Rally - A grand day out

Forgy commiserating with (?) Johnnie MacKay

This is not a rally report, we’ll have to wait till ‘Motorsport News’ comes out for that (!!). Nope, this is just a few observations from a day out at the Border Access Knockhill Stages Rally yesterday. It was wet on Saturday and early showers on Sunday ensured that the roads and track were very slippery especially the concrete sections on the hillside. The wind blew the showers straight through as the morning wore on and it was pretty much dry (but ower cauld!) in the afternoon which meant that competitors could really lean on their tyres for grip.

The final results would suggest that Ian and Kathryn Forgan had things well under control as they got off to a good start. Alan Carmichal and Keith Beaton took a wee while to warm up but fastest time on SS3 saw them take a one second lead before Forgy equalled their time on SS4. It all went wrong for the visitor on SS5, Carmichael says he felt something break at the front on the main straight but the Knockhill commentary team reckons the Hyundai brushed a tyre marker on the entry to the chicane and then struck a second tyre marker - or maybe it was just the sound of them crunching their biscuits in the snug, air-conditioned commentary tower which they mistook for on-track action

Whatever, the Hyundai, was finished for the day leaving Forgy to concentrate on hanging on to his lead but there was an ever present threat behind him, the raucous Citroen of Peter Stewart and Harry Marchbank. Before the rally Stewart was just looking for a finish but as the day progressed and the car was behaving itself he dared hope for a podium and that’s just what they got although Wayne and Connor Sisson were edging ever closer behind them but ran out of stage miles to seriously challenge them.

Having said all that Forgy must have been behaving himself anyway, because there was no sign of any puncture marks on his thigh from Kathryn’s sharp pencil. No blood was drawn in the pursuit of victory!

I don’t know what it is with French cars but they’re noisy little tykes or maybe it was just Ross Hunter wringing his Peugeot 208’s neck on his way to fourth overall and top 2WD with Chris Dodds. Always a ‘likely lad’ when it’s wet and slippery, Hunter was not quite as flamboyant as in his Peugeot 205 days, it must be an age thing! Maturity brings a certain sense of self preservation, eh?

And as for ‘Dangerous’ Des Campbell, who knows what might have been but for a puncture on the second stage as he and Rhys Donaldson finished eighth in the wee Peugeot 206.

It’s a personal thing, but my ’Driver of the Day’ was Alison Horne with her sister Karen who finished 20th overall in a German MINI in one of the tidiest and neatest drives of the day and carrying a decent turn of speed through the corners – most unlike their faither in the past. Young Ollie Forrester ran her a close second for my choice as he finished in an excellent 15th overall in his Citroen C2 just four seconds behind Dave McIntyre who is usually the man to beat in this class.

Had to feel sorry for young Johnnie MacKay though, lying third when the Mitsubishi ran wide on the hill side and sunk to its axles in the glaur. Might also need to keep an eye on Lewis Gilbert in future too. On only his third rally he set some impressive times when his Ford Fiesta with Mitsubishi power and transmission behaved itself. It was only his second run out in the car but it needs a little bit more work to get reliability.

Best noise of the day? John Marshall, and the BMW sounded fabulous too, with its six-shot cacophany under the bonnet crackling around the circuit. Second best was Ben MacDowall’s BMW although rather more subdued than the Beatson’s car. And what about Ross Carbry’s wee Citroen C1, didn’t that sound just the business?

Elsewhere Border Ecosse CC President Monty Pearson announced his ‘retirement’ from the Knockhill Stages organising team with secretary of the meeting Michelle Hunter stepping up – although I’m not sure if he’s told her yet! It was also good to see ‘Forgy’ Senior stomping about, the original green and white Mercury Motorsport rally jacket looking ever more faded as time passes. And Jim McRae was there, fresh from receiving his ‘Lifetime Achievement Award from SAMSC a couple of weeks ago, to hand out the prizes at the conclusion of yesterday’s fun and frolics.

Aye, a grand day out in the fresh air – one thing that Knockhill has plenty of!

Top Ten:
1, Ian Forgan/Kathryn Forgan (Ford Fiesta Rally2) 47m 38s
2, Peter Stewart/Harry Marchbank (Citroen C3 Rally2) 48m 14s
3, Wayne Sisson/Connor Sisson (Skoda R5) 48m 32s
4, Ross Hunter/Chris Dodds (Peugeot 208 Rally 4) 49m 04s
5, Ben MacDowall/John Shepheard (BMW 130i) 49m 54s
6, Kenny Wood/Greg Halfpenny (Ford Escort) 50m 23s
7, Martyn Erskine/Ashley Erskine (Mitsubishi Evo) 50m 55s
8, Des Campbell/Rhys Donaldson (Peugeot 206) 51m 04s
9, Chris Thompson/Pete Gibson (Ford Fiesta Rally2) 51m 13s
10, Dave Bellerby/Drew Bellerby (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) 51m 17s