Report: Pirelli Historic Rally
Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship
Rupert Lomax/David AlcockPress release: Monday, 30 April 2012
It was business as usual in a damp Kielder Forest on round three of the Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship, the Pirelli Historic Rally on Saturday (28 April).
Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2), Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) and Rikki Proffitt/Phil Harrison (Porsche 911) all repeated their successes from the Bulldog Rally as Elliott and Reynolds remained level at the head of the title race.
All three crews took control from the start and built on their leads during the day. Unlike the previous two years dust was not an issue, but grip was certainly at a premium. "The first half was tricky but the second much more driveable," said Elliott. The annual opportunity to take on the infamous Kielder stages, proved a definite hit with all the BHRC crews.
Category One
Eight Category One crews set out from a cool and damp Kielder Castle to face 21 miles of stages before returning to Carlisle for the main service. All eight crews made it safely through the opener in Bewshaugh, put some found it easier than others. Proffitt took an immediate 11s lead over the Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride Porsche, with another 18s back to Terry Brown and John Stanger-Leathes in their similar 911. "It was definitely fun being first on the road," Proffitt admitted. "We managed to spin at the very first chicane," Brown added.
Proffitt's advantage grew to over 30s through The Forks and The Shanks and although struggling for grip, Nutt still managed to consolidate second place over Brown. "Very tough, slippy on the re-graded bits and through the surface changes," said Proffitt. "We were near the edge everywhere and sideways more than we should have been," he added.
Although Brown had further problems in stage two when his wipers gave up just as the rain started to fall, he still had four seconds in hand over Derek Boyd/Stephen McAuley (Porsche 911), which arrived in service with a broken starter motor.
Geoff Taylor/Steve Greenhill (Sunbeam Imp Sport) had a slipping clutch and two spins on the opener. "That first stage was one of the hardest I have ever driven," said Taylor.
Edmund Peel/Janet Craine (Porsche 911) had to have a three-point turn at one of the chicanes and Nigel and Henry Webster (Singer Chamois) found it very challenging. But the only crew not to make it back to service were Pete Stimson/Mark Butler, after the throttle of their Anglia stuck open on the second stage.
The weather improved during the second half of the event and Proffitt made the most of it. His lead just grew and grew to a final winning margin of 57s. "Proper stages, fast flowing and trouble free," said Proffitt.
Nutt retained a comfortable second, with third-placed Brown just pleased to make it to the finish. "We had something on every stage, including a puncture, and then put it in a ditch after the last stage," said Brown.
Boyd continued without further problems to take fourth and Taylor was set for fifth until the last stage. Ten corners from the end we lost two minutes perched on the edge of a ditch," he said. He still won class B1 after Webster found a ditch in Shepherdshield, but fell behind Peel's Porsche in the overall standings.
BHRC Category One results:
1 Rikki Proffitt/Phil Harrison (Porsche 911) 52m43.5s
2 Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride (Porsche 911) 53m40.7s
3 Terry Brown/John Stanger-Leathes (Porsche 911) 54m30.6s
4 Derek Boyd/Stephen McAuley (Porsche 911) 54m51.1s
5 Edmund Peel/Janet Craine (Porsche 911) 57m00.3s
6 Geoff Taylor/Steve Greenhill (Sunbeam Imp Sport) 58m23.7s
Category Two
The form pattern in Category Two looked familiar when Reynolds set the pace as expected during the opening stages. He headed David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) by around three seconds on each of the opening two stages, but increased his lead to a massive 28 seconds as he headed for service. "Nice and steady, but it is difficult," Reynolds admitted.
Although Stokes couldn't match Reynolds, he was nearly 30s clear of third-placed Rupert Lomax/David Alcock. "We had a good start, but at our own pace, and slotted nicely in between Julian and Rupert," said Stokes. "We had hard tyres on, better wear but no grip," Lomax added.
It was considerably closer for fourth, however, where Ernie and Will Graham and Andrew Siddall/Carl Williamson began an early duel. Siddall just had the edge as they returned to service, "We had clutch problems though," he said. "We are really enjoying it," Graham added.
Although wary of a threat from Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay, Dick Slaughter/Tim Sayer settled in sixth and headed Class C3 in their Escort Mk1. "I found it difficult and couldn't get in the groove," said Slaughter. "I'm just trying to keep it tidy," added Holmes.
Reynolds upped his pace still further during the second leg to take his winning margin out to 1m48s. "We broke the steering at the end of Pundershaw and on the last stage it changed direction on its own," said Reynolds.
But it was Lomax who came home second after Stokes suffered an engine failure in Pundershaw on the penultimate stage of the day. Having inherited second, Lomax had problems too. "The brake bias bar slid over and we went into a few corners backwards," said Lomax.
Siddall and Graham continued to trade third place until it went back in Siddall's favour on the final stage. "We had a couple of overshoots on the last one," Graham admitted. "My car cut out mid stage with an alternator problem." Siddall added.
Slaughter kept Holmes at bay for class C3 and fifth in category. "Three good stages and so I got stuck in," said Slaughter. "I was on it but not quite enough," Holmes replied.
With Tim Mason/Graham Wild retiring their Porsche before the first stage with intercom dramas, the 911 of Peter McDowell/Derrick Davies was the sole survivor in Class C4.
BHRC Category Two results:
1 Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) 47m33.5s
2 Rupert Lomax/David Alcock (Ford Escort Mk1) 49m22.1s
3 Andrew Siddall/Carl Williamson (Ford Escort Mk1) 49m34.7s
4 Ernie Graham/Will Graham (Ford Escort Mk1) 49m46.4s
5 Dick Slaughter/Tim Sayer (Ford Escort Mk1) 50m15.2s
6 Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay (Ford Escort Mk1) 50m36.7s
Category Three
Elliott admitted that his risk taking was mainly confined to the opening stage, which resulted in a 12s lead over Tomas and Eurig Davies. "It was tricky and we attacked everywhere. We had a few moments and went up a bank but got away with it," said Elliott.
Davies admitted to just staying out of a ditch too when his Escort stepped out of line. But it was Matthew Robinson and Nigel Hutchinson who came through to head the chase from stage two and were just over 14s off the lead after a mighty performance through the first leg. "Much better than expected," reported the Yorkshireman.
Davies arrived at service in third place, with Tim Freeman/Paul Barden fourth, after they battled ahead of Kevin Davies/Dale Furniss on stage three. "We came out of a bend too fast on that stage and rode through a ditch," said Freeman. "Our braking was unpredictable and we had two spins, including backwards into some pallets," said Davies.
After three more flowing stages in the main Kielder complex, Elliott completed back-to-back wins on the event. "The later stages were far more driveable after a treacherous morning. We did have two scary moments on the last stage and a half spin though," said Elliott.
Robinson's hopes were dashed on the penultimate stage after a tremendous run. "We bent a strut in Pundershaw, and I didn't hit anything this time," he said. Tomas Davies therefore reclaimed second, "it was a great battle with Kevin," he said, as his namesake finished only a second behind. "We woke up in the second half, but the aim was to finish," said Kevin D on his first visit Kielder outing for six years.
Freeman dropped off the leader board too. "We went into a ditch on Pundershaw, got stuck and there was no one to help. We jacked it up and got out but it took 36 minutes," he explained.
Warren Philliskirk/Matt Whattam moved into fourth on the drivers' first Kielder visit for nearly 20 years. Chris Shooter/Bev LeGood surviving unopposed in class D3, while D4 had two starters but no finishers. James Stait/Marcus Cartwright put the Talbot Sunbeam Lotus in a ditch in Shepherdshield and Steve Magson/Geoff Atkinson cured the Vauxhall Chevette's lack of revs only to melt two spark plugs.
BHRC Category Three results:
1 Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2) 46m34.8s
2 Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies (Ford Escort Mk2) 47m48.0s
3 Kevin Davies/Dale Furniss (Ford Escort Mk2) 47m49.1s
4 Warren Philliskirk/Matt Whattam (Ford Escort Mk2) 48m18.2s
5 Richard Lane/Frank Richer (Ford Escort Mk2) 49m12.3s
6 Phil Squires/Mick Squires (Ford Escort Mk2) 49m49.5s
Added: 30th April 2012 [permalink]
Report: Bulldog Historic Rally
Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship
Rikki ProffittPress release: Monday, 26 March 2012
Repeat victories for Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2), Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) marked round two of the 2012 Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship on the Bulldog Historic Rally on Saturday (24 March).
While the Mid Wales winners continued to head their respective categories, it was all change in Category One as Rikki Proffitt and Phill Harrison took advantage of late dramas for Graham Waite and Gill Cotton to take victory.
On a day of implausibly warm weather, dust was an issue and changing levels of grip caught some crews out. But the chance to compete over classic Welsh gravel stages made the Bulldog another popular event with the BHRC contenders.
Category One
It was another excellent event for the 14-strong Category One field, although not so good if you were running a Lotus Cortina. Mid Wales winners Paul Mankin and Desmond Bell were out with front end damage and the Simon Wallis/Graham Wride car broke a halfshaft on the startline of the Penllyn stage.
From the very start it was Waite setting the pace in the flying Volvo and he arrived at main service in Dolgellau with 20s in hand over Proffitt. Meanwhile, going better on gravel than for some time, Dessie Nutt and Geraldine McBride were in a strong third place.
Waite continued to build his lead through the two stages in the Aberhirnant complex near Bala but disaster struck on the final stage in Dyfnant. First they had to stop to re-attach a plug lead but worse was to come when a broken gear lever led to a trip up a bank and a gentle roll. They got going again, but lost over two minutes in the stage and dropped to third behind the Porsche 911s of Proffitt and Nutt.
Proffitt was delighted with a trouble free day and a strong result, while Nutt was only 18s behind after a good day on gravel. Behind Waite, Terry Brown/John Stanger-Leathes battled home fourth with a Porsche 911 that would not rev.
Geoff Taylor and Steve Greenhill had a strong run to sixth and Class B1 victory in their Sunbeam Imp Sport and Callum Barney/Ron Channon took B3 in their Ford Cortina GT after clutch failure sidelined the Ford Anglia of Peter Stimson/Mark Butler.
BHRC CATEGORY ONE RESULTS:
1 Rikki Proffitt/Phill Harrison (Porsche 911) 58m38.3s
2 Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride (Porsche 911) 58m56.3s
3 Graham Waite/Gill Cotton (Volvo Amazon) 60m21.4s
4 Terry Brown/John Stanger-Leathes (Porsche 911) 61m12.9s
5 Derek Boyd/Peter Scott (Porsche 911) 61m25.5s
6 Geoff Taylor/Steve Greenhill (Sunbeam Imp Sport) 61m55.2s
Category Two
Reynolds took control of Category Two from the opening stage of Big Ray and was never really troubled as he swept to victory by 1m49s. His main concern was avoiding punctures in the bid for maximum points and a nicely measured drive was the result.
In Reynolds' wake, David Stokes and Guy Weaver were always a strong second and had a clear run through stages that Stokes always enjoys. But Stokes could never relax too much as the battling cars of Ernie/Will Graham and Rupert Lomax/Baz Green chased hard and only around half a minute down going into the final stage. Any plans that Lomax had for an attack were dashed when a pin came out of the clutch pedal and he ran the 8.6-mile stage with no clutch, dropping around 16s as a result.
Instead, the Graham father and son team took an excellent third by just three-tenths of a second as Andrew Siddall and Carl Williamson completed the top five.
Dick Slaughter and Tim Sayer again topped Class C3 with an excellent run to keep Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay at bay by around 50s. Class C2 was won by Matt Fowle/Jane Edgington who set the pace as rivals Nick Danks/Martin Corbett and David Kirby/Rob Cook retired.
BHRC CATEGORY TWO RESULTS:
1 Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) 52m18.6s
2 David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) 54m08.4s
3 Ernie Graham/Will Graham (Ford Escort Mk1) 55m01.5s
4 Rupert Lomax/Baz Green (Ford Escort Mk1) 55m01.8s
5 Andrew Siddall/Carl Williamson (Ford Escort Mk1) 56m02.7s
6 Dick Slaughter/Tim Sayer (Ford Escort Mk1) 56m16.7s
Category Three
Elliott went into the rally looking for a fourth straight Bulldog Historic victory and duly delivered with another classy drive over stages that likes and knows well. He went eight seconds clear in the opening five miles in Big Ray and has extended that margin to 43s by the time the finishers returned to Welshpool.
Behind Elliott there were battles and dramas and a fierce contest raged for second between Will Onions/Dave Williams and Kevin Davies/Dale Furniss. Onions drove a strong rally to get the nod by just two seconds but then elected to miss post-event scrutineering and was later excluded.
Instead, second went to Davies after an excellent performance that fully marked him out as a rising new star in the BHRC.
Despite going off on the opening stage to avoid the rolled car of Alan Walker/Andrew Sankey, Tim Pearcey and Neil Shanks recovered to take third as Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies and Warren Philliskirk/Matt Whattam rounded out the top five registered crews.
Shawn Rayner and Declan Dear were dealt a massive blow in Class D3 with a substantial engine failure on the opening stage and it was Rex Ireland and Adrian Scadding who took maximum D3 points by half a minute over Chris Shooter/Bev LeGood. Meanwhile, James Stait and Marcus Cartwright returned to competition in Stait's Lotus Sunbeam and claimed Class D4.
BHRC CATEGORY THREE RESULTS:
1 Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2) 52m02.0s
2 Kevin Davies/Dale Furniss (Ford Escort Mk2) 52m45.7s
3 Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks (Ford Escort Mk2) 53m17.7s
4 Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies (Ford Escort Mk2) 53m42.8s
5 Warren Philliskirk/Matt Whattam (Ford Escort Mk2) 53m57.8s
6 Matthew Robinson/Nigel Hutchinson (Ford Escort Mk2) 54m35.2s
Added: 26th March 2012 [permalink]
Report: Mid Wales Historic Stages
Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship
Nick Elliott and Dave PricePress release: Monday, 5 March 2012
The 2012 Kololi Beach Club MSA British Historic Rally Championship started in fine style on the Rally Marketing Mid Wales Historic Stages on Sunday (4 March).
The big winners were Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2), Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) and Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell (Lotus Cortina), but just about every crew finished the rally raving about the classic stages of Myherin and Hafren as fine competition raged through the categories and classes.
Category One
An encouraging entry, great competition and a new winner made it a fine start to 2012 for category one and victory for Mankin and Bell after a truly torrid season last year was a popular result.
Straight out of the blocks and up Pike's Peak went Rikki Proffitt and Phill Harrison in their Porsche 911, but then Graham Waite and Gill Cotton went quickest on the second stage in the Volvo Amazon. Sadly, the flying Volvo broke in Myherin and their rally was over, while Terry Brown and Michael Gilbey (Porsche 911) lost a lot of time changing a puncture.
Meanwhile, Mankin and Bell had been buzzing along in their Lotus Cortina and were ideally placed when Proffitt's rally went wrong in Hafren South. A front brake calliper failed and he did three miles with a locked front wheel before completing the final stage with only front brakes on one side. Mankin swept ahead, but was under pressure from Simon Wallis and Graham Wride, once they had fixed a carburettor problem with their Lotus Cortina.
By the end of the concluding Hafren North stage, Mankin was 27s clear of Wallis to score his first category one victory. Proffitt struggled home third to salvage good points and arrived at the finish with a brake calliper in his hand.
Class B3 was taken by the Ford Anglia of Peter Stimson and Mark Butler after a good event, while Dessie Nutt and Geraldine McBride (Porsche 911) were next up, admitting that they still have work to do on gravel.
CATEGORY ONE RESULTS:
1 Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell (Lotus Cortina) 57m42s
2 Simon Wallis/Graham Wride (Lotus Cortina) 58m09s
3 Rikki Proffitt/Phill Harrison (Porsche 911) 58m37s
4 Pete Stimson/Mark Butler (Ford Anglia) 58m47s
5 Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride (Porsche 911) 60m26s
6 Derek Boyd/Stephen McAuley (Porsche 911) 60m29s
Category Two
The week leading up to the rally had been pretty stressful for Reynolds with a rush to get his Escort Mk1 ready. But the hard work paid off as Julian and Patrick Walsh won category two in style despite only driving the car in anger for the first time as they headed into the opening stage. Their biggest concerns were a high-speed spin in Sweet Lamb and a puncture in Hafren North that cost some time, but they still arrived back in Newtown with 49s in hand over David Stokes and Guy Weaver. It had been just the start to his title bid that Reynolds had wanted and all the work by the Melvyn Evans team had been repaid.
Stokes accepted that he needed to be quicker after a clear run, and was under attack early on from Rupert Lomax and Dave Alcock. However, they beached the Escort Mk1 in Hafren and, though the car was undamaged, their rally was over.
Into third in category two came Ernie and Will Graham as teenage Will did a good job on his first gravel event on notes, while Dick Slaughter and Tim Sayer blitzed class C3 with fourth overall after a late rush to get the car ready. Andrew Siddall and Carl Williamson were learning about BDA power and were fifth of the BHRC crews, while Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay and Neal James/Kevin Jones ran strongly despite problems to take the next places in class C3.
Class C4 spoils went to the Porsche 911 of Peter McDowell and Derek Davies, while Matt Fowle and Jane Edgington took C2 from the similar Escort Mk1 of Nick Danks and Martin Corbett.
CATEGORY TWO RESULTS:
1 Julian Reynolds/Patrick Walsh (Ford Escort Mk1) 52m53s
2 David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) 53m42s
3 Ernie Graham/Will Graham (Ford Escort Mk1) 55m25s
4 Dick Slaughter/Tim Sayer (Ford Escort Mk1) 55m34s
5 Andrew Siddall/Carl Williamson (Ford Escort Mk1) 56m37s
6 Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay (Ford Escort Mk1) 56m50s
Category Three
Elliott was wide awake when the rally started and flew the opening Pike's Peak stage to go fastest. However, this was no easy cruise to victory as a puncture on the long Pike's Peak stage and resulting spin cost them time. At the main service halt, Elliott was only seven seconds up on Will Onions and Dave Williams, but was able to really attack the two Hafren stages and extend his winning margin.
Fastest of all on the second stage was a mighty achievement for Alan Walker and Andrew Sankey. Unfortunately a spark plug failed and put them out of the rally, but they had shown their pace.
For Onions, second overall was a good result first time out in his fresh car, although he had a scare with a high-speed spin in Sweet Lamb. They dropped around 20s to Tim Pearcey and Neil Shanks with that moment and the margin between the two Escorts was just three seconds at the finish after Pearcey attacked.
Tomas Davies and Eurig Davies moved up to fourth from Tim Freeman and Paul Barden as welcome championship newcomers Warren Philliskirk and Matt Whattam wrapped up the top six.
Maximum points in class D3 went to Richard Lane and Ben Friend, with Richard back in his Pinto-powered car after a nine-month absence. However, Shawn Rayner and Declan Dear had the pace to win the class, but lost out big time with a puncture in Myherin that cost them over a minute.
CATEGORY THREE RESULTS:
1 Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Ford Escort Mk2) 51m06s
2 Will Onions/Dave Williams (Ford Escort Mk2) 52m21s
3 Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks (Ford Escort Mk2) 52m24s
4 Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies (Ford Escort Mk2) 53m18s
5 Tim Freeman/Paul Barden (Ford Escort Mk2) 54m11s
6 Warren Philliskirk/Matt Whattam (Ford Escort Mk2) 54m18s
Added: 5th March 2012 [permalink]
