Twinning
One Year On

When I put up the proposal to twin Southern Car Club with Ecurie Brayonne Automobile it was to promote international motorsport at the club level for competitors, organisers and spectators. The clubs have reciprocal membership so that any member of EBA will have the same eligibility as an SCC member and vice versa. Ideally club drivers should be able to compete on each other's events.

So what is stopping us, as our competition licences show we may compete on national events? Our most junior rallies are National B so the French can theoretically do our event at Goodwood. The most junior French rally is called a "regional" and has 25 kilometres of stages over closed roads, usually two stages run three times. I shall be writing to Tony Newsum at the RAC MSA to officially ask the FFSA (their French equivalent) if we could be allowed to compete on these.

There is no problem us running on French national events and Catherine and I took part in the Charlemagne up by the border with Belgium last year. This offered about 100 stage miles in 3 loops of 4 stages over demanding lanes for £170. The organisers had set up discounted rates with hotels in the area. We went out Wednesday and recced through to Friday afternoon. Scrutineering and documentation was on Saturday morning and the event ran through Saturday afternoon and evening, finishing in the small hours of Sunday.

So why are the French not rallying here? We have had some enquiries and these are the things we have to explain. In the UK there are increasingly tough noise regulations. In the French equivalent of the Blue Book there is no noise regulation and there is no test at scrutineering. So immediately French clubmen will need an exhaust. Kwikfit are expanding into France so I will be asking them if they would like to sponsor this work. French clubmen would need to have their cars log booked before the rally and would probably need some friends to help them with last minute modifications to help them pass event scrutineering on the day. Door bars and fire extinguisher rules tend to be a problem. Cost need not be an issue - the Winter Rally is offering very good rates plus help with hotels.

What can be done? Well, we do lay on events for production cars and we can see if people would be prepared to come to do these. However the blunt facts are that the French do not travel and barely even visit Belgium. Almost all families take all holidays in France - and the French are as bad as us when it comes to remembering their school language lessons.

The aim was to involve competitors, marshals and spectators. Last year two of us went to prize giving at EBA's Neufchatel knees-up - this year five of us went. The Mintex series is looking for an overseas event - certainly anyone prepared to go to the Manx can afford a visit to France. Ian Harden is arranging to marshal on a French event with the assistance of an English speaking member of EBA. In October sixteen of us went to EBA's hillclimb at Pourville and I now have a calendar of Northern French events so that spectating on a regional can be combined with a wine run. As French rallies run near or through towns, spectating is much easier than in England!