Author: monaghanmotorclub

Josh Moffett has moved clear at the top of the Irish Tarmac Championship standings thanks to his 2^nd overall finish on the Ulster Rally. Based in Antrim and Newtownabbey, this event on 17^th and 18^th August was also a round of the British & Northern Ireland Rally Championships. After two days of classic stages in Antrim & Tyrone, Moffett & co-driver Andy Hayes finished 2^nd overall scoring maximum points for the Irish Tarmac Championship.

There was drama before the event as ITC Championship leader, Sam Moffett, was forced to withdraw due to work commitments. Friday consisted of five classic stages at Glendun, Torr Head & Cairncastle. The action was fast and furious with Moffett/Hayes leading at the overnight halt. They were just 4.4 seconds of British Star Matt Edwards in another R5 Fiesta. Welshman, Rhys Yates held 3^rd just 0.6 seconds further back.

Saturday consisted of six stages in the Sperrin Mountains. The lead changed hands as Yates stormed to the front on stage six, before Edwards snatched the lead on Stage 7. The long Dorrvaille stage was next and Edwards maintained his lead with Moffett/Hayes in 2^nd just 8.7 seconds behind. Edwards pulled away on the final loop as Moffett settled for 2^nd place and top championship points. David Bogie/John Rowan climbed to 3^rd by the finish in their Skoda. Moffett now holds a commanding championship lead but with dropped scores and bonus points available in Cork, the title race remains open, with his brother Sam the other main contender.

Mac Kierans guided Alan Smyth to 8^th overall, 3^rd in the National Rally and 1^st in class. Martin Connolly guided William Mavitty to 16^th overall and 1^st in class in their Lancer.

Sheridan Wins in Galway

Paul Sheridan guided Jonathan Pringle to overall victory in the Galway Summer Rally. The event was the 4^th round of the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship. The pair led the event from start to finish claiming their 2^nd win this year after their victory on the Laois Heartlands Rally.

Brendan Cumiskey/Ronan O’Kane finished 2^nd overall in their Skoda Fabia R5. Conor Mohan guided Eamon Kelly to 30^th overall and 1^st in class 11F. Christopher Brennan/Martin Hughes finished 41^st overall and 2^nd in class 11F. Donagh Kelly/Conor Foley switched from the Focus to an Historic Ascona with which they won the Historic class. Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden suffered a rare non finish. Justin Smyth/Gregory McQuillan also failed to finish.

Endurance Trial 2018

Regulations are now available for the 2018 Monaghan Endurance Trial which takes place on Sunday August 26^th. Fintan Keenan returns as COC this year after taking on the mantle last year with the Four Season Hotel again serving as HQ. This sport has really kicked off this season with strong entries and the club is expecting approximately 50 crews to make the start. The action gets underway at 10.00am and crews will traverse the various selectives until arriving back at the Four Seasons at 5.00pm. Regulations and entry form can be downloaded from www.monaghanmotorclub.net

Navigation Trial Classes 2018

The night navigation trial season is fast approaching and Monaghan Motor Club is gearing up for that all important kick start with the annual navigation classes. If you have a motor sport interest of any kind the Navigation Trials are the best form of obtaining the correct ‘foundation’ for this sport. The scheduled classes will cover the full range of topics including map reading, timing, car regulations and pace notes for stages rallies.

The classes will start on Friday 24th August at 8pm sharp in the excellent facilities of the Sean Mac Diarmada complex in Threemilehouse. All those interested should contact Shane 0862616120 to book your place for the classes. Registration will also include club membership, maps, romer and all necessary paperwork to complete the 6 week course.

The night navigation trial season is fast approaching and Monaghan Motor Club is gearing up for that all important kick start with the annual navigation classes. If you have a motor sport interest of any kind the Navigation Trials are the best form of obtaining the correct ‘foundation’ for this sport. The scheduled classes will cover the full range of topics including map reading, timing, car regulations and pace notes for stages rallies.

The classes will start on Friday 24th August at 8pm sharp in the excellent facilities of the Sean Mac Diarmada complex in Threemilehouse. All those interested should contact Shane 0862616120 to book your place for the classes. Registration will also include club membership, maps, romer and all necessary paperwork to complete the 6 week course.

Endurance Trial 2018

Regulations are now available for the 2018 Monaghan Endurance Trial which takes place on Sunday August 26^th. Fintan Keenan returns as COC this year after taking on the mantle last year with the Four Season Hotel again serving as HQ. This sport has really kicked off this season with strong entries and the club are hoping for approximately 50 crews to make the start. The action gets underway at 10.00am and crews will traverse the various selectives until arriving back at the Four Seasons at 5.00pm. Regulations and entry form can be downloaded from www.monaghanmotorclub.net

Josh Moffett continued his quest for success in the Triton National Rally Championship with overall victory on the Tipperary Stonethrowers Rally. The event was the 4^th Round of the National Rally Championship and the first event since May. Josh and co-driver, Keith Moriarty led from start to finish in a dominant display.

Moffett & Moriarty blew the opposition away on the opening stage taking 11 seconds out of their rivals. Declan Boyle/James O’Reilly were their nearest challengers with local man Roy White/James O’Brien in 3^rd. All three were piloting WRC Fiestas. After three stages, Boyle had only trimmed the gap to 10 seconds and Moffett promptly doubled that advantage on Stage 4. Moffett led by 22 seconds after six tests from Boyle with White nearly a minute further back.

There was late drama on Stage 8 when Josh’s lead was slashed to three seconds when the car dropped a cylinder. They were able to rectify the problem on the final stage and another sterling drive through the final test saw them increase their advantage to 8 seconds. Boyle/O’Reilly had to settle for 2^nd place to maintain their championship lead.

Elsewhere in the field, Mac Kierans guided Sean Moynihan to 20^th overall and 1^st in class 12. Jack McKenna guided Jason Black to another victory in the Junior class while Ryan Brennan guided Gareth Black to 3^rd in class.

Kelly wins in Cork

Paul Kelly guided David Condell to overall victory on the Imokilly Mini Stages Rally. The Carlow/Monaghan pairing flew through the six stages in East Cork. Barry Meade/Colin Fitzgerald had made the early running but after their retirement on stage five, Condell/Kelly held off the Lancer of Owen Murphy/Anthony Nestor by nine seconds for the win.

American-based club members Barry McKenna has had a brilliant few weeks with back to back rally wins either side of the Irish Sea. In July, Barry took his first overall win on the Cork Forestry Rally based in Mallow. He followed this success up with victory on the Grampian Forest Rally in Scotland.

On the Cork Forestry Rally, McKenna and co-driver Leon Jordan were involved in a big three way battle with the similar Fiestas of Josh Moffett/Stephen Thornton and Andrew Purcell/Mark Wiley. Each day counted as separate championship rounds. Purcell/Wiley pipped McKenna/Jordan over the opening day by just 1.7 seconds. Josh Moffett/Keith Moriarty were 3^rd overall on day one.

Moffett/Thornton were fastest over the six Sunday stages but only edged out McKenna/Jordan by two seconds. When cumulative times were included, McKenna/Jordan had secured the overall rally win by 12 seconds from Moffett/Thornton with Purcell/Wiley in 3^rd.

Vivian Hamill/Andrew Grennan switched from their Mk2 Escort to a WRC Fiesta for the weekend and they recorded a fine 5^th place finish. Kaine Treanor guided Stephen McCann to 6^th overall. Michael Conlon/Ciaran McPhillips brought their Escort home to 14^th overall and 2^nd in class. Paul Kelly guided David Condell to 17^th overall and 3^rd in class.

Derek Mackarel/Muireann Hayes came home 32^nd overall and 4^th in class after losing several minutes on Saturday which cost them any chance of a good result in the Junior class. Conor Boylan guided Peter Beaton to victory in the Junior 1000cc Class.

McKenna then joined forces with former British Champion, Arthur Kierans, to contest the Grampion Forest Rally in Scotland. This event was a counting round of the Scottish Rally Championship. Despite being unfamiliar with the Scottish Forests, McKenna/Kierans, climbed from their No.11 seed and took the outright win.

A plethora of Monaghan Motor Club Members made the trip to Wexford last weekend for the third round of the Irish Endurance Championship.

This was Wexford Motor Club’s first Endurance Trial but the hard-working team put together an excellent event featuring twenty selectives during the day and attracted an impressive entry of 50 crews.

Overall honours went to the experienced endurance crew of Dublin’s Karl O’Donoghue and Monaghan’s Evin Hughes.

The opening loop of five selectives featured a mix of surfaces including concrete, gravel and grass. Cork’s Derek Bulter/Aaron O’Regan were leading the event tied with the local crew of Martin French/Colin Murray.

Leading the Monaghan crews were Peter Barrable/Conor Mohan. Peter was chasing a third straight win in the championship after wins in ALMC and Tipperary. They were nine seconds off the pace after five tests while Karl O’Donoghue/Evin Hughes were a further five seconds back. Josh Moffett & Wexford navigator, Andy Hayes, were hauling their big Vectra around to hold a top 10 place. Scotstown’s Gary Cassidy/Paul Kelly had been as high as 3rd overall in their Mitsubishi Colt but mechanical problems sidelined them.

Following a repeat of the morning selectives, Martin French had edged into the lead, setting stunning times in his Micra. Such was the pace and strength of competition just 15 seconds separated the top six at the halfway mark. Barrable/Mohan were 4th but their engine was overheating and guzzling water between selectives. O’Donoghue/Hughes were 6th hoping to eradicate a few errors from the morning loop.

A new loop of selectives followed consisting of three autotest type selectives on concrete yards, a dusty quarry and a farm & field test. Selective 11 would turn the event on its head as O’Donoghue/Hughes jumped from 6th to 1st while other crews hit problems. They maintained their lead until the end of the loop with hard-charging local’s French/Murray, five seconds behind. Barrable/Mohan were holding onto 4th despite their engine worries. Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes were on the fringes of the top 10 despite two punctures with Mac Kierans/Muireann Hayes just behind in their Corolla.

O’Donoghue/Hughes maintained their lead to the end, finishing 17 seconds clear. A late push from Barrable/Mohan saw them claim 2nd, pipping French/Murray by three seconds. Bulter/O’Regan were just another second back with Sligo’s Patrick Corcoran/Gary Egan and Kildare’s Kevin O’Rourke/Dave McAuley completing the top six. 36 seconds spilt the six crews demonstrating the intense competition at the front of the field.

Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Vectra) finished 11th overall. Mac Kierans/Muireann Hayes (Corolla) were 14th. Emmet Sherry/Ciaran Geaney (Starlet) came home 20th. Nigel Brennan/Ryan Brenna (Colt) finished 24th overall. Damien & Thomas Treanor (Starlet) came home 28th overall after late problems saw them miss several selectives. Jack McKenna/Denver Rafferty (Starlet) and Gary Cassidy/Paul Kelly (Colt) were the other Monaghan crews to be classified as finishers despite both crews missing the majority of selectives. Thomas Wedlock/Conor Boylan competed in class 2 for Navigation cars up to 1400cc and took 6th in class on their first Endurance event.

Monaghan’s Endurance Trial is set to be the next round of the championship and is scheduled to take place on Sunday August 19th. As this sport continues to grow and develop, a strong entry is expected.