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IRISH
NOTES 29/10/03
This Saturday's Toshiba Rally has a bumper entry, with last
year's winner Trevor Moore competing this time in a McKinstry
Impreza WRC and up against the likes of Robbie McGurk, who has
hired a McKinstry gpA Impreza. Tarmac Champion Derek
McGarrity, new NI Champion and Irish National Champion Eugene
Donnelly, former NI Champion Denis Biggerstaff , Scotttish
visitor Neale Dougan, Limerick's Dermot Kelly, are also amongst
the 100 strong line up who will face 10 forest special stages in
Co. Antrim.
Killarney's Willie Power debuted a new Darrian on the Fastnet
Rally. Willie also had a different co driver for the day in
the shape of John Somers, his normal co-driver, his wife Marie,
having given birth to their first child, John, a few weeks ago.
Eamonn Boland has reportedly switched from a right hand drive
Impreza WRC to left hand drive for the forthcoming Wales Rally
GB.
There are three 'single stage' rallies coming up in the next few
weeks - Carrick on Suir, Cavan and Banna Beach. Motorsport
Ireland has relaxed the rule that bars drivers who have finished
in the top ten on National events from competing, in an effort to
boost flagging entries at the end of a long busy Irish season.
This will allow for example David James in his rapid Escort to
compete in Carrick on Suir.
The Dunlop National Championship prizegiving is in Carlow's Seven
Oaks Hotel, where Eugene Donnelly will receive the overall
driver's crown and Dermot O'Gorman the co-drivers top award.
Paddy Toner, who co-drove Donnelly for most of the season, missed
out on a few of the earlier rounds. O'Gorman sat with runner-up
Michael Barrable on the National series, and also with Derek
McGarrity on the Tarmac Championship and wins the Tarmac
co-drivers Champion's award, and has also clinched the 023 Tiles
Southern Four co-drivers title.
Jonny McKenna from Magherafelt, one of NI's most promising young
drivers, is moving up from his Escort to a GpN Lancer and will
debut the car this weekend on the Toshiba.
Kenneth Mulvaney, the provisional winner of this season's Ford
Ireland Ka Championship, won his class on last Sunday's Fastnet
Rally, which has added the 023 Tiles Southern 4 Championship
class win to his National and Ka Championship victories. Mulvaney
is going for a clean sweep by trying to tie up his class on the
Banna Beach event next week, which would add the TopPart West
Coast series to his CV.
Regards, Brian Patterson.
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