Network Q Rally

As we all know, Britain's premier sporting event took place in Wales at the end of November. The Network Q Rally of Great Britain is one of the hardest events on the world calendar, for the regular championship contenders, let alone anyone else. Here are a selection of driver comments and stories collected over the course of the four days, stories from the leading drivers to the first time drivers!

Stage Finish 1, (Super Special)

Car 8 (T.Gardemeister)
Lost time when the screen misted up and the driver, having opened his window, took a faceful of flying mud from the wheels of Freddy Loix.

Car 53 (G.Jones)
Lost the drivers side rear window somewhere in the stage, but the crew were unaware of the loss until after the finish when the car was jetwashed . . . . . as indeed, were the crew!

Car 111 (D.Catania)
The unfortunate Italians became the first crew to be excluded for being OTL on the first night after the super special. It really wasnt their day at all - it began badly when the driver woke up and discovered his road car had been stolen. Unfortunately, having reported the "theft" to the police, he then realised it wasnt actually stolen - hed simply forgotten where hed parked it. All this drama meant he forgot to fuel up the rally car, which promptly ran dry soon after theyd completed the first stage. They managed to scrape into a petrol station, only to discover that neither of them carried any money whatsoever. After much pleading, however, the station manager agreed to let them have some fuel, but, he wasnt keen on letting them just rush off into the night without paying - so he jumped in his own car and insisted on following them. But all this was to no avail -they were out of luck . . . and time. It was their first Network Q rally.

Stage finish 4 (Rhondda 1)

Car 12 (L.Climent)
Crew picked up a puncture after stage and stopped on road section to change wheel only to find that the spare is wider than the other three wheels.

Car 46 (M.Stenshorne)
Slid wide in SS4, hitting a log pile and ending up with the car stuck well below road level down a steep embankment. Around 60 spectators attached a rope and pulled the car back onto the stage.

Car 73 (F.Mahony)
"Were lucky to still be here" said the co-driver. "We had two fifth gear spins in the last two stages and ended up going as fast backwards as we had been going forwards. The trees got a bit close . . "

Car 104 (C.Exton)
Crew entered service with the tailgate flapping wildly and rear wheels badly out of alignment following a bad spin. "The first I knew about it was when I saw the back of the car start to overtake me" joked the driver. "We spun off down a bank and were quickly mobbed by loads of spectators who managed to pull us out"

Car 126 (A. Gwynne)
The suspension damage sustained on the super special last night is still causing problems. "Its fine in the corners," said the driver "but as soon as you get on fast straight it wants to dive into the ditch!" "Thats the driver! . . . . not the car!" quipped his co-driver.

Car 106 (T.Jardine)
At service after the stage finish, the driver was approached by a French team waving a wine bottle. Jardine was asked for a corkscrew, whereupon handing it over the French crew opened the bottle, leaving the wine with Jardine but taking the cork away to plug an oil leak in their cars sump! "Well at least we did our bit for international harmony!" Jardine joked. "Weve put some cling film over the bottle and will enjoy it later!!"

Stage Finish 8 (Myherin)

Car 20 (G.Evans)
A broken clutch left Evans limping out of Sweet Lamb. "It was touch and go up the hills," Evans remarked. "At one point I was approaching the Myherin complex and could either turn left to go into the stage or turn right and drive home to my house just down the road!"

Car 41 (M.Dodd)
"We really took it easy through Sweet Lamb," said Dodd. "Theres the potential to do so much damage in there and we only stood to gain maybe 20s by really going for it. Anyway, theres tomorrow to look forward to - its Dads birthday (Harry Dodd, Car 135). Hes 63 so Id better stop on the way back to Cardiff and buy him a card and some flowers maybe . . ."

Car 55 (J.Easson)
"The co-driver did a fantastic job in that stage," said Easson. "The light he uses to read the notes failed on the startline, so he had to read them through the whole stage using just the red glow from the distance recorder - and he didnt miss a single note!"

Car 27 (M.Higgins)
"We havent cured the oil pressure problem," said Higgins, "but weve stopped it from distracting me." The driver pointed to the ‘cure - a large patch of sticky tape obscuring the flashing warning light on the dashboard!

Car 121 (M.Liska)
Car span mid-stage and for a brief moment the crew were going the wrong way through the stage until spectators pointed them in the right direction.

Car 134 (C.Wales)
"This is the first time Ive done this event in the dark in the forest." driver joked. "Last year I was in the co-drivers seat and my co-driver this year was doing the driving! Ive got to beat his position from last year - its the only reason Im here!"

Stage Finish 9 (Rhondda 2)

Car 5 (C.McRae)
"This is a difcult stage, but I'm used to it and I am driving at my own pace (flat out!). Im told by the marshalls that my brakes are glowing red as I drive through the stage. That tells you what speed Im going at, doesnt it?" McRae smiled.

Stage Finish 10 (Rheola 1)

Car 3 (R.Burns)
"What else can I do but go at out - Ive got absolutely nothing to lose," said Burns. "Theres a chance of error on both our parts," he added (the reference being to Colin McRae). Burns finished the stage with a damaged front tyre (the mousse saving the day) and a missing door mirror on the drivers side. Pointing to the absent mirror, co-driver Robert Reid quipped, "If those stay on then its a sign that you are not really trying . . ."

Car 72 (M.Healer)
"Come here and have a look at this" the driver shouted. "Its like the Titanic in here!" he said, pointing to a hole in the oor. "If we roll then we can at least escape from the hole in the oorpan. Its letting in so much water in these waterlogged stages."

Stage Finish 11 (Resolfen)
Car 32 (S.Blomqvist)

A suspension strut top-mount broke 18km into the stage, leaving Stig to cope with a further 28km with the front wheel waving around wildly. "It was exciting," said Stig. "And he's not joking ... " said his co-driver Goni with a rueful smile.
Car 41 (M.Dodd)

"Very rough conditions out there," Marcus warned. "We think weve broken a front damper which has cost us some time. Were pressing on though. Still got to buy Dad a card for his Birthday today though ..."

Car 55 (J.Easson)
After a frought night, Easson is glad to report he is experiencing no problems whatsoever - the Group N contender was locked out of his hotel at midnight the previous night!

Car 116 (R.Sykes)
Reecting on a recent contre-temps with the foliage, the driver explained: "Im amazed I got out of SS9. We launched ourselves off a yump and the next thing I knew I was heading for some Christmas trees. I kept a tight grip on the steering wheel and amazingly the car brushed through the undergrowth and landed 100yds or so further up the road covered in pine needles. There was no damage to the car other than a bent rear beam,"

Stage Finish 13 (Margam 1)

Car 146 (T.Mason)
A mile and a half from the finish of Margam, the driver noticed to his horror that the Hondas lightpod - newly purchased only days earlier for £500 - was about to drop off. "It broke away a second after I spotted it," said Mason, "so I swerved left as it fell off to the right. There was absolutely no way I was going to run over a 500 quid investment like that. Yes, of course we stopped to pick it up . . .!"

Car 156 (J.Brooks)
"We had a front puncture in stage 12 and stopped to change it" said the Network Q Irmscher challenge leader. "But we were so relieved to have got through Margam - its real carnage in there. There are cars everywhere."

The final word has to go to the new World Champion -
Marcus Grönholm, from Sage Finish 17 (Margam 2)
"That last stage was very difficult and, of course, I am pleased to have made it!" said Grönholm. "No, Ive had no doubts or big worries through the rally and last night I had a very good sleep, thank you ... the whole season could not have been better for me." "We went through Margam like two old ladies," said co-driver Rautiainen, puffing on a large cigar in company with Tommi, Juha and, of course, Marcus; "Yes, OK, so they are bad for you," he quipped, "but its a nice way to celebrate . . ."