Tag Archives: BTRDA

Bird Storms to 40th Anniversary Wyedean Win

February 16, 2015 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Paul Bird and Aled Davies put in a dominant Wyedean Forest Rally performance; winning five of the eight stages to claim victory on the opening round of the BTRDA rally championship season.

A huge entry had been assembled for the 40th anniversary Wyedean Forest Rally including 4 previous winners. However with both the 2013 and 2014 victors missing from the list it was last years BTRDA championship runner up Paul Bird, together with title winning Co-driver Aled Davies, who lead the crews away from the Chepstow rally base. The organisers had done a great job in finding an 8 stage, 43 mile competitive route with zero double usage.

Speech House and Serridge were our destinations for the day; leaving extra time for the journey turned out to be a wise decision as the car parks filled quickly. The early start also allowing time to reach the very entertaining open 90 left at junction 16 of stage 2.

While a ‘suspect’ time for Charlie Payne saw the previous winner take an 11 second margin into stage 2, it was Paul Bird who emerged from Speech House with a 15 second overall lead; the Cumbrian registering a time on the longest stage of the event that was 12 and 22 seconds faster than the chasing WRC imprezas of David Weston and Hugh Hunter respectively.

The Focus WRC pilot continued his early domination with another fastest time in stage 3 before David Weston, with Kirsty Riddick on the notes, was able to match him in Chepstow Park, pegging the lead at 21 seconds as the crews arrived at the halfway service halt. The Scotsman’s time also quick enough to leapfrog Charlie Payne into second position overall.

The trends of the morning appeared to be carrying on after lunch as Bird and Davies were quickest again in the short Yorkley stage. However, unlike earlier in the day, Weston struck back straight away and claimed his first outright stage victory with a good run through Sallowvallets.

Hugh Hunter and Andy Marchbank meanwhile, in their Melvyn Evans Motorsport S11, were gradually re-acclimatising to the gravel; their increased speed as the day went on rewarded with fastest time on stage 7 by a full 6 seconds. In fact they were 19 seconds quicker than Payne and Williamson in the Focus engined Fiesta which moved them up to 3rd overall, just 41 seconds off the overall lead.

After 2 stages without victory normality was then restored as Bird took the rally win in style by registering his 5th fastest time of the day on the Mailscot finale. The winning margin ending up at 34 seconds after Weston lost 12 seconds in Serridge and a further 1 in Mailscot. The Subaru man was however still quick enough to maintain second overall from the slightly older specification machine of Hunter and Marchbank.

Charlie Payne and Carl Williamson were the second Blue Oval crew home in 4th. The Yorkshireman had started well but gradually slipped back as the day progressed, ending the event 1 minute and 6 seconds behind the eventual winners.

Nik Elsmore and Matt Edwards had a great run to claim B13 victory in the Matt’s ME Rallysport Evo. The previous event winner was never outside the top ten in terms of stage times and claimed a mammoth 2 minute and 29 second class victory; moving ahead of Damian Cole and Jack Morton on stage 6 to end the day in a fantastic fifth overall.

The immense group N battle of 2014 continued across the first 4 stages of the day with Russ Thompson and Andy Murphy trading times with the similar Evo 9 of Thomas Naughton and Andi Mort. However a damaged crank sensor in Yorkley ended the latter crews day, leaving Thompson and and Murphy to claim a 45 second class victory over Pat Naylor and Ian Lawrence.

Nick Elliott and Dave Price were in top form on their local event to take an incredible 12th overall, beating 4 WRC cars in the process! The Cheltenham duo claimed both the Historic and Silver Star victories whilst even more impressively setting the 9th quickest time overall on stage 1!

Just as impressive were David Bennett and Alistair McNeil in their 1400 Corsa. After a difficult 2014, the Yorkshire crew started the year in the best possible manner; registering category victory and ending the day in an excellent 18th overall. Ian Evans and Justin Brooks had been keeping them on their toes until Bennett went 12th fastest overall in both Serridge and Mailscot to claim top spot by a whopping 58 seconds.

19th overall represented a great return to the event for 3 time overall winner Graham Elsmore. Together with Stuart Harrold on the notes they ensured that the Elsmore family would need plenty of room in the trophy cabinet after claiming class B11 victory in their Rob Smith Rallying prepared MK2 Escort.

Fellow local crew, Mark Griffiths and Will Rogers, were actually quicker on 5 of the 8 stages, however slow times in Speech House and Chepstow Park cost them a shot at class victory but still came home in a more than respectable 24th position overall.

While Elliott took overall Historic and H4 victory, further back, Jeremy Easson and Mike Reynolds claimed H2 with a brilliant 27th position and Peter Lewis took class H1 in his Mini. The 240Z of Easson and Reynolds seems to be getting quicker and quicker with this result representing a great follow up to their 7th overall on last years RAC.

H3 meanwhile turned into a good battle between the Ford Escorts of David Dobson and David Lloyd Roberts and the RX-7 of Jake Scannell with just 4 seconds separating Scannell and Dobson at the half way point. However the unique sounding Mazda was able to ease away over the afternoon stages to take class victory with 42nd position overall.

Elsewhere, B10 was a good old front wheel drive vs rear wheel drive battle with the Ford Escort of Robert Smith and Frankie Hillman leading the Peugeot 205 of Thomas Lloyd and Sherryn Roberts at the halfway mark following quick times in Trelleck Common and Chepstow Park. However Lloyd and Roberts dominated the afternoon leg to take class victory by 24 seconds with 48th position overall.

N3 was not a well represented class on the Wyedean but Geno Cook and Daniel Robinson put in a solid performance to claim class victory with 53rd overall.

Tim Phelps and Elwyn Manuel were the first B12 crew home in 55th position aboard their MK2 Escort, while Keith and Mairi Riddick claimed 1400C victory with 56th.

And finally the 3 Rally First categories were claimed by Mick Quinn and Neill Carman, Morgan Handford and Richard Davies and Mick Smith and Calvin Houldsworth.

I have to say that this was probably the most enjoyable Wyedean Rally of recent years with committed crews throughout the running order, reasonable weather and for once good choice of locations. Masses of fans flocked to this 40th anniversary event, in fact I have never seen so many people lining the stages of a national rally, which given some of the places onlookers were stood could be seen as both a positive and a negative! And although the overall fight for victory was not as close as we have become accustomed to in recent years, the driving talent on display made this celebration event a more than worthy spectacle.

Next up is the Malcolm Wilson Rally in early March where Cumbrian, Paul Bird, will be looking to increase his Gold Star championship lead. The 2014 winner will be a clear favourite for the win and the other crews will need to be on top form to beat the Focus pilot in his own back yard. If the Malcolm Wilson and the remaining 2015 BTRDA championship events can attract an entry somewhere near the quality of the Wyedean then we are in for one hell of a national rallying year!

RESULTS

Full Results

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Cambrian Win for Weston as Perez Secures Title

October 20, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

David Weston and Kirsty Riddick put in a stellar performance to claim victory on the Llandudno based Cambrian rally. Second place was also enough for Steve Perez to land the BTRDA Gold Star championship crown.

Wet and slippery conditions faced the crews as they headed for the forests surrounding Betws-y-Coed for 8 stages which would ultimately decide which of the 2 championship contending Focus WRC pilots would walk away with the 2014 BTRDA Gold star championship title.

Paul Bird and Aled Davies got off to the worst possible start, losing 58 seconds to their rivals following an off in the tricky opening Crafnant stage. This was a monumental blow for the Superbike team owner as the time deficit would be almost impossible to claw back without issues for the other drivers. Steve Perez, co driven by Paul Spooner, meanwhile could breathe a little easier, knowing that as long as he beat Bird the title would almost certainly be his.

It was however David Weston and Kirsty Riddick who managed to pull away from the pack in stage 2, their first run through Llyn Elsi being 5 seconds quicker than anyone else. And by half way it looked like the Scottish crew were on their way to a first BTRDA win of the season as they held an 11 second lead over Perez. In fact only Bird seemed able to go quicker than the Subaru pairing; the Ford driver winning every remaining stage bar the second running of Llyn Elsi. The Llyn Elsi stage most definitely belonging to Weston as the S12 Impreza was yet again quickest through this test.

By the finish Bird and Davies had managed to get within 32 seconds of Weston and just 12 seconds shy of rivals Perez and Spooner. While second and third for the Focus crews left them completely tied on points, it would be the Chesterfield man who took the crown based on his 22 point haul from the Plains Rally in May. I doubt anyone imagined the title would be decided on 7th best scores when the championship kicked off last February!

After struggling to get to grips with the S12 Impreza on the Woodpecker and then finding his feet on the second half of the Trackrod it was pleasing to see Weston on the pace from the start of the Cambrian. He was visibly quicker than anyone else in Crafnant 2 and a deserving victory was also rewarded with 3rd place in the BTRDA Gold Star points table.

Behind the front three, Matt Edwards, with Will Rogers on the notes, showed his class by taking 4th overall in his B13 specification Evo 9. The local man improved his pace thoughout the day, but saved the best till last; just one second slower than Bird in Penmachno North and then matching the much quicker machine on the final Penmachno South test. Suffice to say the North Wales man took B13 victory but it would be interesting to see what he could achieve behind the wheel of a WRC machine.

Like Bird, Welsh Championship contenders, Alex Allingham and Chris Williams endured a terrible start to the event in their Group N Subaru, losing three minutes in Crafnant following a roll which left them in 123rd position! An excellent drive through the field however saw them climb to 13th overall, claiming the Welsh Championship in the process as main rival Luke Francis hit problems.

In fact Luke Francis’ retirement, caused by a holed fuel tank in Penmachno South, turned out to be very costly indeed as their fourth DNF of the year meant they would also miss out on the BTRDA B13 championship honours. A title which instead went to the Evo 6 crew of Simon Rogers and Andrew Sankey.

Cambrian Group N victory went the way of Thomas Naughton and Andi Mort in their Evo 9. The Mitsubishi crew were regularly fastest in class and were rewarded with a fine 6th place; over a minute clear of nearest rivals Pat Naylor and Ian Lawrence. The 20 points gained from taking class victory was also enough to leapfrog Russ Thompson and Andy Murphy to take the 2014 BTRDA Production Cup title.

Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis rounded off their year in style by taking 7th overall in the H3 spec Ford Escort. Even more impressive when you consider that Welsh legend Gwyndaf Evans was second in class, some 42 seconds in arrears. It has been a phenomenal year for the Escort crew, adding BTRDA H3 and overall Historic honours to the Silver Star crown which was theirs by July. Incredibly they also finished 6th overall in the final Gold star standings; a fantastic performance given some of the machinery they were up against.

The other big championship battle heading into the final round was the 4 way tussle for the 1400 crown. With just 2 short stages remaining, title favourites Mat Smith and Giles Dykes held a near 2 minute lead over the rest of field. However the little Ka had suffered radiator damage on the second running of Llyn Elis as well as beginnings of a clutch problem. Remarkably they somehow made it through to the end, finishing fourth in class. And a further 2 minute time penalty was not enough to stop them taking a well deserved 1400 title. This had been an up and down rally to end an up and down season for the Yorkshire based crew.

Instead rally honours went the way of fellow championship challengers Marcel Freling and Karen Robinson in their MG with a commendable 17th overall. By the halfway point they found themselves behind the Peugeot 106 of Dan Gray and Matt Rogers but were able to improve their pace over the afternoon loop of stages to take victory by 26 seconds.

The wet and slippery conditions had taken their toll on the silver star field with 5 of the top ten seeded cars, and 11 in total, finding themselves on the retirements list by end of the second stage! There were however some stand-out performances behind the already mentioned Robinson and Evans. Indeed third 2 wheel drive crew home were Rex Ireland and Adrian Scadding with 15th overall in their H2 Ford Escort who were clearly enjoying themselves in the process …

While the Fiesta R200 of Kit and Tim Leigh was the second front wheel drive car home in 19th overall. This also represented top spot in class B10, beating Gary Pearson and Dave Robson’s Peugeot 208 by just 5 seconds.

B11 class honours went the way of Simon Tuckman and Shaun Hughes in yet another Ford Escort. 26th overall was enough to claim the class victory by 40 seconds from the similar machine of Jeff Wincott and Kevin Booth.

Meanwhile Steve Ellis and Steve Mcphee’s BMW 325i ended the day in 29th place and top of class B12 while Saleh Hijazi and Tom Bishop were class N3 victors in 75th position.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed my first visit to the Crafnant stage and the tricky conditions were a suitable platform to end what has been a fantastic series. After starting the season in the Stratos, the BTRDA title must have been completely unexpected for Steve Perez. However the Chesterfield man has been on top form throughout the year, and although he may not always have been the fastest, he did take three outright wins and was able to keep the car on the road when it mattered most.

And that is it for my 2014 national rallying year. I expect to see many of the crews competing on Rally GB next month and maybe a few on the RAC as well. With Perez likely to be back in the historic class in 2015, it will be interesting to see who will be in the fight to take his title. Roll on the Wyedean in February ….

RESULTS

1. David Weston / Kirsty Riddick – Impreza WRC (B14) – 0:49:52
2. Steve Perez / Paul Spooner – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – +00:20
3. Paul Bird / Aled Davies – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – +00:32
4. Matt Edwards / Will Rogers – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (B13) – +01:05
5. Stephen Petch / Ian Windress – Ford Fiesta R5+ (B14) – +01:39
6. Thomas Naughton / Andi Mort – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +02:41
7. Matthew Robinson / Sam Collis – Ford Escort MK2 (H3) – +03:10
8. Pat Naylor / Ian Lawrence – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +03:48
9. Gwyndaf Evans / Dale Furniss – Ford Escort MK2 (H3) – +03:52
10. Ian Joel / Graeme Wood – Ford Escort WRC (B14) – +04:25
13. Alex Allingham / Chris Williams – Subaru Impreza (N4) – +06:17
15. Rex Ireland / Adrian Scadding – Ford Escort MK2 (H2) – +07:41
17. Marcel Freling / Karen Robinson – MG ZR (1400S) – +08:04
19. Kit Leigh / Tim Leigh – Ford Fiesta R200 (B10) – +08:23
25. Mat Smith / Giles Dykes – Ford Ka (1400s) – +08:49
26. Simon Tuckman / Shaun Hughes – Escort MK2 (B11) – +08:50
29. Steve Ellis / Steve McPhee – BMW 325i (B12) – +09:06
75. Saleh Hijazi / Tom Bishop – MG ZR (N3) – +22:05

Full Results

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All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

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Trackrod Trophies end up in Chesterfield

September 30, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Steve Perez and Paul Spooner ensured the BTRDA title fight will be settled on the final round of the series with victory on the Trackrod Forest Stages. Meanwhile fellow Chesterfield man Richard Hill, co-driven by Steffan Evans, was able to claw back all of the previous day deficit to take top spot in the Historic event.

The Trackrod rally, based in the forests of North Yorkshire, represented both the final round of the RAC Rally Championship and the penultimate round of a very tightly contested BTRDA season. The slightly longer Historic event starting on the Friday evening with two night stages in the Dalby forest complex.

BTRDA

First up was the longest stage of the event with 10.5 miles through the infamous Langdale test. And it was Steve Perez and Paul Spooner who shot out of the blocks and opened up an 8.4 second lead over championship rivals Paul Bird and Aled Davies. Local man Jim McNeil also put in a stellar first stage performance in his B13 Subaru, splitting the two Fiesta R5s of Stephen Petch and Charlie Payne. It would not last long though as a stage 2 off caused the York driver to take a stage maximum, sending himself and co-driver Tom Hughes tumbling down the order.

Meanwhile in the 1400 section a much anticipated tussle between David Bennett and Mat Smith was over before the cars reached Gale Rigg as Smith, co driven by Giles Dykes, broke a drive shaft following a trip into a Langdale ditch. They would manage to carry on but lost 8 minutes to their rivals as a result.

David Weston and Kirsty Riddick, having lost a significant amount of time to their rivals in stage 1, jumped 4 positions to 4th overall with stage victory in Gale Rigg (Stage 2); more than 5 seconds quicker than anyone else. It was a good stage for Steve Perez also as he increased his overall lead to 12.9 seconds. A 4.5 second increase in margin that was then effectively reversed following Bird’s first stage win of the day in neighbouring Cropton.

As in previous rounds, the Fiesta’s just don’t seem to have the outright grunt of their elder siblings and Stephen Petch, try as he might, could not keep up with the two foci in front, or the now charging S12 Impreza of David Weston; Weston claiming third overall from the SGP Motorsport machine following the Cropton test.

Bird found his rhythm as the day went on, taking his second stage win in Staindale to leave a 5.9 second margin heading into the Dalby finale. But whilst the Cumbrian took his third consecutive stage victory, Perez had done just enough to hold onto top spot, taking victory by a mere 3.4 seconds. David Weston rounded off a solid performance with 3rd overall, 25 seconds behind the leader. A what might have been story given the Scotsman lost over 23 seconds in stage 1.

Group N honours went the way of Russ Thompson and Andy Murphy who had the edge on Thomas Naughton and Andi Mort’s similar machine throughout the day, eventually taking class victory by 21.3 seconds and finishing a very credible 6th overall. Fellow Mitsubishi crew, Thomas Preston and Jamie Forrest claimed the B13 class victory with 9th overall while Martyn Hawkswell and Benjamin Cohen were the first rear wheel drive competitors home with 14th overall in the B11 MK2 Escort.

David Bennett, with Alistair McNeil alongside had set a blistering pace throughout the day in the 1400 category, eventually taking class victory by over 3 minutes with a mighty impressive 12th overall. Justin Lawson had been challenging early on but lost a wheel in Staindale causing retirement whilst also ending his title hopes.

15th overall was enough for Paul Street and Clive Hilton to take the historic class victory in their Ford Escort, with B10 victors, Kit and Tim Leigh, finishing one place further back. The Porsche Boxster of Ian Jemison and Dean Kellett was going better than ever on home soil, finishing 17th overall and claiming B12 honours in the process.

Championship wise, the gold star title is now a purely Ford Focus WRC affair with just the Cambrian Rally remaining. Perez currently has 167 points banked and can improve to 175 with a victory while similarly Bird can tally 176. Essentially whoever wins the final round will take the crown with various complicated outcomes should neither be on the top step of the podium. Luke Francis, David Weston and Stephen Petch are now all out of the running courtesy of the 167 banked total of Steve Perez.

It is mathematically a 4 way battle for the 1400 crown; Ryan Weston and Marcel Freling still in with a chance if Dan Gray and Mat Smith fail to finish well on the Cambrian Rally next month. Realistically though it is a dual between Dan Gray and Mat Smith; the odds stacked heavily in Smith’s favour with Gray needing to take maximum class points and have 3 cars between his 106 and the little KA to take the title. Smith’s impressive fight back on the Trackrod, resulting in a 21 point haul, may just be enough to take top spot.

BTRDA RESULTS

1. Steve Perez / Paul Spooner – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – 41:08.0
2. Paul Bird / Aled Davies – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – +00:03.4
3. David Weston / Kirsty Riddick – Subaru Impreza (B14) – +00:25.4
4. Stephen Petch / Ian Windress – Ford Fiesta R5+ (B14) – +00:36.8
5. Charlie Payne / Andrew Roughead – Ford Fiesta (B14) – +01:14.2
6. Russ Thompson / Andy Murphy – Mitsubishi Evo (N4) – +01:58.4
7. Tom Naughton / Andi Mort – Mitsubishi Evo (N4) – +02:19.7
8. Pat Naylor / Ian Lawrence – Mitsubishi Evo (N4) – +03:31.3
9. Thomas Preston / Jamie Forrest – Mitsubishi Evo (B13) – +03:51.2
10. Steve Petch / John Richardson – Mitsubishi Evo (B13) – +04:19.7

Full Results

RAC

There may have been no Stratos in the Yorkshire forests this year but this was more than made up for by an entry list boasting Ryan Champion in a Porsche, Julian Reynolds in a Fiat 131 and Ben Mellors in a Toyota Celica RA40; enough to wet the appetite of any enthusiast. With the early morning sun shining on a recently felled section of Gale Rigg there really was no better place to take in the action.

In similar fashion to the 2013 event, Matt Edwards, co-driven by Paul Morris, had been able to build a healthy lead of 14.9 seconds after the two friday night stages. Many competitors suffered problems however including local hero Steve Bannister, who went off the road and out of the rally in Staindale. Champion also had issues but was able to restart on Saturday morning under Super ‘Rally rules’ where he and Craig Thorley managed a stage victory on the Cropton test. Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis were another front running crew to lose time; an off in Staindale causing a time loss of over 2 minutes.

Unlike last year however Edwards was not able to maintain the top spot throughout Saturday’s four stages. Instead Richard Hill and Steffan Evans, having taken time out of them on every stage, snatched the victory on the very last test, winning the rally by just 7.4 seconds.

Behind, Tim Pearcey and Neil Shanks recorded some solid stage times on their way to a well deserved third overall with Category 2 victors, David Stokes and Guy Weaver finishing 4th in their Mk1 Escort. An impressive result given vastly experienced local man and class runner up, Warren Philliskirk, was over a minute behind.

Meanwhile category 1 victory went the way of Bob Bean. The evergreen MK1 Cortina pilot securing a winning margin of over 25 seconds by the end of the day.

Nevertheless, second in class was enough for Ray Cunningham to wrap up the title; greatly deserved as it is a long time since the UK rally scene has been treated to a Mini driven like that! I for one hope they return in 2015.

RESULTS

1. Richard Hill / Steffan Evans – Ford Escort MK2 (D5) – 54:41.3
2. Matt Edwards / Paul Morris – Ford Escort MK2 (D5) – +07.4
3. Tim Pearcey / Neil Shanks – Ford Escort MK2 (D5) – +01:10.9
4. David Stokes / Guy Weaver – Ford Escort MK1 (C5) – +02:17.0
5. Tim Freeman / Paul Williams – Ford Escort MK2 (D5) – +02:19.6
6. Warren Philliskirk / Nigel Hutchinson – MK1 (C5) – +03:23.3
7. Charlie Taylor / Steve Bielby – Ford Escort MK2 (D5) – +03:48.7
8. Chris Browne / Ali Cornwell-Browne – Escort MK1 (C5) – +03:49.9
9. Tim Mason / Graham Wild – Porsche 911 (C4) – +4:01.3
10. Andrew Siddall / Carl Williamson – Escort MK1 (C5) – +04:11.6

Full Results

And so a big well done was in order for the Chesterfield rally community having produced both winning drivers. The annual trip to the North Yorkshire stages had been as enjoyable as ever, with the irritation of Midge bites and a split pair of jeans more than made up for by a fish and Chip tea at the one and only Thompsons! I really have no idea which way the Gold Star title pendulum will swing, but I am thoroughly looking forward to finding out on next month’s Cambrian Rally finale.

For digital images, professional prints or any other requirements please email me at paul.commons@yahoo.co.uk.

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

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Bird is the Word in Shropshire Forests

September 3, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Paul Bird, ably assisted by Aled Davies, became a serious title contender after taking his third BTRDA victory of the year on last weekend’s Woodpecker Stages Rally.

Round 7 of the BTRDA championship saw the crews head to Ludlow for six stages in the forests of Shropshire. The 2014 event would see the teams tackle Bringewood, Wigmore, Haye Park and Radnor with local knowledge usually key for a strong performance.

The stage of two halves that is Bringewood was where I headed; it being the only stage used in recent years that I had yet to visit. Having decided that the tight and twisty start of the stage was just too slippery, it was the very fast latter part where I elected to take in the action.

As the well known proverb suggests, it is the early ‘Bird’ that catches the worm and the Cumbrian driver most definitely made the best of the unexpected dark and damp morning conditions; noticeably quicker passed me and leaping into a 7 second lead over the B13 specification Evo 9 of Luke Francis and John H Roberts. Francis meanwhile maintained his exceptional start to the event by managing to hold onto second place through the 6 miles of High Vinnals; keeping the super high traction WRC machines of Steve Perez and David Weston at bay.

Perez, co driven by Paul Spooner, was back on the pace in stage 3 however. Fastest time through Radnor ended Bird’s monopoly of stage victories and allowed him to climb to second overall, in turn narrowing the lead margin to just 10 seconds. Weston on the other hand seemed to be struggling with the S12 Impreza and remained 4th, some 50 seconds behind Bird at the mid event service.

Behind, Alex Allingham and Chris Williams were leading an intense battle for Group N honours, with Tom Naughton, Roland Llewellin, Jamie Anderson and Russ Thompson all within 21 seconds of the class leading Impreza. This would be some battle over the remaining three stages.

The infamous full length Haye park test was first on the agenda after lunch followed by a single visit to Wigmore and the Radnor finale. All three stages gave ample opportunity for crews to improve their positions especially as the weather had improved significantly. Bird and Davies however carried on where they had left off and went on to win all three tests, taking a convincing 27 second victory over the similar Focus WRC of Steve Perez and Paul Spooner. Weston, co driven by Kirsty Riddick was much closer to the leading pace after service, but was unable to claw back all of the time lost to Luke Francis, leaving the Evo 9 pilot to take a fantastic third overall.

The group N battle continued to be hard fought. Jamie Anderson, with Jon Scott alongside, set a fast time in Haye Park to leap frog both Naughton and Llewellin. He was then able to take 5 seconds out of Allingham in Wigmore cutting the lead to 21 seconds as the crews headed back to Radnor for the final stage. And after taking a massive 18 seconds out of the the long time class leaders over the 10 mile finale they must have been left wondering what might have been.

In the 2WD section, local man Joe Price, re-united with Chris Brooks, made his long awaited return to competition in the newly built historic spec MK2 Escort. His flamboyant style had most definitely been missing from the stages as they sought yet another Woodpecker class victory. On the day however, already crowned champions, Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis proved just too quick for the Ludlow crew claiming the historic and silver star class victories by more than 1 minute.

In the 1400 category, the rapid duo of Mark Gamble and Steve Link made a one off appearance in their Suzuki Swift, hoping to take the fight to the BTRDA regulars. Although championship front runners Mat Smith and Giles Dykes took an early lead, Gamble was able to improve his pace as the day went on. And after Smith lost time with a puncture in Wigmore the two crews went into the Radnor finale tied on exactly the same time. Indeed momentum was with the Japanese machine and the little Ka could not keep up with the the now flying Swift leaving the Wolverhampton man to take a well deserved victory.

Smith and Dykes would still head back to Yorkshire with the maximum category score however as Gamble and Link were not registered for championship points; thus keeping their title hopes alive but needing healthy tallies on both remaining events.

Class-wise, Opel Manta man Jon Ballinger, paired with Mike Wilding, claimed B11 with 24th overall, whilst also winning the award for most sideways passed me in Bringewood.

Joe Price’s old ride came home 35th overall in the hands of younger brother Harvey. He and co-driver George Gifford claiming class B12 in the process.

Three places further back in 38th, Barry Jordan and James Gratton-Smith put in a strong performance to claim class H1 victory in their immaculate Hilman Avenger.

John Baker and Ian Jones would take the class H2 honours with 45th overall while B10 went the way of Vauxhall Nova crew James Hutchings and James Hood with 47th. And Sacha Kakad and Andrew Price would yet again claim top spot in N3 with 50th overall in their Fiesta ST.

On reflection it was nice to have a Woodpecker rally without the dust, but I would like to put in an early request for more sunshine next year! Whilst it was also good to tick Bringewood off the ‘to do’ list, it won’t be a stage that I rush back to. The second half of the stage must be great to drive but doesn’t present the same spectacle for the onlooker due to the over hanging trees that line the hillside route. The final couple of corners in Haye park on the other hand were great to watch, with Robinson being particularly impressive around the fast open right hander at Junction 18.

Rallying wise, next up for me is the Trackrod which just happens to be the next round of the BTRDA championship. Paul Bird now has 4 very strong points scores but must score well in the two remaining rounds to take the Gold Star crown. Chesterfield man Steve Perez is potentially in a better position as he could in theory afford a none finish while Petch, Weston Jnr and Francis are all still in with a chance of top spot. This title race could go all the way to the final stage of the Cambrian Rally in October…. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

RESULTS

1. Paul Bird / Aled Davies – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – 0:41.33
2. Steve Perez / Paul Spooner – Ford Focus WRC (B14) – +00.27
3. Luke Francis / John H Roberts – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (B13) – +00.59
4. David Weston / Kirsty Riddick – Impreza S12 WRC (B14) – +01.01
5. Alex Allingham / Chris Williams – Impreza N10 (N4) – +02.02
6. Jamie Anderson / Jon Scott – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +02.05
7. Tristan Bailey / James How – Mitsubishi WRC 04 (B14) – +02.12
8. Tom Naughton / Andy Mort – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +02.18
9. Wayne Sisson / Neil Shanks – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +02.39
10. Russ Thompson / Andy Murphy – Mitsubishi Evo 9 (N4) – +03.01
11. Matthew Robinson / Sam Collis – Escort MK2 (H3) – +03.08
23. Mark Gamble / Steve Link – Suzuki Swift (1400S) – +05.38
24. Jon Ballinger / Mike WIlding – Opel Manta (B11) – +05.41
35. Harvey Price / George Gifford – Escort MK2 (B12) – +07.27
38. Barry Jordan / James Gratton-Smith – Avenger (H1) – +08.15
45. John Baker / Ian Jones – Ford Escort MK2 (H2) – +09.12
47. James Hutchings / James Hood – Nova (B10) – +09.12
50. Sacha Kakad / Andrew Price – Ford Fiesta ST (N3) – +09.28

FULL RESULTS

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Bird Flies to Nicky Grist Stages Glory

July 14, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Paul Bird and Aled Davies upped their pace over the afternoon stages to jump from third to first and claim their second BTRDA top score of the year. Meanwhile Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis wrapped up the Silver Star Championship with yet another maximum score in the 2WD class.

The Nicky Grist stages, being event 6 of the 9 round schedule, was set to be pivotal in the race for the Gold Star crown. With 6 scores counting, Scottish rivals David Bogie and Euan Thorburn had effectively ended their challenge by not entering the event. Meanwhile Dave Weston Jnr and Paul Bird’s chances lay on a knife edge with both needing to score big on the remaining 4 events to be in with a chance of taking the championship honours. A championship lead by Russ Thompson, having scored on each of the first five rounds.

Torn between Monument and Route 60 we eventually settled for the latter given the unpredictable weather forecast; the open spaces offering greater flexibility in terms of photographing the event should the heavens open. We were however greeted with glorious early morning sunshine on arrival; It was good to be back on the stages after 3 months away.

The early running suggested the battle for victory would be between the Focus WRC of Bird and Davies, the similar machine of Somerset and Dukeries winners Steve Perez and Paul Spooner and the Subaru Impreza WRC of Dave Weston Jnr and Kirsty Riddick. By the halfway point each had taken at least 1 stage win with Weston Jnr holding a 5 second lead over Bird, and Perez 6 seconds further back in third.

In 4th, Stephen Petch and Ian Windress, in the newly acquired Fiesta R5+, were struggling to keep pace with those ahead and would find themselves 27 seconds adrift after 4 stages. While Alex Allingham and Chris Williams were only just behind in 5th with 4WD new boys Desi Henry and Damien Duffin putting in a great performance to be lying 6th overall in their B13 Evo 9.

It was all to play for after lunch as the crews repeated the first three stages of Monument, Route 60 and Halfway with an extra loop added to the Crychan finale. Bird seemed to have the bit between his teeth, taking 4 seconds out of Weston Jnr’s lead on the second running of Monument and then a further 2 on stage 6 to take the lead heading into the final 2 tests. Perez had been able to tie Bird on stage 5, but could not match the Cumbrian on Route 60, and remained 11 seconds off the lead.

Dave Weston Jnr was obviously suited to the Halfway stage; having been quickest on stage 3, the Subaru pilot was again top of the times on stage 7. This left a deficit of just 1 second between himself and Bird going into the final stage.

Crychan however was most definitely Bird’s stage as he and Aled Davies emerged as rally victors by just 3 seconds. This was their second BTRDA win of the season after taking top spot on Bird’s home event, the Malcolm Wilson Rally, in March.

Behind, the Group N battle had been lead for most of the day by current Welsh Champions Alex Allingham and Chris Williams. Their lead averaging at around 10 seconds over the morning loop. A ball joint failure on Stage 7 however caused their retirement leaving the Mitsubishi crew of Jamie Anderson and Chris Brooks to take the victory for the second time in as many BTRDA events. Roland Llewellin and Jamie Edwards would take second in class with Wug and Max Utting rounding out the podium in their Subaru.

The new bridge on Route 60 had taken it’s toll on a couple of the Group N Mitsubishi runners with Thomas Naughton and pre event championship leader, Russ Thompson, suffering event ending damage after hitting the bridge hard; the lip of the new structure being at the point of compression after a steep downhill part of the stage. Luke Francis and John H Roberts in a similar B13 spec car were among a number of other crews also caught out. Thankfully this section was heavily cautioned for the second run but this was no consolation for the drivers who had suffered thousands of pounds worth of damage on the first pass through.

Silver Star honours went they way of Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis and with it the Championship title after hardly conceding a point to their opposition over the first 6 rounds.

The Escort crew also taking top Historic honours with 14th overall. Terry Brown and Den Golding put in a strong performance to come home second in class, with H2 winners, Paul Barrett and Dermot Coltan just one place further back in 19th. Robinson showed massive bravery over the famous slight right over crest in route 60, rivalled only in commitment by Alex Allingham and Chris Williams in the group N Subaru.

It was a battle of attrition in the 1400 category with early leaders Mat Smith and Giles Dykes retiring with Clutch problems, David Bennett and Alistair McNeil going OTL before Stage 1 and Tom Walster and Chris Ridge being excluded. All this allowed the very rapid Nova crew of Justin Lawson and Paul Hargreaves to take the win, with the Peugeot 106 of Dan Gray and Matt Rogers taking second, just over a minute in arrears.

Mick Smith and Tom Jordan in the 1400c class Nissan Micra put in a great performance to take third, beating several more powerful cars in the process.

In the main field, B12 went the way of Seamus O’Connell and Elgan Davies in the MK2 Escort, with B11 going to fellow Ford crew Edvall Martin and Siw Helen Stenberg. The Stenberg’s performance particularly impressive given second and third in class were the vastly experienced John Perrott and Jon Ballinger!

Neil Matthews and Jez Rogers claimed B10 honours in their Vauxhall Nova with 29th overall whilst also taking the Nicky Grist Challenge Victory. Meanwhile Sacha Kakad and Andrew Price recorded their 5th maximum N3 points haul of the year with 41st. And Barry Jordan and James Gratton-Smith brought the glorious Hilman Avenger home in 52nd to take the class H1 victory.

All this leaves Matthew Robinson sitting on top of the Gold Star championship table with 3 rounds remaining. However with 6 scores already counting, he and co-driver Sam Collis are unlikely to be there at the end of the year. Instead Steve Perez and Stephen Petch are in a good position as things stand while Dave Weston Jnr and Paul Bird also have strong points scores but cannot afford another non finish. Dave Bennett is now out of the running in the 1400 championship after registering another non finish, while Mat Smith must score well on all three remaining rounds to stand a chance of the title. A couple more good scores from Justin Lawson or Dan Gray on the other hand could see either one of them take the crown.

The rain had just about held off throughout the day with the umbrella only really needed for the walk back to the car. The novelty of leaving Epynt on a Saturday rewarded with top drawer fish and chips in Crickhowell. Something which won’t be repeated in 2 weeks time when we are back on Epynt for the Harry Flatters rally. How dare the owners have Sunday off!

RESULTS

1. Paul Bird / Aled Davies – Ford Focus 07 WRC – 45:23
2. David Weston Jnr / Kirsty Riddick – Subaru Impreza WRC – +00:03
3. Steve Perez / Paul Spooner – Ford Focus WRC – +00.19
4. Stephen Petch / Ian Windress – Ford Fiesta R5+ – +00.44
5. Desi Henry / Damien Duffin – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – +01.15
6. Jamie Anderson / Chris Brooks – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – +01.31
7. Tristan Bailey / James How – Mitsubishi WRC 04 – +02.06
8. Wayne Sisson / Neil Shanks – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – +02.12
9. Roland Llewellin / Jamie Edwards – Mitsubishi Evo 9 – +02.20
10. Karl Simmons / Guy Simmons – Subaru Impreza WRC – +02.33

Full Results

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For digital images, professional prints or any other requirements please email me at paul.commons@yahoo.co.uk.

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New Territory, Windscreen glare and an incredibly close finish to the Somerset Stages

April 15, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Steve Perez and Paul Spooner held off a late challenge from Stephen Petch and Ian Windress to take the Somerset Stages victory on a first stage tie breaker.

In hindsight the bottle of wine in Pizza Express on friday night was not the wisest decision with such an early start. However I wasn’t driving and was suitably refreshed by the time we arrived at Knowle some three hours later.

Having not attended the Somerset Stages since 2009 and with a new stage to tick off the list I was really looking forward to this one especially with four Foci and a WRC Impreza filling the top five spots on the entry list.

After the misfortune of getting caught up behind a slow moving wide load on the A39 we just about reached junction 12 before the zero car arrived. As expected the light was proving to be a bit of an issue but fortunately I had come prepared with a couple of polarizing filters in an attempt to combat the anticipated windscreen glare. Not having much luck with the Hoya wide angle filter I decided to revert to the UV for a couple of shots on the inside of the junction. This was the best of the bunch with a black and white conversion a necessity in the strange light.

With great disappointment, the super fast David Bogie had retired with ignition coil failure before the cars even reached stage 3. The rest of the field more than made up for his departure however with some spectacular driving around this relatively tight hairpin.

The B&W polarizer I had on the 70-200 was working much better ( and to be honest, even though cheaper than the hoya filter, is a much better quality piece of kit). The Marshal’s car parked behind the junction was perfectly positioned in the sense that no practice shot was required to set the filter; but less well positioned when, along with the infamous red & white tape, it filled the background of the majority of my shots. I don’t like to overly use Photoshop but it does come in useful every now and then!

By the halfway mark, Paul Bird and Aled Davies in their Focus WRC had built up a 13 second lead over the similar machine of Steve Perez and Paul Spooner with Stephen Petch, David Weston and Luke Francis rounding out the top five. Pat Naylor and Ian Lawrence were getting the better of their Group N opposition with 6th overall whilst the in form Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis were leading the historic class in 11th. Darren Pinchin was making the most of David Bennett’s retirement and Mat Smith’s decision to miss this event by leading the 1400 section with 21st overall.

With the aid of Google Maps, it was decided that junction 3 was worth a look for the second running of the stage. Listening to a couple of my Dad and Uncle’s familiar Mini related stories from their competitive days helped pass the time. I lose count of the number of times I have heard the one about the loose wheel and the nettles ….

After a small delay for the recovery of stranded vehicles the leading 1400 contenders soon came into view with the light still proving to be an issue from a photographer’s perspective. The crews were able to really attack this wide open downhill hairpin left with Jon Ballinger and Mike Wilding in their Opel Manta being by far the most spectacular through this section.

A sit down with a cuppa as opposed to chasing off to the final stage was the preferred option by the time we had got back to the car. This gave time to catch up on the results and discover that Paul Bird and Aled Davies had unfortunately retired on the 10th stage of the rally with a reported broken drive shaft. This left Steve Perez and Stephen Petch to battle it out for victory.

With two stages remaining Perez held a 7 second lead over Petch with David Weston a further 26 seconds back. Incredibly Petch went 3 seconds quicker in the short Timberscombe stage and then 4 seconds faster in Bats Castle to tie Perez with a total penalty of 42.28! Petch and Windress had actually won more stages throughout the day but the tie breaker rewards the the crew who are quickest out of the blocks. And so it was Steve Perez and Paul Spooner who would come out on top courtesy of their quicker stage 1 time.

David Weston and Kirsty Riddick would consolidate a strong run with the final step of the podium while Luke Francis and John H Roberts claimed B13 honours with 4th overall. Tom Naughton and Andi Mort took the group N victory by just 1 second from Pat Naylor and Ian Lawrence after a stunning final stage push. They went into the Bats Castle finale with a 5 second deficit to make up.

Class B12 went the way of Callum Black and Paul Wakely in their front wheel drive DS3 with 10th overall. Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis held onto the Historic lead throughout the day with 11th whilst B10 went the way of Andy Burnell and Scott Cleverdon in the Skoda Felicia Kit car. The very flamboyant Jon Ballinger and Mike Wilding claimed B11 with 18th overall and Darren Pinchin and Karen Jenkins took the top spot in the 1400 category with 19th in their Proton Satria.

Minehead was the next point of call for fish and chips (Yes with the mushy peas on the chips thank you) and an opportunity to put my back out skimming stones into the sea. All in all it was a top day out. It is always good to get into new territory and Knowle proved a pretty good stage to watch.

With the Sportscar racing season starting this weekend, my next rally is looking like being the Dukeries in June. Hopefully Britain will be in the middle of a heatwave by then ….

Results:

1. Steve Perez / Paul Spooner – Ford Focus WRC – 42.28
2. Stephen Petch / Ian Windress – Ford Focus WRC +0.00
3. David Weston / Kirsty Riddick – Subaru Impreza WRC +0.28
4. Luke Francis / John H Roberts – Mitsubishi Evo 9 +01.32
5. Tom Naughton / Andi Mort – Mitsubishi Evo 9 +01.57
6. Pat Naylor / Ian Lawrence – Mitsubishi Evo 9 +01.58
7. Martyn England / Dawn England – Mitsusbishi Evo 10 +02.55
8. Russ Thompson / Andy Murphy – Mitsubishi Evo 9 +03.08
9. Roland Llewellin / Jamie Edwards – Mitsubishi Evo 9 +03.15
10. Callum Black / Paul Wakely – Citroen DS3 +04.09

Full Results

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Scottish Champs take BTRDA opener

February 17, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

David Bogie & Kevin Rae started 2014 in the best possible fashion by taking a commanding victory on the Wyedean Forest Rally. Meanwhile Matthew Robinson & Sam Collis took the Historic honours and Mat Smith & Giles Dykes claimed top spot in the 1400 category.

With the terrible recent weather, I was half expecting this event to be cancelled. I should however have known better as the organisers have history; managing to keep the event on in prior years when faced with sheet ice and several inches of snow! Off to Car Park H we therefore headed for stages 2 and 7.

Thoughts of whether a boat would be more appropriate transport than the 4×4 were soon dispelled on arrival as the Sallowvallets stage had held up surprisingly well. Having headed towards the end of the stage last year we decided to go in the opposite direction with junction 6 being the chosen location. As per usual this event had attracted a large number of spectators with many also headed to this fast 90 right.

The action however was already underway as the crews headed to Mailscot; the first stage of the day. On paper it was difficult to pick a winner with any of the top 4 focus WRC crews more than capable of taking top spot. Bogie had obviously had his weetabix for breakfast though as his devastatingly quick time of 5.55 was a whole 9 seconds quicker than anyone else. Mat Smith was also on it from the off taking the same margin out of David Bennett in the battle for the 1400 victory. A category which has grown to almost 60 competitors in 2014.

Back on stage 2 it was tough conditions for us photographers with sporadic rainfall and light levels changing by the minute. It proved to be a good spot to watch the 1400’s though with some flamboyant driving on display.

Dave Brick had few problems transferring his infamous driving style to the little Nova, entering the corner as sideways as humanly possible. The Historic entries were also highly entertaining through this section providing a good opportunity to shoot straight into the sun for a decent black and white conversion.

Car_305

At the front, Bogie was quick again in Sallowvallets and managed to extend his lead by a further 3 seconds over Scottish championship rival Euan Thorburn. The orange Focus was awesome to watch through Junction 6; entering the 90 right almost backwards in similar style to his late great World Champion Countryman. Colin would have been proud.

Below, recent four wheel drive convert, Russ Thompson was another star performer at this bend. The light proving troublesome when shooting from the inside but aided by use of a polarising filter.

Any thoughts of a Thorburn comeback were soon put to bed as Bogie’s big rival would unfortunately retire on stage 3. This left the Scotsman with a 34 second lead over the fellow Focus WRC crew of Paul Bird and Aled Davies at the lunchtime service halt. Jim McNeil was having a superb drive and maintaining third overall in his B13 spec Subaru. Whilst 2nd in B13 and 4th overall were Mitsubishi crew Luke Francis and John H Roberts. Matthew Robinson was leading the historic class by 40 seconds with 9th overall and Mat Smith was upto his usual giant killing antics with 13th overall but only 12 seconds in front of close rival David Bennett.

The downhill hairpin at junction 30 of Serridge was our choice for the afternoon loop of stages. Pleasingly the risk of further rain seemed to have faded allowing more variety of shot choice. We had been to this location before when it was run in the opposite direction but thankfully this time it was much more of a spectacle. Again the top 1400’s were the stars around here, fighting to keep the power on as they headed down to the open hairpin left at Junction 32.

Before the crews reached us the battle for B13 was effectively over as early leaders Jim McNeil & Tom hughes were hit with a 2.5 minute road penalty. This left Luke Francis & John H Roberts free to claim the class honours and with it a fantastic 3rd overall behind the WRC machines of Bogie and Bird.

Ollie Mellors and Roland Llewellin were the main movers in the afternoon. Mellors & Alex Lee moving from 7th to 4th in the crowd pleasing S2000 Proton and Llewellin and Jamie Edwards rising from 10th to 6th. The pair of them sandwiching the very impressive Russ Thompson & Andy Murphy who in turn claimed the group n victory. Jim McNeil would eventually take 8th overall with Rob Smith and Ross Weir 9th in the WRC impreza.

It was a blue oval lockout of the historic class podium where Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis managed to maintain their lead and take a sensational 7th overall. The winning margin rising to well over a minute by the end of the event.

Theo Bengry & Les Forsbrook put in a solid performance themselves to claim 2nd in class and 15th overall. Whilst the third historic crew home were Rob Dennis & Simon Rodgers in their similar MK2.

David Bennett & Alastair McNeil would rue the time lost on stage 1 as the Ford Ka of Mat Smith & Giles Dykes would take the class win by a mere 14 seconds.

Darren Pinchin and Karen Jenkins would take third in class in their Proton Satria with 24th overall. This could be one hell of a year for the smaller engined machines.

All in all it was a great performance from David Bogie and Kevin Rae. To take victory by over a minute from Paul Bird’s newer machine, over just 45 stage miles, is pretty impressive. It would be a great spectacle if he and keen rival Thorburn were to contest the whole championship season. As fans we can but hope ….

Dad would have to wait until gone 6 before he got his overdue ‘cuppa’ due to afternoon delays. Inadvertently this did however allow for the odd shot in the dark.

As usual we were one of the last cars to the leave the car park. And following the traditional stop at Mitcheldean chippy it was time to head back towards the M50 and home. We will have to wait until the Somerset stages for our next fill of BTRDA action but before then there is the excitement of Pikes Peak downhill on the Mid Wales Stages. Roll on 2nd March ….

For full results see the BTRDA website.

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Paul Bird and Aled Davies put in a dominant Wyedean Forest Rally performance; winning five of the eight stages to claim victory on the opening round of the BTRDA rally championship season.

RESULTS

RESULTS

BTRDA

RAC

RESULTS

Paul Bird and Aled Davies upped their pace over the afternoon stages to jump from third to first and claim their second BTRDA top score of the year. Meanwhile Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis wrapped up the Silver Star Championship with yet another maximum score in the 2WD class.

RESULTS

Motorsport Reporting & Photography