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| ©Kevin Baldwin Photography |
Clive King and Bob Ward made a little bit
of history at last weekend’s Rally Marketing Mid Wales Stages, as the
first-ever winners of a round of the new-for 2013 HRCR ‘old Stager’ Clubman’s
Challenge. The experienced pairing drove the doors off their diminutive Mini,
setting fastest time on each of the day’s four stages to take both the
Clubman’s Challenge and win class B1. Despite their rivals’ best efforts
throughout the 45 stage-mile route, they finished one minute 12.3 seconds ahead
of fellow Mini competitors Andrew O’Hanlon / James Crook and took the lead in
the season long Mini Cup, which has been successfully incorporated into this
year’s ‘old Stager’ series.
Right from the opening pair of stages, King
showed he had sorted the mechanical gremlins that blighted his 2012 season.
Taking advantage of a smooth stage surface due to running ahead of the modern
cars, King confidently stormed through Pikes Peak and Myherin. He arrived at
the Sweet Lamb service with a 32-second lead over O’Hanlon, with Nigel Dutson /
Finlay Mackintosh making it an all-Mini top three. “The stages are in fantastic
condition; I’ve got a small leak from a brake cylinder but otherwise the day’s
going perfectly,” reported King.
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| ©Kevin Baldwin Photography |
His good run contrasted starkly with Eric
Davis who, with co-driver Russell Joseph, retired their Mini after stage one
with an overheating problem. Davis wore a puzzled expression as he finally
arrived at Sweet Lamb. “The engine was fine on the road section, but overheated
about 200 yards into the stage, “ he said. “It’s cooled down and now it’s
running perfectly again. We can’t figure it out: there’s a lot of pondering
going on.”
Knowing O’Hanlon would not give up the
chase, King pushed his car to the limit through the next two stages. Making
full use of his Mini’s good handling through the twists and turns of Sweet
Lamb, he later made sure to carry as much speed as possible through the fast,
sweeping corners of Hafren forest. Arriving at the finish in Newtown, King had
an ear-to-ear grin. “Today’s stages are some of the best I have ever driven,”
he enthused. “It makes all the hassle of winter rebuilds worth it.” Runner-up
O’Hanlon agreed with King’s sentiments. Bleeding his brakes at service had
given him the confidence to push as hard as possible through the latter pair of
stages and he felt he had got his Mini Cup title defence off to a good start.
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| ©Kevin Baldwin Photography |
Dutson finished third, surviving what he
described as “a bit of a moment” on stage two, Myherin. “We were right near the
Flying Finish: I just went a little too fast into the corner and we got into a
big slide,” he said.
Behind Dutson, Wynne Jones and Ray Evans
brought their Ford Cortina Mk1 home to win class B3. The Welsh crew struggled
early on when their intercom’s battery went flat, but thereafter they had an
untroubled run. Unfortunately, the Cortina Mk1 crewed by Gwilym Roberts / Debby
Myers blew its diff on stage one and retired on the spot.
Rally newcomer Ken Davies, co-driven by the
experienced Alan Jones, had a beaming smile as he drove through the finish,
having brought his Volvo Amazon into fifth in only his second-ever rally.
Displaying an impressive-looking blood blister on one of his fingers, he joked:
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my day, in friendly company and on wonderful stages.
But it’s taken a real toll on me: I’ve even blistered a digit with the effort!”
Davies competed on the five-stage, 55-mile route taken by Mintex MSA British
Historic Rally Championship crews, to get an upgrading signature on his
competition licence, which he successfully gained.
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| ©Kevin Baldwin Photography |
Throughout the day, the cars contesting the
‘old Stager’ Clubman’s series proved to be spectator favourites, drawing loud
cheers and encouragement from the hundreds of people lining the stages. “At
times, all we could see was ‘speccies’ waving us on: there was a fantastic
atmosphere out there,” said King. “Overall, it’s a great start to a new
championship; everybody is so friendly. We have a couple of new crews joining us
for the Rally North Wales in April and we would love to see even more
competitors coming to enjoy the series.”
Results:
1. Clive King / Bob Ward (Mini) 55m 35.0s;
2 Andrew O’Hanlon / James Crook (Mini) 56m 47.3s; 3 Nigel Dutson / Finlay
Mackintosh (Austin Min Clubman 1275 GT) 58m 58.7s; 4 Wynne Jones / Ray Evans
(Ford Cortina GT) 59m 14.2s; 5 Ken Davies/ Alan Jones (Volvo Amazon) 59m 54.8s
(for four stages).
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