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RALLY NEWS NO.4 Dalby/Fire Tower/Saturday 4.15
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE 8 Givendale 2
1st (2) Guy Wilks/Phil Pugh (Lancer N) 1.07.10.2
2nd (4) Gwyndaf Evans/Huw Lewis (Lancer N) 1.07.44.2
3rd (3) Mark Higgins/Rory Kennedy (Impreza N) 1.07.56.8
4th (5) David Higgins/Ieuan Thomas (Impreza N) 1.09.05.1
5th (6) Phillip Morrow/Daniel Barrett (Lancer N) 1.10.14.1
6th (16) Danny Barry/Mark Bowens (Lancer N) 1.10.39.6
7th (11) Nik Elsmore/Patrick Walsh (Lancer N) 1.11.30.5
8th (10) Wyn Humphreys/Ali Mackay (Impreza N) 1.12.11.7
9th (9) Sebastian Ling/Aled Rees (Lancer N) 1.12.40.9
The above times are from the lead cars only. Gwyndaf Evans was fastest through stage 7, Staindale. Jonny Milner was fastest through the spectator stage at the Show Grounds but otherwise it is Guy Wilks who is setting the pace. Jonny Milner retired in Langdale when his Lancer broke its transmission. Darren Gass in the Citroen stopped with mechanical problems in Staindale and Robert Swann in the Subaru stopped in stage 6, Langdale. Ryan Champion dropped 4 minutes with a puncture in Langdale and his total is now 1.13.00.6 which will almost certainly place him just outside the top 10.
Guy Wilks reported here at the Fire Tower that he had one scare in a stage when something tried to pass him. Then he realised it was his own back bumper which he must have knocked off on a narrow corner where takes marked the edge of the road and he must have clicked the rear of the car. Otherwise he had a good clean run although he choked on his camel pack water. Mark Higgins had a couple of very big moments in Staindale at a left hander through gateposts where he completely lost it and clouted the bank. This was a 5th gear moment but he lost little time. Gwyndaf Evans said. “Not a bad run, but not fully flowing in places, a momentary lift and you’ve lost it all the way down the straight”.
Ryan Champion said. “I lost interest a bit after the puncture but then it all started to click, the confidence is coming, I’m where I should have been at the start, didn’t realise how rusty I was”. Wyn Humphreys bent a bottom suspension arm on his Subaru, said there are potholes everywhere in that stage 8 Stephen Petch has an oil light flashing on his Lancer but is going well and should be coming into the top 10. James Wozencroft in the Suzuki lost over a minute this morning with a gear change problem, but he is under team orders now to got flat out and try to catch Martin Laverty in the Citroen. James said it was going well but he’s just getting a little scrappy at the junctions. His Suzki team mate Lorna Smith said. “Going alright but getting bogged down a little on the corners, I’m trying to keep the speed up and keep it tidy on the fast stuff”. Matt Beebe has handling problems with his MG having bent the rear beam. Neil Dashfield, co driving for Rob Gill, said it was the first time he had seen black tyre marks on a gravel stage so good is the surface in places.
Daniel Barry is still doing a great job to hold a place in the top 10, the young Irishman has struggled a little over the last few stages with a broken gearbox mounting on his Lancer and said. “We seem to have bad luck or no luck!” Miles Johnston, running at 17 in his Lancer and setting a reasonable pace, is another to report his oil light flashing n. Nik Elsmore had a big escape when his Lancer just squeezed between two big logs off the edge of the road.
In the National Rally Steve Perez in the VK Focus was leading at the lunch halt from Steve Petch. Paul Bird had lost time when he hooked his Focus into the ditch on an uphill square left and dropped a minute, also his gearbox was playing up. Jason Pritchard retired from the main rally with a broken clutch on his C2R2, 1.5 miles from service.
Martin McCormack & Liam Moynihan have won the Historic Rally despite losing the exhaust of the Escort on their final stage, otherwise had a great run. David Stokes has won the Historic C/ship despite a problem with his brakes, and loved the rally.
More news later: BRIAN & LIZ PATTERSON www.rallynews.net |
