Conor Mohan followed on from his Drumlin Navigation Trial win with yet another outright victory on last weekend’s March Navigation Trial, this time back with his regular driver Michael Carbin.
The event was the final round of the National Navigation Trial Championship and attracted no less than 45 starters. With seven rounds already completed there were still a number of crews fighting it out for the championship honours.
Ballinode Community Hall was the venue and David McCrudden, assisted by Martin Tynan, organised an 85 mile event covering the area between Tydavnet and Clones.
The event began with a straight forward run through Sherlock’s farm in Ballinode to reach TP2. From there, competitors had to travel via Feebaghduff to reach TP3 at Shee. The night’s first plot and bash section was on the cards here as navigators had to first get the correct departure from TP3 before finding the location of TPs 4 and 5. A box tulip diagram brought competitors via Tydavnet Community Centre to a grey muddy lane at Mullantimore for TP4. There, navigators had to follow an intermediate distanced herringbone tulip diagram to TP5. The tulip diagram brought crews back via the community centre to behind a house along the Tydavnet Road which was also in the townland of Mullantimore. The difficulty of this section was evident from almost the entire field of competitors dropping at least some time. In fact only two crews, Shane Dalton/Ryan Treanor and Colin Duffy/Sam Johnston, escaped this section penalty free.
Carbin/Mohan only dropped two penalties for being two minutes late to TP5. Championship hopefuls James Fitzgerald/Ken Carmody fared poorly here as they took a wrong departure at TP3 and failed to reach both TP4 and TP5 thus incurring 55 penalties. A relaxed section was up next between TP6 and TP7 at Rafeenan where competitors could make up lost time and continue on with the event on their original schedule. TP8 was located at Larkin’s Garage at Tullybryan and the second blot and bash section began here. A box tulip was received that brought crews to TP9 at the end of a new lane at Maurice Moffett’s at Ballinode village. This section also proved to be difficult as 13 crews failed to show up. TP10 was located in McMahons farm in Drumacaslan. TP11 was located at the end of a farm lane in Brandrum before heading to the second relaxed section and the start of the ITC section. The ITC section went to the outskirts of Corcaghan before turning back towards Threemilehouse and finishing at the main Clones Road at Killydonnelly. It was a return to farm lanes for TP14 as it was located in Hughes’s farm in Tattindonagh, the approach and departure was by using two gravel farm lanes. A number of crews took a wrong approach here as they entered the farmyard too early.
The third plot and bash section began at TP21 and the box tulip brought crews to TP22 in a farm at Legnakelly. The route from TP24 to V5 was also on a plot and bash box tulip. The last plot and bash section of the night was received at V5 and it was a clock faced herringbone tulip that included all entrances and gates along the route to show the direction of travel and the location of TP25. Navigators here relieved at this point as they knew that no tough plot and bash sections lay ahead. This did not indicate that the event got any easier as at TP29 in particular, even overshooting the approaching by just a car length would lead to a wrong approach or worse, that if the crew realised they overshot the turn and reversed and went the correct way, they would escape the wrong approach but would be hit with a double visit penalty. Just two more TPs lay between here and the finish Control. The first was located at the end of Murray’s farm lane at Killatten before heading through Aghaboy South to Hamill’s farm and TP31 at Killygrallan.
At the finish Control back in Ballinode hall Carbin/Mohan were declared winners after picking up just four penalties, two for being two minutes late at each of TPs 5 and 25. They were comfortable winners as 2nd overall went to the Novice crew of Shane Maguire and Adam Langan on 16 pens. Derek Mackarel/Conor Boylan took third on 19 penalties after taking a wrong departure at TP3.
Class winners on the night were, Mackarel/Boylan 1st Expert, Declan Tynan/Aaron McElroy 1st Semi Expert, Shane Maguire/Adam Langan 1st Novice and Sean McCaffrey/Caolain McCaffrey 1st Beginner.
Provisional points were calculated up immediately after the event and Stonebridge man Andy Mackarel along with his navigator Greg Shinnors are provisional national champions.
After the event David, the Clerk of the Course, thanked everyone who made the trial an enormous success. Including all the people who helped him setting up the event, all the land owners who gave permission for the event to pass on their property and a special mention was gave to all those who provided refreshments after the event and to the huge number of marshals who helped with the smooth running of the event.
Gretchen does Rally Jameel
Monaghan navigator Gretchen Swinburne represented county and country when she took to the startline of Rally Jameel in Saudi Arabia. Rally Jameel is a navigation off-road rally for women organised by the Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF). The event started on 4 March and ran over four days through desert dunes and mountainous terrain, covering 1600 km with the finish on International Women’s Day on 8 March in Jeddah on the Red Sea.
She and driver Patricia Denning took second on class after the event. Gretchen followed this up by taking part in the Monaghan navigation trial just hours after getting off the plane, where she took another second in class. This time with husband Martin behind the wheel.
County Monaghan Motor Club 