RALLY NEWS NO.8
Service/Letterkenny/Saturday 1pm
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER
STAGE 10 Cark
Mountain 2
1st (3)
Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Impreza WRC) 56.13.2
2nd (2) Derek
McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Impreza WRC) 56.21.7
3rd (1)
Eugene Donnelly/Paul Kiely (Corolla WRC) 56.25.1
4th (7) Tim
McNulty/Eugene O'Donnell (Impreza WRC) 57.27.8
5th (6)
Eamonn Boland/Francis Regan (Impreza WRC) 57.35.4
6th (4)
Austin MacHale/Brian Murphy (Focus WRC) 48.57.3
7th (11)
Cathal Arthurs/John McElhinney (Accent WRC) 1.00.36.2
8th (16)
Kevin Barrett/Barry Goodman (Impreza WRC) 1.00.46.6
9th (9) Steve
Perez/Neil Dashfield (Focus WRC) 1.00.54.9
10th (24)
Seamus Leonard/Gerry McVeigh (Lancer N) 1.00.55.9
11th (29) Roy
White/Stephen McAuley (Lancer N) 1.01.22.0 ***
12th (23)
Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy (Lancer N) 1.01.22.5
*** provisional see
below.
Derek McGarrity was
fastest through stage 10, albeit by just 0.3 of a second from
Andrew Nesbitt’s Subaru. But then the way this rally is going
every fraction of a second could matter before its all over.
Eugene Donnelly wasn’t at all happy at stage finish, 10s down
on Nesbitt, Eugene cursing his Corolla’s gear change, or gear
cut as he calls the electronic thingymajig in the changing
mechanism. Nesbitt told us that everything was well with him,
but we do hear a whisper in the service area that his gearbox
is getting another little look see.
In the race between Tim
McNulty and Eamonn Boland, Eamonn was 2s faster than Tim
through that 10th stage, the latter a little
cautious as he felt his tyre choice was not quite correct.
Austin MacHale had a good run, he has firmed up the suspension
of his Focus WRC and it is not reacting quite so badly to the
Donegal bumps and jumps. Steve Perez is hanging on to the top
10 fight, Steve another one who was distracted by the very
badly parked helicopter in Brenagh.
In Group N there have
been further drams since Shaun Gallagher lost 4 minutes and
the lead of the category. Seamus Leonard had a lucky escape
when his Lancer stuck in 4th gear for several miles
of stage 10, he lost little time. Andrew Stewart crashed his
new Lancer out in a big way in stage 10, both Gareth Jones and
Roy White stopped to make sure the crew was OK. Roy was
running further back the order from his designated slot,
having changed from slick to intermediate tyres before the
start of the stage, and then changing back again. He managed
to do this unpenalised, but then lost the time at Andrew’s
accident. Thankfully both Andrew and co driver Fabian McShane
are unhurt.
Pat Kirk’s gpN Lancer
stopped at the start of Brenagh. It would appear that the fuel
pumps had stopped, then it transpired that Pat had thrown
something into the glove box which knocked the fuel pump relay
out. One bystander wondered was it his wallet!!! PJ McDermott
arrived into service with large bits of peat bog stuck to the
rear of his BMW M3, otherwise having a good run. Seamus Devine
(92) is running well down the order, his Lancer’s turbo pipe
coming adrift for about 8 minutes, then he got stuck behind a
rolled Civic. Maurice Gass is still having a good run in his
Fabia, Maurice saying his only real problem over the last few
stages is picking his way through all the debris from the
crashes!
Finally for now a story
of intrepid determination – William Bonniwell came all the way
from Oban to do the rally in his Mk2 Escort. The head gasket
blew this morning, his mechanics have rebuilt the engine in
about an hour and he’s managed to get a slot at the back of
the Historics. William said “There’s no point in coming all
this way and not doing as many of these Donegal stages as we
can”. More news later. BRIAN & LIZ PATTERSON (with
thanks to Ciara Conlon and Smichael).
www.rallynews.net
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