H&H-162

s e k a r b d Han s n i p r i a H & ld of rallying r o w e h t o t in t h ig your ins

Cover

2010 SARC review and awards

Issue 162 • 09 December 2010 http://handbrakeshairpins.wordpress.com

Features

Istanbul rocks for rally, P6 Higgins HHi iggins i ffor SRT USA in 2011, P10 Cronin wins awards, P11

News

Events IIRC, RC PP6 RRC,

BRC and Irish rally news USA rallying news and updates

WRC and IRC SSARC, A P12 WR new news updates

Contents / Issue 162 04

Editorial Information Editor Evan Rothman Photojournalist Eva Kovkova Contributors RallyBuzz, Motorpics, Liga Stirna, Newspress.

All content copyrighted property of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, 200710. This publication is fully protected by copyright and nothing may be reprinted in whole or in part without written permission from the editor. While reasonable precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of information from sources and given to readers, the editor cannot accept responsibility for any inconvenience or damage that may arise therefrom.

News

04 05 05

News updates Social Media Fan Foto Framed

06

Features

06 06 07 07 08 09 10 10 11 11

Istanbul rocks for rally P. Solberg enters IRC Monte Carlo Rally BRC plans 2011 training days Holmes wins Seed 9 Rally Hino prepares for Dakar 2011 Historic Rallye du Var Higgins joins SRT USA for 2011 Change to USRC 2011 calendar More success for L’Estage Cronin wins Irish motorsport award

12

Events

12

SARC 2010 season review and awards

Contact E-mail us evan.hhmag@gmail.com Call us +27 83 452 6892 Surf us http://wp.me/pkXc

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Welcome to issue 162 of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, your FREE weekly insight into the world of rallying.

As always, I hope you enjoy this week’s exciting edition.

Yours in Rallying, Evan Rothman

THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF RALLYING

RallyBuzz.com features European rally championships, British rallying, RallyCar events, international rally results and videos, as well as S2000 and WRC news.

www.RallyBuzz.com

s e k a r b d n Ha Hairpins

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e world of rallying

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Ferodo Racing Brake Pads just keep on winning!

Congratulations to all the championship & rally winners using Ferodo Racing brake pads in 2010

Please contact us to reserve your brake pads for next season

Telephone +27 11 6708400 E-mail – info@ats-motorsport.co.za Website: www.ats-motorsport.co.za

News

>>MORE NEWS For even more news, with daily updates, visit http://wp.me/pkXc

HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS

Team & Event News WRC IRC South African Rallying DAILY ONLINE UPDATES For your convenience, here are the news items in this easy-toclick menu page: WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP P. Solberg enters Rallye Monte Carlo: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hj M-Sport supports WRC Academy: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h7 EUROPEAN AND INTERCONTINENTAL RALLY CHALLENGE Wittmann wants more IRC action: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h3 McCormack looks to IRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h1 Delecour on Monte Carlo comeback: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gZ Monte Carlo preparations: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gW Peugeot entry for Rally Monte Carlo: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hw

Rally GB parade and RBF: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gT Evolution Challenge in UK/Ireland: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ho Cronin is Int’l Driver of the Year: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hq INTERNATIONAL RALLYING AND OFF-ROAD RACING Volkswagen wants Dakar Rally win: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hf Mini Clubman CC and G. Chicherit: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ht USA AND RALLYCAR RALLY NEWS AND EVENTS David Higgins join SRT USA for 2011: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hz RECOMMENDED YOUTUBE RALLY VIDEOS: Mads Ostberg at WRC Wales Rally GB: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2fk

BRITISH AND IRISH RALLYING Dulux Trade looks to 2011 BRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hc

THIS WEEK’S BEST VIDEO << The end of the 2010 World Rally Championship season is here, with the Wales Rally GB completed this past weekend. Here is a great video for your viewing pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk7xitr2TgU At the top of each page, a tabbed section contains video clicks we recommend viewing. In other tabbed sections, we have linked articles posted on our website that will add more perspective and insight into the article it accompanies. Together with the videos, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS aims to offer readers a fully-interactive reading experience.

Send evanrothman@gmail.com your favourite rally-related videos to to be featured in this section. Or, send us a twitter to @Evan_Rothman or a message on Facebook.

THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF RALLYING

RallyBuzz.com features European rally championships, British rallying, RallyCar events, international rally results and videos, as well as S2000 and WRC news.

www.RallyBuzz.com

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e world of rallying

Bringing you the latest international rally news, extensive event previews and reviews, indepth feature and technical articles, awardwinning photography and insightful columnists, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS is distributed to your e-mail inbox each week for FREE in the form of a high-quality 2MB .PDF file.

To receive this FREE eMagazine (in .PDF format), please send an email to evanrothman@gmail.com.

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NEWS

Features

Issue 162 • 09 December

Events

WATCH: Northern Loop Productions’ feature video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j54i7Fpw0HM

SOCIAL MEDIA: FOLLOW US!

Kris Meeke takes on DiRT3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW51xjuA0GU

FAN FOTO FRAMED

Got a great shot from a rally? Send your favourite rally photograph to evan.hhmag@gmail.com to be featured here!

Picture by Alex Gillibrand.

Follow HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS on Twitter and Facebook for insightful news and entertainment.

s e k a r b d n Ha Hairpins

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Bringing you the latest international rally news, extensive event previews and reviews, indepth feature and technical articles, awardwinning photography and insightful columnists, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS is distributed to your e-mail inbox each week for FREE in the form of a high-quality 2MB .PDF file.

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Features

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

PETTER SOLBERG ENTERS RALLY MONTE CARLO Words: Staff Writer Picture: Tony Whelan/PSWRT

ISTANBUL ROCKS FOR RALLY Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Burcu Burkut Erenkul At the end of each season in Istanbul, Turkey, an exciting adn highly-competitive three-round rally series is held to boost the profile of rallying in this area. The Istanbul Rally Championship, which started on 28 November and ends on 26 December, starts from the Viaport Shopping Centre and is supported by thousands of spectators lining the rally stages.

The first event on 28 November was won by Okur Menderes and Aras Dincer (Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX), thrashing their rivals over the four demanding stages of this spectatorfriendly event. A total of 53 cars took to the stages, including a number of S2000 machines.

As with throughout 2010, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS closely followed the progress of Burcu Burkut Erenkul (Ford Fiesta ST). Supported

by Sonax and Tissot, this young and

upcoming rally star hopes to follow in the footsteps of Burcu Cetinkaya (participating in the Intercontinental rally Challenge series in a Peugeot 207 S2000).

In this first round of the Istanbul Rally Championship, Erenkul came home as the first of seven ladies drivers, second in the Junior Drivers category and third in Class N3.

With round two taking place this weekend, Erenkul expects stiffer rivalry over the four stages but will be pushing harder to claim more valuable points.

Aiming for a successful outing in this short series, Erenkul aims to compete in selected rounds of the Italian Rally Championship along with her Turkish Rally Championship events in her Ford Fiesta ST. H&H

Olivier Quesnel, director of Citroën Racing and Peugeot Sport, has hired Petter Solberg as a guest driver for the 2011 IRC opening event, the Rallye Monte-Carlo. Petter Solberg will drive a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 car.

“I was very surprised when Olivier Quesnel, director of Citroën Racing and Peugeot Sport, contacted me and asked if I would be a guest driver for the 2011 IRC Rallye Monte-Carlo in January,” said Petter Solberg. “Of course I had to accept! The manufacturer team will run the car, and they wanted to hire me for this event to secure a good result for the team. As for me, this means more competitive kilometres in a rally car and a new experience, as I have not entered an IRC event before. There is also live coverage of some of the stages, which will be exciting. This is a one–time arrangement, and I have no plans for a future in the IRC. My plan is still to be in the WRC, and fight for the championship in 2011.”

Rallye Monte-Carlo starts in Valence on 19 January 2011 and ends in Monaco on 22 January. Along with Petter, there will be 5 other cars run by the French manufacturer (which is a part of PSA Peugeot Citroën group). H&H

News

FEATURES

Issue 162 • 09 December

Events

Kimi Raikkonen at WRC Wales Rally GB 2010: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8nMExX0k_c

Ken Block powers through Wales Rally GB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2KFSIuouVU

HOLMES WINS SEED 9 RALLY BRC PLANS TRAINING DAYS FOR 2011 SEASON Words: Staff Writer Picture: Jakob Ebrey Photograhy In a move to improve and develop competitors’ skills and prospects in both the domestic and overseas events, the promoters of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship will run three training sessions for registered competitors in 2011.

The first of the training events will be all about pace-note making and the team dynamic in the car before and during rallies. Former World Rally Champion co-driver Phil Mills will be joined by other top co-drivers at the training day in January to pass on their invaluable experience. The session will include both theory and practical demonstration and assessment in advance of the 2011 BRC season opener, Rallye Sunseeker International.

The second training day will be aimed at drivers wanting to learn and develop their asphalt driving skills.

Although co-drivers will obviously be welcome, the day will include instruction from race drivers who will pass on important techniques, the use of racing lines and driving styles suitable to getting the best possible performance on a sealed surface.

The final training session, the BRC training camp, will be much more involved and draws on the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship’s ongoing collaboration with the Finnish motorsport governing body (AKKMotorsport).

The week long session will take place in Finland involving the run-up to one of the Finnish Rally Championship events. Using the same training

techniques employed by successful Finnish rally drivers, instruction will consist of pace note making, driving practice and learning the art of car setup. The week’s activities will culminate in attending the rally itself where crews will have the opportunity to take part in the recce, spectate and run through the stages after the passage of the cars. In addition, packages will also be available for competitors to contest the whole event too on an arrive-and-drive hire basis.

“It has been our intention for a while now to provide some worthwhile and practical training for our registered competitors and so I am delighted that we can now offer this next season. The elements of the instruction will augment those skills which will be covered by the MSA Country Championships. Together with MSA Team UK and Formula Junior, we are all working closely together to ensure all of our competitors are provided with an opportunity for personal development,” said BRC Manger Mark Taylor.

While the dates and a basic outline are already in place, detailed information will be available to registered competitors nearer the time.

Competitors who are interested in the training sessions should contact the championship early, as places may become limited.

Training events dates: Pace note and co-driver training – 28/29 January Asphalt driving techniques – 13/14 May BRC training camp (Finland) – 5 - 14 June H&H

Words: Staff Writer Picture: Motorsport Memories Off-road racing driver from the United States of America and his co-driver Sean Gallagher pulled off another Class win and the overall victory at the 2010 Southwest Rally Series’ Seed 9 Rally that took place in Jean, Nevada last month.

The two-wheel drive Bilstein/ BFGoodrich-sponsored 2008 Ford F-150 Rally Racing truck was the first vehicle starting the event, with a strong entry list that included a number of all-wheel drive vehicles that started behind in twominute intervals. From the start to the finish, the team of Holmes/Gallagher led and won all seven stages of the testing event.

The rally got underway at 4pm under warm blue desert skies and progressed well into the night, with the first two stages being run in the daylight and the other five stages in the nighttime. As the sun set over the desert mountains, the monsoon thunder clouds rolled in and the skies opened with large drops falling to the ground. Holmes said about the lightning: “It was so bright and close that the flashes of lightning were just a little brighter than my 10 HID KC Hilites on the truck.”

The Seed 9 Rally took place after the SEMA show in Las Vegas where the truck was on display all week. The 2010 season ended, and Holmes finished the year second overall in the 2010 California Rally Series Championship’s Group Five (Open 2WD). H&H

Issue 162 • 09 December

News

Mads Ostberg in Wales: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVWG5_BtfAE

FEATURES

Events

NLP’s tribute to the Ford Focus RS WRC: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3ZPk1kVfaA

HINO PREPARES FOR DAKAR Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Quickpic Hino, the leading Japanese truck manufacturer, faces its toughest ever challenge in its quest for honours in the 2011 Dakar Rally which will mark the company’s 20th consecutive entry in this worldrenowned endurance rally-raid.

The event, which starts in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 01 January, will follow a route of 9,500km in 2011, made up of 13 stages and 5,000km of the total distance will comprise racing stages before retraining to the finish in Buenos Aires on 13 January after traversing terrain in both Argentina and Chile.

The number of trucks entered for the event has jumped by more than 30% since last year, going from 52 to 68 entries. The total field for the 2011 Dakar Rally is 430 vehicles, which is a 20% improvement on the 2010 figure of 362 vehicles. The field includes people from 51 nationalities (up from 40 in 2010) and there are 13 women in the field.

The two, Japanese-crewed Hino 500 trucks’ have the objectives of not only winning the under 10-litre engine capacity class once again, but also finishing as high as possible overall.

(Hino’s finished first, second and third in the 1997 Dakar-Agades-Dakar Rally in 1997 and are the only manufacturer to have taken a clean sweep of the podium placing in the truck category).

The field for the 2011 event will include the highest number of so-called ultra-high power “monster trucks” with 25 of these 800+ horsepower machines entered, so Hino will have to put up a real David-slays-Goliath performance to finish high up in the overall finishing order.

The Czech Republic’s Tatra company has built a 1,000 horsepower machine to challenge the recent superiority of the Russian Kamaz entries.

Next year’s race also marks the return to the Dakar of the MAN factory team from Germany, winners of the 2007 event, with two trucks entered under the banner of Veka Man with a Mission.

Other “monster trucks” in the field are GINAF (Dutch-built specialist

trucks based on DAF components), Iveco and Liaz.

Hino is expecting a strong challenge to its superiority in the under 10-litre class from the Dutch Finstral Rally Team with a Mercedes-Benz Axor.

Its 7,2-litre in-line six-cylinder turbo diesel engine produces 500-horsepower and has a high top speed, whereas the 8-litre “Little Monsters” from Hino have less power but have superior performance over rough terrain.

Two South Africans are in the field, Anthony Taylor and Juan Mohr, who will be crewing a 107-litre MAN L2000 4x4 as the service support crew for Team Overdrive, a Belgian team that consists of four South African-built Nissan Navaras. Former Dakar motorcycle star, Alfie Cox, of South Africa will be driving one of these vehicles. (Taylor drivers a Hilux for the factory Castrol Toyota motor sport team and won the last event of the season, the Magalies 400 recently). H&H

News

FEATURES

Issue 162 • 09 December

Events

WRC Rally Sweden 2010 highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VCW0UW_07Q

WRC 2008 highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mThzqHaU2s

HISTORIC RALLY DU VAR A CHALLENGING TRIAL Words: Staff Writer From 25 to 28 November, the area around Sainte Maxime along the French Riviera, was the location for the 26th edition of the Rallye Historique du Var. A total of 45 rally cars entered this event, which also counts towards the FIA European Historic Rally Championship. The event’s total distance was 583km over nine special stages of 188 competitive kilometres.

Porsche was the most well represented marque with 15 cars in attendance. Nine Renault Alpine’s were also proudly piloted.

Silver Arrows Racing’s flag was flown by Bart Vanhaverbeke with co-driver Filip Lecomte in their black Mercedes 500 SLC. The only other Belgian crew was Kurt Vanderspinnen with Raud Stroper who battled for first place in the European Rally Championship with their Ford Lotus Cortina.

While the Silver Arrows service team pitched its tent in the parking lot of the amusement park in Port Grimaud, the recce was carried out under a radiant sun accompanied by a hard and cold Mistral wind from the northwest. From the beginning it was clear that narrow and winding trails in the hills would not only be very technical, but would also punish any mistake with a drop down into a ravine or into a mountainside or tree.

On the eve of the rally it started raining heavily, making the team fear for the worst. Fortunately, during the night the strong Mistral wind had blown everything dry again, and after noon that following the rally began in warm and sunny weather.

Vanhaverbeke/Lecomte started 32nd in the first 16.5km-long special stage of Pignans. Despite a rather nervous start, the team found its rhythm quite fast but was held up halfway by a slower competitor who wouldn’t allow them to overtake. Nevertheless, they posted the 16th best time and were only 01min 04sec behind stage winners and favorite for overall victory Jean Charles Redele/Laurent Cordonnier (Renault Alpine A110). Mechanical problems forced Vanderspinnen/Stroper into retirement after SS1 and thereby lost all chances of Class victory in the European Championship.

SS2 (the 33.15km-long Collobrieres stage) was tackled cautiously by th Silver Arrows Racing

team as the route was treacherous. They managed to set the 20th fastest stage time, 02min 26sec behind stage winners Redele/Cordonnier.

After a short service of 15min, the rally continued along the French Riviera coast to Canadel for SS3. This the last stage of the day was delayed due to a spectator needing to be hospitalised after falling out of a tree.

Meanwhile it had become dark in the mountains and the stage had to be raced with a cold engine, cold brakes and cold tyres. Ambient temperature had droppd to just above freezing. Knowing the rally would not be won or lost in this stage, the team decided to drive carefully and finished in 30th place over 01 minute 16sec behind stage winners Frédéric Raynal/Jérome Louveirol (Ford Escort RS).

The Silver Arrows Racing team ended Day One in 19th place overall, with Redele/Cordonnier (Renault Alpine A110) in the lead followed by Gérard Morière/Odette Gabelle (Porsche 911 SC).

Day Two started early and the freezing cold did no good to the battery of the Mercedes, taking 7min to get the car going. However, the resulting 70sec penalty motivated the team push hard on the remaining stages, starting with the 14.2km-long Gonfaron stage (SS4).

The team managed to clock the 10th fastest time, only 47sec behind stage winners Miroslav Janota/Pavel Dresler (Opel Kadett GTE).

SS5 (10.6km-long Bormes les Mimosas test) saw the team place 15th fastest. Also, for the last morning stage, a rerun of the Canadel stage, SS6, they ended 17th, some 34sec behind rally leaders Redele/Cordonnier who were 25sec ahead of Morière/Gabelle.

Upon returning to service, clouds appeared and snowflakes began to fall. Since SS7 (32.2km-long Vidauban test) would be run in the mountains and would take over an hour to rech the startline, Vanhaverbeke decided to run the stage on intermediate tyres. This proved a bad decision as the start of the stage sufficiently dry in spiye of some light snow. Despite the lack of grip, the stage started well for the powerful Mercedes and the rhythm was quickly found. However, halfway up the Col de Gratteloup driver Bart Vanhaverbeke exited a left turn followed by a treacherous right too fast and lost control of the car, and slid into a ditch against the mountainside. The team immediately realized that their rally was

over. The numerous spectators pushed the car back onto the road, but the hard impact had torn off the left front wheel to make further continuation impossible.

After being towed back to the service park, the damage could be better analyzed and did not seem so bad after all. With a new bumper, front wing, left triangle and revised damper, the car would be ready again for its next event.

Vanhaverbeke, despite the retirement, was still very happy about his performance: “It’s a pitty we had to retire as a result of a wrong tyre choice.

This event also proved how important it is to be familiar with the stages. I am nevertheless very satisfied with the progress we have made since the Ypres Rally and the Tour of Flanders Rally.

Besides the increased reliability, we have made immense progress with the road handling and the gearbox of the car.

“Due to my limited experience with the stage I only used 70% of the potential of this car,” continues Vanhaverbeke. “While on the first day I was lagging between 01 and 02min behind the leaders, I already managed to reduce the gap to around 30sec on Day Two. With the Silver Arrows Mercedes, an experienced driver could battle for a place in the top 5 without any problems and could even win.”

Overall victory in the rally went as expected to Redele/Cordonnier in a Renault Alpine A110, followed at 01min 12sec by Morière/Gabelle (Porsche 911 SC). Third place was taken by Myrsell/ Esko (Porsche 911 RS) at 02min 34sec behind the leaders. H&H

Issue 162 • 09 December

News

FEATURES

• Solberg enters Rallye Monte Carlo: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hj

• McCormack looks to IRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h1

• M-Sport supports WRC Academy: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h7

• Delecour on Monte comeback: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gZ

• Wittmann wants more IRC action: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2h3

• Monte Carlo preparations: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gW

Events

CHANGE TO 2011 USRC CALENDAR Words: Staff Writer

HIGGINS JOINS SRT USA Words: Staff Writer Picture: Chris Yandell/Vermont SportsCar Subaru of America, Inc. announced this week that it would be returning to the Rally America National Championship in the Open Class with a two-car program in 2011.

Led by current Subaru Rally Team USA (SRT USA) driver Dave Mirra and joined by British seasoned rally driver David Higgins, each driver will be piloting a Subaru Impreza WRX STI prepared and fielded by technical partner Vermont SportsCar. Higgins brings extensive rallying experience to SRT USA, most recently competing in the Chinese Rally Championship having gone on to help his team secure championship titles in 2004, 2007 and 2009. No stranger to the American rally circuit, Higgins claimed consecutive SCCA ProRally titles in 2002 and 2003 before returning to the UK and winning the 2004 British Rally National Championship. Notably, the 38-year-old driver has also won the Group N British Rally National title in 1997, 1999, and 2002. As a testament to his passion for the sport, Higgins and his family also operate a UK-based training facility, The Forest Experience Rally School.

“The first impression of any car is always very important and I felt at home in the 2011 Subaru STI from the very first mile,” said Higgins. ”Everyone

thinks of Subaru when you talk about rally and to be racing for SRT USA is a great honor; I won my first USA SCCA ProRally Championship in 2002 with an STI. I cannot wait for the 2011 season, Rally America has a great program, and it is going to be incredibly fun and competitive.”

Mirra is back and proving that he is a force to be reckoned with; earning rookie of the year honors in 2008 from Rally America, he is poised to have a breakout season with SRT USA. This year he achieved two podium finishes in three rounds of the inaugural RallyCar Rallycross series as well as a podium finish in the Rally America Olympus rally. Widely known as a pioneer in BMX Freestyle and the winningest X Games athlete in history, Mirra now has his sights on being successful rally competitor with Subaru.

As part of SRT USA’s acclimatization program last week, Mirra joined new teammate Higgins for his first shakedown run of the 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car at the team’s proving grounds in upstate New York. Testing footage can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=EacAGUj43LU. H&H

The United States Rally Championship (USRC) announced a change to its Calendar for the 2011 season. The previously scheduled tarmac Rally New York USA will now take place on 1 - 2 April 2011, which is two weeks earlier than the previously announced date.

The United States Rally Championship Calendar for the 2011 Season is as follows: 01) New York Winter Rally, January 15 16, 2011 (snow/gravel) 02) Rally New York USA, April 1 - 2, 2011 (tarmac), Note: Change of date 03) Rally Idaho, June 18 - 19, 2011 (gravel) 04) Gorman Ridge Rally (California), August 26 – 27, 2011 (gravel) 05) Prescott Rally (Arizona), September 30 – October 1, 2011 (gravel) 06) International Rally New York, October 22 - 23, 2011 (gravel) This change helps maintain the time available for competitors between USRC events and will eliminate a conflict with the recently announced date of another event. The three USRC events on the East Coast are all distinct rallies on different surfaces – snow, tarmac and gravel – and do not duplicate each other.

The United States Rally Championship is open to mutual cooperation with any organizer and any sanctioning body. The Championship has made approaches both for the purposes of including additional events and having events combined with other championships on its calendar. Those who have not been directly contacted and are interested in approaching the United States Rally Championship are welcome to do so at this time. H&H

News

FEATURES

Issue 162 • 09 December

Events

• Peugeot for Rally Monte Carlo: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hw

• Evolution Challenge in UK/Ireland: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ho

• Dulux Trade looks to 2011 BRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hc

• Cronin is Int’l Driver of the Year: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2hq

• Rally GB parade and RBF: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2gT

• Mini Clubman CC and G. Chicherit: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ht

MORE SUCCESS FOR L’ESTAGE Words: Staff Writer Picture: Andrew Harvey Photography The names Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard continue to be synonymous with success. The North American Triple Crown winners have just been named to the 2010 All-America Auto Racing Team by the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association (AARWBA). This latest award is the last in series of achievements the team has accomplished in this unprecedented season.

Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard are capping off an amazing year after winning the Rally America series in July and a bronze medal at the ESPN X Games in August. They clinched the North American Rally Championship in September and claimed the Canadian Rally Championship in November.

“It’s an honour to be voted onto the First Team along with great racing names including Dario Franchitti, Jimmie Johnson, Will Power, and Kyle Busch,” confides Antoine L’Estage.

“I’m proud to be the only woman on the Team - all co-drivers appreciate being recognized for their accomplishments alongside their drivers,” adds Nathalie Richard.

No other Canadians have been named to the First Team of AllAmericans since Ron Fellows in 2004.

For over forty years, the

AARWBA has been selecting an annual All-America Racing Team. The Team is recognized by the Associated Press, Reuters, and major publications as the only one of its kind in motorsports. Each year, the driver with the most votes wins the Jerry Titus Memorial Award as the Driver of the Year. The AARWBA awards banquet will take place on 9 January 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Antoine L’Estage holds three North American titles (2007, 2008 and 2010), three Canadian championship titles (2006, 2007, 2010), one American title (2010) and twenty-five overall victories in Canada and the United States. Nathalie Richard holds six overall national championships (Canada 2004, 2007, 2010 and USA 2004, 2005, 2010) and thirty-one national victories on both sides of the border. The North American title she clinched in September is her sixth in seven years. H&H

CRONIN WINS IRISH MOTORSPORT AWARD Words: Staff Writer Keith Cronin from Ballylickey, Co Cork, who was recently crowned British Rally champion for the second year in succession, was voted by the Irish motorsport media as the Motorsport Ireland International Driver of the Year and winner of the Manley Memorial Trophy.

This reflects the outstanding year which Irish drivers have had in rally, racing and rallycross competition throughout the world.

Meanwhile, 23-year-old Robert Barrable from Swords in Co. Dublin was announced as the Young Rally Driver of the Year. H&H

Events

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

SOUTH AFRICA RALLYING: 2010 SEASON IN REVIEW Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Motorpics and Evan Rothman The 2010 South African Rally Championship (SARC) comprised eight hard-fought rounds for this the 50th anniversary year. Proving itself as thrilling as any international rally championship, 2010 was a year of high-speed action like no other.

Determination, bravery and a cool head brought Enzo Kuun and Guy Hodgson (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo S2000) overall victory this season ahead of Johnny Gemmell/Drew Sturrock (Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000) by the narrowest of margins. End-over-end crashes, helicopter emergency rescues and burning cars combined with the electrifying pace in every Class of the Championship made for an unforgettable year. The overall Championship became a three-horse race between Enzo Kuun, Johnny Gemmell and Conrad Rautenbach (Ford Fiesta S2000), with each of the drivers won an event, traded fastest stage times and were awe-inspiring to witness as they threw caution to

the wind to extract an extra tenth of a second from their war machines.

It was, however, the consistency of Kuun that netted him his second SARC title crown. This season was the most competitive ever with no less than eight potential winners on each event and saw the closest ever win, Gemmell’s 0.7sec victory over Habig on the Rally of South Africa; on the same event, Drew Sturrock, Gemmell’s co-driver, became the youngest ever overall rally winner, while Haigh-Smith, at 18 years and 8 days, became the youngest ever Class Champion and Megan Verlaque became the first ever female Class Drivers’ Champion. This is HADNBRAKES & HAIRPINS’ 2010 season in review.

After a nearly five-month-long off-season, KwaZulu-Natal’s sweeping and slippery gravel roads opened the season in dramatic fashion. New crews and cars (including a total of 17 S2000 cars, which is the largest number in a national championship in the world) were debuted at this first round with the action taking up where it left off at the end of 2009: it was the BP Ultimate

Volkswagen Polo S2000 crews scrapping for the overall victory. This first event was also remembered for its lucky-tobe-alive crashes and fire.

Reigning champions Hergen Fekken/Pierre Arries (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo S2000) started their title defence in the best possible manner with a sure-footed victory in KwaZulu-Natal. They were chased by win-hungry teammates Kuun/Hodgson all-weekend long, giving Volkswagen a one-two podium result. Mark Cronje/ Robert Paisley (Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000) finished third as the fastest of the Toyota crews while teammates Gemmell/Sturrock rolled out of the rally on SS4 while hounding the leaders. With no team orders in place in the factorybacked Volkswagen, it was each driver fending for himself.

The biggest surprise amongst the frontrunners was World Rally Championship (WRC) sensation Conrad Rautenbach and co-driver Peter Marsh piloting a Subaru Impreza N2010 in Class N4. In his first foray in three years in a Class N4 car, Rautenbach finished

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Petter Solberg - spectacular in Wales: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXF_SCEjizw

fourth overall to upstage the many faster and lighter S2000 machines and showcased his talent behind the steering wheel.

This event also provided the biggest drama: Mohammed Moosa/Grant Martin (Team Total Toyota RunX S2000) rolled and landed upside down in a river just 20m away from Schalk Burger Jr/Armand du Toit (Automark Toyota RunX S2000) who had crashed in the same fashion just two minutes earlier.

Fortunately, alert spectators extricated both crews from their cars without any serious injuries. Early on Day Two the new Basil Read/bizhub Ford Fiesta S2000 of Charl Wilken/Greg Godrich caught fire on an open section. The fire proved terminal for their car, rendering it a rather expensive heap of molten steel and ash.

Class A7, which this season seemed to suffer much the same situation as the beleaguered Class N4, only registered a handful of competitors for 2010. In KwaZulu-Natal the first of the two-wheel drive cars home was Chris de Wit/Dean Redelinghuys (Automark Toyota RunX A7) to win this ailing Class in dominant fashion, but De Wit was to appear only at selected events.

As competitive as Class S2000 was Class A6. Rookie Leeroy Poulter and experienced co-driver Henry Dearlove (Imperial Toyota RunX A6) dominated the Class in his debut rally season, but at the first event it was Tjaart Conradie/ Tiaan Rabe (Silverton Engineering/ Hencom Autobody Toyota Auris A6) who claimed the Class A6 win over veterans Craig Trott/Robbie Coetzee (Team Total Toyota RunX A6).

Andre Cleenwerck/Kesevan Naidoo (BP Ultimate Volkswagen CitiGolf A5) romped to success in Class A5 after teammate Gugu Zulu crashed out in SS6. Ashley Haigh-Smith/Hilton Auffray (React Toyota Yaris A5) showcased their speed, and signalled to the rest of the service park their intentions of victory in 2010.

From KwaZulu-Natal the rally circus moved to the Western Cape.

Known as the “Overberg Grand Prix”, the Toyota Dealer Cape Rally proved highly entertaining thanks to yet another brave showing of driving skill from competitors.

Day One saw three drivers lead the rally and four topped the timesheets on Day Two. It was, however, the Zimbabwean crew of Rautenbach/Marsh in their newly acquired M-Sport-developed Ford Fiesta S2000 who claimed victory with the BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo S2000 crews of Kuun/Hodgson and Fekken/Arries only a handful of seconds adrift.

The pace at the head of the rally at the end of Day One was such that the top five crews were separated by only a handful of seconds. Gaining in momentum and confidence were

Bernardo Sousa in S-WRC Wales Rally GB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZhkX7cFf-g

the factory Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000 crews of Gemmell/Sturrock and Mark Cronje/Robert Paisley who found themselves at the front of the rally leader board on Day Two’s morning stages after Jan Habig/Ralph Pitchford (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo S2000) retired due to mechanical failure.

Gemmell, with a lead of 21sec over his teammate, suffered a puncture that cost him 01min 14sec and dropped him to fifth overall. In the very next stage, Cronje’s car’s propshaft popped and lost him 01min 50sec and dropped him to sixth overall.

In penultimate stage of the event, Rautenbach, now in second place behind Kuun, sniffed a win. With his WRC experience he attacked for the lead and set the fastest stage time to take the rally lead by 6.5sec. Kuun responded in the final stage to beat Rautenbach by 2,8sec, but it was only good enough to narrow Rautenbach’s winning margin to 4.6sec.

Gemmell recovered to finish fourth, the unfortunate Hein Lategan/ Johan van der Merwe (Pirtek Toyota Auris S2000) claimed fifth after four controls arms, three shocks and two alternators were replaced while Cronje came home in sixth overall.

Etienne du Toit/Patrick Vermaak (privateers in a Toyota RunX A7 and in their debut national outing in this car and class) claimed Class A7 honours on their home turf. Leeroy Poulter/Henry Dearlove (Toyota RunX A6) stole the limelight in only their second rally to win Class A6, while Ashley Haigh-Smith/ Hilton Auffray (Team React Toyota Yaris A5) also impressed all to record their first national class win. Megan Verlaque/ Oliver Verlaque (Toyota RunX N3) proved too fast for their class rivals to claim the Class N3 win.

Round three of the season played out in the Mpumalanga Lowveld.

Event organisers mapped out 16 stages through the fast and daunting forests and gravel roads, with a handful of asphalt super special stages added to the mix. Kuun/Hodgson positioned themselves as Championship title contenders by winning this event, but Gemmell and stand-in co-driver Phil Archenoul and Habig/Pitchford chased for the leader all the way to the end of the final stage.

A head-to-head battle between Fekken/Arries and Rautenbach/Marsh shaped the opening stages of the rally and the morning leg of Day Two. This battle was much anticipated by all spectators and competitors alike and the two crews did not disappoint as they traded fastest stage times and pulled out a handy cushion over the rest of the field. In an attempt to outdrive the other, both crashed in the same stage and were ruled out of the event to

prematurely end an enthralling blow-forblow fight.

Kuun inherited the rally lead with a healthy 30sec advantage over teammate Habig and the two Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000 crews.

Gemmell inched closer to Habig and pounced in the afternoon loop of stages to claim second place overall. The second of the factory Toyota Auris S2000 of Cronje/Paisley claimed fourth overall.

Joos and Danie Stassen finished the event in an impressive tenth overall in their Subaru Impreza WRX STi N4 to also win Class N4. Poulter/Dearlove dominated Class A6 and even outpaced Class A7 teams, and Michael Otto/ Tommy du Toit (Toyota Corolla A7) won Class A7 despite finishing behind Poulter/Dearlove in the muddy and wet conditions. Chad Lambert/Nic Prinsloo (Toyota Yaris A5) won Class A5 after a closely fought battle with Haigh-Smith (Toyota Yaris A5). Abduraghman Amlay/ Garth Ritsch (Toyota RunX N3) won Class N3 after the Verlaques’ Toyota RunX quit in SS14.

It was only 0.7sec that stood between Gemmell/Sturrock and Habig/ Pitchford (BP Volkswagen Polo S2000) after 13 stages and 187km of hard, bruising forest gravel racing that made up the Rally of South Africa. The highlight of this rally, the monstrous Jessievale Stage (56km long) claimed a number of top contenders early in the rally (including Kuun/Hodgson, Fekken/ Arries and Rautenbach/Marsh), making the leader board rather scant. However, Gemmell’s first win of the season was anything but straight-forward for he saw a comfortable lead whittled away by some bizarre incidents on Day Two. The most bizarre of these happened in SS8 when a seat-anchoring bolt sheared off after hitting a jump very hard. Gemmell lost consciousness for a brief moment and has no recollection of how the car stayed on the road nor cleared the stage. Sturrock said: “It was so close to going off into the trees; I didn’t know what had happened to Johnny – very scary moment, that.”

Habig steered clear of any further disaster to finish the event second overall and J-P. Damseaux/ Carolyn Swan (Team Total Toyota RunX S2000) ended in third.

Rautenbach/Marsh stamped their presence on this event despite having retired on Day One and restarting on Day Two under SupeRally rules: of Day Two’s nine stages, Rautenbach set the fastest time on five of them. Cronje/ Paisely retired early on Day Two, ending Toyota’s 1-2-3 hold on the rally. This also meant none of the top four on the Sasol South African Rally Championship log took any points away from the weekend.

Poulter/Dearlove once again put in the drive of the rally, bringing

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Mads Ostberg in Wales: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVWG5_BtfAE

their Toyota RunX A6 home seventh overall and the first front-wheel drive car home, as well as winning the 1600cc championship category. Gugu Zulu/ Cindi Harding (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo A7) won Class A7 after their rivals all fell off the road. Joos and Danie Stassen took the Class N4 championship lead after winning the class in their Top Gear Motors Subaru Impreza STI, and Megan and Oliver Verlaque brought their Toyota RunX N3 home to another Class win. Andre Cleenwerck/Kesevan Naidoo (BP Ultimate Volkswagen CitiGolf A5) won Class A5 with a rough sounding car, ending 01m 37sec ahead of the Championship Class leaders HaighSmith/Auffrey.

Rally crews anxiously awaited their chance to tackle the fast yet treacherous gravel roads of the Longmore Forest of Port Elizabeth (HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS’ home town) for the Volkswagen Rally, and with four different winners from the previous four rounds a battle royale shook through the forests.

Rautenbach/Marsh set the tone in SS1, going 12.3sec quicker than anyone else over the 19.25km stage. His pace was slowed when he went through a fence in SS2 and lost 10sec, and the Zimbabwean driver chose to be more cautious through the day’s remaining stages. Dropping off the lead, Rautenbach lost even more time on an all-asphalt stage to finish

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NLP’s tribute to the Ford Focus RS WRC: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3ZPk1kVfaA

Day One some 32sec off the lead pace.

Gemmell/Sturrock took over from Rautenbach’s hot pace and charged through Day One battling with Kuun/ Hodgson to end the day only 5.3sec apart. Through SS8 in Longmore Forest on Day Two, Rautenbach proved to be the man on a mission: he blitzed this stage to finish it 45sec quicker than his Day One effort and a whopping 17sec quicker than his rivals could muster.

This push allowed him to close to within 7.2sec of the lead and move into second place overall. Kuun upped his rhythm too and leapfrogged both Rautenbach and teammates Habig/Pitchford to claim second place overall. Rautenbach’s efforts for a podium finish went up in smoke when he picked up a puncture that set him back 30sec and dropped him to fourth overall. The final two stages saw Gemmell and Kuun punish their cars in a bid to eke out an extra tenth of a second, but at the end of the rally it was Gemmel who claimed the overall honours with Kuun just 1.5sec behind. Habig finished third and Rautenbach took fourth.

Class A7 saw no finishers reach the finish, but Poulter/Dearlove once again proved quickest 2WD and Class A6 competitor. Haigh-Smith/Auffray dominated Class A5 with a brilliant performance, to beat off rivals Chad Lambert/Herman Groenewald (Toyota Yaris A5) by a whopping 10min 1,8sec.

Class N3 was claimed by Stefanie and

Willem Hugo (Toyota RunX N3) after a battle to reach the finish in her new car.

Kuun/Hodgson drove to a comfortable 23.7sec win on the Osram Rally, the sixth round of the series, breaking the deadlock at the head of the SARC leader board. To add to the festivities in the service park, three Championship Class titles were also decided on this event.

Over the opening 30km-long stage Kuun was only 1.6sec faster than teammates Hergen Fekken/Pierre Arries, and this was the start of the rally-long battle for the overall lead.

Sadly, this battle did not feature the Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000s as they both dropped off the lead pace due to mechanical woes. Gemmell/Sturrock were, however, able to climb back into the top ten and work their way up to fifth at the end of this one-day event, but for Cronje/Paisley a lowly 11th was all they could muster. This proved to be Cronje’s last outing for the team, suddenly retiring from the sport.

Jaco van Dyk/Des de Fortier (Volkswagen Polo S2000) crashed heavily in SS2, with the crew being flown to hospital. Both were cleared with minor bruises, but the same could not be said of their Polo S2000.

Poulter/Dearlove clinched the Class A6 Championship, ending the Osram Rally as the top 2WD car for the third time and claiming their fourth class win of the season. Also, Zulu/

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Petter Solberg - spectacular in Wales: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXF_SCEjizw

Harding won the Class A7 title in their BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo. Joos and Danie Stassen brought their car home to their third Class N4 win in as many rallies to clinch the Class title too.

Megan/Oliver Verlaque (Toyota RunX N3) notched their second Class N3 win after a solid drive in trying conditions, with Stefanie/Willem Hugo (Wiel Tydskrif Toyota RunX N3) making it a one-two for the fairer sex. Haigh-Smith became the youngest ever Class champion in SARC history and also wrapping up the Class A5 title with co-driver Hilton Auffrey.

Playing out in the scenic Malmesbury and Milnerton areas of the Western Cape, nine high-speed stages tested the mettle of Soiuth Africa’s top rally crews for the demanding Swartland Rally. Championship leaders Kuun/ Hodgson once again proved too quick and too determined for their rivals romping home to what was an easy 40.3sec win. The podium was an allVolkswagen affair, with their second-ever one-two-three result. It was Habig and stand-in co-driver Judd in second with Fekken/Arries in third. The pace of the resurgent Ford Fiesta S2000 of Wilken/ Godrich on Day One did not deter the Volkswagen parade as they showcased their pace on the opening test of Day Two to set about dominating the top slots on the timesheets.

It was, however, the everpresent threat of Rautenbach/Marsh that rattled the factory Volkswagen crews, as the former WRC driver was running as high as second overall until a persistent power steering pump problem cost them valuable time, relegating them to fourth overall.

Once again the Pirtek Toyota Auris S2000 crews were robbed of top five overall positions due to mechanical woes. Should this team rectify their cars’ mechanical troubles, these drivers will be harassing the factory crews in 2011.

Bad luck has also not been too far from the factory Castrol Toyota Auris S2000 team, with Gemmell/Sturrock suffering a bent steering arm in one stage and then a mysterious power-sapping misfire all through Day Two. Replacing Mark Cronje

Bernardo Sousa in S-WRC Wales Rally GB: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZhkX7cFf-g

for the remainder of the season, Poulter and Robert Paisley made an indelible mark in their debut together in Class S2000 to finish.

Class N4 saw only one finisher in the taxing Swartland and that was local entry of Mike Nathan/Etienne Lourens (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX), who ended the event in a creditable 13th overall. Class A7 saw no finishers as Gugu Zulu/Harding and Gavin Cronje/ Van Aardt Schoeman (Easylife Kitchens Faerie Glen Volkswagen Polo A7) retire all before Day One was even completed.

Class A6 once again proved as thrilling as Class S2000. It was the Team Total Toyota RunX A6 of Craig Trott/Robbie Coetzee who claimed Class honours after Haigh-Smith/Auffray retired from their home event in SS5 and it was another fine performance from Megan and Oliver Verlaque as they powered to an unchallenged third victory in Class N3.

At the Toyota Dealer Gauteng Rally, Kuun/Hodgson claimed the 2010 Sasol South African Rally Championship in spite of parking their BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 in the trees as early as 800 metres in SS3, their second-ever accident in 100 rallies as a works driver.

Kuun started the event with a 21-point advantage over his only rivals Gemmell/ Sturrock; Gemmell had to win whatever happened to Kuun, but could do no better than fourth place in the rally dominated by Wilken/Godrich.

Wilken/Godrich made the event their own, winning six of the 12 stages to open a commanding lead of over a minute by the end of Day One’s all-tarmac stages. It was an easily defendable lead over Saturday’s 78km of seven gravel stages in spite of a hard-charging Rautenbach/Marsh. The Zimbabwean tried hard to close the gap to Wilken by winning four stages, but after two punctures, including one on the very last stage, he eventually ended 01min 24,8sec behind Wilken. They did, however, clinch the inaugural Privateer’s Championship.

The drive of the rally came from Castrol Team Toyota’s Poulter/Paisley in their Auris S2000. In the driver’s

second-ever rally in a S2000 machine, Poulter ended third overall to claim his first podium and capping a remarkable debut rally season.

Gemmell, the Championship runner-up for the second year, and co-driver Drew Sturrock, pushed their Castrol Toyota Auris S2000 as hard as they could, but after ending the first day 01min 27sec behind the leader in fourth place overall, it was game over as far as the Championship was concerned. Toyota did, however, clinch an unprecedented 20th Manufacturer’s Championship title.

Heading the two-wheel drive contingent was Zulu/Harding. Already the 2010 Class A7 Champions, the pair had a down-on-power engine on Day One but came back strongly on Day Two’s dirt stages to take their third class win of the year. Trott/Coetzee claimed the Class A6 win to take the new-for-2010 1600cc Championship in the process. Trott was shadowed all the way by teenager and 2010 Class A5 champion Haigh-Smith and co-driver Auffray. Morne Janse Van Rensburg/ Rikus Fourie brought their Class A5 Volkswagen Polo Vivo home to its second Class win. The Class N3 title fight between Megan/Oliver Verlaque and the points leaders Robson Maganezi/Shaun Visser (Linking Africa Ford Fiesta ST N3) ended in a tie, with the title going to the Verlaques on a count back of wins.

Verlaque, content to cruise to secure her title, saw the Hugos quickly eat into the deficit and take the class win by 25sec. Maganezi ended third in class and second in the Championship. H&H

THE 2010 HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS “ALTERNATIVE” RALLY AWARDS Throughout 2010 we at closely followed the South African Rally Championship and to honour the most exciting, thrilling and impressive this past season, we present you with the “Alternative” Rally Awards. (Other Championships awards ceremonies will be held in due course.)

The Fastest Driver of 2010: 01) Enzo Kuun - 20 Stage wins* 02) Conrad Rautenbach - 16 Stage wins* 03) Hergen Fekken - 13 Stage wins* (* No Rally of South Africa stage times available. A total of 91 stages were run,

but information is only available for 78 stages.)

Best Twitterer of the Year: Gugu Zulu (@GuguZulu)

Rally Rookie of the Year: Leeroy Poulter

The Rally Stage of 2010: SS8 of the Volkswagen Rally - Conrad Rautenbach blitzed all comers to win stage by 26.4s.

2WD Driver of the Year: Ashley Haigh-Smith AWD Driver of the Year: Enzo Kuun The Bad Luck Driver of the Year: Hein Lategan

Fastest Female Driver of the Year: Megan Verlaque Furthest Commute to Rallies: Drew Sturrock (Scotland to South Africa)