Competing in Manx Rally for first time is dream come true

IM Gold Manx National Rally, Isle of Mann, May 8-9 2015

What could be better than entering the iconic Manx rally for the first time after standing alongside it, as a spectator or marshal, so many times in the past. Speeding along cliff top roads, dodging hay bales and pushing the Subaru Impreza to new speeds on the corners - we loved it and we loved the end result too. 

Competing in the Manx Rally was a dream come true for me as I attended the event several times as a young man in the 1980s as either a marshal or a spectator. 

The ferry crossing from Heysham was eventful as the sea conditions were very rough! We knew it was going to be bad when the incoming ferry was delayed docking due to high winds. 

However, we arrived on the Tuesday before the event safe and sound and settled into the Best Western Palace hotel and casino. 

Our recce prior to the event went well and some of the routes were familiar which helped. It was clear though that some of the roads, which were basically polished tar, were going to be treacherous in the wet weather. 

Special Stage 1, Kerital 1, was a short stage south of Douglas using a wide tarmac cliff top road. The rain was pouring and it was a nervous start for us. We were very mindful of the huge drop into the sea to our left as we sped along. We completed this stage 43rd fastest. 

The next stage, the SS2 Marine Drive 1, was a repeat of SS1 but then split left towards the end and took us on more typical Manx roads. Lots of standing water made it difficult to commit fully to some of the very fast corners, and aquaplaning twice was scary stuff! But we finished this 30th fastest which took us up to 34th overall. 

A short spectator stage came next, starting in Port Erin and climbing the hillside overlooking the port. We clipped a curb on the front nearside and punctured, but luckily we were near the end of the stage and got it changed. However, we only had a slick tyre as a spare. At the arrival control, the poor marshals were struggling. With cars starting at 30 second intervals in the pouring rain it was a tough one to keep under control and as a result road section times were scrapped. Our placing for this one was 37th which maintained our standing of 34th overall. 

A second stage around Port Erin, then came with the rain still pouring - not the best time to have a slick tyre on the front. However we crossed the line with exactly the same time as the first pass, finishing in 40th place and still holding on to that 34th overall position. 

Getting to grips with the soggy conditions, we entered the 16 mile test of the St Marks stage with growing confidence and finished 25th fastest which took us up five places to 29th overall. We returned to the TT grandstand service area for fuel and no problems to report. 

We had been warned about stage six - SS6 Cringle 1 - at drivers' briefing as 19 cars went out on this stretch at last year's event. So, we began quite cautious. However, I felt the conditions weren't as bad as anticipated and we were able to push on. We had one moment at the split where hay bales had been hit by other cars and were blocking the road. We hit the first one and knocked it out the way then had to drive down a ditch on the left to traverse this section of the road and miss the obstructions. Luckily we managed to get around this without suffering any damage and were delighted to be 12th fastest and move up 12 places to 17th overall. 

This led to us being re-seeded overnight and we were 16th on the road on the Sunday. Conditions were still wet and so we began the day on wets. 

For the rest of the day our confidence grew posting top 20 times and in the end improved slightly on our 16th seeding to finish 14th overall. 

By far the most enjoyable stage was the last - the iconic Baldwins 2. We had already done the stage albeit in the wet in the morning and loop felt confident second time around. Coming 13th overall confirmed this, Mathew was spot on with the notes and the bone dry, hot conditions meant I could commit. It made me realise I can push the car more than I ever thought possible in terms of corner speed and leaving braking later. It also helped seeing the previous cars braking points as a layer of rubbers was laid into every corner. 

The whole team was delighted with our final result of 14th overall for the event; second overall in the national B category and - even better - securing our second win of the season in Group N class of the MSA British Tarmac Rally Championship, extending our lead in the competition. 

The Manx certainly lived up to expectations and it's going to be awesome next year! 

Usual thanks must go to our sponsors DAF, F&G Commercials, Mirage Electronic Cigarettes, Sheffield Rolling Road, Quidbake, Signs Xtra, KHA Business Solutions and the on event servicing from Alex Taylor (Northern Body Shell Prep). Also, a big thanks from me to my partner Kirsty and lovely daughter Georgina for all their support.

Five minute maxim chased down in Brussels venture

Monteberg Rallysprint, Dranouter near Brussels, Belgium, May 3 2015

Belgium's Monteberg Rallysprint was our team's first venture into Europe and it proved to be a fantastic experience where everything clicked and we hit a top time head on - well almost. 

The Monteberg Rallysprint format was three recce runs over the 9km stage to make pace notes on the Saturday and then four timed runs on the Sunday. One thing that became quite clear during recce was the huge cuts that would be necessary to carry our speed through the corners.

On Sunday morning's first stage, we lined up on the start line on slick tyres and - sod's law - it started to rain. We felt we took this first pass at a conservative pace so were pleasantly surprised when we were 16th fastest. We also noticed that the previous cars had been cutting corners we hadn't marked to be cut and so we amended our notes ready for the second stage. 

For SS2, we changed to wet tyres even though the rain had stopped as the road surface was still wet with some dry patches. It was evident that the corners would become very slippy too by the amount of mud thrown up, this made cutting even more important, especially on some of the 5th gear corners. We were delighted to be 5th fastest and 12th overall. 

Photo courtesy of Vila-racing.be

Before the third stage, we got chatting to experienced Monteberg Rallysprint driver Richard Weaver in car 61 who has competed at the event numerous times and he told us that a five minute stage time was the 'holy grail' to aim for at this event, but to achieve that it would need to be dry. 

Unfortunately, the road was drying but still very muddy in places for us. But, the car felt good and it was one of those stages where everything clicked. Mathew was spot on with the notes, the gear changes were slick and braking points felt just right on every corner. Mathew stopped the clock on five minutes dead at the end and the official time was 5.00.45. We were ecstatic. We had finished 4th fastest ahead of seven-time Belgium Champion Patrick Snijers in his Porsche 997 GT3. 

On the final stage, we took a conscious decision to get round and finish and so we backed off somewhat and the 13 seconds slower time than the previous run showed this. We had the Manx national rally in two weeks on the Isle of Mann and we didn't want any dramas beforehand. 

So in the end we finished ninth overall and had a fabulous weekend of motorsport. The whole community got involved with the rally and spectators were out in force. This is a fantastic event and one that will be in our memories for a long time - so we will definitely be back next year. 

Usual thanks must go to our sponsors DAF, F&G Commercials, Mirage Electronic Cigarettes, Sheffield Rolling Road, Quidbake, Signs Xtra, KHA Business Solutions. Also a big thanks to Alex Taylor of Northern Bodyshell Prep and Rachel Heel for the on-event support.