Irish Notes 4th July '05.

Kevin Lynch is to take at least six months off from rallying. Kevin is the current Champion of both the NI and Southern Rally forest series in his distinctive KPL Impreza WRC. He has been stunningly successful since he started competing seriously less than two years ago, and has been a real breath of fresh air in Irish rallying.

Kevin injured his back in a rally testing accident last year and his doctors have advised him now against competing, with immediate effect. Ironically, he says he just might, as a thank you to all the people who have supported him, enter Lurgan Park, which is smooth and which he won last year.

Three times Jim Clark winner Andrew Nesbitt will not be able to compete on the event this weekend. The Armagh man is on crutches, having cracked his shinbone in his Donegal accident. Andrew reckons he will also be forced to miss the Manx, but should be back for the Ulster. He is also considering some forestry rallies in preparation for Rally Ireland.

Camillus Bradley took his Escort to victory on the North Armagh MC's Loughgall Country Park Stage event last Saturday.

Navan man Paddy White was due to test his Impreza WRC S9 at Cooley Mountain early this week in preparation for this weekend's Jim Clark Rally. Former West Euro Cup Champion Paddy has had his Subaru overhauled and re-liveried since his last outing on the Limissin Rally in France. We have just had late news from Paddy that he will not be doing the Jim Clark, due to a problem which has developed in the gearbox. His next event will probably be ALMC.

Last weekend's Monaghan Rally was round 5 of the Southern Forestry Championship and Gareth McHale's win gives him 5 maximum scores (4 outright wins and a 2nd place behind Kevin Lynch who wasn't registered). However, with 8 rounds in the series McHale is still far from assured of the title, and is under pressure from John McCarthy and Glenn Allen. The Cork Forestry is the next round on 23rd/24th July. 

Gareth McHale drove Brian Murphy's Subaru in Monaghan but is reverting to the family Corolla WRC for this weekend's Jim Clark Rally. The Toyota is still being repaired after the Scottish accident and it will all be a bit last minute. Gareth plans to test the Corolla at the Floors Castle shakedown. 

Eugene Donnelly is on course and looking forward to this weekend's Jim Clark Rally. He was trying to do a deal to drive Maurice Gass' new Skoda on the JCR, while Sebastian Ling was going to drive Eugene's Corolla.  However, the deal just didn't work out when the Skoda was slightly damaged in a Donegal accident. Eugene will now drive his own Corolla and Sebastian Ling would appear to be non-starting the event.

Rathfriland Motor Club is introducing an interesting new event, to be called the Down Rally and scheduled to run on the 26th November. It will consist of 3 forest stages, run in 2 loops, and will be based in Newcastle, Co. Down. There will be a central service park. The territory has not been rallied since the mid '70's. The overall aim is that the event will be included in the NI Championship in the future. On that theme, it would seem fairly certain that the Easter Stages will not be invited to be a round of the NI series in 2006.

Several Irish drivers, including Tom Holton in his Celica, Sebastian Stackpoole in his Lancer, Joe Curran and Kevin McCarthy, Subaru and Lancer respectively, are making the trip to the 22 stage BVH Rally in Holland this weekend.

Further to our Andrew Nesbitt story on missing the Jim Clark or Manx Rallies due to a cracked shin bone, the former multiple Tarmac Champion attended the Press Launch at Stormont on Monday for Rally Ireland.  When Andrew parked his car at Stormont and started to hobble across the car park on his crutches a parked flat bed lorry lost its brakes and freewheeled down in Andrew's direction.  The harder Andrew hobbled the faster came the runaway flat bed, and it was a close run thing for Nesbitt to get out of the way before the careering commercial toppled through a hedge and into the Stormont forest.

The Press Launch? Yes, it went well.  The event now has the blessing of the British Government as well as the Irish authorities.  The bid for the rally to become a round of the WRC is being backed by the NI Events Company and by Failte Ireland through the International Sports Tourism Initiative.  The rally is on course for October of this year. In 2006 it is to be observed by the FIA for possible WRC inclusion in 2007. The 2006 event is being mooted to run in June. 

Brian Patterson.