REGIS RALLY

Peter Noad and Dave Kirkham in an Audi 80 GT took overall victory on the 10th round of the HRCR Road Championship, the Regis Rally in Sussex on October 9th.  Dave Hughes and Andy Gibson initially took the lead in their Volvo Amazon and held it until the penultimate regularity section. Noad and Kirkham had collected an early penalty for not spotting a code board, but moved into the lead when they were the only crew to achieve a correct approach at the regularity section’s final control at Goodwood. Despite also collecting a wrong approach penalty, the Simmonds/Gray Cortina nudged the Volvo down into third overall.  Peter Joy and Matt Fowle’s 5th place in the lightweight Lotus Elite was enough to confirm the pair as 2004 HRCR Road Rally Champions, with two more rounds yet to run.  Best Novices, in a remarkable 6th overall, were the rapidly improving brothers Steven and Chris Winter in their Volvo 144. 1 Peter Noad David Kirkham Audi 80GT 517 2 Paul Simmonds Michael Gray Ford Cortina GT 547 3 David Hughes Andy Gibson Volvo Amazon 555 4 Paul Hernaman Ray Crowther Porsche 911 557 5 Peter Joy Matt Fowle Lotus Elite 570 6 Steven Winter Chris Winter Volvo 144 GL 612 7 Richard White Richard Scott Austin Healey 100/6 617 8 David Mustarde Mike Burrows Alfa Sprint GT 626 9 Geoff Twigg Graham Carter Alpine A110 636 10 Richard Fisher Neil Lewis Lancia Fulvia Coupe 677

TARGA RUSTICANA

While all the fancied runners made big mistakes, Keith Jenkins and Edwyn Evans had a good steady run in their Saab 96 to find themselves the surprise winners of the 30th Targa Rusticana in Mid Wales on 4th September. Runners up were championship leaders Peter Joy & Matt Fowle who achieved fastest on the tests with the Lotus Elite. Worth Birkill/Dave Harris had hopes of achieving a hat trick of wins in the Mini, but it wasn’t to be and they finished 5th this time. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first Targa Rusticana, as well as the 30th Targa, the OUMDC organisers put on an excellent event based at the Royal Welsh Showground at Builth Wells and attracted many quality crews not normally seen on championship rounds. Fourteen special tests and five varied regularity sections, including 35 miles of Eppynt and Crychan gravel roads, proved to be a great challenge for the 73 starters. For a daytime regularity rally, the retirement rate was unusually high. Roy Gillingham/Graham Carter broke the Sabre’s rear suspension in Crychan Forest, where Martin Neal’s Sprite expired with no sparks. Peter Horsburgh’s Mini had a shock absorber break loose and fracture a brake pipe, then the final regularity saw the retirement of Wes Massam’s Volvo and Isaac Zarmati’s Beetle, both with serious engine problems. Best Newcomers Challengers were Richard White/Richard Scott in an excellent 11th overall with the Healey 100/6, followed by the Winter brothers in their Volvo 144 at 17th. 1. Keith Jenkins/Edwyn Evans Saab 96 V4 367 2. Peter Joy/Matt Fowle Lotus Elite 430 3. Dave Keen/Andy Berry Ford Cortina Mk2 478 4. Peter Noad/David Kirkham Audi 80 GT 524 5. Worth Birkill/Dave Harris Mini Cooper S 533 6. Pam Butterworth/Shon Gosling Morris Mini 546 7. Paul Wignall/Fred Bent Alfa Guilia Sprint 604 8. Jim Deacon/Dave Wilson Ford Escort RS 2000 713 9. Rob Dance/Graham Dance Alfa Giulia Sprint GT 717 10. Paul Heal/Matt Heal MGB GT 812 Championship points are based on the Scratch results, rather than the Handicap results.  Targa Scratch Results

ROSS TRADERS

Ali Green and Mick Briggs claimed their second Ross Traders win in their Mini Cooper on 24th July, albeit seven years on from their first win of the event. They finished as first historic car, just behind the post-historic class cars of Jim Deacon/Dave Wilson, Geoff Twigg/Graham Carter and Peter Noad/Dave Kirkham, all of whom were ineligible for the rally’s overall award. The rally which was run around Ross-on-Wye, included 11 special tests and four regularity sections in its 120-mile road route. Generous time allowance for route plotting resulted in very close results, as it all came down to slick test times and accurate regularity section average speeds. Only a few seconds separated most final placings. One of the favourite crews to win, Bill Wyatt and Paul Robinson in the TR4, made an uncharacteristic navigational error on the first regularity section and dropped themselves to 30th place, but their day came to an end later, with terminal clanking noises from the car’s differential. Here's the top 20 finishers from the Ross Traders: 1 Jim Deacon Dave Wilson Escort RS2000 06:19 2 Geoff Twigg Graham Carter Alpine Renault A110 06:41 3 Peter Noad Dave Kirkham Audi 80 GT 06:52 4 Ali Green Mick Briggs Mini Cooper 07:14 5 Dave Keen Andy Berry Ford Cortina MkII 07:16 6 Phil Shingler Eric Richardson Austin Mini 07:22 7 Peter Joy Matt Fowle Lotus Elite 07:30 8 Roy Gillingham Peter Blackett Reliant Sabre 6 GT 07:47 9 Martin Neal Andy Gibson Austin-Healey Sprite 07:59 10 Paul Simmonds Michael Gray Ford Cortina GT 08:04 11 Dave Foster Bernard Northmore Morris Mini Cooper 08:05 12 Geoff Breakell Nigel Raeburn Alfa Romeo Giulia 08:13 13 Geoff Rogers David York Sunbeam Rapier 08:51 14 Paul Hernaman Crow Porsche Carrera 911 09:19 15 Emma Henchoz Rob Henchoz Volvo PV544 09:20 16 Bob Taylor Jeanne Taylor Austin Mini 09:31 17 Pam Butterworth Shon Gosling Morris Mini 09:38 18 John Broughall Susan Broughall Saab 99 10:25 19 Stephen Lloyd Ron Bowden Volvo Amazon 122S 11:26 20 James Campbell Alan Smith Triumph TR3 11:50

PORSCHE WINS HUGHES RALLY

It was the Porsche 911 of Paul Hernaman and 'Crow' that emerged victorious on the Hughes Historic Rally on Sunday 30th May, after a 150-mile route around East Kent, which included five regularity sections and seven special tests. Hernaman/Crow won with a 28 second lead and it was the driver's first ever rally win. The chasing RS2000 of Jim Deacon/Dave Wilson and the lightweight Lotus Elite of Peter Joy/Matt Fowle also set blistering test times and accurate regularities to finish only one second apart. Navigator Fowle tried hard, but was unable to submit a valid results query at the finish to gain that much needed two seconds! Highlight of the day was two special tests around a disused industrial site at Rye Harbour, where the site owner, ex-rallycross driver Rod Chapman, had put up a special award for the fastest. Joy won this in the Lotus, recording a total time 20 seconds better than anyone else. Best Novices at 13th overall were the Clifford brothers in the BMW 3.0CSI, but top Newcomers Challenge points went to the other rallying twins, Steven & Chris Winter in their Volvo 144, who finished 17th out of the 53 starters. Results are now online (click)

ALAN ROGERS HISTORIC ROAD RALLY

Ford Cortina crew Dave Keen and Andy Berry won the Alan Rogers Historic Road Rally on Sunday 4th April, by over a minute from lunchtime leaders and highest placed championship contenders Len Olds and Ryan Pickering in a Triumph TR4. Third, after missing three passage checks, were top seeds and last year’s winners, Peter Noad and Dave Kirkham in the post-historic Audi 80GT. The Woolbridge Motor Club event was making a welcome return to the Championship, and attracted 48 historic and post-historic cars to the start at Charmouth in Dorset. It was the first Clubmans Challenge round of 2004 and so was the first time out for many of the regular championship crews. The route used the infamous narrow lanes of map 193, visiting Smeatharpe Airfield and the Wiscombe Hillclimb for special tests. Tricky navigation on the regularity sections caused many crews to miss controls, although five of the fancied master crews even managed to miss the first intermediate control on a simple tulip roadbook section. Paul Simmonds and Michael Gray managed a good recovery from that 30 minute penalty to finish seventh. Best Novice crew, in 20th place were David and Paul Clifford in their BMW CSL from another pair of twin brothers, Steven and Chris Winter who finished 22nd in their Volvo 144. Alan Rogers Top 10 1. Dave Keen / Andy Berry, Ford Cortina MkII, 19m 32s 2. Len Olds / Ryan Pickering, Triumph TR4, 21m 14s 3. Peter Noad / Dave Kirkham, Audi 80GT, 28m 32s 4. Richard Fisher / Neil Lewis, Lancia Fulvia Coupe, 33m 25s 5. Ted Howles / Judy Howles, Reliant Scimitar GT, 37m 10s 6. Keith Wilson / Dave Cooper, Volvo PV544, 38m 16s 7. Paul Simmonds / Michael Gray, Ford Cortina GT, 48m 56s 8. Peter Joy / Matt Fowle, Lotus Elite, 49m 01s 9. David Roxburgh / Jonathan Ing, Mercedes 230 SL, 51m 22s 10. Philip Shingler / Eric Richardson, Austin Mini, 52m 35s Full results are online (click) The Championship points tables have now been updated following this first round of the Clubmans Challenge. Pictures from the rally are at www.tonylarge.net