NETRC Jack Frost 2012 Results
Another swift run for Paul Swift. Driving his Ford Escort with David Cox sitting alongside him again, the Darlington crew enjoyed a trouble free day to end up a fantastic 3rd overall on the day and top points scorer too. Paul set out his stall from the off with a 4th fastest time on the first stage. And despite being slowed by one fast spin on stage 5, Paul’s aggressive driving style was rewarded with consistent top times that would move him into the top 3 by the penultimate stage. His main dilemma was finding the right tyres for each stage, as tyre wear was very high. As darkness started closing in for the final stage, the local lads decided to drive with a little caution over the last 5 and a half miles and consolidate a brilliant result against some very fast competition. As a bonus, this result also moves them into the lead of the championship.
Finishing right behind the Ford Escort were Pete Gibson and Josh Davison in a Mitsubishi Evo6. This young crew would shadow Swift’s Escort all day long but were always just a few seconds adrift. Pete was another to complain about not having the correct tyres but he kept his head down and worked hard to keep out of trouble. His only damage to the car was when he nudged the offside front wing in the tight confines of the double hairpin around the pits complex. Despite going into the final stage 19 seconds behind Swift and Cox, the Mitsubishi crew pushed hard and took back 11 to end up a mere 8 seconds adrift.
Andy Davison and Mike Curry would be our 3rd placed finishers in a fine 6th place overall. Andy had recently acquired an Evolution 5 version of Mitsubishi’s successful rally car and this would be his first drive in anger. Although he set 6th fastest times on the first couple of stages, he lost his way a bit on the other 2 morning stages and at the lunch halt he was down in 11th position. His times improved as the afternoon progressed and by the end of the day he was setting 2nd fastest times, and that was just behind a Focus World Rally Car.
Next up were championship newcomers Steve Quigley and Terry Martin. Having made the long haul from Cheshire to get to Croft, Steve was probably wondering if it was worthwhile when a troublesome gear linkage found him down in 23rd after the first stage. Once fixed, he went out and did the next stage 27 seconds faster. The brightly coloured Renault Clio then continued to set quick times that moved Steve and Terry into the top 10 before they lost 2nd gear near the end of stage 7. They would lose a few more seconds on the final stage but still end up in 8th overall.
And next up in 9th place were the Durham Motor Club pairing of Ed Todd and Andy Brown. The crew once again turned up with their re-fettled GTM enthusiastically looking forward to a more reliable outing. They wouldn’t be disappointed either as they had a generally trouble free event even though their times were a little inconsistent. They did however, just creep into the top 10 and were a very happy crew at the end of the day.
Ann Forster was a navigator on the move for this rally as she accompanied the non registered Michael Pickles to 11th place 7 seconds ahead of David Conley / Mike Scrimgour in the Hillman Avenger. The old car struggled a bit with a loose wire to the alternator but once this problem was rectified they would enjoy a more reliable run. By the finish, their battle scared car show the many contacts with tyre markers and chicanes, as they pressed hard to keep up with the more modern machinery.
Another newcomer to the championship is Stuart Walker in his Mitsubishi Evo9. Stuart’s being a regular competitor in the forests but is now trying his luck on tarmac and enlisted the services of young Jack Morton for this rally. His driving style reflected a sideways approach but the times did get quicker as the day wore on. From 20th after the opening test, the crew moved up to 14th by the end. Their only complaint being that of tyre wear.
Making his debut in a rally was Stuart Bate. Stuart has competed in sprints and hillclimbs in the past but wanted to try competing with someone sitting alongside him – so he’s chosen Giles Dykes. From a lowly start number of 67, he set off on a rather nervous journey into stage 1 where he recorded 29th fastest time. As his confidence grew he went quicker in his Mitsubishi although occasionally going over his limits with a couple of spins but he was a happy man to finish an excellent 17th overall.
David Taylor and Lynsey Brench ended up 5 seconds further back in their Ford Escort Mark2. The Eden Valley duo were really pushing their 1600 powered motor along and despite complaining about tyre choice they steadily moved up the leader board to end up 18th.
Joseph Redmond / Miquel Marini were next up in the unusual Peugeot 306. The Leeds based crew struggled to repeat their 10th overall placing from the Christmas Stages as they tried to get rear tyres working properly – they found it took ages in each test before the rubber was warm and then very quickly the tyres would ‘go off’.
Geoff Simpson and Mick Johnson were a mere 2 seconds adrift of the Peugeot at the end but the smiling crew from Ripon were happy to go home with a straight car. Croft has not been kind to them in the past as they have always suffered a fair amount of panel damage from tyres and bales but their luck may have just changed.
In 30th place was the Honda Civic of Andrew Plunkett / Paul Firth. Even though they had a lot of last minute panics getting the car prepared and then suffered more time consuming spins than they could remember for one rally, it was all worthwhile.
Drew Barker and Shona Hale made the long journey down from Edinburgh with their Vauxhall Astra for their first visit to Croft. They lost time with a drive shaft problem and a huge spin in the darkness of the final stage but still enjoyed their rally.
Colin Barker had one of those rallies to forget, as he had to take not 1 but maximum stage times, the second one after a puncture happened early in the penultimate test.
And lastly we had another ‘lad and dad’ pairing – Andrew and Reg Irving in the little 1400 Peugeot 205. The West Cumbria based crew, had a testing day trying to find the right tyre combination. They made steady progress up the leader board and seemed to have cracked it on SS7. Then on the final run they had a huge moment spinning a full 360 degrees and losing 10 to 15 seconds, but they were still smiling.
A quick mention of those who never made it to the finish. Alistair Hutchinson / St John Dykes packed in on the first test with clutch problems while Alan Cowen and Phillip Coulby retired with a blown head gasket after SS1; Graeme Bell and Russ Radford went home at lunch time after their Escort’s diff broke; the Citroen Saxo of Steven Crowther / David Batley was returned to the service area on the end of a tow rope after contact on stage 5; 2010 champion Michael Glendinning called it a day after SS6 after he’d finished testing his recently acquired Elfyn Evans Impreza; Jon Olds and Janice Moore made it to the end of stage 7 but retired with a misfire and clutch problems respectively.
The second round of the championship certainly didn’t live up to it’s name as the Jack Frost Stages was run in unusually mild weather this year. Although the day dawned damp and breezy, the sun and wind quickly dried out the racing tracks of Croft Circuit and competitors enjoyed the 40 miles of action. Darlington and District Motor Club in association with AUTOGAS 2000 and Cartersport are to be congratulated for coming up with a testing variation of the racing circuit’s roads. The weather caught quite a few competitors out as the dry, grippy tarmac took it’s toll on tyres and some struggled to find the right combination to work on the day.
The next rally is already less than 2 weeks away as we head for the seaside at Blackpool. The Legend Fires North West Stages takes place on Friday 3rd and Saturday 4th February. Once again the organisers will be using the fantastic facilities offered by the Norbreck Castle Hotel, with Rally HQ, Scrutineering, indoor Parc Ferme and Champagne finish ceremony all within the hotel’s Exhibition hall. The ‘Cetus Rally village’ will also be open during the rally with trade stands and side shows to entertain the supporters and spectators.
Motor Sport (North West) are retaining the popular format of recent years, with a Friday evening leg giving competitors about 10 miles of stages in the dark and including a spectator friendly stage on the North Promenade directly opposite Rally HQ. The event will continue with Saturday offering of a wide variation of stages at several different venues. Overall, the rally offers approximately 75 miles of sealed surface stages within a compact route of only 150 road miles, creating a very demanding event for competitors, with no hanging around. Entries have been flowing in quickly and at the time of writing 84 crews have registered. Full details are available at the rally website – http://www.nwstages.co.uk/