Author: monaghanmotorclub

Monaghan Motor Club member Gretchen Swinburne who has been named as part of the Irish crew to take part in a Saudi Arabia-based off-road navigation rally next month.

Motorsport Ireland, the National Governing Body for four-wheeled motorsports in Ireland today announced that Patricia Denning and Swinburne will represent Ireland at Rally Jameel in Saudia Arabia. Rally Jameel is a navigation off-road rally for women organised by the Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF).

The event starts on 4 March 2024 and continues over four days through the desert dunes and mountainous terrain, covering 1600km with the finish on International Women’s day on 8 March in Jeddah on the Red Sea.

Swinburne takes on the role of navigator – an equally demanding role given this is a navigation rally and not a speed event. She started out her motorsport career in 2015 as a navigator in stages rallying.

An impressive start with which she won the Junior Border Championship in her first year. Some highlights of navigating in stages includes a win the Laois Heartlands Twincam Challenge and a class win in Donegal International Junior Rally. Adding to her collection, she also won the Monghan Motor Club’s Combilift Perpetual Cup two years in a row.

In the 2022/2023 season Swinburne then switched her focus to navigation trials and in her first year successfully won her class in the Motorsport Ireland Navigation Trial Championship.

Taking to the driver’s seat, Denning is one of the top female motorsport drivers in Ireland with a wealth of driving experience having competed in over 150 events in her career to date. With a very impressive motorsport CV she is a double Ladies Forestry Rally Champion, and holds the unique accolade of being the only female in the world to have won a FIA Rallycross Super Final.

Commenting on the announcement, Motorsport Ireland President Aiden Harper said: “We are thrilled to have Patricia and Gretchen represent Ireland at Rally Jameel and offer our sincere gratitude to the Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF) for this incredible invitation. 2024 has been an incredibly exciting year for Irish Motorsport so far with the WRC bid and this event invitation only solidifies how well regarded Irish motorsport is on the world stage. Wishing Patricia and Gretchen the very best of luck!”

Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver Eamonn Kelly Monaghan’s Conor Mohan got their second season of the Junior World Rally Championship off to a perfect start by taking third place in Rally Sweden at the weekend.

The result matched their Acropolis Rally Greece performance last September and sets them up nicely for round two in Croatia in April – an event they won in 2023.

One of a record 19 entrants, Kelly and Mohan found themselves in a battle with eventual winner, local ace, Mille Johansson and FIA Rally Star program member Romet Jürgenson as the Donegal/Monaghan pairing completed the podium in the category for identical Ford Fiesta Rally3s run equipped with Pirelli tyres.

“It was really good to be on the podium in Sweden this year. It is a fantastic start for our championship to  finish third [amongst 19 drivers]  is something we can be really happy with,” said Kelly

“We came here this year with a plan,” he added.

“We knew what we were up against in terms of the scale of the event. We were able to show what we had learned and then back it up and it is something that I am personally happy about.

“It was a good a good weekend in general. We showed speed in places and then we were maintaining a fairly consistent pace for the rest of the time.”

 Kelly and Mohan won the junior element of Rally Croatia last season and the focus for the months ahead is preparation for the first tarmac rally of the season

“I would like to go there this year and show some speed. I want to go there and try and be much much faster and closer to the top position in the table. That is going to be the main focus over the next two months.”

Motorsport Ireland crew Eamonn Kelly and Conor Mohan are amongst a record-breaking entry list for the 2024 Junior World Rally Championship.

19 crews will take to the start line on this weekend’s Rally Sweden, the opening round of the five-event series. It is the largest JWRC entry in two decades.

Kelly and Mohan return to the JWRC for the second time having graduated to the series in 2023 after claiming the Junior British Rally Championship title the previous season.

A consistent drive earned him his sole victory on only their second WRC rally in Croatia last year.

The crew have been busy preparing behind the scenes for the year ahead.

“I am really excited to get back for a second time at this championship. It was always going to be a two-year plan and coming into the second year of that is very exciting,” said Kelly..

“This year it is slightly more relaxed in that sense and we have a lot of the groundwork done on these events having done all of them last year. We have been focusing hugely on amending notes from last year and looking at onboard footage and seeing where we can go quicker and where we need to watch ourselves.”

The action begins on the snow and ice of Sweden this week before the tarmac twists of the Croatia Rally (18 – 21 April). Gravel fixtures in Italy (30 May – 2 June), Finland (1 – 4 August) and Greece (5 – 8 September) round out the season.

Up for grabs is a life-changing prize comprising an arrive and drive package to contest four European rounds of the 2025 FIA World Rally Championship in a Ford Fiesta Rally2 car, the natural progression from Junior WRC.

Kelly and Mohan hope to follow in the tracks of fellow Motorsport Ireland crew William Creighton and Liam Regan.

They won the JWRC title last season and will now graduate to a WRC2 programme at the wheel of an M-Sport Ford Fiesta Rally2.

As part of their prize for winning JWRC in 2023, they will get a fully funded drive on four rounds of the WRC this season. Thanks to the efforts of the Academy’s background team this four-event programme has been increased to seven rallies.

For Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy founder and patron John Coyne, Creighton’s graduation, and Kelly’s inclusion in the JWRC entry list for the second time is clear evidence that the programme is both working and capable of operating at the sport’s highest level.

“As the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy enters its fifth full year, I’m very encouraged to see the increased participation and engagement of young Irish athletes in all levels of the FIA rally ladder,” said Coyne.

“We keep learning each year and refining the programme as we go. I am happy with our progress to date but there is much to be done as we try to create a path for our best athletes to reach world-level competitiveness.”

100 Isles Navigation

There was local representation at the West Cork-based Skibbereen 100 Isles Navigation Trial, a counting round of the National Navigation and Munster Navigation Trial championships.

Six crews finished with a clean sheet, including Andy Mackarel/Greg Shinnors and Pakie Duffy/Evan Hughes. The event victory was shared between the Semi-Expert crews of Brian O’Mahony/Amy Gallwey and Ray and Stephen O’Neill on the ‘Semi-Expert beats Expert’ rule.

Shane Maguire was paired once again with Owen Murphy, and they finished on 15 penalties.

The next round of the National and Border navigation championships in the Cavan Navigation Trial. It takes place on 24 February and is based out of Crosskeys.

Riponian Stages Rally

Across the water in north Yorkshire, James McCarville and Ryan Farrell took part on the Riponian Stages Rally in a Fiesta Rally2. In treacherous conditions, the crew survived to finish sixth in class.

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Sadly we have learned of the death of a long standing character in motorsport circles. Gerard Kelly, a well-known local businessman from Monaghan, died suddenly at his home on Sunday morning last.
Gerard was in a line of four generations of motorsport enthusiasts. His father, his son and his grandson, as well as himself. He was a committee member of Monaghan Motor Club for years. Gerard competed as a navigator with several drivers – Robert Moffett, David Wright, Seamus Boylan and Ronnie McCartney in the 1960s and 1970s. He was Clerk of the Course for a number of local events, such as the Drumlin in 1967 and 1968.
In addition to all of that, he sponsored drivers in different parts of the country in both rallying and racing. He was very benevolent also in areas other than motorsport. He supported generously many charities, in particular through Monaghan Lions Club. His gregarious personality made him a well-known figure in so many aspects of life. May he rest in peace.

Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin overcame challenging conditions to seal a 38.1-second victory on the Galway International Rally in their Ford Fiesta Rally2. 

Cronin was in top form to resist a mid-rally challenge from 2023 Irish Tarmac Champions Callum Devine and Noel O’Sullivan. 

Cronin, who hasn’t competed in Galway since 2016, set the benchmark time of the Samdec Security International runners on a slippery 12.3-kilometre Kilcoona opener. Cronin was 1.2 seconds faster than Sam Moffett and James O’Reilly through Galway’s first stage as usual Irish Tarmac frontrunners, Callum Devine and Josh Moffett, encountered early issues. 

Somehow, Devine managed to set the third-fastest time on Galway’s first stage despite struggling to hear his co-driver Noel O’Sullivan over intercom interference. Josh Moffett, with Andy Hayes on the notes finished stage one in fourth but was grimacing after his new Citroen C3 Rally2 was bottoming out over some severe Galway bumps and jumps. 

Matt Edwards’ Galway International Rally debut came to a devastating early end on stage two. His Fiesta slid wide into a bank and clipped a rock on a slippery Caherlistrane right-hander. Steering damage meant the three-time British Rally Champion had to retire from fifth position. 

The roads had started to dry in Galway’s countryside but the winter muck made the conditions as treacherous as ever. 

Sam Moffett slipped from fourth to fifth on the 12.7-kilometre Kilbeg test. His Hyundai stalled under braking, pushing him into a wall. Thankfully for the 2017 Irish Tarmac Champion, it was a relatively gentle nudge with his Hyundai able to complete the loop albeit losing over 30 seconds to the leaders. 

Overnight rain made for difficult rallying conditions on Sunday morning. Cronin used all his experience to find the perfect balance of speed and safety to grab a hat-trick of stage wins. 

Cronin held a 31.9-second lead over Devine with two stages remaining and was able to cruise home to take a dream result on ITRC’s opener. 

The battle for third, and top position in the new Citroen C3 Rally2 Trophy, was heating up on Sunday morning. 

Josh Moffett held a 6.4-second advantage over Desi Henry at the start of Sunday’s stages. As Moffett continued to learn how best to handle his new Citroen in the wet conditions, Henry knew he was in a prime position to pressurise. 

Despite a trip up a bank and pushing too hard on stage 12, Henry cut the gap to Moffett to 2.1 seconds with two Galway tests to go. 

Moffett upped his game on the drying roads setting a second- and first-fastest time. His podium position and €5,000 C3 Trophy prize were confirmed when Henry slipped wide on a square left junction on Galway’s finale. 

Sam Moffett would finish the rally seventh, just six seconds off fourth position. 

Brendan Cumiskey and Arthur Kierans finished 14th OA and won their class in the Rally3 Fiesta. While Galway is normally a challenging enough rally in itself, Kierans gave himself more of a task by driving home to Monaghan after the first day to drive the Drumlin Navigation Trial before returning to Galway for Sunday’s stages.

Frank Kelly, Rodney Wilton, and Conor Murphy found themselves in a three-way Ford Escort Mk2 fight for two-wheel-drive honours after Galway’s opening day of action. 

Murphy blitzed his opposition on Sunday’s Belleville opener, beating Kelly by 18.1 seconds on the 16.8-kilometre test. 

Wilton marked his intent on the next stage, taking his second stage win of the weekend. 2.5 seconds separated the trio of Escorts with three tests remaining. 

Disaster struck Murphy on Galway’s finale as his Escort’s engine pulled the pin at the end of the stage. The Kerry driver made it to the finish line but ended the rally a mere four seconds off last-minute winner Kelly. Wilton had to settle for third. 

Mickey Conlon and Domhnall Lennon took a start to finish victory in their Class 12 Escort, finishing 26th OA. 

Des Lyons and Aisling McArdle had been sitting 3rd in Class 11F but their rally ended after eight stages. 

Ireland’s young guns provided a top-quality battle in ITRC’s Rally4 category. Keelan Grogan and Ryan McHugh started as they meant to go – Grogan bettering the Donegal driver by a mere tenth of a second on stage one. 

Their duel lasted the length of the rally with last-minute drama settling the contest. 

A collision with a round bale would prove pivotal – Grogan’s Peugeot 208 Rally4 arrived at the end of the stage showing its war wounds. The resulting seven-second time loss was enough for McHugh to slip ahead and clinch his first Rally4 victory of the year. 

Joseph Kelly and Killian McArdle finished in third in a Peugeot 208. Cian Caldwell and Ryan Farrell had been sitting third in class after ten stages, but a terminal power steering issue ended their rally after Stage 12.