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RALLY
NEWS NO.3 Greenmount...Sunday3.15
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE
2
1st (2) Austin McHale/Brian Murphy (Corolla WRC) 6.59
(3) Kenny McKinstry/Declan Tumilty (Impreza WRC) 6.59
3rd (4) Frank Meagher/Anthony Nestor (Focus WRC) 7.07
4th (9) Ollie O'Donovan/David Moynihan (Legacy) 7.16
5th (7) Michael Barrable/Dermot O'Gorman (Celica) 7.20
6th (6) Niall Maguire/Paul McLaughlin (Impreza WRC) 7.25
7th (11) Rory O'Connor/Francis Kenny (Escort WRC) 7.33
8th (10) Kevin Barrett/Emma McKinstry (Impreza) 7.35
9th (14) Barry Coleman/Alan Russell (Impreza) 7.38
10th (18) Tom Randles/Diarmuid Lynch (Escort) 7.45
This RT Greenmount Rallysprint is certainly hotting up, with Ken McKinstry
turning in a scorching time through stage 2, while early leader Austin
McHale had a front right puncture and dropped a few seconds, allowing
McKinstry to
draw level. The chicanes are causing problems for most of the drivers
- McKinstry said that on that run, between the dust and bales being moved,
he was lucky to escape disaster a couple of times. Frank Meagher came
in from the stage with his Focus front left mudguard crumpled, and the
bumper
trailing the ground. The Cloneen man said "There was a bale pushed left
and I just couldn't stop in time". Ollie O'Donovan, having spun
his Legacy on the first stage, had a really quick time through stage 2 to
move up into 4th place. Michael Barrable slipped back to 5th, the
Dublin Fiat dealer telling
us of a spin in the stage, a whack of chequered tape draped around his
Celica's rear aerofoil backing up that statement. Fergal Allen spun
his new BMW at one of the hairpins and damaged the door. Stephen
Carway lost time when he got caught behind Philip Johnston's Celica, the CSE/Pitlane
man
saying "It's more spins we're having". James Foley in the
Civic was knocking on the door of the top 10 but did not improve through
that stage 2, his Honda banging a wall and bending the steering.
Just outside the leaderboard after stage 1 we had Stephen Carway in 11th
despite an overshoot at the hairpin. Ed Synan in 12th, John Hunter
going well in his Escort to hold 13th. Fergal Allen in his lovely new BMW
was 14th and Roland Doherty 15th. Doherty was the class 1 leader, Shane
McEneaney was 2nd in that class 1 in the Ford Puma. Tom Randles the class 3
leader. Aaron McHale led class 2.
FORD IRELAND KA CHALLENGE: Top 5 after stage 2:
1st John Carroll/Eugene McGarth (Ford Ka) 87.15
2nd Trevor Harding/Charlie Boland (Ford Ka) 8.17
3rd Barry Barrable/Trevor Hamilton (Ford Ka) 8.19
4th Declan Magee/tba (Ford Ka) 8.29
5th Liam Denning/Paul Molloy (Ford Ka) 8.30
Many of the Kas finished stage 2 with streaks of black aligned with dents
indoors and mudguards testimony to how hard the Ford boys are trying as they
skim through the chicanes. Trevor Harding jumped from 3rd to 2nd after
stage 2 and remarked "We were on a knife edge" while John Carroll
reported "Going hard, no real problems".
More news later..BRIAN & LIZ PATTERSON
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