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Heavy Rain no Hindrance as Elliott Storms to RNW Victory

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Nick Elliott and Dave Price continued their strong start to the BHRC season with their second maximum points score in as many events; the duo setting fastest time on every stage to record a dominant Rally North Wales victory.

Rally North Wales would once again form round 2 of the British Historic Rally Championship with the crews set to face 6 challenging stages in the infamous Dyfi forest complex; the rally featuring minimal double usage in 2017 following great work by Wolverhampton and South Staffs CC in attempting to utilise every available forestry track.

As in 2016, the weather had not been kind with heavy overnight and morning rain rendering the stages treacherous in places.  This did not hinder round 1 winners Nick Elliott and Dave Price however who flew through the puddles (lakes and rivers in places) of Gartheiniog to open up a commanding 15 second lead over the similar MK2 Escort of Joe Price and Chris Brooks.

2016 Champions, Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke, endured a difficult start to the event, losing 40 seconds to the early leaders in stage 1 as they recorded 5th fastest time.  A puncture in stage 2 compounded their issues but by the mid event service in Dolgellau they were back amongst the podium positions, albeit 27 seconds  adrift of Price and Brooks.

Now in full damage limitation mode Pritchard may well have struggled to reel in the flambouyant Price, however, the Shropshire pilot’s day would end in the Gartheiniog East scenery, allowing the double BHRC champs to pick up much needed championship points for second overall, claiming top spot in Category K in the process.

Rudi Lancaster and Guy Weaver are a new combination for 2017 and the Woolacombe/Wolverhampton pairing continued their strong start to the season.  Indeed, after consistently setting top 4 stage times, Lancaster and Weaver almost stole second with a strong run through the Dyfi East finale.  However their second consecutive podium finish represented a more than respectable outcome.

Upfront meanwhile, Nick Elliott and Dave Price were in a class of their own; their lead stretching to 29 seconds by the Dolgellau service, 1 minute 4 seconds after the retirement of Price in stage 4 and 1 minute 21 seconds by the time the cars had reached the finish.  This had been some performance by the red, white and blue Ford crew who are fast becoming the team to beat in 2017.

Category 3 Class Results

Ben Friend and Cliffy Simmons topped class D3 with an excellent 6th overall.  A mega consistent drive saw the pinto powered Escort crew record fastest class time on every stage to beat Rex Ireland and Adrian Scadding to the class honours by more than 1 minute.

Further back David Hopkins and Tony Vart claimed the combined D1 and D2 honours with an excellent 18th position overall in their Talbot Sunbeam.

Category 2

Stanley Orr had gained both a BDG engine and a new co driver in the form of Stephen McAuley for 2017 but found himself somewhat surprisingly behind the the similar machine of Bob Bean and Malcolm Smithson after stage 1.  However this would be he and McAuley’s only scare of the day as the Northern Irish crew dominated the remainder of the event to claim category victory by almost 2 minutes with a superb 4th position overall.  And to round off a great day, Orr and McAuley also ended the day as top HRCR Stage Masters crew.

Behind, the combined class C1 and C2 honours were claimed by Iwan Roberts Jnr and Baz Green in the car Adam Milner piloted to several giant killing performances in 2016.  And whilst Elliot Retallick drove the wheels off his Avenger in an attempt to take the battle to the crossflow engined, Ralloy built Ford there was just no stopping the Welshman; class victory by a margin of 1 minute 24 seconds and 8th position overall just reward for their efforts.

With Roberts not BHRC registered, Retallick and co-driver Tim Tugwell would however claim maximum BHRC championship class points.

Simon Pickering and Paul Barbet claimed class C3 honours with 15th position overall.  A solid performance by the Pinto powered Escort MK1 crew resulting in class victory by 1 minute 26 seconds over the RS2000 of Mike Simpson and Dale Gibbons.

Category 4

Jake Scannell and Adrian Stevens have swapped their Mazda RX-7 for a class E1 Toyota Corolla in 2017 and duly claimed category 4 honours on Rally North Wales.  Their event was not without issue however; the pairing recovering from an afternoon roll to finish the historic event in 30th position overall (31st according to the results but there is no way the car seeded at car 100 is in class B3!)

Category 1

Continuing the trend of late just 2 cars were entered in category 1.  However Phil Harris and Richard Suter put in a strong performance in their Morris Mini Cooper to take category honours by almost 5 minutes from the class B3 winning Ford Cortina GT of Mike Barratt and Emily Retallick.

RESULTS

  1. Nick Elliott/Dave Price | Ford Escort MK2 (D5) | 0:45:44
  2. Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke | Ford Escort MK2 (G2) | +01:21
  3. Rudi Lancaster/Guy Weaver | Ford Escort MK2 (G2) | +01:22
  4. Stanley Orr/Stephen McAuley | Ford Escort MK1 (C5) | +01:49
  5. Tim Freeman/Paul Williams | Ford Escort MK2 (D5) | +02:43
  6. Ben Friend/Cliffy Simmons | Ford Escort MK2 (D3) | +03:03
  7. Phil Jobson/Arwel Jenkins | Ford Escort MK1 (C5) | +03:39
  8. Iwan Roberts Jnr/Baz Green | Ford Escort MK1 (C2) | +03:41
  9. Rex Ireland/Adrian Scadding | Ford Escort MK2 (D3) | +04:15
  10. Bob Bean/Malcolm Smithson | Ford Escort MK1 (C5) | +04:16

Full Results

Final Word …

This had been a thoroughly enjoyable Rally North Wales from a spectator’s point of view.  The light may not have been great for photos but the scenery and action in Gartheiniog more than made up for it.  My legs however are still aching from the chosen steep climb back out of stage 4 to the spectator car park!

With regards to the format of the event itself, in my opinion, the organisers did a fantastic job.  In an age where double usage has become the norm, it was refreshing to see a very different configuration for 2 of the afternoon stages which is precisely the kind of test the drivers need.  It is just a shame that more crews were not encouraged to compete with just 88 cars taking the start.  But perhaps this is more to do with the unfortunate increase in the forestry commission charge …

Whilst BHRC numbers feel down on previous years, the battle at the front is as intense as ever.  With Elliott re-finding his magic touch on the Welsh gravel this could be one hell of a title race.  Can Elliott and Price stop Pritchard and Clarke gaining a hat-trick of titles?  Their phenomenal pace on Rally North Wales would suggest yes but the Cheltenham man must continue to outscore the Welshman on the loose as Pritchard will be a massive favourite as the championship moves onto the black stuff later in the season.

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

 

 

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Banner Bags Trackrod as Pritchard Takes Title

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Steve Bannister and Callum Atkinson, put in a scintillating performance to secure a dominant Trackrod Historic Cup victory whilst Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke claimed a second successive BHRC title with a steady run to 5th.

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The Malton based Trackrod Historic Cup would not only form round 9 of the 2016 BHRC but also round 8 of the Northern Historic Rally Championship; largely the reason why the likes of Steve Bannister, in the infamous red striped, white MK2 Escort, would feature at the head of a 40 strong entry list.

With several of the BHRC class and category titles already wrapped up many of the regulars had elected not to make the trip;  the respective category 1, 2 and 3 champions, Bob Gibbons, Simon Tysoe and Paul Barrett to name but a few.  The overall BHRC title was however still yet to be decided, with Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke, realistically just requiring a finish to secure a second successive crown.

The 2016 rendition of the event would feature some 54 competitive stage miles including a Friday evening test in Dalby and followed by 5 further stages on Saturday.  And it was Steve Bannister and Callum Atkinson who would open up an impressive 20 second overnight lead; the legendary Ford Escort star still proving difficult to beat in the forests he knows so well.

Whilst, as expected, Pritchard and Clarke were taking extra care on the super fast North Yorkshire forest tracks It would be another Yorkshire-man in the form of Matthew Robinson who would emerge as ‘Banner’s’ closest pursuer.  In fact the Fiat 131 pilot, with Sam Collis alongside, would hold a clear second place throughout Saturday morning’s tests before a propshaft failure would ultimately end their event prematurely.

With Robinson out, Bannister and Atkinson would find themselves with more than a 2 minute cushion over rest of the field with just the Cropton and Gale Rigg stages remaining.  With this in mind you may have thought a casual drive to the finish was in order?  Not a chance; the Malton man going on to record a clean sweep of fastest stage times to claim overall Trackrod Historic Cup glory by a mammoth 2 minutes and 13 seconds!

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The podium positions would be completed by two more class D5 specification MK2 Escorts in the hands of Steve Bennett and Mark Bentley, both of whom had increased their pace throughout the Saturday stages.  Bennett, co-driven by Paul Spooner, was second quickest in Dalby, Cropton and Gale Rigg to cement second position overall whilst Mark and Ed Bentley would set 3rd fastest time on each of the aforementioned tests to impressively climb from 11th to third!

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Bentley would in fact just pip the very rapid Adam Milner and Roy Jarvis to the final podium position by a mere 0.3 seconds.  Despite a couple of overshoots, Milner, in a crossflow engined MK1 Mexico would lead category 2 overnight and was lying in the overall podium positions right up until the final stage of the event.

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After previous star performances had ended in the Welsh scenery, Milner and Jarvis on this occasion approached the final couple of stages with caution, ensuring they would end the event in a phenomenal 4th position overall.  With Bannister and Bentley not registered for points, there can’t have been too many occasions where a 1600 category 2 car has featured on the overall BHRC podium!

5th overall was exactly what Pritchard and Clarke would have been hoping for and more than enough to maintain their overall BHRC title.  Given the often rough nature of the Yorkshire stages there are easier places to drive for a finish!  Whilst rarely troubling the top of the time sheets, the formidable duo still ended the day as third BHRC registered crew home.  A perfectly judged drive by the now double champions.

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Shawn Rayner and Declan Dear were able to take advantage of the none appearance of Paul Barrett and Dai Roberts to claim class D3 honours with a strong run to 6th overall.  Ben Friend and Cliffy Simmons had held the class lead overnight but could not match the the pace of the Windsor man over Saturday’s stages; Rayner and Deer in the end taking the class win by 21 seconds.

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Warren Philliskirk made it 3 Yorkshire men in the top 7 as he and Nigel Hutchinson went on to claim class C5 victory and second in category 2; ending the event 31 seconds in front of the Datsun 240Z of Jeremy Easson and Mike Reynolds.

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15th in the end turned out to be a slightly disappointing result for Chris Skill and Tom Jordan.  The class D2 winners had been flying on the Yorkshire forest tracks and were lying in 6th position overall with just 1 stage remaining.  Final stage dramas (a Gale Rigg ditch) would however cost the East Midlands pairing over 2 minutes and 9 positions!

Yet another Yorkshire man in the form of Terry Cree would claim class C3 top spot in his BMW 2002ti.  Co-driven by Richard Shores, the Thirsk pairing would get the better of Simon Pickering and Colin Jenkins on all but two of the stages to take class victory by 26 seconds.

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Further back, 25th historic car home was the category 1 winning MK1 Cortina of Bob Bean and Captain Thompson.  Again mixing it with the category 2 and 3 machines, the vastly experienced Cleckheaton man would go on to record category victory by a mammoth 13 minutes over the class B2 winning Morris Mini Cooper of Phil Harris and Paul Kendrick.

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Elsewhere, Paul Street and Ian Jones fought off challenges from Robin Shuttleworth and Barry Jordan to claim top spot in the BTRDA Historic Cup on the Saturday only Trackrod Forest stages event.

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RESULTS
  1. Steve Bannister/Callum Atkinson | Ford Escort MK2 | 0:58:05.1
  2. Steve Bennett/Paul Spooner | Ford Escort MK2 | +02:13.3
  3. Mark Bentley/Ed Bentley | Ford Escort MK2 | +03:00.3
  4. Adam Milner/Roy Jarvis | Ford Escort Mexico | +03:00.6
  5. Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke | Ford Escort MK2 | +03:03.5
  6. Shawn Reynar/Declan Dear | Ford Escort MK2 | +03:28.5
  7. Warren Philliskirk/Nigel Hutchinson | Ford Escort | +03:39.7
  8. Tom Hewick/Mick Johnson | Ford Escort MK2 | +03:40.5
  9. Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance | Escort | +03:42.8
  10. Ben Friend/Cliffy Simmons| Ford Escort MK2 | +03:49.3

FULL RESULTS

Whilst far from the thrilling end to the championship battle we had at one stage hoped for, the journey through the Yorkshire forests for Pritchard and Clarke must have been more than a little nail biting.  The Welshman may have been driving well within himself but the pace at the front was electric.  Few would have been able to compete with Banner in this sort of form but as closest rivals through the early stages it is a real shame that Robinson and Collis were not able to fulfil their early promise and grab a first ever BHRC maximum score for the glorious 131.

Despite Category 1 forest rallying almost being killed off completely by the ludicrous MSA running order rules we can still look back on an excellent year of historic rallying.  On gravel there was little to choose between Elliott, Price, Pritchard and Barrett but again Pritchard proved the man to beat on tarmac; he and Clarke more than worthy championship winners having evenly split their 4 maximum scores across both surfaces.  And it is their ability to win just about anywhere which will make them tough to beat again in 2017 …

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

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Pritchard in Pole Position after Manx Maximum

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In fabulous early autumn conditions, Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke judged the pace perfectly to claim an excellent Rallee Classicagh Isle of Man victory; collecting maximum BHRC points to head into the final round as clear championship favourites.

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2015 BHRC champions, Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke, have been out of luck for large parts of the season and found themselves heading to the Isle of Man for rounds 7 and 8 of the championship in desperate need of a good result to keep their title hopes alive.  Requiring 6 strong finishes from the 9 available rounds, a combination of the odd mistake and mechanical woes had seen the pairing record just 3 notable scores with only 3 rounds remaining.

Having never been to the island before, the prospect of witnessing the title battle unfold over 20 classic ‘Manx’ stages in glorious September conditions was one I was keenly looking forward to.  And whilst the likes of Joe Price and Nick Elliott had elected not to make the trip across the Irish Sea the rally was still blessed with an excellent historic entry; one which contained more Minis than I ever remember seeing before!

With Pritchard not able to afford another non-finish it is hardly surprising that the usually time-sheet topping Escort pilot would approach the event with caution.  Indeed the Welshman found himself lying 4th overall by the end of proceedings on Thursday evening behind the similar Fords of early leader Ryan Barrett and RAC Asphalt championship competitors, Will Onions and Guy Woodcock.

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It was all change on the Friday morning loop of stages however; ignition issues causing Barrett and co-driver Paul McCann to drop over 45 seconds in stage 6, whilst a couple of consistent stage times for Pritchard saw he and Clarke take the lead by the narrowest of margins from Onions and Woodcock.

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Barrett was soon back up to speed however and after 2 stunning stage times in Ravensdale and 179+, the Northern Irishman was back in second place.  In part due to the loss of oil pressure enforced retirement of Woodcock, and a slow time for Onions in stage 9.  All this meanwhile allowed Pritchard to continue to lead the historic classes and collect the much needed maximum BHRC points on offer at the halfway stage of the event.

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Having clawed back much of the lost time to sit just 8.6 seconds behind Pritchard after stage 9, Barrett would suffer a further set-back; the Northern Irishman issued with 40 seconds worth of road penalties as a result of earlier ignition related lateness.  Without which, he and McCann, would have been leading the rally, such was their pace through the Castletown darkness.

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And despite the cancellation of stage 14, Barrett had managed to get within 31 seconds of the rally lead by the end of the day; his pace over the first leg of the event suggesting rally victory was still a distinct possibility, especially with 6 special stages totaling 60 competitive miles still remaining.

Whilst Ryan Barrett had been making the headlines, it was elder brother Paul who was in title frame.  And whilst struggling to match the pace of his BD engined rivals, the Pinto powered man was doing an admiral job of staying in touch; Paul Barrett and Dai Roberts claiming the spoils for 3rd place in the BHRC classes at the halfway point and lying 4th overall at the close of proceedings on Friday, just over 24 seconds behind the third placed crew of Will Onions and Jamie Edwards.

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Saturday, the final day of the rally, was blessed yet again with glorious weather, perfect conditions for the lead battle to be fought.  However, Ryan Barrett’s victory charge was further hindered by the cancellation of the 11.5 mile second stage of the day, leaving the rapid Escort man just 40 miles to close the more than half minute gap.  The position looked much more positive after SS17 however; Barrett taking a massive 15 seconds out of both Pritchard and Onions in just under 4 stage miles!

But just as victory momentum was starting to build, an up and down event for Barrett and McCann came to an end on the penultimate stage of the rally;  A loss of oil pressure tragically ending their very competitive run.

This left the way clear for Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke to round out a perfect weekend by taking maximum BHRC points from both legs of the event; an ultra consistent run culminating in a 1 minute and 40 second victory over the leading RAC Asphalt championship crew of Will Onions and Jamie Edwards.

Paul Barrett and Dai Roberts would finish the event in third after another strong performance, the deficit in horsepower really showing on the demanding Manx roads.  And whilst the pairing  have now sown up the Category 3 title, the overall honours appear just out of reach; a top 10 finish on the Trackrod now probably enough for Pritchard and Clarke to claim a second title.

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CATEGORY 2

In 2016 Simon Tysoe and Stanley Orr have been the front running category 2 contenders in their respective BD and Pinto powered Ford Escort MK1s and it was no surprise to see them lying 1st and 2nd on Thursday evening.

It was Orr, with Guy Weaver alongside, however who was quickest through the night stages and the pair managed to maintain their healthy 40 second category advantage over the Friday morning loop.  Unfortunately the engine decided to call it a day on stage 7 though, which along with their enforced retirement, also put pay to their championship hopes.

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This left Simon Tysoe and Paul Morris in pole position for both the category honours on the event as well as the championship itself; the pairing holding a 1 minute 30 second Friday night lead over another pinto powered MK1 in the hands of Phil Jobson and Arwel Jenkins.

Jobson’s strong run would however sadly come to a premature end after a stage stopping off in Snuff the Wind on Saturday lunchtime, thus leaving Tysoe as the clear favourite for category victory.  That is until the Leicester man visited the scenery himself on the penultimate stage of the event.   Such was their lead advantage however that the 12 minutes lost would only drop to them to third; more than enough to secure the category title after an excellent season.

Instead it was Barry Jordan and James Gratton-Smith who slipped into the last minute category lead in their 1600 Hillman Avenger BRM.  And the East Midlands pairing duly went on to take a well deserved victory having put in a very strong performance throughout the rally; the first none Escort BHRC/RAC crew home in 9th position overall in the combined historic events.

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Behind Jordan, a conservative drive saw Roger Matthews and Tom Marrott in their MK1 Escort claim second in category 2 .  The result enough to secure overall RAC Asphalt championship victory  with one event still remaining.

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CATEGORY 1

For once a wide variety of cars made up the category 1 entry including a couple of Porsche 911s, a Lancia Fulvia, Triumph TR4, BMW 1800 and an Imp to mix it with the usual Minis and Cortinas.

And given their numerical advantage, it may not have been too much of a surprise to see a Mini at the front; the extremely Rapid Ray Cunningham and Jared Gill holding the category lead until retiring from the event in stage 7.  This left Bob and Dale Gibbons to take up the mantle in their Ford Cortina GT; themselves getting the better of the Adrian Kermode and Colin McDowell piloted Minis.

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The Mini challenge would however fade and the father and son Cortina crew were able to build a lead of well over 2 minutes by the end of proceedings on day 2 with Dessie Nutt and Geraldine McBride moving their infamous 911 into the podium positions.  In fact, Nutt increased his pace as the event progressed, which combined with road penalties for McDowell, would see OLC6E move up to second by the end of the event.

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There was just no stopping Bob and Dale Gibbons though as they went on to finish the combined event in 57th position overall.  The Cortina GT has been near unstoppable in 2016 and another stellar performance on the Isle of Man was rewarded with not only a 4 minute category victory but also BHRC category 1 championship glory.

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COMBINED NATIONAL A/B HISTORIC RESULTS
  1. Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke | Ford Escort MK2 | 02:21:30.5
  2. Will Onions/Jamie Edwards | Ford Escort MK2 | +01:40.5
  3. Paul Barrett/Dai Roberts | Ford Escort MK2 | +02:03.1
  4. Will Rowlands/Lion Williams | Ford Escort MK2 | +06:24.5
  5. Christophe Jacob/Isabelle Regnier | Ford Escort MK2 | +09:09.9
  6. Shawn Reynar/Declan Dear | Ford Escort MK2 | +09:33.9
  7. Declan Jackson/Barry McCarney | Ford Escort MK2 | +09:46.0
  8. Mark Holmes/Mark Perryman | Ford Escort MK1 | +10:13.1
  9. Barry Jordan/James Gratton-Smith | Hillman Avenger | +12:57.4
  10. Barry Stevenson-Wheeler/John Pickavance | Ford Escort MK2 | +13:30.9
FULL RESULTS
FINAL THOUGHTS

My first trip to the Isle of Man had been a good one, made even better by the weather, competition and company.  You have to be partially mad to follow rallying, but it is nice to know that you are not alone; a couple of familiar faces more than happy to offer a couple of gratefully received tips to ensure our trip to the Island included most of the classic spots.  This had been a weekend to remember and I am sure we will back.  However before next years plans start to take shape, there is the small matter of the championship decider on the Trackrod in just under 1 week’s time.  Where, with Barrett not entered at the time of writing, surely Pritchard will make it 2 outright titles in a row …

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)