbox problems for their Hillman Avenger on the opening stage. The last
retirement was the Ford Escort Mk2 of Vince Bristow/Tim Sayer, which went off
near the end of the final stage in Crychan. Both crews will receive a £100
voucher from West Wales Rally Spares, as will Ford Escort Mk1 crew Paul and
Daniel May after their number came out of the hat in the draw for a third
voucher.
Meanwhile, Ford Escort Mk2 crew John Baker and Seyyan John will receive a cheque
for £237.50 from Holton Homes after their number came out in the draw for a
refund of 50% of the event entry fee.
The new Kumho Clubmans Challenge was a runaway success, with 23 out of the 60
R.A.C. crews electing to contest this new Challenge for crews using no more than
six tyres during the event. Significantly, the top overall finishers in the
Challenge were Tim Freeman and Paul Wakely (Ford Escort Mk2) who finished a
tremendous fifth overall.
Category winners in the Kumho Clubmans Challenge were Simon Wallis/Graham Wride
(Lotus Cortina) in Category 1, David Kirby/Chris Rixon (Ford Escort Mk1) from
Category 2, Freeman/Wakely in Category 3 and Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford
Escort Mk2) in Category K. Gareth Lewis won two tyres from Kumho for his Ford
Escort Mk2 in the draw for Challenge contenders.
The ‘Spirit of the Rally’ product award from Fuchs Lubricants goes to Terry
Brown for a superb second overall in his Ford Escort Mk2 on one of his favourite
rallies. Terry and his younger co-driver Den Golding are both pensioners!
Simon Pickering and Colin Jenkins won the Best Improvement on Seeding, which is
a set of axle brake pads from Mintex, after an excellent run in their Ford
Escort Mk1. Finally, Meirion Evans won the ‘Hard Charger’ award of a 20-litre
jerry can from Green Valley Industrial Supplies. His pace in his Escort Mk2 was
excellent despite a couple of problems and he was fastest of all over the final
15-mile stage in Crychan.
Press
release – 3 February 2014
Hill takes opening WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship counter
 Richard Hill and Pat Cooper took a dramatic final stage victory on the Red Kite
Historic Stages (Sunday 2 February), the opening round of the West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship. In what proved to be a perfect start for the
championship season, Ray Cunningham and Chris Browne won Category 1 and 2
respectively but only after two tie-breaks!
With a fine 60-car line-up of championship contenders, the Red Kite lived up to
all expectations as crews tackled superb stages in the Caio and Crychan
complexes. Despite all the pre-event rain, the stages were in excellent
condition though heavy rain that returned as the leading crews tackled the
deciding 15-mile stage in Crychan made conditions very challenging.
After leading from the start, Nick Elliott and Dave Price took a lead of 28s
into the final stage in their Ford Escort Mk2. However, with two miles to go
they were caught out by a bump and crashed out of the rally, leaving Hill and
Cooper to win by 45s from the flying Terry Brown/Den Golding and Tomas Davis/Eurig
Davies.
“It’s not the way I want to win a rally,” said Hill, but for a first run in a
car finished three days earlier it was still an impressive start to his title
bid. However, that final Crychan stage was not easy for them as the wipers
packed up for the last five miles.
Pensioners Brown and Golding were two stars of the rally on their way to second
overall after a mighty run on some of their favourite stages. Brown went into
the final stage less than 10s up on the Sunbeam Lotus of Owen Murphy/James
O’Brien, but a detached oil pipe put the Irish crew out at the start of the
stage.
Instead, Davies fended off Darren Moon/Elgan Davies for what became third after
a day-long tussle. Davies was another in a car finished only just before the
rally. Tim Freeman/Paul Wakely moved up well after a slow start to fend off
Gareth Lloyd/Ryland James for sixth. Meanwhile, Meirion Evans and Iwan Jones
showed strong pace despite a couple of problems, including a puncture in SS1,
and were fastest of all on the final stage.
Retirements included James Potter and Bob Duck with a blown engine in the last
mile of the opening stage. They coasted over the finish line and still set a
strong stage time, while a good run for Jerry Bailey and Graham Lacey ended with
a roll in Caio 2. Vince Bristow and Tim Sayer ran in D5 in the Rally Xtreme
Escort Mk2 and were unlucky to retire near the end of the final stage with a
non-damaging off after running at a very good pace.
Local ace Gareth Lewis and Dan Holley took first blood in class D3 within the
Rob Smith Rallying Category 3 in their Ford Escort Mk2, but there was
frustration for Shawn Rayner/Declan Dear who lost the class spoils after sliding
into a ditch at the finish line of Caio 2. They recovered to claim second while
James Stait/Mike Harris took class D4 in their Sunbeam Lotus despite stopping to
change a puncture on Crychan 2. In class D2, championship newcomers Dave Hopkins
and Tony Vart took the spoils in their Sunbeam Talbot despite a jammed throttle
cable on Caio 2.
There was an absolute cliff-hanger in the Capital Construction Category 2 as
Chris Browne/Ali Cornwell-Browne beat fellow Escort Mk1 crew Roger Matthews/Paul
Morris on another tie-break after pulling back a 1s deficit on the final stage.
Browne got the nod after being a single second faster than Matthews over the
opening stage. “That 15-miler is why we go rallying,” said Browne after a great
performance.
Class C3 netted a fine debut victory for the Opel Ascona A of Peter
Smith/Patrick Walsh after an excellent day, though Peter Egerton and Alun Cook
chased hard in their Ford Escort Mk1. Class C2 went to father and son Paul and
Daniel May, who made the trip from Newcastle worthwhile with a good day in their
Escort Mk1.
There was a fabulous start in the Walker Diecastings Category 1 for the Paddy
Hopkirk Trophy as Ray Cunningham/Gary McElhinney (Mini Cooper) ended the rally
tied with Simon Wallis/Graham Wride (Lotus Cortina). The Mini crew took the
Category on a tie-break by dint of the faster time on the opening stage and also
claimed first blood in the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup.
“The stages were fantastic,” said Cunningham after a tremendous performance.
Wallis was quick to give credit to his rival: “I couldn’t have gone any faster
on that last stage and Ray pulled back three seconds to leave it level,” said
Wallis who had earlier borrowed an intercom battery from the Irish crew. With 15
Category 1 cars in action, it marked the best field of pre ’68 cars for several
seasons and it could have been a three-way lead battle had the Lotus Cortina of
Gwilym Roberts/Don James not suffered brake failure at the start of SS4. Roberts
was fastest of all over the first three stages and only finished 16s adrift,
while father and son Bob and Dale Gibbons claimed Class B3 in their Ford Cortina
GT. Steven Higgins and Don Bramfoot took Class B1 in their Saab 96, but the
Porsches of Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell and Edmund Peel/Dessie Nutt both retired,
with electrical and clutch problems respectively.
Other category winners included Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford Escort Mk2)
in the Holton Homes Category K and Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota Starlet)
in Category O. Coughtrie’s strong run was interrupted by a puncture and then a
problem with the jack. Waters was second among the two-wheel drives in the
modern rally and had a decent gap over the second R.A.C. contenders, Barry
Stevenson-Wheeler and Jon Pickavance (Ford Escort Mk2).
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events. Round 2 is the Mid Wales
Stages on Sunday 2 March.
The Red Kite Stages was organised by Amman and District Motor Club.
Press
release – 2 February 2014
Hill takes opening WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship counter
 Richard
Hill and Pat Cooper took a dramatic final stage victory on today’s Red Kite
Historic Stages (Sunday 2 February), the opening round of the West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
With a fine 60-car line-up of championship contenders, the Red Kite delivered a
cracking start to the season as crews tackled superb stages in the Caio and
Crychan complexes. Despite all the pre-event rain, the stages were in excellent
condition and heavy rain that returned as the leading crews tackled the deciding
15-mile stage in Crychan made conditions very challenging.
After leading from the start, Nick Elliott and Dave Price took a lead of 28s
into the final stage in their Ford Escort Mk2. However, with two miles to go
they were caught out by a bump and crashed out of the rally, leaving Hill and
Cooper to win by 45s from the flying Terry Brown/Den Golding and Tomas Davis/Eurig
Davies.
The first of two enthralling battles came in Category 1 as Ray Cunningham/Gary
McElhinney (Mini Cooper) ended the rally tied with Simon Wallis/Graham Wride
(Lotus Cortina). The Mini crew took the Category on a tie-break and also claimed
first blood in the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup.
It was even closer in Category 2 as Chris Browne/Ali Cornwell-Browne beat fellow
Escort Mk1 crew Roger Matthews/Paul Morris on another tie-break after pulling
back a 1s deficit on the final stage. Browne got the nod after being a single
second faster than Matthews over the opening stage.
Other category winners included Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford Escort Mk2)
in Category K and Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota Starlet) in Category O.
Category winners were:
Category 1: Cunningham/Gary McElhinney (Mini Cooper)
Category 2: Chris Browne/Ali Cornwell-Browne (Ford Escort Mk1)
Category 3: Richard Hill/Pat Cooper (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category K: Tom Coughtrie/Calvin Cooledge (Ford Escort Mk2)
Category O: Layton Waters/Kevin Bowcott (Toyota Starlet)
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
The Red Kite Stages was organised by
Amman and District Motor Club. A more detailed event report will be posted later
today Monday 3 February.
Sunday 2nd February 2014
Red Kite Historic Stages
A bright and clear Sunday dawned in Llandovery this morning after yesterday's
deluge. We'll be posting updates during the day today on our Facebook page
and a full report will be posted on this website post event. Keep watching
for all the action.
Press release –
24 January 2014
Great early response to WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
Colin Heppenstall, manager of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship, says he is delighted with the early response to the championship
after receiving the 50th crew registration today (Friday 24 January).
The championship season starts in just over a week’s time on the Red Kite Stages
(Sunday 2 February) and 60 registered contenders are due to line up for the
start of the rally in Llandovery. With a near capacity entry, the Red Kite will
get the UK gravel rallying season off to a flying start and the R.A.C. Rally
Championship has played an important role in supporting the event, organised by
Amman and District Motor Club.
With 50 crews already registered and at least another 25 planning to sign-up at
the Red Kite documentation on Saturday (1 February), the championship is well on
course to meet its ambitious target of 100 registrations for 2014. As many as 20
more crews are due to join the championship at round two, the Mid Wales Stages
(2 March). Importantly, the early registrations include 20 crews that are new to
the R.A.C. Championship and a number that are new to rallying as well as several
returning to the sport after a long break.
Heppenstall said: “When we launched the 2014 championship last October, we set
ourselves the goal of reaching 100 registered contenders this year. We had 90
last year, and we want to grow that number by between 10 and 15% for 2014.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events. The current list of
registered contenders is available here
Press release – 23
January 2014
More awards for the R.A.C. Rally Championship
 Competitors
in the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will have a chance of
winning a share of an award fund worth over £2000 as part of the WWRS title
sponsorship package for the championship.
At each of the seven rounds of the championship, three £100 WWRS vouchers will
be presented: one each to the first and last retirement on every rally and to
one crew drawn from the hat at each round.
In addition, across the season three more vouchers will be presented for ‘hard
luck’ stories as adjudged by the championship organising team. No crew can win a
voucher twice, so 24 championship registered crews will win a voucher during the
seven-event season.
“Retiring on any rally can be hugely disappointing, but to retire on the first
or last stage is particularly tough. We hope that the WWRS vouchers will ease
the pain a little,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “I’m very
grateful to Gareth Lloyd and his team at WWRS for their on-going support of the
championship.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press
release – 23 January 2014
Hopkins makes comeback in R.A.C. Championship after 25 years
 After
a quarter of a century out of rallying, South Wales driver Dave Hopkins will
return to the sport to campaign a Chrysler Sunbeam Ti in this season’s West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Hopkins rallied Ford Escorts in the mid-1980s, often on BTRDA events, but
stopped in 1988 due to time and money pressures. Now, 25 years later, he will
make his return on the Red Kite Stages (2 February) in the 1600cc Sunbeam and
will be co-driven by Tony Vart. Hopkins has been encouraged to return by his
brother-in-law Ian Beveridge, a regular competitor in a Category 1 Volvo PV544.
“I co-drive for Ian on the Neath Valley Stages in 2011 and decided I had to do
something again. The car has had a rare-shell rebuild and it’s been a four-year
project. Historics looked like the right thing for us to do,” said Hopkins.
“It’s affordable and seemed like a good idea at the time. My last event was a
BTRDA round in Wales in 1988. Obviously I’ve missed rallying.”
Hopkins and Preston-based Vart plan to contest the full R.A.C. season and would
like to finish the year with a first assault on the Roger Albert Clark Rally.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release
– 20 January 2014
More partners unveiled for WWRS R.A.C Rally Championship
 Another
group of sponsors and partners have been unveiled for the West Wales Rally
Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, bringing to 27 the total number of
organisations partnering with the biggest historic rally championship in
Britain.
With West Wales Rally Spares as title sponsor for the championship, the four
major tyre suppliers in the historic arena have all continued as tyre partners:
DMACK, Dunlop, Kumho and Pirelli.
Category sponsors for the coming season are Walker Diecastings (Category 1),
Capital Construction (Category 2), Rob Smith Rallying (Category 3) and Holton
Homes (Category 4).
New for 2014 is the Welsh Challenge, run over the four events in Wales, which is
being sponsored by Geoff Jones Motorsport. Aldon Automotive has already been
confirmed as the sponsor of the Mini and Imp Cup.
Specific product awards on each event will be provided by Fuchs Lubricants
(Spirit of the Rally Award) and Mintex (Best Improvement on Seeding) while
Holton Homes has continued to support the Clubmans Award, which provides a 50%
entry fee refund for one crew on each rally. Special end of season awards are
supported by Martin Jones Transmissions (most entertaining driver), Weir Laundry
Equipment (best under 25 driver) and Rally Xtreme (best over 55 driver).
Support for the TV coverage of the 2014 championship comes from Amigos, JD
Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas Opticians, Lynwood Classic
Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment, rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing,
Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift Leisure.
“I am absolutely delighted with the level of support for the 2014 championship,”
said championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “Every one of our partners is
warmly appreciated for their help in making the championship a success. I am
confident we will reward them with a fine season of rallying in a sporting and
competitive atmosphere.”
The 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday
2 February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 17 January 2014
Red Kite entry filling fast
 The
organisers of the 2014 Red Kite Stages (Sunday 2 February) from Amman and
District Motor Club have urged intending competitors to enter the rally as soon
as possible as the entry list is rapidly filling up. With 67 entries already
received, and another week to go before entries close for seeding, the 90 places
available could all be filled.
The response to the event has exceeded expectations and with entries coming in
at the rate of five or six each day the remaining 23 places could be gone before
the closing date for seeded entries, which is Friday 24 January.
The historic event is the opening round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship, while the modern event is the first round of the
In Car Services/Evans Motorsport Tyres Welsh Clubmans’ Forest Championship.
As of today (Friday 17 January), the historic event has 43 entries and the
modern event has 24 entries. Of the 67 entries in total, 46 are from R.A.C
Championship contenders. Any entries received after 90 will be placed on a
reserve list.
The route will take in five stages in the Crychan and Caio complexes, with the
return to Caio coming after overwhelming praise for the fast and flowing stage
on the 2013 event. As is customary for the event, the stages are in excellent
condition.
The rally will be based in Llandovery with Rally HQ at the Castle Hotel and the
central service area at the adjoining Llandovery Mart. Documentation and
scrutineering will be on Saturday 1 February. The first historic car will start
at 8.30am on Sunday and return to the finish at 2.30pm.
Regulations for the event are available from the event’s all-new website:
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press
release – 17 January 2014
Paddy Hopkirk to be celebrated by R.A.C Rally Championship
 Rallying
legend Paddy Hopkirk will be celebrated in the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C.
Rally Championship with the award of a major new trophy for the winner of
Category 1 at the end of each season.
It was 50 years ago today (17 January) that Hopkirk started the 1964 Monte Carlo
Rally in his works Mini Cooper registered ’33 EJB’. He went on to score a
landmark victory on the event with a drive that captured the nation’s
imagination and instantly make himself a household name. Now, the biggest
championship for historic rally cars in Britain will honour that achievement
with the Paddy Hopkirk Trophy.
The overall winner of the Walker Diecastings-supported Category 1, for cars from
up to 1968, will win this very special award and it is hoped that Hopkirk will
be on hand at the end of season awards evening to present the trophy.
Fittingly, Mini Coopers are due to feature prominently in the 2014 championship
with up to 10 cars expected to contest the new Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp
Cup. This major new award for the category further underlines the championship’s
commitment to Category 1 and that commitment extends to the TV coverage, which
will include a dedicated Category 1 report from each of the seven rounds.
With the Category 1 cars running first on the road on all rounds of the WWRS
R.A.C. Rally Championship, the series is already enjoying unprecedented support
from the Category 1 fraternity. More than 12 Category 1 cars are due to contest
the opening R.A.C, round, the Red Kite Stages (Sunday 2 February). This will be
the biggest Category 1 entry on any gravel event for several years.
The 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday
2 February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 14
January 2014
More crews confirm WWRS R.A.C. Championship plans
 The
recent Autosport International (9-12 January) was a busy time for the organising
team for West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, with extensive
competitor interest in the championship. Among a gaggle of crews confirming
their 2014 plans were some familiar faces and some crews new to the
championship.
Bob Gibbons/Dale Gibbons
Bob Gibbons will have his son Dale co-driving for the first time this season as
they field Bob’s rapid Ford Cortina Mk2 GT on R.A.C. Rally Championship rounds.
They will join the ever-growing field of cars in Category 1.
Dale (29) will take over the seat vacated by Stuart Cardell, who has retired to
Italy. Dale and his brother James have been going rallying with their dad since
they were youngsters.
“I like what the guys are doing with the R.A.C. Championship,” said the South
Wales driver. “We want to run the Cortina in the championship and we think we’ve
got the car sorted now. Dale now lives and works in Manchester and he’s going to
sit with me for a few events,” said Bob who has been rallying for nearly 40
years.
John Baker/Seyyan John
John Baker plans to contest the four events in the Welsh Challenge in his
Pinto-powered Ford Escort Mk2 with Seyyan John co-driving. He then hopes to
tackle the three rounds of the Northern Challenge with another co-driver. “I’m
planning to do all seven events,” said the driver from North Shropshire.
“The R.A.C. Championship ticks all the boxes for me,” said Baker, who does most
of his own preparation work. “That car means a lot to me: I’ve put a lot into
it!”
Terry Brown/Den Golding
Welsh rallying veterans Terry Brown and Den Golding will renew an old
partnership this season when they team up to contest the R.A.C. Rally
Championship in Brown’s Ford Escort Mk2.
With a combined age of 136 they will probably be the oldest crew in the
championship, but will still be very competitive.
They plan to do the four rounds of the Welsh Challenge and possibly more,
although Golding will miss the Neath Valley Stages as he is clerk of the course
for the event.
“I’m looking forward to getting back alongside Terry,” said Golding. “We’ve done
about 20 events together over the years. Is there a prize for the oldest crew?”
Ken Sturdy
Planning to join the championship trail for the Tour of Hamsterley is Ken
Sturdy.
Nearly 20 years after he last rallied a Ford Escort, Hull-based Ken is returning
to rallying a Mk2 after acquiring the ex-Stuart Clarke car last used by Melvyn
Evans on the 2013 Neath Valley Stages.
“I’m 50 in June so thought I’d better up my game a bit before I’m past it,”
said Sturdy. ”The last time I campaigned an Escort was in 1995 on airfield
events. I wish I’d kept the car as it would be worth ten times what I sold it
for!” He will focus his efforts on the Northern Challenge this season.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Photo shows Terry Brown on the 2013 Neath Valley
Stages.
13 January 2014
Gibbons family crew join R.A.C.
 Bob
Gibbons will have his son Dale co-driving for the first time this season as they
field Bob’s rapid Cortina GT Mk2 on West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship rounds. They will join the ever-growing field of cars in Category
1.
Dale (29) will take over the seat vacated
by Stuart Cardell, who has retired to Italy. Dale and his brother James have
been going rallying with their dad since they were youngsters.
“I like what the guys are doing with the
R.A.C. Championship,” said the South Wales driver. “We want to run the Cortina
in the championship and we think we’ve got the car sorted now. Dale now lives
and works in Manchester and he’s going to sit with me for a few events,” said
Bob who has been rallying for the best part of 40 years now.
After a try out together at Builth Wells
showground in November, Bob and Dale will make their forest debut on the Red
Kite Stages.
Press release – 12 January
2014
R.A.C. Rally Championship TV deal unveiled
 The
television package for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship has been unveiled at Autosport International today (Sunday 12
January).
Following on from the acclaimed coverage of the 2013 championship, David
Winstanley and his team at rallytv.co.uk will continue to film all of the
championship action for dedicated programmes on Motors TV.
Each round of the championship’s seven rounds will be covered in detail in a
90-minute programme on Motors TV with multiple repeats and there will also be an
end-of-season review programme to give the championship over 50 hours of TV
coverage. Initial broadcasts will run in prime-time slots, typically three weeks
after the rally. In addition to the TV coverage, each event will be featured on
YouTube, with a report uploaded as soon as possible after each event.
Alongside the TV coverage, the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship will again be
available on iRally and will build on more than one million views achieved in
2013 for the championship and the Roger Albert Clark Rally. The free iRally App
is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and offers an incredibly
popular rally video channel.
Support for coverage of the 2014 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Amigos, JD Garage Equipment, Jordan Road Surfacing, Lloyd-Thomas
Opticians, Lynwood Classic Engines, Rally and Competition Equipment,
rallyprep.co.uk, Robinson Road Planing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines and Swift
Leisure.
“It is a privilege to work with the R.A.C. Rally Championship,” said David
Winstanley. “It is a great platform for us to work with, and with such an
enthusiastic band of competitors and organisers we are always working to improve
the package. We are very grateful to the TV partners for their support.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 9 January 2014
Cunningham brothers set for Mini battle
 Irish
brothers Ray and Frank Cunningham will go head-to-head for the first time in
their long rallying careers when they enter a pair of Mini Coopers in this
season’s West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Younger brother Ray is widely regarded as one of the fastest Mini drivers in the
world on asphalt rallies, but has virtually no experience on gravel. Meanwhile
Frank, who started his successful rallying career in Minis in the 1990s, has far
more gravel experience but only at the wheel of Ford Escorts.
“We’ve never rallied against each other, so this is a battle of the brothers,”
said Galway-based Ray. “The cars are identical and they are within one bhp of
each other on the dyno. We’ll try and create a bit of a storm!” Ray will prepare
both cars at his Galway Mini Centre, while further support will come from
UK-based Mini Spares.
Ray says that his only knowledge of the Welsh forests has been gained on a
mountain bike. “I’ve done very little gravel rallying and no forestry,” said the
former winner of his category on the Killarney Historic Rally. The brothers will
start their campaign on the opening round, the Red Kite Stages (2 February) and
will go up against established Mini pacesetter Clive King in the Aldon
Automotive Mini and Imp Cup. “Clive has been a big help with things like tyres
and I think he’ll show me how it’s done. I also expect to get beaten by Frank
initially as he has the gravel experience.”
“We’ll do the Red Kite and the Mid Wales and then see how many more we do,” said
Ray. “The four Welsh events are easy for us to get to. This all came about over
a few beers at Christmas. I’ve been looking at the in-car from Marty McCormack
and the stages look superb.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press release – 8
January 2014
Clubmen to be rewarded in R.A.C. Championship
 Clubmen
contenders in the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will
have the chance to win back half of the entry fee on each of the championship’s
seven rounds.
This on-going partnership between the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club and
Holton Homes is aimed squarely at clubman competitors. After each rally, one
lucky crew will be drawn from the hat for a unique 50% refund of their entry
fee. The award will not be open to the top end cars in the championship.
The Holton Homes Clubmans Award will be for drivers in all cars with two valves
per cylinder and cars with four valves per cylinder up to 1600cc. For instance,
it will exclude cars running in classes C4 and C5 (Category 2) and classes D4
and D5 (Category 3), thus prohibiting the more powerful cars.
Following each championship round, the names of all eligible drivers will go
into a hat and the lucky driver drawn out will get a cheque refunding half the
entry fee, typically around £250. Once a driver has won the award they will not
be eligible to win it again during the 2014 season.
“We want the R.A.C. Rally Championship to be accessible to as many crews as
possible, particularly those running less powerful cars on more limited
budgets,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “We are very grateful to
the RACRMC and Holton Homes for providing this excellent award, which will give
the budget of seven crews a real boost across the season.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 8
January 2014
Harris to make comeback in R.A.C. Rally Championship
 Twenty-three
years after he last rallied, Phil Harris will make a comeback to the sport in
this season’s West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship. The
Northampton-based motor sport accountant is due to join the championship for the
Mid Wales Stages in March in his Mini Cooper.
Phil has a long association with Minis as his late father Les was a regular
co-driver for Bob Freeborough. In the 1960s, they were linked to the works BMC
team and often competed in factory built Minis. The era had a big effect on the
youngster.
“As a young boy I used to go to the BMC Competition Department at Abingdon and
see people like Timo Makinen, Rauno Aaltonen and Paddy Hopkirk,” said Phil. “I
grew up around Minis.” Later, Phil rallied a Mini of his own and now, 23 years
on, has finally decided to make a comeback.
“I bought my Mini when I was 19 in 1976,” said Phil. “We built it into a rally
car and had a whale of a time. I re-shelled it in 1989 and its last rally was
the 1990 Hella Stages. Then I started a business and had to stop rallying.”
The Mini sat in the back of the garage for more than 20 years before Phil
finally decided to make a return to the sport. The car has now been completely
rebuilt by Towcester-based Rob Smith Rallying.
“I gave the car to Rob to sort out and it has now had a bare shell rebuild. I
hadn’t thought about rallying it for 23 years but now I can’t wait!” He will
contest the Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup within the R.A.C. Rally
Championship.
To complete the family story Phil will be co-driven by his two nieces, Helen and
Jenny Bradshaw, during the season.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
The
photograph above shows Phil Harris and his Mini on the 1990 Hella Stages.
Press release – 7
January 2014
Aldon backs Mini and Imp Cup in R.A.C. Championship
 Aldon
Automotive is the sponsor for the new Mini and Imp Cup within the West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship for 2014.
This award for Minis and Hillman Imps will run within the R.A.C. Rally
Championship to celebrate two cars with a half-century heritage in rallying.
The Aldon Automotive Mini and Imp Cup, which will be open to all models of the
original Mini and the Imp and its derivatives, will be contested across the
seven-event season and the best performance will be rewarded with an
end-of-season trophy at the annual championship awards ceremony.
Aldon Automotive is based 10 miles west of Birmingham in Brierley Hill and is
one of the longest established tuning companies in Britain. Aldon has a fully
equipped specialist rolling road for tuning and fault diagnosis of competition
and fast road cars as well as a service bay complete with ramps, an engine
machine shop and an engine dyno test cell.
Aldon has a long and successful history in motor sport and MD Alan Goodwin has
competed since the 1960s, including rallying a Ford Escort in the 1990s.
Existing customers include several leading historic rally competitors.
“We’re delighted to welcome Aldon Automotive as a championship partner,” said
championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “The new Mini and Imp Cup has already
attracted a lot of interest and having as renowned a name as Aldon as a partner
is a real boost for the championship.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press
release – 6 January 2014
R.A.C Rally Championship pledges commitment to Category 1
 The
organisers of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship have pledged
long-term support for the oldest cars in historic rallying, the Category 1 cars
from up to 1968.
For the 2014 season and beyond, the R.A.C. Rally Championship will welcome
Category 1 cars and ensure that they retain their rightful place at the head of
the field. Running first on the road on gravel rallies ensures the best possible
stage condition for cars that are 50 years old and more.
“Our firm belief is that the Category 1 cars should run first on the road on all
gravel rallies,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “If we are to keep
these fabulous cars active in special stage rallying, we must give them the best
possible roads. Getting parts for these classic cars is not always easy and we
want to make sure they are not subjected to poor stage conditions.”
With a new Mini and Imp Cup already announced for the WWRS R.A.C. Rally
Championship and a major new award for the Walker Diecastings-supported category
to be announced shortly, the championship team is working hard to show its
on-going commitment to Category 1.
Significantly, three of the early historic entries for the opening R.A.C, round,
the Red Kite Stages (Sunday 2 February), are from Category 1 and another ten to
twelve are expected, so the event will have a very strong Category 1 field:
possibly the biggest on any gravel event for several years.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release – 6
January 2014
WWRS R.A.C Rally Championship regulations published
The regulations for the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship
have been published and are available here:
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Regulations available: |
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Registration Form
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Adobe Reader available here: |
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Both the 2014 regulations and registration forms will also be available
at the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club stand (number 6814) at
Autosport International at the Birmingham NEC (9-12 January).
The 2014 championship schedule is:
Sunday 2 February, Red Kite Stages (Llandovery)
Sunday 2 March, Mid Wales Stages (Newtown)
Saturday 26 April, Tour of Hamsterley (Shildon)
Saturday 31 May, Severn Valley Stages (Builth Wells)
Saturday 21 June, Carlisle Stages (Carlisle)
Saturday 9 August, Neath Valley Stages (Resolven)
Saturday 27 September, Trackrod Historic Cup (Pickering)
The championship registration fee is just £50 per crew and membership of
the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club Ltd is £15 per person. A driver
may register an alternate co-driver during the season at no extra cost.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on
Sunday 2 February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only
championship that runs historics first on the road on all events.
Press release
– 4 January 2014
Everard and Alfa set for renewed R.A.C. Championship bid
 John
Everard and his crowd-pleasing Alfa Romeo Junior GT are already confirmed among
the rapidly growing band of Category 1 cars committing to the 2014 West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Everard and co-driver Mark Sharpley will start the season as defending champions
in Category 1, despite having their 2013 campaign interrupted by a roll on the
Tour of Hamsterley after a steering arm broke. But the Yorkshire driver knows
that it will be a tough task to retain the Category 1 crown against increased
competition.
“I’m looking forward to more of the same in 2014 and having more Category 1 cars
out there will make it even better,” he said. “I love the R.A.C. Championship:
there is always a smile from the people who run the championship.”
Everard and his team have worked hard to make the Alfa Romeo a competitive
proposition and the car constantly pleases the fans as the only Alfa active in
Category 1 for the pre ’68 cars.
“I fell in love with Alfas from watching ‘The Graduate’ film with Dustin
Hoffman,” he admits. “It is loads and loads of fun! Luckily enough I’ve been
able to use a lot of GTA parts because in period they used GT Juniors with GTA
parts. The main difference is the weight and my car weighs 920kg, but for
rallying that’s not a problem.”
However, never one to rest on his laurels, Everard has another project in the
garage. “I’ve just bought another Alfa Junior GT and I’m going to start building
it up for rallying. I’m semi-retired these days as my two sons run the business,
JD Garage Equipment. My son James and I started it 12 years ago and we’ve now
got 40 staff. Mark Sharpley, our accountant, is also my co-driver.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only historic
championship that runs first on the road on all events.
Press release – 19 December 2013
West Wales Rally Spares continues backing for R.A.C. Rally Championship
 West
Wales Rally Spares has confirmed renewed title sponsorship for the R.A.C. Rally
Championship in 2014 following the runaway success of the championship’s
inaugural season in 2013.
The Ceredigion-based company, headed by competitor and enthusiast Gareth Lloyd,
is a renowned specialist in the supply of parts for Mk1 and Mk2 Ford Escorts,
from clubmans cars through to full to Group 4 specification cars. In addition,
WWRS is a stockist for many of the leading brands of rally equipment and
accessories and is an official Sparco distributor.
With over 30 Group 4 Escort Mk2s expected to pack out the 2014 entry lists, the
partnership remains a perfect fit for both WWRS and championship organisers, the
Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club. Lloyd will contest most rounds of the
championship in his famous ex-Roger Clark/Haynes of Maidstone Escort Mk2, ‘OKK
380P’.
“We are very pleased to continue our title sponsorship of the R.A.C. Rally
Championship,” said Lloyd. “I’m planning to contest most of the seven events in
2014 and am really looking forward to getting back to competing on a regular
basis. The 2014 championship is shaping up to be even better than this year.”
Championship manager Colin Heppenstall was delighted to confirm the on-going
partnership. “West Wales Rally Spares is the perfect sponsor for the R.A.C.
Rally Championship,” said Heppenstall. “WWRS is one of those specialist
companies that make rallying happen and we are very, very pleased that Gareth
and his team will continue to be central to the championship.”
WWRS operates from a purpose-built 8000sq ft base in Llandysul, with a dedicated
showroom. With experienced competitors on the staff, WWRS is the perfect point
of information for hundreds of active competitors across the UK and Europe. The
company can be contacted on 01559 363731 and its website is at:
www.westwalesrallyspares.co.uk
The 2014 championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2 February and
event regulations will be available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
for historic cars that runs first on the road on all events.
Press release
– 18 December 2013
Murphy and Sunbeam Lotus set for R.A.C Championship bid
 Irish
ace Owen Murphy will mount a serious bid on the 2014 West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship in the Lotus Sunbeam he took to fifth place on the
Roger Albert Clark Rally.
The ex-Russell Brookes ‘Andrews Heat for Hire’ liveried car of UK-based Irishman
John Leahy will tackle a full season as Murphy aims to take the fight to the
Ford Escort Mk2s across the seven-event gravel championship.
The Former Irish National Forest Champion, now 26, was a finalist in the 2004
Billy Coleman Young Rally Driver of the Year award when he was only 17. But now
he wants to concentrate his 2014 season on competing in the Sunbeam Lotus. James
O’Brien will co-drive on at least some of the events, subject to other
commitments.
“Owen’s main focus will be the R.A.C. Championship and we want to battle with
the Escorts,” said Leahy, who is now specialising in Sunbeam Lotuses for
rallying. “It went very well on the Roger Albert and their pace was very good,
despite not having any local knowledge. I’m happy that the car is now a quality
rally car,” said Leahy, who has drawn on the experience of Russell Brookes on
car set-up. “We’re currently building up a spares package as we don’t want to
miss a round.”
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details are available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship is the only championship
for historic cars that runs first on the road on all events.
Press release
– 16 December 2013
Christmas Day TV slot for WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
review of the 2013 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C Rally Championship season will
enjoy a primetime slot on Christmas Day on Motors TV, with a two-hour programme
starting at 9pm.
For those looking for a motorsport fix on Christmas Day, and seeking an
alternative to EastEnders and Downton Abbey, the two-hour programme will feature
outstanding action from the new championship. The R.A.C Rally Championship
captured the imagination of crews and fans alike in its first season and the
result was stunning action on some of the finest gravel stages in Britain.
All the action, and the story of how the championship unfolded, was captured by
David Winstanley and his expert team at rallytv.co.uk. The programme will also
include some of the very best in-car footage. Ultimately, Marty McCormack and
Phil Clarke emerged as worthy champions.
Importantly, the location of Motors TV has changed and it can now be found at
channel 447. After the initial screening, the programme will have several
repeats including at 1pm on Boxing Day.
Each round of the 2013 championship has been reported in a dedicated stand-alone
90-minute programme, while a mid-season review and the end-of-season review have
added up to at least 15 hours of prime coverage. With each programme aired up to
six times, the total exposure for the championship has been around 90 hours.
Support for coverage of the 2013 WWRS R.A.C Rally Championship came from TV
partners Swift Leisure, Jordan Road Surfacing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines,
Robinson Road Planing, Rally and Competition Equipment, Lloyd-Thomas Opticians,
Amigos and rallyprep.co.uk.
The 2014 championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2 February and
event regulations will be available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
In 2014, the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship will be the only
historic championship that runs first on the road on all events.
Press release – 14 December 2013
2014 Red Kite Stages unveiled
 Details
of the 2014 Red Kite Stages (Sunday 2 February) have been revealed by the
organising team at Amman and District Motor Club. A compact route covering 45
stage miles and just 76 road miles will conclude with a spectacular 15-mile
stage.
The historic event is the opening round of
the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, while the concurrent
modern event is the first round of the In Car Services/Evans Motorsport Tyres
Welsh Clubmans’ Forest Championship.
The route will take in five stages in the
Crychan and Caio complexes, with the return to Caio coming after overwhelming
praise for the fast and flowing stage on the 2013 event. As is customary for the
event, the stages are in excellent condition.
The rally will be based in Llandovery with
Rally HQ at the Castle Hotel and the central service area at the adjoining
Llandovery Mart. Documentation and scrutineering will be on Saturday 1 February.
The first historic car will start at 8.30am on Sunday and return to the finish
at 2.30pm.
As well as being the opening round of two
championships, the Red Kite will also be a perfect early season shakedown event
for contenders in other championships. It is an ideal warm-up event for those
entering the Wyedean Stages, which runs two weeks later.
“We look forward to welcoming crews in
both the R.A.C. and Welsh Clubmans’ Championships,” said secretary of the event
John Morgan. “But we’re also keen to invite anyone looking for a really good
value event on classic stages for an early season shakedown.”
Regulations for the event are available
from the event’s all-new website:
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press release –
11 December 2013
Fiat 131 Abarths set for 2014 R.A.C Rally Championship
Examples of the Fiat 131 Abarth are set to run in historic rallying next season
and as many of three of them could be in action in the West Wales Rally Spares
R.A.C. Rally Championship.
The project to bring the 131 into the forefront of British historic rallying is
the work of Yorkshire-based Rally Sport Developments. Kevin Theaker from RSD has
put two years of effort into sourcing and building the first car and already has
two more cars in-build for customers.
The 131 Abarth won three World Rally Championships in the late 1970s with Markku
Alen, Timo Salonen and Walter Rohrl and now Theaker wants to compete against the
Ford Escort Mk2s that currently dominate historic rallying. “On paper it should
be quicker and the suspension is years ahead of the Escort,” said Theaker. “But
it is a bit of a leap into the unknown and it has been a challenge.”
Theaker says there is a ready supply of donor 131s available in Europe, but
building a car to works period specification has proved to be a major challenge.
“It has taken two years to find the cars and the bits,” said Malton-based
Theaker. “We bought one car, which we have used as a pattern and we’ve had to do
a lot of casting. You can find some of the bits, but they come at such a
premium.”
The first car will be ready early next year and Theaker hopes to have it on show
at Autosport International in January. He then plans to hand it over to a quick
driver to show its potential, possibly as early as the second round of the
R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Mid Wales Stages on 2 March.
The 2014 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red
Kite Stages on Sunday 2 February and more details will be available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press
release – 9 December 2013
Mini and Imp Cup confirmed for 2014 R.A.C Rally Championship
A new award for Minis and Hillman Imps will run within the 2014 R.A.C. Rally
Championship to celebrate two cars with a half-century heritage in rallying.
 The
Mini and Imp Cup, which will be open to all models of the original Mini and the
Imp and its derivatives, will be contested across the seven-event season and the
best performance will be rewarded with an end-of-season trophy at the annual
championship awards ceremony.
Among the first drivers to commit to the new Cup is Clive King, widely regarded
as the leading Mini driver on gravel events in historic special stage rallying.
“The events in the R.A.C. Rally Championship are generally more affordable and
it is important for the Minis and Imps to run first on the road on gravel
events. I’m certainly planning to do it,” said King.
Championship manager Colin Heppenstall was pleased to confirm the latest
initiative from the R.A.C. Rally Championship. “The Minis and Imps are still
very popular and it is great to see them on the stages. We’re delighted to be
able to offer them an award to chase and give them prime stage conditions on
some of the best forest stages in Britain,” said Heppenstall. On all rounds of
the championship, the pre ’68 cars in Category 1 will run first on the road.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details will be available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press
release – 4 December 2013
R.A.C. Rally Championship and Roger Albert Clark Rally on film
Rally TV has announced details of DVDs covering both the 2013 Roger Albert Clark
Rally and the 2013 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
The acclaimed organisation headed by David Winstanley has captured both the
rally and the championship by using a multitude of cameras, including on-boards
in many of the leading cars. Each DVD is priced at £20 and can be ordered from
www.rallytv.co.uk.
One More Time – the 2013 Roger
Albert Clark Rally: release 20 December
The 10th running of the classic Roger
Albert Clark Rally drew the strongest entry yet with many people suggesting that
any one of the top
 ten
seeded runners could take victory. But with Steve Bannister making a late entry,
the contenders would have to beat the Yorkshire legend. And how they tried!
Matthew Robinson and Jason Pritchard were the two major rivals trying to take
success away from Bannister. However one by one the challengers fell by the
wayside and it was Bannister and Kevin Rae who won the rally for the second
time. This two-hour DVD has stage-side action from six different cameras as well
as on-board footage from almost all of the front runners. In addition there is
the usual free ONBOARD DVD, and also FREE is a short documentary on David
Winstanley and Brynmor Pierce tackling the event in a Rally Prep BMW E30, which
has been called 'A Little Bit More Sideways'.
It Takes Two - 2013 West Wales
Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship
The first year of the West Wales Rally
Spares RAC Championship attracted the strongest fields of historic cars ever
seen in the UK and the resultant competition was fast and furious as the
championship was won by the fastest duo currently competing in UK historic
rallying, Marty McCormack and Phil Clarke. This two-hour DVD covers the story of
the season and comes complete with a free DVD of on-board footage with action
from McCormack, Nick Elliott, Jason Pritchard, Matt Edwards and many more.
Press
release – 3 December 2013
R.A.C Rally Championship and Roger Albert Clark Rally at the NEC
Both the Roger Albert Clark Rally and the 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship will be
on show at Autosport International at the Birmingham NEC (9-12 January).
Cars from the championship and the rally will be on display as the Roger Albert
Clark Rally Motor Club takes the wraps off its 2014 programme, which has three
major elements:
- The seven-round 2014 R.A.C. Rally
Championship
- The 2014 Roger Albert Clark Rally
(28-30 November)
- The 2014 Carlisle Stages (21 June)
 Organisers,
headed by Colin and Nicola Heppenstall, will be on hand to meet current and
prospective competitors. “We are keen to talk to anyone with an interest in the
championship or the rally, or both,” said Colin Heppenstall. “This is also a
chance to meet the marshals and fans who support our events.”
Heppenstall says that the show will be the platform from which to launch more
news about the 2014 championship. “We will have an announcement at the show
about some exciting plans for the Category 1 cars, as well as lots more details
about the new season.”
Championship eligibility scrutineer John Cooper will be there on Thursday,
Friday and Saturday to answer technical questions, and championship registration
will be available to visitors.
Meanwhile, the DVD of the 2013 Roger Albert Clark Rally will be available for
purchase from David Winstanley of Rally TV. The two-hour DVD of the rally,
titled ‘One More Time’, was filmed from six cameras and numerous on-boards and
comes with a free on-board DVD. The DVD review of the 2013 R.A.C. Rally
Championship will also be available and also includes a free on-board DVD.
The 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship starts on the Red Kite Stages on Sunday 2
February and more details will be available from
www.redkitestages.co.uk
Press release - 19th
November 2013
On-going tyre choice in R.A.C. Rally Championship
 The
organisers of the 2014 R.A.C Rally Championship have confirmed that tyre choice
will remain open with DMACK, Dunlop, Kumho and Pirelli all partnering with the
championship to supply tyres.
The decision to continue a policy of allowing choice of historic specification
tyres is considered to be in the best interest of competitors, who can make
their decisions based on their own views and preferences. Allowing a free market
policy to operate also allows competitors to negotiate the best possible terms.
“I’d like to thank our tyre partners, DMACK, Dunlop (Mr Tyre), Kumho and
Pirelli, for their on-going support of the championship,” said championship
manager Colin Heppenstall. “Last year we pioneered an open choice of tyres for
historic rally cars and we believe that this is in the best interest of our
competitors and reflects the situation in period.”
While DMACK, Dunlop, Kumho and Pirelli are official championship partners, other
makes of tyre that comply with historic regulations are also permitted in the
championship.
Press
release – 21 October 2013
Over 1 million views on iRally for R.A.C. Rally and Championship
 Over
a million views on iRally is the latest landmark result for the 2012 Roger
Albert Clark Rally and the 2013 West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally
Championship.
More than a million views confirm the rally and the championship are easily the
most viewed historic rallying, and show the outstanding benefits of the
partnership with iRally.
Three rounds of the championship have already topped 100,000 views and with
figures to come from the final round, the Trackrod Historic Cup, the total is
still growing rapidly.
The free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and
offers an incredibly popular rally video channel. The entire R.A.C. Rally
Championship has been available on iRally this year through the standard-setting
TV programmes produced by David Winstanley of rallytv.co.uk.
“These figures show that interest in historic rallying remains at an absolute
high,” said Greg Strange of iRally. “I’m delighted with the response and
anticipate further growth when we get to next month’s Roger Albert Clark Rally.”
Championship manager Colin Heppenstall says that breaking the one million mark
is a major boost to the rally and the championship: “iRally has far exceeded our
expectations for 2013 and we look forward to the figures growing still further
in 2014. These statistics are particularly important for all our sponsors and
partners.”
For more about iRally, please visit
http://bit.ly/iRallyNow, or download the App
free from the App Store or Google Play
Press release – 17 October
2013
WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship TV on YouTube and iRally
 The
television coverage of round six of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C Rally
Championship, the Trackrod Historic Cup, is now available on YouTube and the
iRally app.
The programme covers all the action as Matt Edwards scored a famous victory
after a fine battle with local legend Steve Bannister over the classic Yorkshire
forest stages.
The full report from the Trackrod Historic Cup can be watched on-line at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7FOzIC3FjI
In addition to the coverage on Motors TV and YouTube, the programme is available
via iRally and this platform is proving hugely popular, with hundreds of
thousands of views already this year as the entire R.A.C. Rally Championship is
covered.
The free iRally App is available for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices and
offers an incredibly popular rally video channel. For more about iRally, please
visit http://bit.ly/iRallyNow, or download
the App free from the App Store or Google Play
David Winstanley of rallytv.co.uk has filmed all rounds of the championship and
brings all the action from the stages as well as the very best in-car footage
and interviews.
Support for coverage of the 2013 WWRS R.A.C Rally Championship comes from TV
partners Swift Leisure, Jordan Road Surfacing, Skipton Ford, Sherwood Engines,
Robinson Road Planing, Rally and Competition Equipment, Lloyd-Thomas Opticians,
Amigos and rallyprep.co.uk.
Press release – 4pm, 14
October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship Guide available
The Championship
Guide for the 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship, which is unveiled today
(Monday 14
October), is now available for download from the championship website.
The 2014 Championship
Guide includes:
The Championship
Guide has been designed and produced to give prospective competitors
comprehensive information about the coming season and includes data aimed at
supporting competitors’ sponsorship proposals.
The Guide is now
available for download
here in pdf format and printed
copies are available
upon request.
Alternatively the
2014 Championship Guide can be read online:
Details of the 2014
championship are subject to MSA approval.
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Crews, sponsors and organisers talk
about
the 2013 WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship
Click
here |
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Brief highlights of the 2013 WWRS
R.A.C. Rally Championship
Click
here
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http://www.rallytv.co.uk/ |
Press
release – 3pm, 14 October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship launches Clubman Challenge
 An
all-new Clubman Challenge will be organised within the 2014 R.A.C. Rally
Championship, which is unveiled today (Monday 14 October) during the first
virtual championship launch in British rallying.
Running within the R.A.C. Championship
will be the R.A.C. Clubman Challenge, which is aimed at recognising the crews
competing on limited resources. At the heart of the R.A.C. Clubman Challenge
will be a six-tyre per event ruling: to be eligible for the challenge, drivers
must use no more than six tyres per rally. Any punctured tyres will count as
part of the six-tyre allocation.
The crews will compete over the same
classic stages as the main championship, with the best six scores from eight
rallies counting towards the end-of-season total. The Clubman Challenge will
run
alongside the main R.A.C. Rally Championship but will have a different scoring
system: it
will be a class and category-based challenge, allowing crews from any
of the four categories
to be the Clubman Challenge champions.
For each car competing in the R.A.C.
Clubman Challenge, six tyres will all be marked at scrutineering at each event
and only these tyres may be used during the rally. Any tyres from
a previous
event that the competitor wishes to use must be taken to scrutineering and
re-marked
as part of the set of six for that event.
The R.A.C. Rally Championship organisers
have always pledged to try and contain costs and maintain a level playing field
and the R.A.C. Clubman Challenge is a major part of that
commitment.
“We are really excited about this new
challenge as it brings a degree of rallymanship into the equation as the type of
tyres, compounds, tyre pressures and driving style will all come into
play,”
said Championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “The overall champions, who can
come
from any of the four categories, will be worthy winners as they will have
shown speed, thought
and tactical awareness throughout the season.”
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
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Listen to
Simon Wallis introducing the new
Clubman
Challenge
Click
here |
Press release – 2pm, 14
October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship goes first
 In
2014, the R.A.C. Rally Championship, which is unveiled today (Monday 14 October)
during the first virtual championship launch in British rallying, will be the
historic championship that goes first.
On the seven championship rounds, the
R.A.C. historic contenders will run first on the road in a historic permit
event, thus ensuring the very best road conditions for cars that are up to half
a century old. In keeping with tradition, the oldest cars in Category 1 will
head the way before the rest of the historics, including those running in the
new Category 4.
“We believe that running first on the road
on gravel events is essential to the on-going good
health and popularity of
historic rallying,” said championship manager Colin Heppenstall.
“We have an
on-going commitment to run the historics first so that they can enjoy the best
road conditions.”
With a calendar that takes in some of the
best gravel stages in Britain, contenders in the R.A.C. Championship are in for
a fine season of gravel rallying. “We know that running order is very important
to our contenders and we are very pleased to confirm that they will go first in
2014,”
said Heppenstall.
The 2014 schedule will take R.A.C.
contenders into some of the best forest stages available, including classics
like Crychan, Pikes Peak, Hafren, Kershope, Rheola, Margam, Dalby and Cropton.
It is an unrivalled schedule in British rallying.
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
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Paul Lawrence talks about the
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship going first...
Click
here |
Press
release – 1pm, 14 October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship regional Challenges unveiled
 Two
major regional Challenges will be organised within the 2014 R.A.C. Rally
Championship, which is unveiled today (Monday 14 October) during the first
virtual championship launch in British rallying.
The 2014 Championship will incorporate
individual Welsh and Northern Challenges, aimed at giving the championship as
broad an appeal as possible and ensuring that crews with limitations on time or
money, or both, can compete for prestigious end-of-season awards.
Welsh Challenge
With four first-class gravel rallies in
Wales in 2014, the R.A.C. Rally Championship will
introduce a Welsh Challenge.
Provisionally, competitors will count all
scores towards their end-of-season total. The Welsh Challenge will run alongside
the main R.A.C. Championship but will have a different scoring system: it will
be a class and category-based challenge, allowing crews from any of the four
categories to be the Welsh Challenge champions.
Points will be awarded for class position
and overall position within each category.
In addition to the overall award
there will also be category and class awards.
The championship runs concurrently
with the R.A.C. Rally Championship and competitors
can scores points in both
series. The Welsh Challenge will be contested over the spectacular
roads in
Wales, the majority of which have featured in past Lombard RAC and Wales Rally
GB events.
They include Halfway, Crychan, Route 60,
Myherin, Hafren, Pikes Peak, Tarenig, Margam and Rheola. No other championship
offers the chance to compete on these fabulous stages.
The rounds of the Welsh Challenge are:
- Sunday 2 February, Red Kite Stages (Llandovery)
- Sunday 2 March, Mid Wales Stages
(Newtown)
- Saturday 31 May, Severn Valley Stages
(Builth Wells)
- Saturday 9 August, Neath Valley
Stages (Resolven)
Northern Challenge
With three excellent gravel rallies in the
North of England in 2014, the R.A.C. Rally
Championship will introduce a
Northern Challenge.
Competitors will count all three scores
towards their end-of-season total. The Northern
Challenge will run alongside the
main R.A.C. Rally Championship but will have a different
scoring system: it will
be a class and category-based challenge, allowing crews from any of the
four
categories to be the Northern Challenge champions.
Points will be awarded for class position
and overall position within each category. In addition
to the overall award
there will also be category and class awards. The championship runs concurrently
with the R.A.C. Rally Championship and competitors can scores points in both
series.
The Northern Challenge will be contested
over fabulous stages in the North of England,
most of which have featured in
past Lombard RAC Rallies. They include: Dalby, Cropton,
Staindale, Langdale,
Hamsterley, Gale Rigg, Newcastleton and Kershope.
The rounds of the Northern Challenge are:
- Saturday 26 April, Tour of Hamsterley
(Shildon)
- Saturday 21 June, Carlisle Stages
(Carlisle)
- Saturday 27 September, Trackrod
Historic Cup (Pickering)
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
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Listen to Simon Wallis introducing the new
regional challenges
Click
here |
Press release – 12
noon, 14 October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship structure unveiled
 The
structure for the 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship, which is unveiled today
(Monday 14 October), has been confirmed.
Once again, the core of the championship
will be the existing historic Categories One, Two and Three, covering cars
produced up to the end of 1981. New for 2014 will be the full introduction of
Category Four for cars produced up to the end of 1985. In addition, a separate
Category K will be home to pre ’86 cars complying to FIA Appendix K regulations.
Running in parallel to the historic cars
will be Category O, for all two-wheel drive ‘open class’
cars originally built
before the end of 1987. On at least some events, Category O cars will run
within
the concurrent modern event.
In summary, the Categories are:
- Category 1
Cars built up to December 1967, prepared to MSA historic regulations
- Category 2
Cars built up to December 1974, prepared to MSA historic regulations
- Category 3
Cars built up to December 1981, prepared to MSA historic regulations
- Category 4
Cars built up to December 1986, prepared to MSA historic regulations
- Category K
Cars built up to December 1986, prepared to FIA Appendix K regulations
- Category O
Two-wheel drive cars built up to December 1987
“One of the founding principles of the
R.A.C. Championship is to focus on cars prepared
to MSA and FIA historic
regulations,” said Championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “We are delighted to
fully embrace the new Category 4 and also offer a place for Open category cars
to come out and compete.”
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
Press release – 11am, 14
October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship: the vision
 More
competitors, the finest gravel stages and a championship that responds to its
competitors are some of the key aims of the 2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship,
which is unveiled today (Monday 14 October) during the first virtual
championship launch in British rallying.
In its inaugural year in 2013, the West
Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship attracted unprecedented competitor
support and consistently drew excellent entries, with quality and quantity to
match. The new championship was able to halt a significant decline in historic
entries during
2012 and return to, at least, 2011 levels.
In 2014 the Championship schedule will
include the Severn Valley Stages. The calendar will
offer crews the chance to
tackles stages that are widely regarded as the best in the country.
“Our aim is to have 45-55 stage miles per
rally, with usually a one-day format and rallies on Saturdays wherever
possible,” said Championship manager Colin Heppenstall. “In 2014 we will
not
include any asphalt rallies, but this will be very much under review for 2015.
“It is, and always will be, my aim to
provide friendly yet competitive motorsport with
transparency in the
regulations. Our eligibility scrutineer John Cooper is open and
approachable and
is always very happy to chat about issues either at events or on the phone.
John
is the first point of contact and his work is backed up by a six-man Eligibility
Working
Group.
“For 2014 we are embracing the MSA’s move
to introduce Category 4 (pre ’86) into historic
rallying and this will be
reflected in our championship regulations and classes. We have a
first class
media package, including unrivalled TV coverage, a dedicated organising team,
great events and, most of all, a sporting and friendly atmosphere.
“Throughout 2013 the number of registered
competitors grew and by mid-season a total of 83 crews had registered. Our
ambition is to take that total to more than 100 in 2014.
“2013, was an exciting year for everyone
involved in the Championship and a great deal of hard work went in making it a
success. We will build on that success to make 2014 an even better
season. So,
if you are looking for excellent competition on top quality gravel events and a
championship run for the competitors, then look no further.”
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
| |
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Listen to an interview with
Championship Manager
Colin Heppenstall
Click
here |
| |
|
Watch a video interview with
Championship Manager
Colin Heppenstall.
Click
here
http://www.rallytv.co.uk/ |
Press release – 10am,
14 October 2013
2014 R.A.C. Rally Championship calendar unveiled
 Some
of the finest gravel rallies in Britain will make up the calendar for the 2014
R.A.C. Rally Championship, which is unveiled today (Monday 14 October) during
the first virtual championship launch in British rallying.
The provisional 2014 schedule is:
- Sunday 2 February, Red Kite Stages (Llandovery)
- Sunday 2 March, Mid Wales Stages
(Newtown)
- Saturday 26 April, Tour of Hamsterley
(Shildon)
- Saturday 31 May, Severn Valley Stages
(Builth Wells)
- Saturday 21 June, Carlisle Stages
(Carlisle)
- Saturday 9 August, Neath Valley
Stages (Resolven)
- Saturday 27 September, Trackrod
Historic Cup (Pickering)
The schedule largely mirrors the 2013
calendar, but with the addition of the Severn Valley
Stages, one of the classic
Welsh gravel events. The prime motivation when compiling the
calendar was to
give competitors the chance to compete over the best quality gravel roads
available. In addition, the schedule reflects a wish from many competitors for
one-day gravel
rallies run on Saturdays.
“We’ve got a superb schedule of events,
which reflects the views and wishes of our competitors,” said Championship
manager Colin Heppenstall. “The route for the Tour of Hamsterley will have a
significantly different look for 2014 and I’m very grateful to all the event
organisers for their hard work.”
The 2014 schedule will take R.A.C.
contenders into some of the best forest stages available, including classics
like Crychan, Pikes Peak, Hafren, Kershope, Rheola, Margam, Dalby and Cropton.
It is an unrivalled schedule in British rallying.
The home for today’s virtual launch is the
championship website:
www.racrallychamp.org
Details of the 2014 championship are
subject to MSA approval.
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