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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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Stone wins as Tinn’s hopes go up in smoke

April 10, 2014 paulcommons1983 1 Comment

John Stone & Carl Williamson would leave Cadwell Park as victors of the 2014 TJS Self Drive Alan Healy Memorial Rally following a day long battle with David & Alice Tinn in the Millington powered Proton.

A stunning entry list convinced me that a return trip to Cadwell, following my first visit last year, was a necessity even after a couple of big names had withdrawn on the run up to the event.

Situated in the predominantly flat county of Lincolnshire, Cadwell Park, nicknamed the “Mini Nurburgring”, defies belief with it’s many changes in gradient, creating excellent views of the circuit wherever you should choose to stand. Having been granted trackside access this year I decided to head to the Gooseneck / Charlies end of the circuit for the first 5 stages to make the most of vantage points not able to be reached in 2013.

Any thoughts of a fully dry day were soon washed away as the heavens opened just 20 minutes before the first stage. Being a little ring-rusty, this being my first event in over a month; rain was not really what I had in mind. It did however provide an opportunity for the spray to be captured on camera.

The downpour would not last though, meaning half the field would encounter a drier stage than the front runners. And so It would be Tristan Pye and Stewart Merry who were quickest out of the blocks in the challenging conditions to take stage 1 victory; a great effort given the big hitting machinery seeded higher up the order.

A damp but rapidly drying circuit faced the competitors for stage 2. David Turnbull, winner in 2013 was unexpectedly caught out; losing control of his Impreza WRC on the run down to Coppice and spectacularly rolling following a backwards collision with the armco barriers. Thankfully both he and and co-driver, Howard Pridmore, were able to walk away.

This was not the only incident on stage 2 as a collision with the pit wall for the Renault Clio crew of Shaun McGonigal & Richard Winstanley would cause the stage to be stopped completely with the remaining competitors given a notional time. It was pleasing to see that again both driver and co-driver were able to leave the scene unassisted.

By the end of the second stage 2 crews were starting to stand out at the head of the field, with John Stone and Carl Williamson holding a 12 second lead over the father and daughter Proton pairing of David and Alice Tinn.

Those expecting the WRC machine to pull away were in for a shock though as the grunt of the Millington powered Proton was more than a match for Stone’s Fabia. And having dropped time on Stage 3 Stone and Williamson would find themselves 7 seconds adrift of the Tinn’s at the halfway mark with the Subarus of Karl Simmonds, Johnnie Ellis and Tristan Pye rounding out the top five.

Martin Hodgson and Tony Jones were leading Class C in 8th, closely followed by Royston and Bridge Carey’s Clio in 10th. One place further back in 11th sat class D leaders Andrew Bayliss and Chris Sharpe-Simkiss in their M3 Compact, who were making a mockery of their lowly seeding.

Accidents and inclement weather aside it had been a cracking morning’s entertainment leaving a very close battle at the front to be settled. With this in mind I headed to the opposite end of the circuit for the more conventional clockwise running of the afternoon stages.

And with two afternoon stages down the dual was really heating up; Stone taking stage 6 by 1 second and Tinn taking 7 by the same margin leaving the two cars still separated by just 7 seconds. Could The Proton really keep the Legend Fires Fabia at bay? Stage 8, the final of the short stages, suggested it possible as they both posted a time of 3 minutes 20 for the 3.5 mile test.

By now the crowd in front of the clubhouse had doubled in size with spectators eager to see who would come out on top. One mistake over the final two 6 mile stages of the event could cost either contender the victory.

And so into stage 9 they headed with both crews flat out over the first lap of the circuit …..

…. but then tragically, on the second climb up the mountain, the engine in the high revving Proton let go, causing plooms of white smoke to emit from the bright yellow machine. This was a huge anti-climax and a terrible end to a fantastic push for victory; the Knowledgeable crowd showing their appreciation with a round of applause for David & Alice’s efforts as they climbed out of the stricken car.

This left John Stone and Carl Williamson to cruise to victory by 1 minute and 14 seconds from the Subaru’s of Tristan Pye and Stewart Merry and Johnnie Ellis and Dave Green. Alan Oldfield and Steve McNulty would bring the second Millington powered Proton home in 4th with Craig Pennington and Wayne Priest taking fifth.

Away from the lead battle the star performers of the day were Andrew Bayliss and Chris Sharpe-Simkiss who finished a sensational 6th overall and with it took the Class D victory by over half a minute in a not far from standard M3 compact. Remarkably they set the second fastest time overall on stage 9! Who knows what they could have achieved with a higher seeding.

Class C had turned into a front wheel versus rear wheel drive battle royale. Royston and Bridge Carey tried everything to claw back the deficit they suffered to Martin Hodgson & Tony Jones’ MK2 at the half way stage, but ultimately ended up just 4 seconds in arrears with 8th overall.

Class B would go the way of Andrew and Dennis Turner with 27th overall in their Citroen C2R2, with Class A being claimed by Ian Barnard and Andy Bull in their very rapid Vauxhall Nova.

For the second year in succession I left the circuit with a smile on my face; a sign of a great days entertainment in my books. There had been some fantastic looking machinery on display and some even better sounding; the Proton’s, BMW’s and the glorious 306 Maxi being my personal favourites.

There is just something about tarmac single venue rallying. Maybe it is the all day action …. maybe it is the greater difficulty in capturing the action that makes obtaining a good image even more rewarding …. One thing that is for sure is that I will be back at Cadwell Park next April. If the entry list is half of as good as this year it will be more than worth it.

Results:

1. John Stone / Carl Williamson 44.00
2. Tristan Pye / Stewart Merry +01.14
3. Johnnie Ellis / Dave Green +01.20
4. Alan Oldfield / Steve McNulty +01.40
5. Andrew Pennington / Wayne Priest +01.52
6. Andrew Bayliss / Chris Sharpe-Simkiss +01.58
7. Martin Hodgson / Tony Jones +01.59
8. Royston Carey / Bridge Carey +02.03
9. Simon Chapman / Michael Calvert +02.06
10. Pete Gibson / Josh Davison +02.16

Full Results

For Standard Prints see my Photobox Gallery

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For JPEGS, professional prints or any other enquiries please drop me an email – paul.commons@yahoo.co.uk

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

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Elliott charges to Mid Wales Stages Victory

March 5, 2014 paulcommons1983 1 Comment

Nick Elliott and Dave Price made up for the last stage error on the Red Kite by taking maximum BHRC and RAC points on the Mid Wales Stages. Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis came a close second while in turn claiming the 55 mile event honours. Meanwhile 2013 Welsh Champions Alex Allingham and Chris Williams came out on top in the slightly shorter modern event.

If the route through Tarenig forest into the Pikes Peak stage was anything to go by this was going to be a very tricky event for the competitors. Prior thoughts of combining Motorsport images with the fantastic mid Wales scenery looked to be difficult; confirmed by the high winds and sideways rain which aggressively met the hardy spectator who ventured onto the barren mountain range dividing Myherin forest and the Pikes Peak hairpins.

Having settled on a sweeping 90 left for stage 1 of the combined historic/55 mile event, it was obvious that this was going to be tough photography wise. Not being someone who is happy to get equipment wet, I was left with no option but to bolt the 70-200 on, attach the monopod, and see what could be achieved whilst holding an umbrella.

The photography may not have been great but the commitment of the historic guys through this section was superb. Richard Hill and Jason Pritchard were as entertaining as ever. Pritchard would unfortunately retire, however RAC round 1 winner Richard Hill, with Steffan Evans on the notes, would go on to take fifth overall to keep him firmly at the top of the points table. It may have been an even better result had it not been for a 1 minute time loss in Stage 2.

A phenomenal drive through Pikes Peak and Myherin saw Nick Elliott and Dave Price take a commanding 36 second Historic lead into the first Sweet Lamb service. The hard work had already been done in the battle for top RAC honours too as they also held a 17 second lead over Matthew Robinson and Sam Collis. Meirion Evans and Iwan Jones were putting in a strong performance to hold second in the Historic event with David Stokes and Guy Weaver rounding out the podium positions. Behind Robinson in the 55 miler sat Terry Brown and Den Golding who in turn were closely followed by the first non Ford crew of Owen Murphy and James O’Brien.

2013 Welsh Champions Alex Allingham and Chris Williams were quick out of the blocks in the modern event. They gained most of their 28 second winning margin on stage 1 alone and would go on to set fastest time on all four stages. Their commitment through this tightening 90 right of stage 1 was second to none.

Daniel Humphreys & Ian Pryce claimed the runner up spot with a great run over the final 3 stages; giving up less than 5 seconds to the eventual winners over the Myherin, Hafren and Sweet Lamb tests. Paul Davy and Roger Allan would follow them home with third overall.

The afternoon schedule saw the crews tackle Hafren and Sweet Lamb before a short service and another run through Pikes Peak. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity of witnessing the downhill running of the final stage and subsequently headed to the last but one hairpin of this infamous stage. On arrival it looked as if the weather was going to play ball. Luck however was not on our side; as before I even had chance to swap to the wide angle lens the heavens opened. This time it was definitely more than a passing shower. Combined with the frequent gusts of wind, the ‘Epynt style’ sideways rain made capturing any sort of movement ‘troublesome’ at best.

Fortunately the odd one or two images came out but this was more than a slight anti-climax after what had turned out to be a very good morning. “If only this event still had it’s summer slot?” was one of the topics of conversation on the long walk back to the car …

Upon reading the results on the way home it was no surprise to find out Elliott and Price had claimed the BHRC victory. The Historic event podium positions also remained unchanged throughout the afternoon’s 3 stages leaving Evans and Jones to take a well deserved second and Stokes and Weaver to take the C5 victory with third overall. Confusingly however Robinson and Collis would be the second BHRC registered crew home with their victory in the Open event. Category 1 honours went the way of Graham Waite and Gill Cotton in the mighty Volvo Amazon. It is always a pleasure to witness this machine being man-handled around the stages.

Following Robinson home in the RAC event were Owen Murphy and James O’Brien in the crowd pleasing Sunbeam and round 1 winner Richard Hill in his bright yellow Ford. Ray Cunningham and Gary McElhinney followed up a great run on the Red Kite with another stunning performance to take category 1 honours and a fantastic 22nd overall.

Although leading to slightly confusing results, the BHRC and RAC organisers must be highly praised for allowing competitors to score points in both championships. It did worry me that the split of historic competitors across two series at the start of 2013 would not necessarily be in the best interests of the sport. However collaboration like this can only aid what is by far the closest and most exciting category of rallying currently available on British shores.

The two championships now head in different directions with Rally North Wales being the next event for the BHRC runners and the Tour of Hamsterley next up for the RAC contenders. It is looking more and more like being another great year for historic rallying. Lets hope the entries grow even bigger over the forthcoming events.

For full results see Rally Roots

Prints can be purchased here.

For any other requirements please get in touch via the contact form

All images © Paul Commons (Paul Commons Motorsport Photography)

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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.

Prints can be purchased here.

For any other requirements please get in touch via the contact form

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Hill wins as Red Kite sets the standard

February 4, 2014 paulcommons1983 Leave a comment

Richard Hill and Pat Cooper took a last gasp victory on the very well organised Red Kite Historic Stages after long-time leaders Nick Elliot and Dave Price left the road on the Crychan finale.

An extra early start was in order to ensure I was signed on in time and heading over to Caeo forest for stages 1 and 4 of the scheduled 5. The 4am alarm was a killer but well worth it given the cracking entry list and the chance to access new territory.

Junctions 4 and 5 were my chosen destinations for stage 1. The long walk along the super smooth track in the glorious morning sunshine was convincing enough that I was not ENTIRELY mental for spending my spare time in this manner.

The Cat 1 historic entry for the Red Kite was particularly impressive, if anything only missing one or two more Porsches to further bolster the list.

This was more than made up for by the 2 very rapid red Irish Mini’s of Ray and Frank Cunningham. Ray, paired with Gary McElhinney would eventually take a phenomenal 19th overall and with it the unofficial Cat 1 victory.

At the front of the field Elliot and Price showed their class by taking 6 seconds out of Hill and Cooper on stage 1, who in turn were no slouch as they were a whole 23 seconds quicker than the trio of Brown, Murphy and Davies through the 8 miles of Caeo.

IMG_2106_PROA_LR

It was great to see the sunbeam of Owen Murphy and James O’Brien take the fight to the mighty blue oval machines; lying 4th overall until sadly retiring on the very last stage. Meirion Evans & Iwan Jones were also massively committed through junctions 4 & 5 of this stage; maybe too committed as they lost nearly 2 minutes to their rivals following a trip into a ditch. This was a shame as they were quicker than ninth place suggested, and even set fastest time on Crychan Main.

Following a twenty minute service the crews headed east for 2 stages in Crychan forest. Hill was able to match Elliot’s pace through Crychan West, but the number 1 seed proved just too quick in the shorter East stage. Elliot would take a healthy lead of 21 seconds back to Llandovery with Brown, Murphy and Davies over 30 seconds further back. The battle of the MK1’s (C5) was mighty close and being lead by Roger Matthews & Paul Morris with Chris Browne and Simon Tysoe both within 10 seconds of the top spot.

The compact nature of this event meant there wasn’t a great deal of time to scout out locations for the afternoon run of the Caeo stage. Fortunately however I came across what can only be described as a small lake covering 3/4’s of a very fast part of the track. With the rain starting to fall more heavily I decided this would be the best option for Stage 4 and would hopefully make for photos which were typical of the recent weather seen in the UK.

I assumed that the aforementioned water feature would be cautioned but you would not have thought so as many a brave crew hardly lifted. Adrian Hetherington in the Red Kite Modern rally was probably the most impressive; the impact of the water throwing his MK2 sideways and leaving me to consider running for cover!

The second running of Caeo would again see Elliot top the times and would leave him with a seemingly comfortable 28 second cushion going into the mammoth 14.5 mile final stage. It was however not to be as Richard Hill and Pat Cooper emerged from the stage with victory. Second went to the vastly experienced crew of Terry Brown and Den Golding in their infamous red MK2 with the podium being completed by Tomas & Eurig Davies. A good result following their rather large off in Craik on last year’s RAC.

Simon Tysoe and Cliffy Simmons came out on top in the ultra competitive C5 class with 10th overall; the top 3 being covered by a mere 2 seconds! Gareth Lewis & Dan Holley took D3 honours with 13th overall in their MK2. Peter Smith & Patrick Walsh claimed C3 in the immaculate Opel Ascona, a more than welcome addition to the championship and a well deserved 15th overall.

Together with 30th overall Paul & Daniel May won class C2 in their MK1 Mexico. James Stait and Mike Harris claimed class D4 in their Sunbeam with 33rd overall following the retirement of Owen Murphy’s similar machine. With 38th overall, Dave Hopkins and Tony Vart took the D2 victory.

Behind Ray Cunningham in the Cat 1 historics, Simon Wallis & Graham Wride took an equally impressive 20th overall and with it top spot in class B4. Bob and Dale Gibbons took class B3 victory in their MK2 Cortina and last but not least Stephen Higgins and Dom Bramfoot claimed class B1 in the unmistakable Saab 96.

By 5.30pm I was back home and dry, even with a short delay during the second run. Hats off to organisers for putting on a top event, If only more were this compact. Overall it was a great way to start the new championship year. I am already looking forward to round 2, the Mid Wales Stages, in early March. Let’s hope it is a little warmer than last year ….

For full results see: AMC Rally Results

Prints can be purchased from my Photobox site. For any other requirements please get in touch via the contact form.

Motorsport Reporting & Photography