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Neath Valley Stages 10th August 2013 Promoted by
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West Wales Rally Spares Sponsors The R.A.C. Rally Championship 2013 www.racrallychamp.org
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Contents Championship Manager Introduction ............................... 5 Championship Introduction ............................................... 7 Event Location Map .............................................................. 8 Rally Introduction.................................................................. 9 Jonathan Brace - Enough Said! .......................................... 10 Route Schedule ..................................................................... 10 Spectator Information.......................................................... 13 Event Schedule ...................................................................... 15 Spectator Map........................................................................ 16 Event Preview ........................................................................ 18 Seeded Entry List ................................................................. 21 Acknowledgements .............................................................. 23 Photo Credit: tombanksphotography.co.uk www.racrallychamp.org
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Introduction Colin Heppenstall Championship Manager
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elcome to the spectator guide for round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, the Neath Valley Stages.
I am delighted that this event is one of the key rounds of our 2013 schedule, as this is a rally run by competitors for competitors. Den Golding and his team are once again putting on a rally that offers outstanding value for money and the compact one-day format is just the type of rally that we want in the championship. Importantly, this event gives competitors the only chance for this year to tackle these classic stages, made famous by Wales Rally GB. With the British round of the World Rally Championship moving north for at least the next three years, the Neath Valley is the only rally using these great stages. All the reports say that the stages are in prime condition, so I think the crews are in for a real treat. We look forward to bringing a strong contingent of championship contenders to the rally and I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved in the rally for all their hard work. From the organising team through to the marshals, rescue and recovery crews: without them we could not go rallying. After the first three rounds of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship, I am absolutely delighted with the way the championship is evolving. Great entries, fierce competition, sporting atmosphere and a real sense of fun are the key features of the championship and we are already working on plans to continue developing the championship in 2014 and beyond. I’m really looking forward to a great day’s rallying on the Neath Valley Stages! With best regards
Colin Heppenstall Championship Manager West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship
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The West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship 2013 6 Rounds
lled
ce Can
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The Championship Paul Lawrence Championship Press and PR Officer
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arely a year ago, the West Wales R.A.C. Rally Championship was little more than an idea amongst a group of competitors. Yet now, as we head for round four, the Neath Valley Stages, it is a thriving and growing part of British rallying.
Colin Heppenstall, the man behind the Roger Albert Clark Rally, is the driving force for the new series but says that it is competitor demand that was the catalyst for this new development. “Competitors, many of them members of the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club, came to us and asked us to put a championship together,” said Heppenstall. “We consulted with a range of interested parties and have had excellent support from the MSA. Cars in Categories One, Two and Three are running in full accordance with the current MSA historic regulations and we are accommodating a range of other cars, including those from the early 1980s, which is set to become the next chapter in the story of historic rallying.” The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club has developed the championship, which focuses on historic rally cars complying with MSA historic regulations. But, significantly, it is also opening up the chance for the next generation of cars to join the historic fraternity. Following the unfortunate cancellation of Rally North Wales, the 2013 championship is running over six one-day gravel rallies in England, Scotland and Wales. The championship caters for cars from MSA historic Categories One, Two and Three as well as cars prepared to FIA Appendix K. Additional classes accommodate cars built up to the end of 1986 as well as other pre ’87 cars that do not fully comply with historic regulations. More than 60 crews lined up in Newtown for the first round back in March and the quality of historic entry was described as the best ever seen for a British championship event. The final count showed over 35 BDA/BDG engined Escorts in a field that also includes cars from Lancia, BMW, Vauxhall, Alfa Romeo, VW, Singer, Opel and Talbot. Of course, this is still early days for the R.A.C. Rally Championship, for the Neath Valley Stages is still only the fourth event in the story. But what is already clear is that competitors and spectators are giving the championship a big thumbs' up. The future is very bright indeed!
Paul Lawrence.
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The Neath Valley Stages Round Four 10th August 2013 Five Special Stages, all new for 2013 45 Special Stage Miles
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Rally Introduction Den Golding Clerk of the Course
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elcome to the 2013 Neath Valley Stages Promoted by Three Counties Car Club. This event is a round of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship and the FMP Rally Challenge.
We are indebted to our Joint Main Sponsors for 2013, Jonathan Brace of Braces Bakery and Mark Jones of Gerry Jones Transport Services. Once again due to the generosity of our sponsors we are able to offer competitors a "great value for money" event with an entry fee of £425 for 5 stages totalling 45 miles within the world famous RHEOLA and MARGAM Forests, with just 61 miles on the public highway. This will be the only opportunity to compete on these fabulous stages this year as Rally Wales GB will not be coming to South Wales in 2013. The stages are in fantastic condition and were last used in Sept 2012.. Rally HQ will be at the "Old Aluminium Works" Resolven. Why not make a full weekend of it.? FREE Overnight camping has been arranged for Friday 9th at Rally HQ with plenty of room for Motorhomes and Caravans.. Competitors, Service Crews, Officials and Spectators are all welcome.. Food will be available on Friday from 1pm onwards and all day Saturday. We hope you will come and join us for a great day’s Motorsport
Den Golding Clerk of the Course
Regulations are now available on our website.: http://www.threecountiescarclub.com
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Jonathan Brace Enough said!
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s joint sponsor of the event, Jonathan Brace will also be competing on the Neath Valley Stages in his historicspec Ford Escort Mk2 as part of his campaign in the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship.
Jonathan, now living near Newport, started road rallying in 1988 and then did a couple of forest events. “Then I got married in 1996 and rallying stopped until 2004. It’s only now that we can afford to do the amount of rallies that we do.” Brace’s Bread is a family business, established in 1902 and is now on the fourth generation of Braces. It has a turn-over of £40 million and employs over 300 people, with all production based in South Wales. “We are joint sponsors of the Neath Valley Stages. Sponsorship for events is becoming more difficult and it is good to put something back. It is our local club’s event as well, so we are pleased to help make it work. “I’m now at a stage when I can enjoy my rallying and it is great to sponsor young Ben Llewellin. He seems to follow in his father David’s footsteps and that’s what I was hoping. I seem to run in the middle ground and sometimes encroach a little bit higher. We got David back in a rally car last year for the Neath Valley. In 1996, I lent David Stokes my car and he did a couple of events in it after a long time out of rallying. He later decided to make a full comeback and I must admit he has got a talent. Jonathan does between six and eight rallies a year. “I mainly do events in Wales: we are so blessed with some of the best stages in the world. I love rallying: it is my only hobby other than alcohol. The company has four seats in the Millennium Stadium, but I’ve only ever been to watch the rugby once. It’s not my cup of tea!
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11 “I think the great thing with historics is that it is a level playing field. They are great fun to drive. But I’m not pot-hunting and I want to improve by pushing myself against the best and if I get a pot along the way, that’s great. People like Julian Reynolds, Nick Elliott and Marty McCormack have got to be some of the best drivers in the UK in any class, so to come within a reasonable distance of them is okay.
“With the speed that I am running at now I think I would have won events when I started in 2004. It is competitive now that I’m still coming tenth and 14th. Hopefully I’ll be like David Stokes or Terry Brown and have at least another 20 years of rallying. I think it keeps you young because you’ve got to be sharp.”
Jonathan Brace was talking to Paul Lawrence
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Spectator Information
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he organisers of the 2013 Brace’s Bakery and Gerry Jones Transport Neath Valley Modern and Historic Stages strongly advise spectators to visit the organised spectator stage at Rheola. The map references are reproduced below and a map of the stage is reproduced on the following pages.
Control / Stage
Name
Map Reference
MC 1
Start
170/840040
SS1
Rheola 1
160/858066
MC2
Service
170/840040
SS4
Rheola 2
160/858066
MC4
Finish
170/840040
N.B. there will be a “trophy” rally for those competitors who have retired early in the event. They will, subject to the normal rigours of scrutineering be able to restart at service and take part over SS4 & SS5. Please note that rallies are often held in remote locations therefore, if you are spectating on this event we strongly advise you to download the spectator guide before heading into the forests, as there may not be a strong mobile signal at all localities. The organisers cannot be held responsible for the lack of mobile device coverage to enable downloading.
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Spectator Information RHEOLA SPECTATOR STAGE Admission charge is £10 per car payable on the gate. Tickets are also available at Rally HQ. This includes a full coloured programme and a seeded Entry List. This Ticket will allow full access to the Stage and also to Rally HQ on Friday 9th from 12 noon and again on Saturday 10th from 07.30am. Rheola is the only official Spectator Stage and will be used twice during the rally. First car is due on SS1 at approximately 10.45 and on SS4 at approximately 2.00pm. Spectator Gate will open at 9.00am Food and drink will be available at the spectator area PLEASE FOLLOW MARSHALS’ INSTRUCTIONS
There is a strict 15mph limit on the Forest road (imposed by Natural Resources Wales) Forestry Officers will be in attendance throughout the day so please adhere to the limit. This limit will also be imposed by the Organisers at Rally HQ Spectators are welcome to camp overnight on Friday 9th at Rally HQ FREE OF CHARGE. There is plenty of room for Motor-homes and Caravans on a solid concrete car park but unfortunately no grass for tents Alcohol is not permitted in the Forest or at Rally HQ. Offenders will be asked to leave We hope you have a great day’s Motorsport The Organisers
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Event Schedule Time
Schedule
Additional Info
June: - Regulations available and entries open Friday 9th Aug
14:00
Service Park Opens
14:00
Noise Check / Scrutineering
N.B. Friday Scrutineering is for registered R.A.C. Contenders and Historic Competitors
Documentation opens 18:00
Noise Check / Scrutineering Documentation closes
Saturday 10th August
07:00
Noise Test / Scrutineering Documentation opens
N.B. Saturday Scrutineering is for Modern Competitors R.A.C. Media Desk Open
07:00 09:00
Scrutineering Closes
10:30
1st Car leaves Rally HQ
10:43
SS1 Rheola 1
11:39
SS2 Bryn 1
12:01
SS3 Margam 1
12:47
1st Car Service Halt
13:47
1st Car Leaves Service Halt
13:57
SS4 Rheola 2
All other Category 2 and 3 cars
13:12
SS5 Bryn 2
Short gap
N.B. The running order for all cars will be as follows; Category 1 Cars plus classes C1 and C2 from Category 2 and classes D1 and D2 from Category 3 Short gap
st
15:53
1 Car Finishes
16:53
Car No. 60 Finishes
Modern 2WD cars Short gap 4WD cars
17:30
R.A.C. Media Desk Closes
Awards N.B. Subject to any official delays and number of entries
19:00
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Rally HQ Closes
The organisers thank you for attending and hope that you have had a great day’s sport. Come back and see us in 2014
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The organisers strongly advise spectators to keep to the spectator stage at Rheola.
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Event Preview Neath Valley set for WWRS R.A.C. Rally Championship round four
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he classic Wales Rally GB stages of South Wales will be the setting for the Neath Valley Stages, round four of the West Wales Rally Spares R.A.C. Rally Championship (Saturday 10 August).
With 14 models of car from 11 manufacturers and a vast array of quality drivers, including five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae, it is another superb entry for the championship. The historic cars will run first on the road, competing over prime gravel stages in the Rheola and Margam forest complexes. The very compact route, based at Rheola, covers 45 stages miles and just over 60 road miles and the forest tracks are reported as being in prime condition. The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club has developed the R.A.C. Championship, which focuses on historic rally cars complying with MSA and FIA historic regulations. But, significantly, it also opens up the chance for the next generation of cars to join the historic fraternity. The 2013 championship is running over six one-day gravel rallies in England, Scotland and Wales. The championship caters for cars from MSA historic Categories One, Two and Three as well as cars prepared to FIA Appendix K. Additional classes accommodate cars built up to the end of 1986 as well as other pre ’87 cars that do not fully comply with historic regulations. Heading the main historic field away will be championship leaders Marty McCormack/Phil Clarke and Nick Elliott/Dave Price in a battle of the Ford Escort Mk2s and their respective pace in these forests will be a talking point of the rally. Elliott has more experience than McCormack of the area, but neither crew is on what can be described as familiar territory.
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Event Preview Lining up against McCormack and Elliott will be another leading contender in the form of the Viking Motorsport prepared Ford Escort Mk2 of Jason Pritchard/Dale Furniss, who may elect to run in the Martin Jones Transmissions Series 4 for cars prepared to FIA Appendix K regulations. Whichever category Pritchard enters, he will be a very big rival to McCormack and Elliott in overall terms, having shown increasingly strong pace in recent rounds. McCormack and Elliott head the entry for the Rob Smith Rallying Series 3, but a gaggle of very quick Escort Mk2s will be in pursuit, including the cars of Terry Brown/Tomos Whittle, James Potter/Bob Duck, Will Nicholls/Nick Broom, Warren Philliskirk/Paul Wakely, Peter Slights/James Whitaker, Jimmy McRae/Pauline Gullick, Tim Freeman/tba, Phil and Mick Squires and event co-sponsor Jonathan Brace with Jonny Evans. All of them add fantastic quality to another very strong field for the WWRS R.A.C. Championship. Class D4 within Series 3 promises to be very interesting with the addition of an ex-Russell Brookes Sunbeam Lotus for Irish ace Owen Murphy and highly experienced co-driver James O’Brien. Although lacking experience in these forests, Murphy’s pace in Ireland suggests he could be a big contender. Similarly mounted are former BHRC champion James Stait and Glyn Thomas on Stait’s first outing of 2013. A tremendous seven-strong entry for Class D3 makes it the best D3 field of the season in British historic rallying so far and the addition of asphalt ace Melvyn Evans in his Escort Mk2 adds further quality. Evans, who is an infrequent competitor on gravel, will go up against championship pacesetters Ben Mellors/Alex Lee (Escort Mk2) and the Opel Kadett of Peter Smith/Graham Wild. More rapid Pinto-powered Escorts are entered for Paul Fry/ Mike Steele, Duncan Waite/Keith Garton and Ben Friend/ Jonathan Jackson. The Ford Escort Mk1 of Nick Jarvis/Craig Thorley should set the standard in the Capital Construction Series 2 (1968-74), where an excellent entry of 2-litre Pinto-powered Escort Mk1s will
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Event Preview take on the BMW 2002 of Terry Cree/Richard Shores. The Escort pack includes the ever-spectacular Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing and David Kirby/Chris Rixon. The WWRS R.A.C. Championship has pioneered a move to allow the 1600cc cars from Series 2 and 3 to run first on the road along with the Series 1 cars and this trial will be repeated on the Neath Valley Stages. The Ford Escort Mk1s of Vince Bristow/Tim Sayer and Robin Shuttleworth/Ronnie Roughead will run at the very head of the rally with the flying Bristow set to be first on the road for his debut rally this season in the Escort. Also running in this group will be the Hillman Avenger of Graham Thatcher/Robert James. In the Walker Diecastings Series 1, the Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis/Graham Wride will set the benchmark in an encouraging field of pre ’68 cars. In hot pursuit will be Ian Beveridge/Paul Price (Volvo PV544) and John Everard/ Mark Sharpley in the lovely Alfa Romeo GT. Now rebuilt after rolling on the Tour of Hamsterley, the Alfa will be a real crowd pleaser and will be chased by Les Allfrey/ Sasha Herriott (Mini Cooper), Chris and Jo Tooze (Singer Chamois) and welcome converts Callum Barney/Ron Channon (Ford Cortina GT).
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Seeded Entry List
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Seeded Entry List
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23 Jonathan Brace of Brace’s Bakery
Acknowledgements Mark Jones of Gerry Jones Transport
Howard Rees of RM Rees (Contractors) Ltd
Our stage sponsors: Mark Solloway of Historic RallySport Ltd
Ace Performance Cars
Geoff Jones Motorsport
South Wales Constabulary
Neath/Port Talbot Borough Council
Natural Resorces Wales
MSA UK
Residents on the Route
Andrew Thomson RLO
Members of Forest of Dean Motor Club
All the Marshals, Competitors, and Helpers - we couldn't do this without you.
All that remains for us to say is we look forward to welcoming you to this event. Let’s all hope for a safe and enjoyable weekend’s sport. The Championship Team Please comply with all marshals instructions Please take your litter home and keep the forests clean for everyone!
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