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R.A.C Rally

Roger Albert Clark Rally – November 2025

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Battling snow, ice, fog and heavy rain over the gruelling 5 day event, Osian Pryce and Dale Furniss would put in a controlled drive aboard their Wales Motorsport Ford Escort MK2 to secure 2025 Roger Albert Clark Rally victory; Pryce finally claiming victory having come close on the two previous editions.

Osian Pryce / Dale Furniss – Pundershaw

The biennial marathon event, which visits Wales, England and Scotland had once again proved extremely popular and whilst no current WRC stars would be found at the Carmarthen start ramp in 2025 the entry list was still stacked with quality.   Indeed, the return of multiple Roger Albert Clark (RAC) rally winner Martin McCormack, this time aboard a gravel spec BMW M3, had created much interest and he would be joined by the likes of ex British Rally champions, Osian Pryce (Ford Escort MK2), Matt Edwards (Ford Escort MK2), Mark Higgins (TR7) and Jonny Milner (Peugeot 205) to add further spice.

The opening leg of the rally may well have been the shortest but it was far from a walk in the park after freezing temperatures left the crews facing some incredibly tricky stage mileage with grip levels changing by the corner.  Osian Pryce and Dale Furniss, aboard their Wales Motorsport Ford Escort MK2, made the best of the conditions however particularly excelling in the darkness of stages 5 and 6 to hold a respective 17 and 19 second lead over the similar machine of Matt Edwards and the BMW M3 of 2023 winner Martin McCormack. 

But if Thursday’s stages appeared tricky then Friday’s tests, particularly in Myherin and Sweetlamb/Hafren, were in another league entirely!  Myherin would in fact prove treacherous in places and would unfortunately catch out the usually infallible Lancia Stratos of Seb Perez, much to the absolute devastation of many a spectator!  Perez and co-driver Dale Bowen were not the only ones to suffer either as a massive off for Robert Gough and Jack Bowen caused lengthy delays which ultimately put pay to the second running of Dyfnant at the end of the day.

Pryce meanwhile, in territory not far from his own back yard, would again be the man to beat, skillfully navigating the snow and ice to hold a very healthy lead of over 1 minute over the similar machine of Paul Barrett and Gordon Noble heading into the day’s final test.  But, after a very strong day in Mid Wales it would be the latter Northern Irish duo who would head North to Carlisle with confidence in their stride after a stonking time in the second running of Sweet Lamb/Hafren which, coinciding with a spin for Pryce, would see them emerge as closest challengers, ending the day just 29 seconds in arrears.

Saturday would unfortunately turn out to be a bit of a disaster as half of the stage mileage would be lost as a result of traffic issues around the stages.  The four stages that did run however still provided plenty of drama.  Whilst the opening Tommy’s Fell stage was snow and ice free, Riccarton was most definitely not and Pryce’s decision to take a steady approach to the stage would see the Welshman lose the lead to the now flying Northern Irishman.  This did seem to be all the motivation Pryce and Furniss needed however as they were back in the lead after Hyndlee and courtesy of a fantastic stage time through the fog of Kershope would extend their lead to 58 seconds by the end of the day.

Day 4 would see the temperatures rise and rain set in as the crews travelled over the border into Scotland for stages in Ae, Twiglees, Castle O’er, Craik and Newcastleton where, despite a puncture, Pryce and Furniss would extend their lead to almost 2 minutes by the time they were back in Carlisle.  The day would however belong to Martin McCormack and Barney Mitchell who were obviously getting to grips with the E30 M3 as they reduced their deficit to the leaders by 40 seconds and would find themselves within sight of second heading into ‘Killer Kielder’ for the final day of the rally.

It was not to be for McCormack and Mitchell though as their efforts would tragically end in Pundershaw on the final morning, gearbox failure leaving them stranded mid-stage and their rally most definitely over.  This would however pave the way for Matt Edwards and co-driver Sion Williams, in their CarrPrep Ford Escort MK2, to make a late push for the podium. 

Despite having a day 2 to forget (losing over 6 minutes with a puncture and later knocking off the fuel pump feed) Edwards and Williams would be on top form for the remaining 3 days culminating in a final day to remember which saw them climb from 6th in the historic category to the final step of the historic podium; setting fastest time on the 37 mile “Bigger one” finale to end on a real high.  Sitting just 3 minutes and 57 seconds off the lead by the end of the event it was certainly a case of what might have been had lady luck been on their side.

There was understandably an element of pace management taking place ahead though as after the retirement of McCormack, both Pryce and Barrett could concentrate on getting their Ford’s home to the finish in one piece (Barrett having decided the lead gap was just too large to close down).  And both crews would do exactly that. 

But for a spin on day 2 Pryce had hardly put a foot wrong and had managed his pace accordingly throughout the very tricky conditions to add the coveted RAC Rally victory to his already impressive CV at the third time of asking.  Barrett and Noble meanwhile may not have featured in many onlooker’s top 3 predictions given the quality of the entry list and therefore 2nd overall from a start position of 7th is a mighty impressive result for the Omagh Motor Club duo.

Two further Ford Escort Rs1800 MK2’s would round out the top 5 historic crews with Dyfrig James and Emyr Jones succumbing to the final day charge of Edwards to drop out of the podium positions whilst conversely Dan Mennell and John H Roberts would climb two positions during the day to end the event in 5th.

Just one place further back, Mark Higgins and Carl Williamson would finish sixth after a fantastic drive in the awesome David Appleby Engineering TR7 V8; the pairing proving the potential of the British Leyland machine with some very impressive stage times throughout.  But for an off on the final day costing 4 minutes and a fan belt issue on day 1 the fan favourites may well have featured on the podium, however class H7 top spot represented a very welcome consolation prize.

Mark Higgins / Carl Williamson – Sweetlamb/Hafren

Talking of fan favourites, one of the star drives of the rally came from Swedish crew Arne Radstrom and Kent-Ola Bjorklund who wrestled their Volvo 262c through Wales, Scotland and Kielder to claim a quite brilliant 8th and second in class H7.  Affectionately referred to as the “Orange Brick” this drive will be remembered for a long time to come and may well encourage more of the Swedish Marque onto the stages.

Endaf Owens and Phil Pugh had lead category 2 aboard their Ford Escort MK1 for large parts of the event but couldn’t hold off a final day charge from Ben and Steven Smith in the Dansport prepared Porsche 911.  Usually found in a MK1 himself, Smith was visibly getting quicker and quicker in the 911 as the event progressed and put in a stunning charge on day 5 to climb 14 positions and end the event in 20th position overall (18th historic).  Meanwhile Andy Wolfe and James Crook would beat their seeding by a whopping 55 positions to round out the category 2 podium in their Ford Escort MK1.

Ben Smith / Steven Smith – The “Bigger one”

Enrico Brazzoli and Martina Musiari, in their Porsche 911 SCRS, could possibly claim the award for best engine note (What a sound!) to go with Category 4 top spot and 28th position overall in the historic event. Meanwhile class H9 winners Mark and Andrew Constantine, aboard their 1300cc Vauxhall Nova Sport, would round out a brilliant performance with 2nd in category and 36th historic car home whilst an equally impressive drive from Andy Madge and Matt Cooper would see them finish just one place further back to claim class H10 honours and 3rd in category 4.

Enrico Brazzoli / Martina Musiari – Pundershaw

In Category 1 it was looking like a Mini 1-2 was on the cards after day 4 but unfortunately the second Mini in the hands of Colin McDowell and Geraldine McBride would lose a significant amount of time on the final day.  This left the way clear for the Cortina’s of David Wood / Reece Brookes (Mk2) and Paul Mankin (MK1) and to complete the podium positions as Joe Whyte and Des Sherlock claimed a fantastic category victory in their Austin Mini Cooper S.

Joe Whyte / Des Sherlock – Sweetlamb/Hafren

The Open rally for none historic cars would run concurrently with the historic event and see Scottish pairing Greg McKnight and Harry Marchbank put together a stellar performance over the 5 days to end the rally in third position overall. The Ford Escort MK2 pairing’s dominance of the open rally class evident by their winning margin of almost 25 minutes! Robert Barrett and Simon Taylor would come home second in class (Ford Escort MK2) whilst the Vauxhall Astra GSI of Mark McCulloch and Michael Hendry would complete the open rally podium with 22nd overall.

Elsewhere notable historic class wins would go the way of Adam Milner and Roy Jarvis (H6) aboard the recently built Opel Kadett GTE with 19th, Mark Tugwell and Phillip Sandham (H2) in their Ford Escort MK1 Twin Cam with 35th position and Bradley and Simon Howlett in their Talbot Avenger (H5) with 49th. Theo Ruijgh and Thies Stegeman meanwhile would be first home in class H11 (Volvo 244) whilst Ondrej Coufal and Marek Simik would come out on top of the Datsun 240Z battle in class H17.

The 2025 RAC rally had been one hell of an adventure for me personally, so god only knows what it must feel like to make it to end in one piece as a competitor! Spending 5 solid days following the rally was a brilliant experience that way exceeded my expectations; day 2 spent in a snow covered Sweet Lamb and a long walk into deepest darkest Pundershaw on the final day being particular highlights.

The rally was far from perfect however as, possibly a result of it’s own success, lost 6 stages, 4 of which were entirely traffic related; not completely surprising given the number of competitive vehicles along with their associated management crews traversing the sometimes very narrow forest perimeter roads.

But by far the biggest issue was the lack of a reliable online results service throughout the event meaning no-one was entirely sure of class positions at any point. The latter is hopefully something that is relatively easy to fix for 2027 and maybe a restriction on entries, (historic category cars only?) would reduce the congestion experienced. Anyway I am confident the legendary small team of volunteers behind the rally will come up with the solution. Long live the RAC!

My RAC 25 in numbers
Miles Driven – 1065
Kilometres walked – 55
Stages viewed – 10
Cameras used – 2
Lenses used – 3
Countries visited – 3
Hotels frequented – 3

GALLERY

Circuit Rally Championship

Neil Howard Stages – Oulton Park – November 2025

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Joe Cunningham and Josh Beer were in top form at the 2025 Salford Van Hire Neil Howard Stages as the North Yorkshire based duo fought back from a nightmare stage 3 to claim victory at Oulton Park; round 1 of the 2025/26 Protyre Circuit Rally Championship.

Making great use of the Oulton Park perimeter roads, Bolton Le Moors Car Club had organised 8 challenging stages for the opening round of the 2025/26 Protyre Circuit Rally Championship with the formidable pairing of 2024/25 Champions, Michael Igoe and Will Atkins, heading the entry list aboard their Citroen C3 Rally2. 2nd seeds John Griffiths and Emma Morrison would again look to take the fight to the Citroen duo in their Skoda Fabia R5 whilst 3rd on the road Steve Simpson and Chris Williams were also expected to mix it with the Circuit Rally regulars in their Ford Fiesta Rally2.

However it would be Joe Cunningham and co-driver Josh Beer, a late entry in Kevin Proctor’s Fiesta WRC, who would excel in what proved particularly tricky early conditions following a torrential downpour; the pairing producing a stunning stage 1 time to leap into an 11 second lead, before extending this to 16 seconds by the end of stage 2.

In stark contract, stage 3 would prove a different kettle of fish entirely for the Fiesta WRC duo as a puncture and drive shaft issue, combined with a couple of spins and a 10 second time penalty for hitting a barrel would see them plummet to fourth, unravelling much of their stellar early work.

Fortunately all car issues were seemingly resolved for stage 4 and the early leaders were immediately back on form, reeling off 3 consecutive fastest stage times to hold an 8 second lead with just 2 stages remaining.  And, despite Igoe and Atkins finding their rhythm over the afternoon and setting fastest times on both the final 2 stages, Cunningham and Beer would have enough in hand to claim a fantastic 5 second victory.  

Despite not able to match the pace of Cunningham for much of the day Igoe and Atkins will have been pleased with the runner up spot after lying 4th at the halfway point following a difficult morning.  Second overall therefore an excellent result in the circumstances and the haul of points that came along with it setting them up nicely for yet another Protyre Circuit Rally Championship title bid.

North West based Steve Simpson would be joined by co-driver Chris Williams for the Neil Howard Stages and the Ford Fiesta Rally2 duo would inherit the lead after Cunningham’s disastrous stage 3 courtesy of setting a consistent pace throughout the morning.  There would be no stopping Cunningham’s charge back through the field however with the Tudor Glass backed machine also falling behind Igoe at the final hurdle as the Citroen C3 pilot proved the man to beat in the Cheshire darkness.

Ryan Burns and Shaun Hughes were another crew who made the best of the tricky early conditions and had been running as high as third in their Ford Fiesta before head gasket failure brought a premature end to their day.  This left the way clear for John Griffiths and Emma Morrison to salvage 4th in their Skoda Fabia R5 after a difficult day whilst Jack Darbyshire and Ben Butterworth (Ford Fiesta) would round out the top 5 after overhauling the VW Polo R5 of John and Alex Stone on the final test.

In the classes, Alfie Threlfall and Patrick Cross put in a sublime performance to beat their seeding by 20 positions to claim class 2 top spot with 8th position overall in their Mitsubishi Evo X whilst Philip House and Nick Beaumont delivered an equally dominant performance to take class 5 honours with 11th overall in their Ford Escort MK2.  Louis Baines and Kris Coombes in their Peugeot 106 would just edge out the more favoured Maxi kit car version of Ben & Andrew Wilkinson to claim a fantastic class 8 victory with 15th overall whilst top spot in class 9 would go the way of Matthew Faulkner and Liam Howard with 38th in their Suzuki Swift.

Wil Owen and Chloe Louise Thomas (Ford Escort MK2) would lead for much of the day in the hotly contested class 3 only to lose a significant amount time on stage 6.  This would leave the similar machines of Bradley Carroll and Dave Willett to fight it out for victory with Willett, co-driven by John Davies, looking like he had pulled off the come back to end all come backs by taking the class lead on stage 7 having lost the better part of 1 minute on stage 1.  It wasn’t to be however as Carroll and co-driver Gareth Short registered an exceptionally quick time on stage 8 to snatch class victory by a mere second!

Next up for the Proytyre Circuit Rally Championship registered crews is the NHMC Cadwell Stages Rally in just under 2 weeks time where Cunnigham and Beer will be hoping to compete with the established front runners once again, should an entry materialise that is.  One thing that is for certain however, judging by the level of entries for the first couple of events, is that the Circuit Rally Championship has never been more popular.

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY

BHRC

Woodpecker Rally – August 2025

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Osian Pryce and Dale Furniss were in a league of their own on the recent Phil Price Memorial Woodpecker Rally as the Welsh pairing dominated proceedings to claim a 53 second National Rally victory aboard the Wales Motorsport Ford Escort MK2.

Traditionally based in Shropshire the Sixty & Worcestershire Motor Club organised Woodpecker Rally has re-located to Newtown in recent years and would be mostly confined to the Hafren Forest complex in 2025; most probably the result of extensive forestry damage caused by Storm Darragh at the back end of last year.

However, likely driven by the shortage of gravel rallying in Wales so far in 2025, we were blessed with an entry list that was top drawer in terms of both quantity and quality with none other than 2022 British Rally Champion, Osian Pryce, leading the 2 wheel drive seedings aboard a Wales Motorsport prepared Ford Escort MK2.

Using the event as a test for the upcoming biennial Roger Albert Clark Rally, Pryce and co-driver Dale Furniss were on the pace from the off, setting ridiculously quick times through the opening 2 tests to storm into an incredible 26 second lead after just 12 competitive miles. Another 2 fastest stage times would follow leaving the Welsh pairing sitting on a monumental 41 second National Rally lead at the mid event service!

More often seen behind the wheel of modern four wheel drive machinery, Pryce had already proven his raw talent and adaptability in 2025 having dominated the two wheel drive section of the Nicky Grist Stages. And, despite easing the pace a little over the afternoon loop, through what proved to be monsoon conditions, the local pilot would record a similar commanding result on the Woodpecker as he and Furniss went on to record a phenomenal 53 second victory after just 43 miles of driving!

Paul Barrett would make a rare appearance on the Woodpecker, and with Arthur Kierans alongside would be right in the mix for the podium positions aboard his Ford Escort MK2. In fact the Northern Irishman would prove to be the class of the British Historic Rally Championship contenders as, after being involved in an almighty scrap with the similar machine of Dan Mennell throughout the morning stages, he and Kierans were able to show an impressive turn of pace over the afternoon loop. Indeed Barrett would go on to set fastest historic time on SS7 before equaling that of Pryce on the final test to secure a strong second.

Dan Mennell and John H Roberts have become a force to be reckoned with in recent times and despite losing touch with Barrett over the afternoon loop would end the day a solid third in their Ford Escort MK2; the Anglo Welsh pairing completing the event with almost a minute in hand over another BD powered Ford Escort MK2 in the hands of Robert Gough and Jack Bowen who themselves would round out the BHRC podium.

Nick Elliot and Dave Price would make a first BHRC start of the season on the Woodpecker but were instantly on the back foot after a stage 1 puncture left the Fiat 131 crew way down in 23rd. A strong afternoon however would see the pairing climb to 7th by the end of the day and hold the unofficial honour of first none Ford home.

Irish duo, David Crossen and Ben Teggart meanwhile had a day to forget in Wales as a broken throttle cable in stage 1 ended their day prematurely. Such a shame after an excellent opening three rounds of the season saw them flying high in the championship. It’s not all lost though as Category 3 honours may well still be up for grabs on the season ending Trackrod.

Category 2 numbers have disappointingly reduced in recent times but it was great to see the Ford Escort MK1 of Tim Pearcey and Andy Boswell out in Wales and, after a day mixing it with the category 3 MK2’s, would be rewarded with category victory and 17th position overall. Further back, class H2 winners Drew Struthers and Iain Thorburn would claim the category 2 runner up spot with 26th aboard their Hillman Avenger.

With 19th overall Baz Jordan and Arwel Jenkins would claim category 4 honours and with it the British Historic Rally Championship title aboard their Mitsubishi Galant. Given the lack of category opposition I’m not entirely sure this is the outcome the championship organisers had in mind when opening it up to all categories; however, you have to be in it to win it and, having supported historic rallying for many a year, more deserving champions you will not find.

It is difficult to work out who won what when it comes to the classes on this event as there seem to be a fair few anomalies! For instance last time I checked BD powered MK2’s don’t qualify for category 1 and I have no idea why some are in H6 while others H8! I can’t be the only one struggling with the new historic categorisations …

… But with some degree of certainty David Wood and Reece Brookes would claim category 1 victory after a strong drive to 28th overall aboard their Ford Cortina GT. Simon Goodwin, with multiple BRC Drivers champion Matt Edwards alongside, would claim class H7 in the awesome Triumph Tr7, whilst Kurt Hodgson / Sam Campbell (Peugeot 205) and Phil Hall / Nathalie Rutten (Skoda Favorit) would take the respective H10 and H14 (Cat 5) victories.

Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear dominated the interclub event in their Skoda Fabia R5 only to be awarded a 2 minute penalty for an early check in to SS6. Instead Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh would go on to claim a 6 second rally victory aboard their Ford Fiesta Rally2, themselves just holding off a late charge from the Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 of Tom Williams and Michael Gilbey. Such was Hirst’s pace however that despite the 2 minute penalty he and Dear would still end the day just 10 seconds from the podium positions and only 57 seconds from the lead!

Mad Mick Jones and Chris Evans (Ford Escort MK2) would be first Historic competitors home in the Interclub event with 23rd position overall after Sacha Kakad and James Aldridge (Ford Escort MK2) suffered a 1 minute time penalty for the same infringement as Hirst and Dear above. Gary Smith and Clive Jones meanwhile, in yet another Ford Escort MK2, would round out the podium positions just edging out the similar machines of Mike Simpson / Dale Gibbons and Hywel Davies / Sion Rowlands.

Following the cancellation of Rally North Wales and the Severn Valley it had been 6 long months since the opportunity to take in a gravel rally had presented itself and oh how I’d missed it. Despite the horrific afternoon downpour it was great to be back in the classic Rally GB territory of Hafren forest and catch up with many a likeminded individual. Osian Pryce in full flow was also a sight to behold and whets the appetite nicely for the Roger Albert Clark Rally in late November, where the Welshman must be one of the favourites for victory.

Full Results

Gallery

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AGBO Stages Rally – March 2025

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Oliver Davies, with Jack Bowen alongside on this occasion, drew upon his vast knowledge of Weston Park to record an incredible 10th AGBO stages rally victory aboard his formidable Ford Escort MK2.

Weston Park was looking particularly stunning in the early spring sunshine as the Staffordshire parkland estate welcomed rally folk for the 29th annual running of the Land & Estate Maintenance AGBO Stages rally.  Once again organised by the West Midlands based Owen Motoring Club, the 2025 running of the AGBO stages rally would feature ten stages covering almost 30 miles and had attracted many a previous winner, with Davies, Lee Edwards, Gary Thomas and Andy Corner accounting for 50% of the roll of honour!

Last year’s victors Lee Edwards and Ben Crump would head the entry list in the fabulous Jaguar engined Escort G3 but could not match the pace of Davies and Bowen on the day, with the pairing finding themselves 11 seconds adrift in second after the first 3 stages.  The dry conditions on both the asphalt roads and adjoining grassland was perhaps playing into the hands of Davies, whose smooth driving style may not have seemed quickest to the naked eye but proved very effective on the time sheets!

Indeed, try as Edwards might, he and Crump just could not get any more out of the fantastic sounding Escort and despite 4 stage victories out of the remaining 7 stages, and never outside the top 2 stage times, would end the day 14 seconds in arrears.

This had been some drive by Davies and Bowen who must have surprised more than a few with their rapid early morning pace before settling into a strong rhythm and defeating many people’s favourites for the event victory by a fair margin.  Surely Davies must now qualify for some sort of commemorative feature within the estate after recording a 10th victory at Weston Park, which accounts for more than one third of the event history!

Whilst not quite able to match the pace of the front two crews Dai Dot Davies made a welcome return to the hot seat of the family Darrian GTR and with Steve Pugh alongside put in a strong drive to keep previous double winner Gary Thomas (co-driven by Christopher Walton) at arms length throughout and claim a well deserved final step of the podium.

Personally I believe the organisers have the event regulations perfected by allowing all wheel drive machinery to complete as long as they run a H pattern gearbox and best of the four wheel drive machinery on the day would prove to be Wayne Larbalestier and Matt Endean aboard their Mitsubishi Evo 3.  Consistently setting times well within the top ten, an entertaining drive would see the Japanese machine end the day 6th overall and topping class E.

Perhaps the closest tussle on the day was found in Class C however where the top 3 would end the event separated by just 6 seconds and fill positions 8,9 and 10 overall.  Dave Hopwood and Sam Kelter (Ford Escort MK2) enjoyed a flying start to the event setting 5th and 8th fastest times on stages 1 and 2 but then struggled in stages 4 and 5 to find themselves tied on times with the similar machine of Joshua Moss and Phil Tucker at the half way point.

This appeared to be all the motivation Moss and Tucker required as 3 more top 10 stage times would see them sitting on a relatively comfortable 6 second cushion with just the final two stages remaining.  Which in the end proved vital as Hopwood and Kelter would end the day just as they started by taking 5 back over the final loop to miss out on class victory by 1 solitary second! 

Late entrants Mike Simpson and Sam Weller were there or thereabouts throughout and ready to pounce if the fight ahead became too fraught. As it was they couldn’t quite get close enough to the leading 2 class C runners and would bring their MK2 Escort home third in class and 10th overall.

Elsewhere class victories would go the way of yet another previous winning crew in the form of Andy Corner and Ade Camp, this time competing in the Ford Fiesta R200.  It feels rather odd seeing them in something other than a Peugeot 205 but the pairing recorded an impressive 3 top ten stage times on their way to Class B victory and 12th overall.

And last but not least Tom Bishop and Tom Aleksandrowicz would claim Class A victory aboard their Vauxhall Nova after a strong drive would see them finish the day in 20th position overall.

There can’t be many better locations for a single venue rally especially when the sun is out.  And with the glorious sound of competition engines bouncing off the parkland landscape it proved a great days entertainment for the very reasonable sum of just £9!  Next up for me is the Alan Healy Memorial Rally at Cadwell on the 6th April for the latest instalment of the Circuit Rally Championship.

RESULTS

GALLERY

Circuit Rally Championship

Lee Holland Memorial Rally – March 2025

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In form duo, Michael Igoe and Will Atkins claimed a 3rd Protyre Circuit Rally Championship victory in as many events as they just edged out John Griffiths and Emma Morrison to take Lee Holland Memorial Rally Victory for the second successive year at the very picturesque Anglesey Circuit.

The current pause in Welsh forest rallying provided the perfect opportunity to make a maiden visit to Anglesey Circuit, possibly the most scenic of all the UK circuits, for round 6 of the 2024/25 Protyre Circuit Rally Championship.

Jointly organised by the Garstang and Preston and Pendle District Motor Clubs, the Lee Holland Memorial Rally would feature 6 stages, making use of all available asphalt and boast an impressive entry list (including separate events for the Juniors and Cross Cars) headed by 2024 winners Michael Igoe and Will Atkins in their Citroen C3 Rally2.

It was however the Skoda Fabia R5 of John Griffiths and Emma Morrison who would top the time sheets after the first loop of 2 stages courtesy of setting fastest time on SS1, but it would be the middle loop of partially reversed stages that would prove pivotal to the outcome of the event.

As it was, ex British GT racing driver, Igoe was able to complete stages 3 and 4 a combined 11 seconds quicker than the Rainworth Skoda backed Fabia as Igoe perfected his setup whilst his main rival on the day was plagued by a lack of grip; thus leaving Igoe and Atkins sitting on a comfortable 10 second lead with just over 12 miles remaining. 

Any thoughts of a relaxed run to the finish may have been quickly eroded when the Citroen man out-braked himself at a junction on SS5 but Igoe and Atkins were back on form in stage 6 where the formidable pairing were able find an additional 8 seconds to match the time of Griffiths and claim a hard fought 5 second victory. 

Griffiths meanwhile would be left to rue the tyre choice error on the middle loop which left any ambitions of the title probably requiring he and Morrison to outscore the Citroen man on all 3 of the remaining rounds.  A tough ask on current form!

25 seconds back in third were Kiaran Hankin and Ben Butterworth in another Citroen C3 Rally2 after a strong run saw them pip the father/son combo of John and Alex Stone (VW Polo R5) to the final step on the podium by just 8 seconds.

Chris West and Keith Hounslow were a very welcome addition to the entry list in their Peugeot 306 Maxi and the duo would be rewarded with Class C victory, 5th overall and the first 2 wheel drive crew home after a strong drive.  Meanwhile Wil Owen and Robbie Sandford would just hold off a late charge from the Similar MK2 Escort of Dave Willett and John Davies to claim the honour of first rear wheel drive crew home and the class C runner up spot.

Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Mei Davies and Dylan Thomas (Class D) aboard their Ford Escort MK2 with 10th, Christian Davies and Ethan Zdrodowski (Class B) in their Ford Fiesta with 17th, the Mazda Mx-5 crew of Xavier Brodie and Jonathan Cragg (Class E) with 25th and Gareth Roberts and Ben Forrester aboard their Citroen AX (Class F).

Richard Rees (Mygale XC04) meanwhile would dominate the Cross Car rally whilst Ollie Forrester and George Myatt would head an Ultra close Junior battle that saw the top 3 covered by a mere 6 seconds as Skoda Citigos locked out the podium positions!

The weather may not have turned out quite as favourable as forecast (Anglesey must have been one of the few places in the UK that didn’t see wall to wall sunshine on the day) but it turned out to be well worth the near 7 hour round trip.  What a great little venue that doesn’t look the least bit out of place on the stunning North Wales coast line.  I doubt this will be my last visit.

Next up for me is more rallying on the black stuff with the AGBO stages at Weston Park!

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY

BHRC, NHRC

Riponian Stages Rally – February 2025

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Dan Mennell and John H Roberts claimed a maiden British Historic Rally Championship victory with a sublime drive on the season opening Riponian Stages whilst Adam Milner and Roy Jarvis stormed to Category 2 victory and Baz Jordan and Arwel Jenkins were last crew standing in Category 4 to leave a 3 way tie at the top of the championship table.

The 2025 British Historic Rally Championship may once again have started with a traditional trip to the North Yorkshire forests for the Riponian Stages Rally but behind the scenes it was all change. For starters, a much reduced calendar was on the cards with more of a gravel focus. A calendar which was then shortened further by Mother nature’s impact on the Welsh Forests (Rally North Wales and Severn Valley Stages cancelled) but then rescued by the legendary Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club who brought back the Carlisle Stages as a late replacement.

It was in the small print where perhaps the most exciting developments had taken place however with the BHRC deciding to embrace the latest FIA Historic regulations for cars homologated all the way up to 1999 for the first time. Thus, not only allowing all wheel drive machinery a shot at the title, but opening up the overall championship to all classes too, meaning there is just as much chance of a category 1 Mini taking the crown as there is a Group A Mitsubishi Galant.

The Riponian Stages rally itself also had a different feel for 2025 with the organisers forced to make changes following the unavailability of Wass.  This would instead see a return of the short Boltby test combined with maximising the available mileage in the Cropton / Gale Rigg complex.  But despite the efforts of Ripon Motor Sport Club historic entries were a little on the disappointing side with numbers falling just shy of the 40 mark and missing the likes of Mark Higgins, Nick Elliot and 2024 champion Seb Perez.

The aforementioned crews would have struggled to beat the in-form Dan Mennell and John H Roberts however.   After rounding out 2024 in style with historic victory on the Malton Forest Rally, the Anglo / Welsh pairing started 2025 in much the same manner, setting a blindingly quick time in Cropton before another fastest historic time in Boltby to hold a commanding 17 second lead at the Thirsk service halt.

David Crossen and Ben Teggart were back after a partial campaign in 2024 and it would be they who were quickest out of the blocks on the day though.  In fact the Northern Irish pairing, aboard their Ford Escort, were 2 seconds quicker than anyone else in the opening Gale Rigg test and would have kept Mennell in check during the afternoon stages had it not been for dropping 12 seconds in Boltby!

Having done all the hard-work in the morning, Mennell and Roberts followed this up with a well controlled afternoon drive to keep the chasing pack at bay and claim an excellent maiden British Historic Championship victory.  A winning margin of 20 seconds after just over 40 miles of rallying proof if ever it were needed that the Carr Prep prepared Ford Escort duo will be strong championship contenders and most definitely the current Kings of the North Yorkshire forests.

The story of the afternoon stages however was the red-hot battle for third which saw the category 3 MK2 Escorts of Ben Friend, David Henderson and Adrian Hetherington separated by just 1 second after the second running of Gale Rigg.  Cropton 2 (SS5) looked to be the decisive stage as Ben Friend failed to emerge and Henderson edged ahead but Hetherington, with Ronan O’Neill alongside, capped off an impressive afternoon run by setting a time 6 seconds faster than anyone else through Boltby 2 to snatch third at the final opportunity.

Despite being only 4th quickest over the afternoon loop, Crossen and Teggart had more than enough in hand to claim a best British Historic Championship finish to date with second.  A great drive through the slippery morning conditions providing the opportunity for a steadier afternoon run.

The Ford Escort Mexico of Adam Milner and Roy Jarvis made a welcome return to action on the Riponian Stages and the Yorkshire pairing had clearly lost none of their pace.  Never outside the top 12 stage times the 1600 Crossflow powered MK1 crew were rewarded with an excellent 7th overall after a great drive and better still a share of the championship lead courtesy of winning their category by a whopping 1 minute and 2 seconds.

Category 4 honours meanwhile would go the way of Barry Jordan and Arwel Jenkins aboard their Mitsubishi Galant VR4.  Last year’s victor George Lepley, this time with Dafydd Evans alongside, was expected to dominate but engine issues in stage 1 curtailed their event early.

Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Matthew Stroud and Josh Carr (H6) with an excellent 5th, in turn claiming maximum HRCR Northern Historic championship points and the honour of first non BD powered crew home.  Further back Tim Pearcey and Ifan Devine would take class H3 with 11th overall in their Ford Escort MK1, Rally2 honours would go the way of Martyn Hawkswell and Nick Welch aboard another MK2 Escort whilst Terry Cree and Richard Shores would claim H1 and Category 1 honours having swapped their BMW for the Mini Cooper S on this year’s event.

In the Interclub event, Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh proved too quick for the opposition, setting 4 fastest stage times on their way to a 57 second victory aboard their Ford Fiesta Rally2.  Andy Davison and Tom Murphy (Sunbeam VXR) meanwhile would just edge out the BMW E36 of David Wilson and Owen Paterson to claim 2 wheel drive honours with 12th with Mat Smith and Derek Cornforth the first front wheel drive crew home in 14th. 

Having decided on Cropton, junction 2 proved an excellent watch.  Hearing the leading crews flat in top on the long approach was something else.  Just look at the metrics on this in-car of David Henderson and Chris Lees!

Unfortunately, as a result of the cancellation of Rally North Wales, that’s probably it as far as forest rallying goes for me until the late summer but hoping to take in plenty of rallying on the black stuff over the coming months.

FULL HISTORIC RESULTS

GALLERY

BHRC

Rally Anglo Caledonian – November 2024

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Seb Perez celebrated his British Historic Rally Championship crown in style; braving storm Bert, with Dale Bowen alongside on this occasion, to claim historic category victory on the new for 2024 Rally Anglo Caledonian.

The brain child of Colin Heppenstall, Rally Anglo Caledonian was a new event for 2024, effectively replacing the Carlisle Stages with a 140 mile 2 day blast through the English / Scottish border forests.  A mouth watering prospect and what better way to round out the British Historic Rally Championship season!  However things started to unravel on the run up to the event as first the rally was robbed of an epic title showdown following the forced withdrawal of title hopeful Mark Higgins (injured) and then the onset of Storm Bert!

Heavy Snow, rain and high winds were forecast putting the rally in doubt but somehow, through quick thinking and a flexible approach the team behind the award winning Roger Albert Clark Rally managed to pull off a minor miracle in what were, at times, horrific conditions.  The fact that only 2 stages and part of Buck Fell were lost is quite frankly an incredible achievement!

Day 1 saw the worst of the conditions as Kielder was hit with a couple of hours of heavy snow before rain set in.  And despite the organisers decision to delay the event by a few hours and re-work the running order the stages were still treacherous by the time the historic crews came through the first loop of stages in the Kershope forest complex.

The result was a completely mixed up leaderboard with cars separated by minutes rather than the usual seconds with Matthew Stroud leading the historic runners from David Henderson, Paul Thompson and Matthew Robinson.  Meanwhile Perez and Bowen had opted for a steady start, lying 11th of the historic runners and sitting over a minute behind after stage 2.

The newly crowned BHRC champ would soon reap the rewards of a cautious start however as top 3 stage times in Ash Park 2 and Kershope 2 saw the Porsche 911 pilot climb to second in the historic category before really showing his class by setting a pair of phenomenal stage times in what turned out to be the final stages of the day.  Indeed his time of 17.48 through Gowanburn, a whole 1 minute and 31 seconds quicker than overall event winners Alan Carmichael and Jane Nicol in the Hyundai i20N may well go down in folklore!

Paul Thompson meanwhile had required a hire car for this event following accident damage incurred on the Malton Forest rally and would have been over the moon to sit 2nd in the historic category overnight following a measured drive through the snow, ice, fog and darkness of Killer Kielder; so impressive in-fact that he and Josh Davison had a margin of almost 5 minutes over 3rd placed fellow Yorkshireman David Henderson! But given the conditions just making it to the end of day 1 was a feat in itself as expected front runners Nick Elliott, Ben Friend and Stefaan Stouf found out whilst Adrian Hetherington would also hit trouble but return on Sunday under Super Rally rules.

Sunday would be a different kettle of fish entirely however as rising temperatures and torrential rain had almost cleared the snow entirely from the Southern Scottish stages and the predicted high winds were not quite as bad as expected leaving the event to run like clockwork.

After setting the timing sheets alight on Saturday evening Perez and Bowen picked up where they left off on Sunday morning, reeling off 4 top 5 stage times in a row through the classic stages of Castle O’er, Twiglees, Windyhill and Ae to sit just 18 seconds behind the overall event leaders!  Could the 911 crew really take the battle to the modern 4WD Hyundai over the remaining 4 stages?

Unfortunately a gear stick issue in Twiglees 2 would put pay to any overall victory challenge but once resolved the 2024 BHRC champ would still go on to record a dominant historic rally victory with a winning margin of over 7 minutes!  Some drive and we can only hope the mighty Porsche makes a return in 2025!

Paul Thompson and Josh Davison meanwhile followed up an excellent day 1 with another solid performance on day 2, consistently setting top 15 stage times in their borrowed Ford Escort MK2 to round out their season in style with the runners up spot on possibly the toughest UK gravel event of the year.

Recent rear wheel drive convert David Henderson, with Will Atkins alongside, was setting a strong pace throughout Sunday and may well have challenged Thompson for second had it not been for losing the clutch in Castle O’er 1 and suffering punctures in both Windyhill 1 and Castle O’er 2.  Despite this Henderson still managed to close on Thompson throughout the day and round out the podium positions just over 1 minute in arrears.

Elsewhere in the historic category classes Bryan Jardine and Declan Campbell claimed Safari spec victory in their MK1 Escort with a brilliant 8th overall and 7th in the historics whilst Andy Madge and Matt Cooper claimed an excellent Pre-85 class victory with 18th overall aboard their Toyota Corolla; this after putting in one of the starring performances of Saturday morning to sit well inside the top 10!

Other historic class victories would go the way of Douglas and Graeme Menzies in their Ford Escort MK2 (D3) with 15th overall, Alex Waterman and Chris Davies (C2) aboard their Datsun 1600 SSS with 20th overall, James and Jack Brady (F2) with 24th overall in their Porsche 911, Drexel Gillespie and Gill Cotton (C3) with 26th in their Ford Escort MK1, Ed Abbott and Tom Bishop (D4) in the crowd pleasing Jaguar X-JS V12 with 35th and William Paterson and Tom Hynd (D2) with 40th overall in their Talbot Sunbeam.

In a different approach to the Roger Albert Clark Rally, the organisers allowed 4WD machinery for Rally Anglo Caledonian and despite having the best machinery for the job Alan Carmichael and Jane Nicol put in an excellent drive aboard their Hyundai i20N to claim victory,  it can’t be easy having the likes of Seb Perez hunting you down especially as the Derbyshire man could probably drive 911’s in his sleep!

The Sunday stages also formed the final round of the Scottish Rally Championship where the pace at the front was frenetic!  4wd crews featured heavily at the top of the time sheets but it was Mark McCulloch and Michael Hendry who would run out victors in their Proton Satria Evo after a well controlled drive. 

Top seeds Josh Wink and Jack Bowen (Hyundai i20 R5) appeared to struggle through the morning stages but were ultra rapid over the final 3 and were an incredible 11 seconds quicker than anyone else in Twiglees 2 to leap from fourth to second on the final stage of the event!  Meanwhile Greg McKnight and Harry Marchbank would head the 2 wheel drive crews, coming home an excellent 5th in their Ford Escort MK2 whilst Donald Peacock and Mairi Riddick would be first historic crew home in 13th.

Everyone must have a story to tell regarding the rally and ours was no different having only managed 1 stage on Saturday following a drive to Kielder that took 5 hours longer than usual!  The main story of the weekend though has to be how the organisers managed to keep the event running.  A quite unbelievable achievement in the circumstances.  Let’s hope they are rewarded with a much larger entry in two years time.

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY 

NHRC, Uncategorized

Malton Forest Rally – November 2024

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Ford Escort crew Dan Mennell and John H Roberts continued their strong run of form in the Forests of North Yorkshire, making up for last stage disappointment on the recent Trackrod to claim a commanding Historic Category victory on the 2024 Malton Forest Rally.

The Malton Motor Club organised Malton Forest Rally has often attracted a strong and varied entry but none more so than the 2024 event. Indeed this year’s rally featured a historic entry that many a national championship would have been proud of, with not only an abundance of top Yorkshire based crews on the start list but also featuring the likes of BHRC front runners Ben Friend and Adrian Hetherington.

It would be a Yorkshireman at the head of the field early on however in the form of Dan Mennell. Malton local Mennell had already upped his game in 2024, showing glimpses of potential with a fastest stage time on the Riponian early in the year, but with the addition of experienced Welsh co-driver John H Roberts seems to have found another gear. And, seemingly motivated by the last stage disappointment on the recent Trackrod rally, the Ford Escort pilot leapt into 2 second lead after stage 1, an 8 mile blast through Langdale.

A five mile stage in Gale Rigg would follow before another 8 miler in Cropton closed out the morning loop of stages. And it was the latter stage where Mennell and Roberts would stamp their authority on the event, setting a time 5 seconds quicker than anyone else but more importantly 16 and 19 seconds quicker than Friend and Matthew Robinson respectively to hold a commanding 23 second historic category lead at the mid point service.

The battle behind however was far less clearcut with positions second to fifth covered by a mere 3 seconds! Sitting 5th at service, Ben Friend had shown his pace in the Yorkshire forests already this year having claimed victory on the recent Trackrod and appeared to have re-found this form on stage 4 as the Allglass Anglia Ford Escort man, with Osian Owen alongside on this occasion, recorded fastest time in Landgale 2 to climb three places up the leaderboard to second.

Matthew Robinson and Hannah Davison (Ford Escort) had struggled through the morning also and, whilst not able to match the pace of Friend in Langdale, had however moved up to third and sat just 2 seconds behind the Suffolk man as they headed into the Cropton finale. Could Friend come out on the right side of another last stage Yorkshire forest decider? Unfortunately for Friend and Owen the answer on this occasion was no as Robinson used all of his local knowledge to set a ridiculously quick time in Cropton 2 to take the runners up spot in style.

There would be no catching Mennell and Roberts however. With the damage being done on the first run through Cropton the Anglo Welsh duo were able to take a slightly more relaxed approach to the afternoon loop. It’s all relative though as Mennell and Roberts were still the quickest historic crew over stages 4, 5 and 6 to claim a an excellent 26 second breakthrough victory.

Northern Irish pairing Adrian Hetherington and Ronan O’Neill (Ford Escort) made a welcome return to the Yorkshire forests for the Malton Forest rally but any thoughts of a top finish were ended by a mechanical issue during the morning loop. Meanwhile after a strong morning run which saw them lying third at service, Paul Thompson and Josh Davison would disappointingly end the day in the Gale Rigg undergrowth after a large off following a compression. This instead left the way clear for the evergreen Steve Bannister, with Callum Atkinson alongside, and Jack Mathewson, co driven by Chris Williams, to complete a Ford Escort MK2 lock out of the historic category top 5.

Further back, Stuart and Linda Cariss would claim class H1 victory for the smaller engined machines after ending the day a very commendable 20th in the historic category. In fact some 28 historic crews would make it to the finish at Adderstone Field which must be some kind of record for a Northern Historic Rally Championship event?

There were no surprises at the head of the overall field as the ultra rapid Elliot Payne would claim victory for the 3rd successive year aboard his Ford Fiesta Rally2, this time with Patrick Walsh alongside. Kyle White and Anthony Nestor would however put in a strong showing to claim second in their Hyundai i20 just 29 seconds in arrears.

Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Max Crowther and Phil Bramma (Class 1) with 58th position overall in their MG3, Scott Renshaw and Terry Wilson (Class 2) with 36th aboard their Fiesta R2, Gary Beckwith and Kirsty Angell (Class 3) with 40th in their Ford Escort MK2 and Nigel Cay and Fred Roberts (Class 4) with an excellent 19th overall aboard their 3 litre Vauxhall Chevette.

This had been another great days rallying in the Yorkshire forests and whets the appetite nicely for the British Historic Rally Championship deciding Anglo Caledonian rally in just over 2 weeks time. Dan Mennell is not showing on the entry list as we speak but on this evidence, should an entry materialise, could be a real dark horse for the win.

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY

BHRC

Woodpecker Stages Rally – September 2024

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Seb Perez and Gary McElhinney tamed the Mid Wales forests for a second time in 2024 to take Woodpecker Stages National Rally victory and cement their place at the top of the British Historic Rally Championship standings

Due to the unavailability of the traditional Herefordshire forests, the 2024 Sixty and Worcestershire MC organised Woodpecker stages rally would see a healthy historic entry tackle tests in Hafren, Sweet Lamb and Ceri, headed by last year’s victors Joe Price and Chris Brooks.  And whilst the 2024 Woodpecker route was a return to similar territory used on the Severn Valley, the organisers had done a great job of ensuring only minimal parts of Hafren were re-used; in-fact even the mileage which had featured on the Severn Valley was passed in the opposite direction!

One thing that was surprisingly consistent however was the weather, with fog and mist a very unwelcome treat for an early September event which proved an additional challenge for the crews.  Not that this seemed to get in the way of Price however as the Ludlow man set a very strong pace through the opening Ceri test to sit just 1 second behind the leading 4 wheel drive historic crew of George Lepley and Dale Bowen.

Having narrowly missed out on victory in 2023, Lepley and Bowen, aboard their Mitsubishi Galant VR-4, would have been keen to get the better of last years victors, but possibly suffering from an incorrect tyre choice would drop time in the next three stages.  However, sitting only 7 seconds behind at the halfway point, the Galant crew would have been confident of making up the time over the afternoon loop (in conditions benefitting all wheel drive machinery) only for a transmission issue in stage 5 to bring a premature end to their event.

After an excellent morning loop, Price and Brooks, aboard the infamous bright Orange Ford Escort, had found themselves with a commanding 24 second lead over the chasing two-wheel drive historic pack and looked odds on for another Woodpecker historic victory.  British Historic Rally Championship leaders Seb Perez and Gary McElhinney, aboard their Global Brands backed Porsche 911, had other ideas however and set a blisteringly quick time through the second running of Ceri to trim the lead by 7 seconds as the crews headed back to the Hafren forest complex.

It was always likely the classic Rally GB / RAC fast flowing but undulating tracks of Hafren forest would decide the outcome of the event and stage 7 in Hafren South proved to be just that. Despite increasing the lead to 18 seconds after SS6, it is not in Price’s nature to take it steady and he and Brooks would unfortunately find themselves off the road, bringing to an end a fabulous defense of their Woodpecker historic title, packed full of their usual sideways flamboyance.

Courtesy of his ultra quick time in stage 5, Perez was now in prime position to take historic honours, however the Chesterfield man found himself with just 4 seconds in hand heading into stage 7 after championship rival and multiple British Champion Mark Higgins, in the David Appleby Engineering prepared TR7, lit up the timing sheets in Hafren Main.

In-fact Perez and McElhinney had found themselves in a battle royale throughout the morning loop with the Fiat 131 of Nick Elliott and the aforementioned Mark Higgins; with the trio of eclectic historic machines covered by just 2 seconds at the Sweet Lamb service halt.  But whilst Elliott drifted away from the battle throughout the afternoon, Higgins, with Carl Williamson alongside, had kept the TR7 right in the mix with his strong stage 6 time.

Once in the lead however there was no catching Perez; the category 2 Porsche pilot seemingly finding another gear to top the historic time sheets through both the final two tests to claim an impressive 8 second BHRC victory; stemming the charge of Higgins somewhat (after back to back Tarmac wins for the TR7 man), and maintaining their lead at the top of the championship standings.

Nick Elliott and Dave Price meanwhile will have been happy with 3rd after struggling for pace over the afternoon loop in the their Fiat 131 whilst class wins went the way of Ben Jemison and Dean Kellett in their Vauxhall Chevette (D4) with 12th in the National event, David Dobson and Brian Hodgson in their Ford Escort (H2) in 14th, Mike Reed and John Millington in the RS2000 (D3) with 20th, Terry Cree and Richard Shores aboard their BMW 2002 (C3) in 22nd and the Toyota Corolla of Ian Beveridge and Paul Price (C2) in 23rd.

Elsewhere Ollie Mellors and Max Freeman produced a fabulous drive in the interclub section of the event to claim a quite brilliant 47 second victory aboard their Proton Iriz R5 whilst Tom Llewellin and Sion Williams were first historic crew home aboard their Weir Rallying UK Ford Escort MK2, recording a total time that would have seen them 3rd overall in the National event!

Whilst the weather was disappointing the action was anything but and the BHRC leaves Wales with a mouth watering championship fight in prospect over the remaining three rounds of the season, especially as dropped scores start to come into effect.  Can Higgins apply his Tarmac form to the loose in Yorkshire and the English / Scottish borders or will Perez’s pace on the gravel prove too much?  And with Nick Elliott and the Ford’s of Richard Hill, Adrian Hetherington and Rudi Lancaster still in the mix, should the aforementioned duo falter, it promises to be a thrilling end to the season. 

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY

Uncategorized

East Riding Stages Rally – February 2024

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Mark Kelly and Will Atkins held off a late fightback from the Hyundai I20 R5 of James Williams and Ross Whittock to claim 2024 East Riding Stages rally victory aboard their Skoda Fabia R5.

Now in it’s third year, The East Riding Stages rally has obviously continued to capture the imagination of competitors having attracted a whopping 133 car entry, this despite not featuring in any of the major championships!  In fact the top of the entry list was flooded with R5 / Rally 2 machinery as many leading crews elected to use the event as a shakedown for their 2024 plans with 10 challenging stages, mainly to the East of Beverley, totaling almost 55 miles the order of the day.   

Having no fewer than 7 overall rally victories to his name in 2023 (according to ewrc), Mark Kelly would have started as one of the pre event favourites and the Garstang Motor Club man wasted no time living up to this hype as he and co-driver Will Atkins set fastest time on all 3 opening tests.  And, despite seeing their lead marginally pegged back in stage 4, would hold a 6 second lead by the time the crews reached the mid event service.

The top 5 crews were however all still in contention with the Hyundai of James Williams, Ford of Callum Black, Citroen of James Ford and VW of Kevin Davies all within 15 seconds of the lead.  Thus leaving everything to play for over the afternoon loop, which consisted of a second run over the morning’s 4 stages but preceded by two short blasts through the Westwood spectator stage. 

New for 2024, the Westwood stage was an attempt to bring the competitive element of the event closer to Beverley town centre but I am guessing no-one would have expected it to be so pivotal to the event outcome! Ridiculously however early leaders Kelly and Atkins managed to traverse the 2 runs of the 1.63 mile stage 6.2 seconds quicker than anyone else, more the doubling their lead to 12.6 seconds in the process. 

And that time gain did indeed prove vital as 2nd placed crew James Williams and Ross Whittock lit up the timing sheets over the final four stages of the day to close the gap to 5 seconds by the time the cars arrived back in Beverley!  A story of what might have been for the Hyundai crew, but another win for Mark Kelly who continued his strong recent form.

2023 Protyre Asphalt Rally Champions, Callum Black and Jack Morton were another crew to lose ground on the two short spectator stages but dug in over the afternoon loop to claim a hard fought third, whilst Kevin and Owain Davies finished fourth in their VW Polo and Neil Roskell and Dai Roberts rounded out the top 5 (Ford Fiesta). 

Historic events is where I am mostly found and therefore it was extra pleasing to see two wheel drive honours go the way of Gareth James and Steffan Evans aboard their Historic specification MK2 Escort. A sublime drive by the Welsh duo saw them end the day in 14th overall, not only finishing ahead of more powerful and more recent 2 wheel drive machinery but also many a R5 / Rally 2 machine.

MK2 Escorts would in fact complete the historic podium with Martin Rossiter and Dan Petrie ending the day 20th and Phil Rogers and Jordan Jones ten places further back, both improving on their start positions by a massive 58 and 47 places respectively!!

Elsewhere class victories would go the way of Gordon Montana Morrison / Ian Parker with 15th overall in their Ford Escort (Class D), Jake Briggs / Harry Walshaw in another of the Blue Oval favourites with 17th (Class C), Ben and Andrew Wilkinson in their Peugeot 106 Maxi with 32nd overall (Class B) and Mark and Andrew Constantine (Class A) with 36th in their Vauxhall Corsa.

All in, it had been a brilliant day in the stunning East Riding countryside. Having never been to this area of the country before there is now a good chance I’ll be back to the area with the family, if not for future East Riding Stages; a tick in the box for bringing tourism to Beverley then!

Closed road rallying is pretty special and whilst we seem to be losing usable forests annually it is great to see a few of these events now popping up. Ease of access on this event and fabulous late winter weather definitely aided the spectacle and watching the top drivers take the Eastfield Farm ‘crest’ on the rev limiter in top was something to behold, definitely whetting the appetite for more in 2024. Fingers crossed for the South Yorkshire Stages!

FULL RESULTS

GALLERY