Author: monaghanmotorclub

 

It proved to be a demanding weekend for local crews competing on the Killarney Rally of the Lakes. The event was round 4 of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. The Championship has been dominated by former WRC driver Craig Breen who duly made it four wins from four.

Both Moffett brothers suffered rare retirements which left Damien Connolly as the first Monaghan club member home. Damien guided Dublin’s Robert Barrable to 5^th overall in their Skoda.

Arthur Kierans guided Billy Coleman award winner James Wilson to 10^th overall. Wilson was competing in an R5 Hyundai for the first time as part of his award. The pair had an up and down weekend and despite a few problems and delays were happy to bring the car home in a top 10 position. Paul Kelly guided David Condell to 4^th overall in the National Rally. Josh Moffett’s rally came to an end on stage 5. His brother Sam suffered last minute heartache with retirement on the final stage whilst holding 5^th place. Eamon Kelly/Conor Mohan retired on stage 13 whilst holding 4^th in class.

Tynans Claim Border Crown

The 2018-2019 Squealing Pig Border Navigation Championship prizegiving took place last Friday night. Due to the cancellation of the Midland events, only three rounds featured this season. Michael & Ciaran Tynan picked up the overall award. The pair took two events wins on the Drumlin and Monaghan March events with 3^rd overall in Cavan. This is their 2^nd Border success after their 2009-2010 Championship win.

2^nd overall went to National Champions, Derek Mackarel & Muireann Hayes. 3^rd overall went to the Semi-Expert team of Peter Deery & David McCrudden. Expert class honours went to Pakie Duffy & Evin Hughes, Semi-Expert class went to James McCabe/Shane Farrell and Novice class honours went to Shane Dalton/Seamus McTigue.

Donagh Kelly & Conor Foley have won the 2019 Four Seasons Hotel Monaghan Stages Rally. The Donegal/Monaghan pairing made it back to back wins in Monaghan and as in 2018, they came from behind to do so. After nine stages, the winning duo held off Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes by just 5.7 seconds to take their second Monaghan win. Moffett had been the early pacesetter but a stage six puncture would ultimately cost him the event despite a brave comeback on the final loop. National Championship perennials Roy White/James O’Brien secured 3^rd place in their Fiesta a further 27 seconds behind.

Despite the overcast morning, huge crowds lined the route as the crews prepared for the opening stage at Hollywood. Tyre choice was critical as the stage conditions were constantly changing. Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes stopped the clocks with a fastest time, 3.8 seconds up on Donagh Kelly/Conor Foley. The latter were reacclimatising to their Ford Focus WRC which they last drove on the 2018 Donegal International. Roy White slotted into an early 3^rd place while Sam Moffett/James Fulton were pushing their R5 Fiesta to the maximum to hold 4^th while Declan & Brian Boyle were getting up to speed after a big off on last weekend’s Easter Stages.

Moffett/Hayes continued to set the pace, particularly on the technical third stage where they took 10 seconds off Kelly, even though he felt his tyres going off. Kelly/Foley were a solid 2^nd with White/O’Brien 6 seconds further back. Boyle had leapfrogged Moffett for 4^th with the top six completed by Darren Gass & Enda Sherry in their R5 Fiesta. Peadar Hurson/Damien Connolly were 7^th despite an overshoot and a poor tyre choice while Joe McGonigle/Ciaran Geaney complained of a misfire.

Kevin Eves/Chris Melly from Donegal were setting the two wheel drive pace in their Toyota Corolla. Class 13 competitors David Moffett/Martin Connolly and Raymond Conlon/Damien Fleming were in close contention followed by another Donegal crew of JF Shovelin/Emmet Brosnan. In Group N, Shane Maguire/Anthony Nestor led after the first stage retirement of chief rivals Michael Boyle/Dermot McCafferty.

Moffett and Kelly exchanged seconds on stage four and five but the event would be turned on its head when Moffett punctured on stage six. Josh was disconsolate as he was at odds to explain how he got the puncture. He now trailed Kelly by 15 seconds with three stages to go. White was now just 0.2 seconds behind in 3^rd place and was trouble free. Boyle, Moffett and Gass maintained positions. Hurson dropped out of the top 10 after a spin and the lack of a reverse gear cost several minutes. Eves and Maguire maintained their category leads.

On the final loop, Moffett put in a storming drive and reduced the deficit to 5.3 seconds going into the final stage. Kelly put the foot down on the final 16km test and bested Moffett by 0.4 of a second to secure the win by 5.7 seconds. White finished a trouble free third with Boyle, Sam Moffett and Gass rounding off the top six. McGonigle claimed 7^th in his Mini with Eves a fine 8^th continuing his National dominance of the two wheel drive category. The local team of Michael Carbin/Conor Mohan were the first all-Monaghan crew home in 9^th place in their Lancer with Hurson/Connolly recovering to 10^th place.

Shane Maguire/Anthony Nestor took another home win in Group N despite a day long misfire. Wexford’s Thomas O’Rourke was their nearest challenger. The junior category was won by Jack Brunton/Darragh Kelly with Aaron & Ben McIntyre from Cootehill winning the Junior Cup.

As always, the Monaghan Stages Rally attracted a capacity local entry who tasted various successes throughout the various classes. Craig McPhillips/Anthony McDonald made their stages debut and finished 3^rd in class 1. Pakie Duffy/Evin Hughes tasted success in class 3 in their Civic. Patrick Fitzpatrick/James McEneaney finished 3^rd in the competitive class 9. Mark Sheridan guided Brendan O’Reilly to 4^th in the same class with Stefan McCann/Marco Lennon 8^th in class 9.

Mickey Brennan/Paddy McCague took victory in class 10 from John & Niall Kelly. Padraig Connolly/Padraig Corrigan, Ryan Treanor/Robert Graham and Peter Farrell/Shane Farrell filled places 4^th to 6^th in class. Martin McPhillips/Ciaran Tynan took victory in class 11R after a fantastic battle with Mark Wedlock, who they edged out by just 0.8 seconds for the class win. Jack McKenna made his driving debut with the experienced Emmet Sherry navigating. They took 4^th in class 11R. Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden finished back in 6^th class after problems with Gary McKenna/Calum Maguire just behind.

Gregory McQuillan guided Justin Smyth to 3^rd in class 12. Sean McCaul/Frank Clerkin were 10^th in class with Kevin Treanor guiding Patrick Corey to 11^th in class. David Moffett/Martin Connolly were victorious in class 13 and 2^nd two wheel drive car home. Gary Cassidy/Paul Kelly finished 3^rd in class on their home rally. Barry McKenna/Darren O’Brien were 9^th in class 13.

Michael Conlon/Ciaran McPhillips finished 4^th in class 14. Declan McKenna guided Bryan Jardine to 9^th in class with Paddy O’Reilly/Rodney Hughes in 10^th. Brendan McAree/James Hendry won class 19 in their Porsche.

Many crews fell foul of the changing conditions or mechanical woes. These included Stephen Wright/Stephen Thornton, Raymond Conlon/Damien Fleming, Johno Doogan/Ciaran Marron, Martin Swinburne/Gretchen Fegan, Jack Maguire/Keith McConnon, Vincent McAree/David McCrudden, Martin Tynan/Declan Tynan, Derek Mackarel/Conor Boylan and Patrick Connolly/Dylan Lennon,

At the Gala Prizegiving, COC Eoghan Corr thanked Frank McKenna and his team at the Four Seasons Hotel for hosting the event which was once again a tremendous success. The event was well received by competitors who praised the stages and organisation of the event. Eoghan extended thanks to Monaghan County Council, Monaghan Municipal District, An Garda Siochana and the Civil Defence personnel for their valuable assistance. A special word of thanks goes to the residents along the route for their welcome, co-operation and support. The rally also would not have run without the work of over 200 volunteers and marshals, to whom the organisers are most grateful.

Results:

1^st Donagh Kelly/Conor Foley (Focus WRC) 1h.05m.002s

2^nd Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Fiesta WRC) 1h.05m.05.9s

3^rd Roy White/James O’Brien (Fiesta WRC) 1h.05m.33.0s

4^th Declan Boyle/Brian Boyle (Fiesta WRC) 1h.05.44.8s

5^th Sam Moffett/James Fulton (Fiesta R5) 1h.06m.12.4s

6^th Darren Gass/Enda Sherry (Skoda Fabia R5) 1h.07m.19.0s

7^th Joe McGonigle/Ciaran Geaney (Mini WRC) 1h.08m.39.6s

8^th Kevin Eves/Chris Melly (Toyota Corolla) 1h.08.52.7s

9^th Michael Carbin/Conor Mohan (Lancer) 1h.09m.36.6s

10^th Peader Hurson/Damien Connolly (Fiesta WRC) 1h.09m.39.6s

 

The 2019 Four Seasons Hotel Monaghan Stages Rally is almost here!

With an impressive entry of 160 crews (plus reserves!), the event has underlined its credentials as one of the most attractive events on the motorsport calendar. Competitors are travelling from far and wide including from overseas. The rally is boosted by being a round of the Triton National Rally Championship as well as the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship. The event wouldn’t exist without the support of sponsors, most notably The Four Seasons Hotel who act as title sponsor and Rally HQ. We thank Frank McKenna and his team for taking us on board again.

Eoghan Corr takes on the mantle of COC for the first time and along with his dedicated team have laid out three challenging technical stages which will be repeated three times. The stages will be a mix of fast flowing roads and tighter technical sections which appeal to the tastes of all. Centralised service will again be held in the Courthouse Car Park. First car is due back at The Four Seasons at 5.20pm where the 2019 winner will be crowned!

The event has been dominated by local drivers with only three non-Monaghan drivers tasting success in the last 20 years. One of these is 2018 winner Donagh Kelly and the Donegal man is set to defend his crown with his navigator Conor Foley. The pair head the entry list in the same Ford Focus with which they won last year.

The Moffett brothers, Sam & Josh start at 2 and 3 respectively. Between them, they have won five consecutive events from 2013 until 2017. Both are expected to compete in WRC Fiestas. Josh has already won the opening two rounds of the 2019 National Rally Championship as he bids to add the last remaining title in Ireland to his resume. James Fulton is sitting with Sam while Andy Hayes is again sitting with Josh.

Another brace of WRC Fiestas are at 4 and 5. Reigning National Champion Declan Boyle is at 4 while another former champion, Roy White is at 5. Both crews are always in the thick of the battle in the National Championship. 7 time winner Niall Maguire starts at 6 with James O’Reilly alongside. Niall once again competes in his Subaru WRC and is always in the reckoning on his home event.

The top 10 is completed by Joe McGonigle (Mini WRC), Peader Hurson (Fiesta WRC), Darren Gass (Skoda Fabia R5) and Stephen Wright (Fiesta R5). All are capable of challenging for podium positions on their day.

The two wheel drive category is once again expected to be hotly contested with Donegal man Kevin Eves in his Corolla leading the way. Jonathan Pringle, Damien Toner, Stuart Darcy, John Bonner, Damien Gallagher and Johno Doogan start right behind all in Escorts. Don’t discount David Moffett or Johnny Jordan from embarrassing the class 14 men in their class 13 Starlets as David showed last year! There are also a few crews on the reserve list who could make an impression if they get in. These include Adrian Hetherington, James Stafford and Damien Tourish.

Michael Boyle heads the Group N entry from Shane Maguire. Interestingly they are the sons of the drivers in cars 4 and 6. The junior category entry is headed by David Kelly in his Starlet. There is expected to be a huge battle in the classes as crews fight for local honours and precious championship points.

Please support our event sponsors by purchasing a rally programme which is available from a number of local outlets including the Four Seasons Hotel.

Safety Message

 

Clerk of the Course Eoghan Corr has made a special appeal to all concerned to think safety at all times. The Event Safety Plan has been compiled meticulously. Marshals, Stage Commanders and Officials have been trained accordingly. What is required is that spectators play their part to ensure the safe running of the event. All are asked to ‘keep the race in its place’ and drive with care to and from the stages. Take time to read the Spectator Safety Notice in the rally programme. Safety is everyone’s business and there is one common ingredient that is essential ‘common sense’. Spectators are asked to follow the instructions of the marshals and officials, who are working for your safety. Please also respect private property and bring your litter home.

 

Easter Stages Rally

The third round of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship took place last weekend. The Easter Stages Rally was contested over Good Friday and Easter Saturday. Monaghan interest was headed by Sam Moffett/James Fulton who guided their R5 Fiesta to 6^th overall, His brother Josh was an early leader but an incident on stage five cost nearly two minutes. He eventually recovered to finish in 8^th overall. Arthur Kierans guided Alan Carmichael to 10^th overall while his son Mac guided Alan Smyth to 13^th overall and the Group N win. Michael Conlon/Martin Byrne finished 19^th overall with Gerard McQuaid/Gary Quinlan coming home in 23^rd place.

 

The 2019 Four Seasons Hotel Monaghan Stages Rally is almost here!

With an impressive entry of 160 crews (plus reserves!), the event has underlined its credentials as one of the most attractive events on the motorsport calendar. Competitors are travelling from far and wide including from overseas. The rally is boosted by being a round of the Triton National Rally Championship as well as the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship. The event wouldn’t exist without the support of sponsors, most notably The Four Seasons Hotel who act as title sponsor and Rally HQ. We thank Frank McKenna and his team for taking us on board again.

Eoghan Corr takes on the mantle of COC for the first time and along with his dedicated team have laid out three challenging technical stages which will be repeated three times. The stages will be a mix of fast flowing roads and tighter technical sections which appeal to the tastes of all. Centralised service will again be held in the Courthouse Car Park. First car is due back at The Four Seasons at 5.20pm where the 2019 winner will be crowned!

The event has been dominated by local drivers with only three non-Monaghan drivers tasting success in the last 20 years. One of these is 2018 winner Donagh Kelly and the Donegal man is set to defend his crown with his navigator Conor Foley. The pair head the entry list in the same Ford Focus with which they won last year.

The Moffett brothers, Sam & Josh start at 2 and 3 respectively. Between them, they have won five consecutive events from 2013 until 2017. Both are expected to compete in WRC Fiestas. Josh has already won the opening two rounds of the 2019 National Rally Championship as he bids to add the last remaining title in Ireland to his resume. James Fulton is sitting with Sam while Andy Hayes is again sitting with Josh.

Another brace of WRC Fiestas are at 4 and 5. Reigning National Champion Declan Boyle is at 4 while another former champion, Roy White is at 5. Both crews are always in the thick of the battle in the National Championship. 7 time winner Niall Maguire starts at 6 with James O’Reilly alongside. Niall once again competes in his Subaru WRC and is always in the reckoning on his home event.

The top 10 is completed by Joe McGonigle (Mini WRC), Peader Hurson (Fiesta WRC), Darren Gass (Skoda Fabia R5) and Stephen Wright (Fiesta R5). All are capable of challenging for podium positions on their day.

The two wheel drive category is once again expected to be hotly contested with Donegal man Kevin Eves in his Corolla leading the way. Jonathan Pringle, Damien Toner, Stuart Darcy, John Bonner, Damien Gallagher and Johno Doogan start right behind all in Escorts. Don’t discount David Moffett or Johnny Jordan from embarrassing the class 14 men in their class 13 Starlets as David showed last year! There are also a few crews on the reserve list who could make an impression if they get in. These include Adrian Hetherington, James Stafford and Damien Tourish.

Michael Boyle heads the Group N entry from Shane Maguire. Interestingly they are the sons of the drivers in cars 4 and 6. The junior category entry is headed by David Kelly in his Starlet. There is expected to be a huge battle in the classes as crews fight for local honours and precious championship points.
Please support our event sponsors by purchasing a rally programme which is available from a number of local outlets including the Four Seasons Hotel.
Safety Message

Clerk of the Course Eoghan Corr has made a special appeal to all concerned to think safety at all times. The Event Safety Plan has been compiled meticulously. Marshals, Stage Commanders and Officials have been trained accordingly. What is required is that spectators play their part to ensure the safe running of the event. All are asked to ‘keep the race in its place’ and drive with care to and from the stages. Take time to read the Spectator Safety Notice in the rally programme. Safety is everyone’s business and there is one common ingredient that is essential ‘common sense’. Spectators are asked to follow the instructions of the marshals and officials, who are working for your safety. Please also respect private property and bring your litter home.

Easter Stages Rally

The third round of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship took place last weekend. The Easter Stages Rally was contested over Good Friday and Easter Saturday. Monaghan interest was headed by Sam Moffett/James Fulton who guided their R5 Fiesta to 6th overall, His brother Josh was an early leader but an incident on stage five cost nearly two minutes. He eventually recovered to finish in 8th overall. Arthur Kierans guided Alan Carmichael to 10th overall while his son Mac guided Alan Smyth to 13th overall and the Group N win. Michael Conlon/Martin Byrne finished 19th overall with Gerard McQuaid/Gary Quinlan coming home in 23rd place.

 

The country roads of Monaghan are set to come alive with the sound of Rally Cars as there is just over a week to go until the 2019 Four Seasons Hotel Monaghan Stages Rally! The event is expected to attract a capacity entry of over 140 cars to contest the nine stage event. Eoghan Corr takes on the mantle of COC for the first time and along with his dedicated team they are putting the finishing touches to the event.

The event has been subject to eight months of hard work by the organising team and is set for Sunday April 28^th. The Four Seasons Hotel in Monaghan town returns as title sponsor for a third successive year. We thank Frank McKenna and his team for taking us on board again. This year we welcome the top contenders in the Triton National Rally Championship as well as crews contesting the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship. The event is also a round of the club Trader’s Trophy Championship.

The event gets underway on Saturday when crews check their pacenotes and complete mechanical scrutiny at McElvaney’s garage on the Dublin Road. The first car is due to leave the Four Seasons Hotel at 9.20am Sunday Morning. The three stages are in the Ballinode, Newbliss, Scotshouse & Ardaghy areas.

Stage 1 features some sections last used in 2012 as well as some new sections and should serve as a challenging opening test. Stage 2 uses some sections last used in 2017 with Stage 3 incorporating roads used on various events over the year. We extend our thanks to the residents along the route for their continued support of the event. Centralised service will take place in the Courthouse Car Park. The loop will be completed three times before returning to the Four Seasons where the winner of the 2019 Monaghan Stages Rally will be crowned!

The event has been dominated by local drivers with only three non-Monaghan drivers tasting success in the last 20 years. One of these is 2018 winner Donagh Kelly and the Donegal man is set to defend his crown with his navigator Conor Foley. A full event preview will be released next week.

Safety Message

Clerk of the Course Eoghan Corr has made a special appeal to all concerned to think safety at all times. The Event Safety Plan has been compiled meticulously. Marshals, Stage Commanders and Officials have been trained accordingly. What is required is that spectators play their part to ensure the safe running of the event. All are asked to ‘keep the race in its place’ and drive with care to and from the stages. Take time to read the Spectator Safety Notice in the rally programme. Safety is everyone’s business and there is one common ingredient that is essential ‘common sense’. Spectators are asked to follow the instructions of the marshals and officials, who are working for your safety. Please also respect private property and bring your litter home.

Mackarel Stars on Moonraker

Derek Mackarel put in a starring drive on last weekend’s Moonraker Forestry Rally. The event was Round 3 of the Irish Forestry Championship. Mackarel joined forces with his usual navigator Muireann Hayes hoping to emulate their giant-killing performance from last year’s event. They duly did that when after the first stage they were 9^th overall and 2^nd two wheel drive! They kept up their performance with more top 10 times throughout the day to win their class and finish a remarkable 11^th overall in a 1600cc Nova.

Michael Carbin/Conor Mohan continued their championship push with another excellent result. The Smithborough crew brought their Lancer home to 5^th overall. Conor Boylan guided Peter Beaton to 50^th overall and 2^nd in the 1000cc class. Barry McKenna returned to Irish soil to contest the event but retired on stage 2. Peter McCullagh/Calum Maguire also failed to finish. Vio Dabuso/Mac Kierans made it to stage 4 before retiring while also resulted in the rare retirement of Michael Conlon/Ciaran McPhillips.

Cavan Endurance Trial

Last weekend saw the running of Cavan Motor Club’s Endurance Trial. The event was running for the first time and COC Gerard Hyland organised a 20 selective event covering tests in quarries, lanes and private businesses. The event was a counting round of the Irish Endurance Championship.

There was plenty of Monaghan interest in the event with the growing sport attracting an entry of 60 crews for its first event in Cavan. The opening selectives featured some classic navigation lanes and Latton Hutcross track. The normal front running crews of Peter Barrable & Karl O’Donoghue both hit early penalties for failing to have timecards correctly filled while Jack McKenna/Christopher McMahon were sidelined with gearbox failure. It was local men who made the early running with Andrew Wedlock/Brian Quigley the early leaders from Patrick O’Reilly/Laura Wedlock and Ben McIntyre/Ryan Farrell.

The repeated run through the morning selectives resulted in Patrick Corcoran/Ruadhri Nash taking over out front with Derek Bulter/Oisin Sherlock and Thomas Wedlock/Denver Rafferty in hot pursuit.

The afternoon selectives took crews south of Cavan town for a further six selectives. Patrick Corcoran/Ruadhri Nash retired after their clipping a wheel on their Starlet. Derek Butler/Oisin Sherlock were now in control enjoying a 21 seconds advantage from McIntyre/Farrell and Wedlock/Rafferty. There was late drama as a number of leading crews made a gentleman’s agreement to traverse Selective 17 at road speed due to avoid damaging the cars. Others traversed the selective at competitive speed resulting in a huge change in the leaderboard.

This would prove to be the winning of the event for Thomas Wedlock/Denver Rafferty as they took 51 seconds off Bulter/Sherlock to take the lead. Kieran McCarra/James O’Reilly, Dermot McCafferty/John McCafferty and Emmet Sherry/Alecia Knox also benefited to move into top five places.Wedlock/Rafferty held on to take the win on their home event. Bulter/Sherlock had to settle for 2^nd with Sherry/Knox in 3^rd. Kieran McCarra/James O’Reilly finished 4^th overall and took victory in the Expert class. Other local class winners included Aaron McElroy who guided Nicole Drought to victory in class A1 in an impressive 13^th overall. Robert Graham/Ryan Treanor won the Novice class.