Funeral Arrangements

 

There will be a ‘Celebration of Life’ for John Wink next week on Thursday 3rd of September in Strathbogie Drumblade Church, Bogie Street, Huntly AB54 8DX at 1pm, and later at Huntly Cemetery on the western side of the town just off Deveron Road. The family have respectfully invited all friends but family flowers only please. Donations for the The Leanne Fund can be made at the church door. And one final request, please wear a touch of colour in honour of John.

 

Rally - Seeking justice

The total number of marshals on the recent Grampian Stages Rally was swelled by one extra individual ahead of this year’s event! And not for the first time this season! Until this year, this ‘new’ marshal was a licenced co-driver of over 40 years experience who has competed very successfully at the top level in British stage rallying having started as a novice navigator on club road rallies.

And why was he marshalling? Because the sport’s governing body had refused to re-new his Co-Driver’s Licence!

Last year this individual and his regular driver hatched a plan to contest next year’s FIA WRC Grampian Rally to top their final years in this sport before resorting to the more ‘gentle art’ of historic rallying and bar-room bragging!

Come 2026 and Motorsport UK refused to automatically re-new this Co-Driver’s Licence – and so far without specific reason or explanation, thus scuppering hopes, plans and dreams.

And here’s the slightly complicated bit, the Co-Driver in question has a heart condition. This however is not something new, a slight defect he has had since birth. Up till now this has not been a problem.

The Co-Driver in question has, and uses regularly, a DVLA Class 1 driving licence to get himself around the country and to and from events so there is no problem there. He is mentally able to use OS maps and even sufficiently electronically competent to use a SatNav which means he can safely be allowed to leave home without the need for carers. He even has scans from his regular consultant which have shown no change over the past five years. In other words, he is normal, absobluidylutely normal. And yet the Motorsport UK medical view is that he does not meet DVLA Class 2 licence criteria and therefore have refused his licence renewal!

Of course this prompted a few questions from our aggrieved party which were initially sent by email to the appropriate named person in Motorsport UK. Answer came there none. Undaunted, a telephone call was made to the named personage and questions repeated. Apparently he was assured of a response. So far no response and no questions answered.

That is surely not good enough from a major sports governing body. The least that could be done is a private call to discuss the matter and explain Motorsport UK’s position. Perhaps there is a good reason for refusal and maybe that reason has not been fully investigated so far, but the very least that could be done is keep the chap informed, even if he is asked to keep their response confidential.

For sure there must be a reason, but to simply ignore a chap who has spent a few thousand pounds on competition licences over the past 40 or so years is either thoughtless at best, or inconsiderate at worst. Motorsport UK are often quick to penalise and/or fine perceived wrongdoers, as recent events in Scotland have shown, but when it comes to helping and advising folk they don’t appear to be just as quick off the mark!

Naturally our hero is made of sterner stuff and hasn’t given up, but to keep contact with the sport in the meantime he has qualified as a Marshal and is giving something back.

On a personal level, methinks our governors have taken their hands off the steering wheel on this one. Of course we need officials, organisers, marshals with regular training and qualifications, and yes the governing body has many rules and regulations to oversee and amend as and when necessary along with all the other things they have to do, like newcomer initiatives and bringing an FIA WRC round to the UK - again. But they have to remember that the lifeblood of the sport, any sport, is and are the competitors. Without them we wouldn’t need all the volunteers, or even Motorsport UK!

The non-identification of individuals in this wee story has been deliberate as there is no desire to upset any delicate sensibilities, but there is a wrong to be righted here, and on that basis all licence payers/holders should be concerned.

Hopefully we can return to this sorry tale with some better news !!

Note: Pics for illustrative purposes only, any similarity to anyone involved in rallying is entirely unintentional and purely coincidental!

John Stuart Wink, 1982 – 2026

One of the bravest, strongest and most humble of men passed away last week when John Wink lost his life-long fight with Cystic Fibrosis. First diagnosed with the disease when just a baby, life was difficult until a lung transplant 16 years ago eased his constant daily struggles. Eased, not cured. That condition was managed on a constant 24 hour basis daily, weekly, monthly and yearly. And yet he managed to build a hugely successful architectural practice in the north east of Scotland.

It wasn’t all work and no play though when he achieved a desire to go rallying. Twelve years ago in 2014 he teamed up with family friend and rally enthusiast John Forrest and together they contested the McCombie Builders Granite City Rally. They had hired/borrowed a Subaru Impreza through a couple of local worthies named Milne and Watson. In fact John was one of Quintin Milne’s sponsors in the early days of the Vauxhall Nova and Quintin persuaded him to go out for a run with him in a Subaru Impreza as a ‘thank you’ for his support. But it was when Quinton let him get behind the wheel that a fuse was lit with Q encouraging him to experiment with ‘late braking’.

Anyway, the two Johns were seeded at 105 in the 110 car field but they didn’t get very far. At the end of the Swanley second stage in Fetteresso Forest they were forced to retire when the gearbox broke - or blew up depending on who was spoken to! Disappointed? Yes. Discouraged? No.

It was around this time that a certain Ken Wood Esq entered the tale. He needed a new hanger at his  Insch ‘international’ Airport and as with all things flight-connected it had to be done properly and legitimately so he needed an architect. He was already aware of ‘young Wink’ who had an interest in karting and drank in the same pub of an evening and asked if he could help. Following a site visit Ken asked how much it would cost to oversee the build to which John replied it would cost nothing if he helped out with his rallying plans!

Far from taking Ken’s advice to start modestly with a Nova or Peugeot that rather quickly resulted in a flight from Aberdeen to Birmingham to look at a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo6 where a deal was done and they flew back to Aberdeen before promptly turning around and driving all the way back south with a trailer to pick up the car!

Their next event was the McDonald & Munro Speyside Stages. Running at car number 83 Wink and Forrest finished in 53rd place. Job done, route completed, result achieved. Thus encouraged off they went to the Colin McRae Forest Stages.

It was a troubled outing. The car didn’t perform well over the first three stages and at Service they over-ran their time allowance trying to find a fix to get back on the road. Although they contested the final three stages they were OTL by the finish. Disappointed? Yes. Deterred? No. Determined? Most definitely.

John had found something which he could physically manage while challenging his intellect. He also realised he could be competitive, his illness was much less of a disability in motor sport although there were occasions on the longer stages and events where he would struggle, but it never once dimmed his appetite for the sport and the challenge. He maybe couldn’t play, tennis or football, or even golf, but he could drive a rally car, and he could be competitive against rival teams. 

At the end of the 2014 season the newcomers were setting top 30 times on the Armstrong Galloway Hills Rally till the final sixth stage when the Mitsubishi slid off the road in the final technical and twisty stage at Dalbeattie. A beginner’s season of ups and downs perhaps, but the fire had been lit, there was no turning back.

The 2015 season kicked off with a spirited run and encouraging result on the Arnold Clark Thistle Snowman Rally where the duo finished 16th overall. Two more top twenty finishes followed before an Evo9 was acquired to replace the Evo6 and the improvements continued. At the end of the 2016 season they scored their first top ten result, when they finished 8th on the Grizedale Stages Rally in Cumbria. The 2016 season started well too and included a 10th on the Border Counties and 8th in Argyll but the driving shoes were now getting restless and another plan was being hatched.  

This time the flight to look at a new car went a bit further than Birmingham. The two Johns and Ken flew to Frankfurt to Hyundai HQ to look at a new car. On their first step inside the facility the heads were on swivels with hands reaching for wallets, but Ken was a moderating influence. The first i20 R5 chassis was sitting there still bearing its mud streaked stage testing evidence but was parked alongside a gleaming brand new R5. On the basis that the new car was untried and the test car had proven itself, the trio came away with chassis 001, the first such car in private hands although it has to be said, the Hyundai folks had to be convinced that the fledgling Scottish team were men of honour and serious intent!

The new car’s first outing was the Grampian Forest Rally where it finished 14th overall and rounded off the 2017 season with 5th placed finishes on the McRae Gravel Challenge and Wales Rally GB National. Improvements gained and potential proved.

In 2018, progress was still being made and resulted in 6th on the Snowman, three fourth placed finishes on the RSAC, Argyll and Galloway Hills Rallies and topped that with 3rd on Grizedale and 2nd on Wales Rally GB National. Those results ensured that John Wink finished third overall in the national Scottish Rally Championship that year behind Andrew Gallacher and Donnie MacDonald.

The following season saw a string of top six finishes culminating in John’s first outright victory on the 2019 Wales Rally GB National event – with Neil Shanks in the co-driver’s seat! Neil had in fact replaced John Forrest due to a clash of loyalties. John’s wife Aileen Forrest had taken an interest in rallying which resulted in her acquiring a Mitsubishi and hubby John duly switched co-driver’s seats!

John and Neil were now regarded as top contenders on any event they tackled but that all important inaugural Scottish Championship victory had to wait until the 2024 Snowman Rally where they scored maximum championship points for the first time.

In ten years of rallying John Wink’s record speaks for itself. Apart from individual results he finished fourth in the Challenger’s Championship in 2017 and won it outright in 2018. He also finished 3rd overall twice in the Scottish Rally Championship in 2023 and 2024 and was 6th in 2022 and of course he won the Wales Rally GB National Rally in 2019 and was runner-up the year before.

Throughout his rallying career there were occasional disappearances from the field of play when hospital visits and treatments had to be fitted in, and yet, I never heard any excuses, moans or complaints, he was just there for the competition, the craic and the fun!

And if John was brave, strong and humble, so too was his wife Joanne constantly caring for and providing support for her husband and their two young girls, Darci and Abbie. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family, friends, supporters and huge circle of acquaintances. He will be sorely missed by us all, but none more so than Joanne and the girls.

 

Rally - Far North Classic

Northern DeLights …. Rallying seems to be more of a sprint these days than an adventure with the emphasis on speed and driving skill as opposed to navigation and concentration, but the sport of Targa rallying offers folk the chance to re-live the good old days, albeit it at a less frenetic but still equally enthralling pace!

So if you fancy a wee bit of an adventure why not head north, the real north, up beyond Inverness on the weekend of the 25/26 September for the ‘Far North Classic Rally’. Indeed many folk don’t realise that John O’Groats is 120 miles north of Inverness.

This event was widely praised last year and the eedjits - sorry, that should read - ‘the brains’ behind this year’s event are Peter McInnes and Fraser Hughes who are very experienced in the dark arts of targa rallying. They have devised a 165 mile route through Easter Ross and Sutherland over roads that see more hooves than tyres at this time of year (cos most of the tourists and motorhomes have fled south for the winter) with 5 Regularities and around 18 Timed Tests.

This should be a hoot, because Hughes and McInnes have history! Think back to 2018 and the Mull Targa Rally when this pair left Tain at 3am, caught the first ferry to Mull, did the rally, finished 19th, caught the last ferry and drove back home – all in the same day. By the way, they had no hood on their Mazda MX-5 and it rained all day. They were drookit by the time they got to the ferry, more drookit during the rally and well and truly waterlogged by the time they got home in the early hours of the next day. See what I mean about eedjits, sorry, awfy nice chaps!

That means that whatever they have come up with for their ‘home’ event will be well worth a shottie. Rally HQ will be at the Morangie Hotel in Tain with the clue in the name giving away the secret of the pure, clean air up there!

There are classes for regular Targa cars and Historic road rally cars and if ye’ve got a Willy, or a Jeep or a Land Rover there’s a class for you lot as well. It’s all about inclusion and fun.

Regs are on Highland Car Club website here:

https://f5c914e2-f8ed-45b4-8a59-95d9e6b5e6c6.filesusr.com/ugd/5df0c6_e5ca46c7386b48f489a19c8cfb40d15d.pdf

More Info with flavoursome pics on FB here:

https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=far%20north%20classic

 

Abbey Road Re-visited

 …. but didn’t quite go to plan! A quarter of a century ago, Coltness Car Club was squeezed out of the Tweed Valley, and then also Dumfries & Galloway, perhaps on the grounds that the Forestry Commission was fearful that this particular Coltness genus of ursine Lanarkshire bears might spread and breed in the Tweed Valley and Ae forests and thereby provide a threat to the FC’s preferred nurturing of the growing lycra clad ‘illuminatti mountainous bikus’ species which was permeating the southern woodlands.

In search of a more hospitable habitat, the Coltness Bears turned and headed northwards to the gateway of the Highlands – Perth. There they were warmly welcomed by the Provost of Perth & Kinross, Mike O’Malley Esq, a kindred spirit by all accounts, and the Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally found a new home.

The great and the good from Lanarkshire turned up that day and such was the warm welcome the assembled entourage took inspiration from the Beatles’ Abbey Road album to initiate an image which would re-launch this annual sporting competition but their attempts to re-enact the famous zebra crossing was thwarted by Perth’s traffic. C’est la Vie, eh?

The photographers had therefore to content themselves with the more traditional style of PR fotie and which included a perfect pose performed by the pure dead gallus James McRae Esq along with the traditional line-up showing Oor Wullie, the Provost himself, Ken Dagger of GHI Contracts representing the rally sponsors, and James, the Bears’ overseer.

P&K’s hospitality showed no bounds that day with a variety of beverages and delicacies including raw meat sandwiches, caramel clawgs, scrumptious T-bone cakes and fangtasy fairy cakes.

There was also one other dignitary of note, amongst the Coltness delegation there was a rather unique and unsettingly upsetting sighting of a certain personage without his customary and well-worn ‘rid-jaikit’, none other than ex rally driver and Ford ‘works’ guru, ‘Rockers’, resplendent in a collar, tie and suit – a sight never likely to be repeated!

 

Latest Government ‘emission’

Not that they are giving us much time to respond but the Government is at it again.  It has announced yet another public consultation, this time affecting users/owners of used, not-so-new and elderly motor vehicles and which might well affect those motorists and enthusiasts who own and use veteran, vintage, classic and not-quite-classic-yet vehicles. 

The proposals might also affect current and ‘historic’ competition cars so that should be of concern to all the folk who enjoy motor sport as well as those who attend classic car shows, like the thousand or so enthusiasts who attended Biggar Vintage Show at the weekend, and all the other thousands who attend such shows right around the country!

In seeking to tackle poor maintenance, emissions tampering and deliberate ‘delete’ modifications, the Department for Transport is proposing tougher rules to ensure vehicles continue to meet the emissions standards they were built to comply with when new.

Under these proposals, vehicles could be deemed non-compliant and their owner fined if emissions control systems no longer operate as originally approved. The consultation also goes further, indicating that the removal or manipulation of certain systems –  such as DPFs, GPFs, catalytic converters, AdBlue/SCR systems and diesel EGR systems – would be treated as illegal, regardless of whether there is an impact on the vehicle’s real-world emissions.

These proposals could leave modern classic owners with no lawful repair route for failed emissions components.

According to Footman James, the classic car insurance specialists, modern classics could be under threat. Many cars, LCVs, campervans and trucks from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s are now entering classic status, but were built with increasingly complex emissions equipment, including catalytic converters, lambda sensors, EGR systems, early engine management, DPFs, AdBlue systems and manufacturer-specific control software.

As these cars age, original parts can become unavailable, prohibitively expensive, or unsupported by manufacturers. Existing legislation demands that owners fit only type-approved components to the emissions control system, yet vehicle manufacturers are not required to keep these components in production indefinitely.

Plans may catch cherished, well-maintained vehicles as well as deliberate emissions cheats with Footman James leading the call for clear exemption where compliant repair is impossible, unavailable or disproportionate

The consultation document is open until 11:59pm on 6 September 2026 and anyone likely to be affected or worried about future effects and impact is being urged to respond before consultation closes on 6 September 2026.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/in-use-emissions-of-road-vehicles-regulating-environmental-impacts/regulating-environmental-impact-of-in-use-emissions-of-road-vehicles

It is being suggested that owners and enthusiasts should make three points to Government:
1.  Enforcement should target deliberate emissions defeat, not responsible preservation.
2.  Owners should not be penalised where compliant repair is impossible, unavailable or disproportionate.
3.  Classic and modern classic vehicles should be given a clear exemption where required emissions components are no longer reasonably obtainable.

And if you’re feeling up to it, add in your own thoughts, opinions and insights in your own words – but keep it clean and respectful!

Note: Pics for illustrative purposes only.

 

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