Cam Before the Storm!

With Storm Ashley due to make landfall in Northern Ireland within 24 hours, we headed out for our final stage rally of 2024 on Saturday 20th October. Maiden City Motor Club were celebrating their 50th anniversary this year. To mark this special occasion, the club decided to organise a return of their Dogleap Rally to two classic gravel forest stages for the first time in 14 years. Since that time the event had been run almost every year as a sealed-surface-single-venue event at the Shackleton Complex in Ballykelly.

The Dogleap Rally (sponsored by Premier Car Parts) was the fourth and final round of the 2024 McGrady Insurance Northern Ireland Forest Rally Challenge and had attracted an entry of 64 cars. The event consisted of six fast but slippery stages;  SS1/3/5 Springwell (5.24 miles) and SS2/4/6 Cam (7.47 miles). Last time these particular tests were used competitively was 10 years ago when Mid Antrim MC organised the final round of the 2014 Valvoline Irish Forest Rally Championship.

We were covering radio and rescue at the start of the Cam stages. Conditions were ideal, overcast but dry and somewhat ironically, perfectly calm. First time round the stage was stopped after 15 cars and all services were sent in. Three competitors had gone off. Thankfully no one was injured but two of the cars were badly damaged (one ended up in a river) Then the remaining 46 cars were sent by alternative road book to the service park in Ballykelly. Stage 4 started thirty minutes late, but this time we had no major problems. By the time the cars returned for the sixth and final test there were only 42 left, 40 of which finished the rally.

Jason Mitchell from Victoria Bridge and Caolan McKenna (Ballinamallard)  dominated the Dogleap Rally in their VW Polo GTI R5. They led from start to finish and were fastest on 5 of the 6 stages. Second were Jordan and Paul Hone’s Ford Fiesta R5. Vivian Hamill/Niall Burns finished third in their Polo R5. Darragh Cairns/Mark Preston were fourth while Gareth Sayers and Gareth Gilchrist finished fifth, both crews were in Ford Fiesta Rally2’s.

Shane McGirr and Denver Rafferty in sixth position were the Dogleap’s top 2WD finishers in the amazing Lada Riva. McGirr also claimed the runner-up position in the 2024 NI Forest Rally Challenge, a fantastic achievement, while Rafferty was the leading co-driver in the series. Derek Mackerel had already been confirmed as the leading driver following the third round.

By the way, Storm Ashley arrived as predicted the next day with winds of 81 mph recorded in Co. Down. Thank goodness the weather was perfect for the Dogleap. We were very lucky! What a difference a day makes!

Looking Back

Marshalling Memories

40 Years Ago…..1984

Larne Motor Club ran a televised International Autotest in the town. We were assisting with timing the various tests. Paddy Hopkirk, Ronnie McCartney and Robert Woodside made up a sixties team. In the main event Northern Ireland’s “A” Team won while their Robert Dickson was the best individual.

At Boyd’s Quarry (or Autodrome as it was known) Larne MC also organised round one of their Rallycross Championship. Belfast Car Ferries sponsored the televised event which saw Ronnie White in his Ford Fiesta take an unopposed win in the Superfinal when the Escorts of Con Carey, Kenny McKinstry and Dessie McCartney all dropped out. We were marshalling as usual.

30 Years Ago…..1994

John Haffey beat Denis Biggerstaff in a battle of the MG Metro 6R4’s at Nutts Corner to win the second round of the Larne MC Rallycross Championship. We were marshalling as normal. Meanwhile Robin Phillips won the 1994 Bushwhacker Rally in his Ford Escort Cosworth, but only after James Gillen crashed out on the penultimate stage while well in front with his ageing Meeke Orion. We were timing.

We were marshalling on the final round of the 1994 WRC, the RAC Rally. During five days we covered scrutiny in Chester and five stages in England and Wales including the final corner of the last stage in Clocaenog where no less than 10,000 spectators had gathered to see Colin McRae take his first RAC win in the famous Subaru Impreza L555 BAT.

20 Years Ago…..2004

Wales Rally GB based in Cardiff was held earlier than usual in mid September. Ten of us headed over to marshal on three classic stages. On the Friday we covered post 12 on SS2/4 Brechfa then on Saturday it was post 17 on SS10/13 Halfway. Finally we were at post 19 on the Rhondda stages SS16/17. We were on duty for around 8 hours per day! The event was won by Petter Solberg and Phil Mills in a Subaru Impreza S10. 83 cars started and 42 finished. The rally was round 12 of 16 in the 2004 WRC.

The October Harvest Stages Rally was based in Donegal Town. Three of us were timekeeping on the finish controls of SS5/7 for this Donegal MC’s penultimate round of the 2004 Irish National Tarmac Championship. A week later four of us were timekeeping for a total of 10 hours on four stages of Enniskillen MC’s Clubman Forest Rally based in Kesh. Then the following weekend, four of us club members were marshalling on Omagh MC’s Gortin Glen Rally Time Trial. Our rescue unit was also present, crewed by four more BMMC/BRMC members.

10 Years Ago.….2014

Hard to believe but it has been ten years since the tragic death of 25 year old Ryan Bradley. The young Kilrea driver hit a wall and his Ford Escort Mk.2 ended up in Loughisland Reavy reservoir. It took police divers several hours to recover his body. His co-driver escaped uninjured. The accident happened on the first stage of the 2014 Down Rally which of course was then cancelled as a mark of respect. I was timekeeping with Victor at the stage finish.

I didn’t marshal on the 2014 Wales Rally GB, the final round of the WRC, but went over as a paying spectator with my son David who lives in Bristol. A long drive up the M6 to the service park in Deeside near Chester on the Thursday was followed by a three-night stay in Dolgellau from which we took in six stages on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Kris Meeke was doing well in his Citroen DS3, he had been third, but had an off resulting in a puncture as we watched on Sunday. Meeke eventually finished sixth. Already crowned World Champion, Sebastien Ogier dominated the rally in his VW Polo, leading from start to finish.