This date change is due to a late Wedding Booking at the White Heather, whose car park we use.

The times and venue remain the same. Sorry for any inconvenience caused.

Having decided my route, taking in some good lanes, I set off to find my first phone box. With the light still glowing from someone else having recently lifted the handset to read the number!  I knew I was in the right place. Then off to the next one. Not knowing the area that well meant I had to check the map at most junctions and “drive it as you see it” in between, which makes it interesting when pressing on! I spent a good 10 minutes looking in the wrong village after a miss plot and managed to find a fully lit old red phone box but with no phone inside. My next mistake was not having an up to date map and getting into a muddle in the lanes around Scilly Bank. A glance at the watch indicated it was time to head back and pick up what I could on the way. It was clear at every box that someone else had recently been there but I did not see any of the other crews on route all night.

Back at the Sheep and Wool with 10 minutes to spare, in one piece and having had a good time, I handed in my answer sheet to Ryan for him to work out the results. It was tight at the top with crews using different strategies to try to get the most points. Three crews were tied for first place so “least miles covered” was used to declare Steven and Ann as winners with Dan and Maurice second and Richard and Andy third.  Everyone said they enjoyed it and Dan had tales to tell. Big thanks went to Russell for the route and Ryan and Mitch for organizing things on the night.

Would I do it again on my own? Yes without question. Don’t get me wrong I’m looking forward to having a navigator in the left seat for next time. But don’t be put off if you can’t find a navigator for a scatter you can still have some fun on your own and that’s what it’s all about.

- Report by Ian Aitken.

The 2012 Arnold Clark Thistle Hotel Snowman Rally, the opening round of the MSA Scottish Rally Championship attracted a great entry with 120 crews set to do battle over 6 stages around the highlands of Aberdeenshire.

The heavy overnight snow forecast didn’t materialise but as crews assembled in Inverness snow was failing on the opening stage making tyre choice and road position the talking point. Stage 1, was 6.5 miles through Meall Mor. The 2011 Scottish and BRC champions David Bogie were the first crew through the stage, car 2 was Euan Thorburn who was using a Ford Focus World Rally Car for the first time, Euan opted to run down the running order in the hope he would benefit from a clean, snow free line. Mike started 2^nd car on the road. “Were looking forward to the event” said Mike at the start “we’ll need to work hard to achieve a podium, but we are ready for a good day”

Mike was 2^nd fastest through stage 1, 13 seconds ahead of Donnie McDonnald, and 15 down on David Bogie. The stage was fast and Mike was little cautious off line in the snow, Stages 2 and 3 was a short 2 mile blast in the forest by  Kessock Bridge, the stage was overgrown and mosey and although no snow it was very slippy., A number of crews were caught out and off the road, Mike and Bogie set identical times on stage 2 with Mike fastest by 2 seconds on stage 3.

As the crews left service, based at the Black Isle show ground, for stage 4 Torr Achility, snow was again the talking point; Mike opted for a gravel tyre.  The final third of the stage was covered in snow and with no option to alter diff settings or switch to snow tyres Mike and Peter slithered through the stage, dropping over 40 seconds to David Bogie and moving to third overall,

The final 2 stages would provide a challenge and with snow again falling the crew opted for snow tyres, Mike set a good time taking 4 seconds out of Bogies lead. “the stage was clear of snow that’s the first time I have driven a stage hoping to find snow round the next corner, we were on the wrong tyre, but we have moved back up to 2^nd overall.” said Mike. Stage 5 was over 12 miles through Glen Urguhart,  The team changed back to gravel tyres however after 4 miles it was clear the right tyres was a snow tyre! Mike struggled with traction and under steer with an overshoot and a few near misses. He was 2^nd fastest and returned to the finish in Inverness a fantastic 2^nd overall.

“That’s a great start to the season and our highest Snowman rally finish, the conditions were very variable, and the snow particularly on stages 4 and 6 gave us a real challenge. We seemed to have the right tyres but had them on for the wrong stages!”

Final Results

1st: David Bogie (Dumfries) / Kevin Rae (Hawick) | Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 9 | 50.03

2nd: Mike Faulkner (Kirtlebridge) / Peter Foy (Bingley) | Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6 | 51.11

3rd: Peter Taylor (Carlisle) / Andrew Roughhead (Newcastle) | Ford Focus WRC | 52.46

4th: Rory Young (Dumfries) / Allan Cathers (Carlisle) | Mitsubishi Evo 6 | 52.49

5th: John McClory / David Hood | Subaru Impreza | 52.50

Next event Scottish Championship Rally is the Border Counties on 17^th March.

West Cumbria Motorsport Club member Richard Barnard debuted his new rally car on the 17th/18th February when he competed on the Chris Kelly Memorial Rally on the Isle of Man. Seeded at number 43 in the field of 55 cars Richard was co-driven as usual by his dad, Andy, in the Lily & Co Subaru Impreza.

The Friday night of the rally featured 3 stages each run twice in the south of the island and from the off a problem with the throttle jamming wide open when the car was running with anti-lag meant for some interesting moments. Damp road conditions with a generous coating of mud in places meant it was so easy to slip off the roads and indeed some cars did. At first service the throttle fault could not be rectified so the car was forced to run for the rest of the rally with anti-lag switched off meaning in would be slightly down on power and pick up out of the tight Manx corners. When one of the bonnet pins on the Subaru came lose the Cockermouth team drove through one stage with the bonnet lifting and the auxiliary lights illuminating the night sky rather than the road ahead. Nevertheless Richard brought the car in unscathed in 28th place for the overnight halt before 8 stages on Saturday in the north of the island.

The wet weather of Friday was replaced with dry, bright but cold conditions on the Saturday morning with the stages still having a covering of mud in places making for some unpredictable driving conditions.

The first stage of the day, the Curraghs, was cut short with a car having crashed out of the rally blocking the track but there was little to report from the Lily & Co Impreza with Richard learning how to get more from his new car with each stage that passed and with this he was slowly moving up the leaderboard.

Following another problem with a car off the road the organisers had to cancel the penultimate stage which left competitors with a final run over the classic Druidale stage to round off the rally.

With minor damage on the Impreza cause by clipping some bales at one or two of the chicanes Richard pulled into the Ramsey final control in 20th place. A good result in a new car that he had had little time to acclimatise to and which as time goes by and he understands more about how to get the best from this car will surely bring improving results.

Service on the event was provided by Malcolm Irving, Tony Grisedale and Dan Hurst who did a sterling job and who did their best to help the Isle of Man economy by trying to spend as much as possible in the Douglas pubs and bars.

- Report by RABrallyesport.

For photos from the Chris Kelly Rally 2012, please check out DRH Photography.

As usual, Russell would like you to bring along some wrapped items suitable for Tombola Prizes. We appreciate wacky ones as well as serious ones!

We are aiming to be seated and ready for our meal no later than 19:15.

Please let Russell know A.S.A.P. what you would like so he can order the food. You can find a menu at the bottom of this message.

Hopefully we will see you all there on the 24th for a food, crack and laughter!

Menu (£17 per head)

Starters:

• Cheese & Tomato Bruchetta
• Duck Pate with Cumberland Sauce
• Waverley Hotel Soup Bowl
• Garlic Mushrooms

Main Course:

• Roast Beef with Yorkshire Puddings
• Pork with Apple Sauce and Stuffing
• Salmon Steak with Tarragon Sauce
• All of the above are served with fresh vegetables and potatoes
• Vegetable Lasagne with a Crispy Salad

Sweets:

• Profiteroles
• Caramel Apple Pie
• Triple Chocolate Gateaux
• Fruit of the Forest Cheesecake
• Tea/Coffee and Mints

To order please contact Russell, 07706788152

The second round of the West Cumbria Motorsport Club Scatter Championship is on Monday 20th February 2012. The event will be ran off Map 89, and every competitor will require a torch.

Signing on is at the Shepherds Hotel, Cockermouth at 19:00 for a 19:30 start (see map below).

Those who are wanting to take part in this event, please contact Ryan Winthrop via phone: 07530316037  or email: ryan.winthrop@mypostoffice.co.uk by the 17th February.

View Larger Map

What is a Scatter Event?

• These are navigational events taking place on public roads in West Cumbria.
• Cars have to be road legal, taxed and MOT tested.
• Events tend to be 45 to 50 miles long and usually take place on Monday evenings.
• Competitors only need a club membership card to enter and the entry fee tends to be £10.
• Requires a crew of two with the navigator solving the clues which are given out prior to the event start.

These events are generally ran through the winter months. To take part you will need a road legal car, a navigator who can read a map, a light for the car, the specified OS map, a pencil, a romer (not a must), and most importantly a watch. Don’t be scared off by all the gear you need as there is always someone on hand that will try and help out where they can!

Prior to setting off, you are given a series of clues which will coincide with places on the map, i.e. spot heights, grid references, pub names, signpost miles, and herringbones. You will set off at a specific time and are given a maximum amount of time to complete the event.

The most important thing, as with all motorsport events, is that it’s safe, well organised, and above all, enjoyable.

Sadly, Papa Hurst wasn’t going to be bringing the Escort out to play again, claiming the last one was too expensive for the jobs she performed….oh bugger, wrong type of Escort!

Off to BRF I went and a post was created, ‘Navigator Available for Christmas Stages’. Of course I was willing to give a contribution towards the entry fee, pay for my own food, accommodation and travel, and wipe my own arse.

After about two hours of my advert being live, I was contacted by Mr McGrath, a fellow West Cumbria Motorsport Club man, asking whether I was serious about doing the event – hell yeah! So after about an hour on the phone it was agreed that we would attack Croft on the 27th December 2011 – fantastic! Or so we thought…

On the 6th December 2011 at 23:05, our plans, as well as many others, were literally piddled on.

“Due to circumstances beyond their control, Northallerton Automobile Club Ltd has reluctantly had to alter the date of the Specsavers Christmas Stages Rally which will now take place on bank holiday Monday January 2nd 2012.”

The reason for this date change?

“The organisers were informed by Croft Circuit…that the original date…was now unavailable due to their allotted 40 days being used up.”

I for one find it impossible to think that not a single person working at Croft Race Circuit has the ability to count to 40! I am in my final year of training to be a Primary Teacher at University, and have taught 3 year olds with a greater ability!

For those who don’t know, Croft are only allowed 40 ‘noisy days’ per year, due to a court case where residents complained about noise – what do you expect living next to a racing circuit!? But that is another rant.

So, what did this mean for some competitors? Cars to tax, seats to update, harnesses to update, MSA Licence to apply for (with the possibility of it not arriving in time), accommodation to change (and fees for cancelling), previous arrangements to alter/cancel, the list goes on!

Anyway, sadly, my driver was no longer able to take part due to previously arranged family commitments. So I was back to square one. After calling three or four drivers who were looking for navigators with no luck, I decided that it was no longer worth the hassle, and I would rather save my pennies up and do a couple of events in 2012 with Papa Hurst. Instead I decided to apply for media accreditation, which I got, so it was off to Croft I went, leaving Cumbria at 06:30am on a cold Monday Morning.

I had more than one reason for wanting to be at Croft for the event, the main reason being it was to be the first event for another West Cumbria Motorsport Club man, Darren Rutter in his Ford Escort MK1, alongside him was the very capable Ann Forster who, for the very first time, was sat in something RWD!

Darren was rather unfortunately seeded as car #69…if you don’t understand the significance of the number, may I suggest you Google ‘Urban Dictionary 69’ – consider it an educational lesson courtesy of myself!

Darren drove an absolute blinder, catching his 30 second man on almost every stage and was sat in 31st O/A until sadly, a snapped shaft in the gearbox brought his day to an end with just two stages to go.

The weather was typically Croft, one minute the sun was out, the next it was hammering down with rain; there were even sightings of a rainbow spanning the track! One thing however remained the same….it was flipping cold!

Driver of the day for me had to be Mr Paul Swift, an absolute joy to watch! I think he had a smile on his face all day, and some of the moves he was pulling off (including overtaking entering a chicane) were simply incredible – bloody stunt men! A very well deserved 3rd O/A for Paul in his Escort MK2 which is always so well turned out.

I believe Northallerton Automobile Club deserve a lot of praise for what they managed to achieve. Despite things going horribly wrong (thanks to Croft Circuit for the second time in three years), they didn’t do what many others would have done and abandon all hope, instead they battled on and produced what turned out to be an ‘epic’ day of motorsport. Sure the date change didn’t suit everybody, but a 70+ entry list for the start of a new year is pretty damn good if you ask me!

Anybody who is looking for photos from the Christmas Stages Rally, please contact me via www.drhphotography.org.uk and I will send you out FREE photo proofs.

Until next time…Ciao for Now!

A new rally car has been purchased for 2012, another Subaru Impreza, but this time a more modern version with many more modifications and power, hopefully allowing Richard to achieve some even better results than last year. The car, an Impreza N8, was built in the first place in Ireland by McKinstry Motorsport but more recently was run by a Borders based rally team in Duns.

The second new element to the team for this year is that the car will now be serviced and maintained by Malcolm Irving at his Irving Motor Services business in Brigham. Malcolm brings a wealth of rallying and Subaru experience having worked in the past for Prodrive when they ran the Subaru World Rally Team.

But the main news is that new sponsors names will be appearing on the car with Lily & Co from the Market Place in Cockermouth being the teams main sponsor for 2012 and Scruffy Dog Media of Cleator Moor and Tim Perks Training from Louth being the teams support sponsors continuing their involvement from 2011. Opie Oils will again provide the teams oils and lubricants and John Gray from Lamplugh at Support-4-U will look after the team website for the year.

Dawn Balmer, owner of Lily & Co, said ‘ This is an exiting new venture for us having never been linked to motorsport in the past. In fact the only horsepower we have connections with are our own four legged versions. We are looking forward to the year and hope that Richard can achieve continued success on the back of his winning the regional junior rally drivers title last year.’

After a local testing day the team will head for the Isle of Man for the Chris Kelly Memorial Rally on the 17th and 18th February. For one person in the Cockermouth team things most certainly won’t be new and that’s Richards’ co-driving father, Andy Barnard, who on the Isle of Man event will chalk up his 150th rally. Andy started his rallying back in 1971 doing club navigational rallies in the south of England and over the years has competed at all levels from international rallies to local club events throughout England , Scotland and Wales.

The programme in 2012 for the Cockermouth team will be used as a stepping stone to Richard competing on the British Asphalt Rally Championship in 2013.

This is a brilliant opportunity for members of the public to get their hands on fantastic M-Sport products such as shirts, hats, bags etc.

As well as a ‘set price’ sale, there will be an auction for the more ‘limited’ products such as racing overalls, race boots etc.

This always proves to be a great night so make sure you don’t miss out!

What the club would like from its members, is to be notified of any events which aren’t in the Club Championship which they would like to see in the new category provided they run under the MSA banner.

It was also proposed that for the member to claim points in the Open Category, they need to enter the events under the WCMC name.

Finally, the member claiming points must inform the Competition Secretary (Ryan Winthrop) of the event they have just participated in within two weeks so points can be awarded correctly.