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All roads lead to the Hillgrove Hotel Monaghan this Saturday night 3^rd December for Monaghan Motor Clubs Annual Awards and Ladies night. This year’s awards ceremony has a little twist as the club has decided to recognise the unsung heroes of the club. These are the people behind the men who are always there to support the boys when things go well and there with a shoulder to cry on when they may not go according to plan. These are the LADIES of the club. We want to show the club’s appreciation to the wives and girlfriends of the competitors. There will be lots and lots of spot prizes on the night. Spot prizes for the ladies only will include:  €200 spa voucher for the Radisson Hotel in Cavan, €100 spa voucher for the Hillgrove Hotel, €100 voucher for Hi-Maintenance. There will also be vouchers for Lingerie, Hair & Jewellery. Only ladies present on the night will be eligible to win any of the prizes. MC and DJ on the night is the one and only Sean McCaffrey. Club championship results and a list of all award winners are available on the club website at www.monaghanmotorclub.net Tickets for the night are available from any committee member or text 0877827918. So why not come along for what promises to be a good night of ceoil agus craic and remember to bring all your lady friends!

 Locals Kelly & Johnston win Midlands Navigation

Foxfield in Fenagh, Co. Leitrim was the venue for Midlands Motor Clubs first navigation of the new season on Saturday night last. CoC was Enda McLoughlin, who along with his assistant Alan Gibbons laid on a tough and testing trial for man and machine. On a rain drenched night 43 starters faced into 38 time points and 2 via’s around the Leitrim town of Balinamore. It was a night for the local men as new Midlands club champion Chris Kelly along with his navigator Sam Johnston won by a slender margin of 6 penalties from another local crew of Packie and Colin Duffy. Ashley Mc Adoo proved for the second night running that he is just as good in the drivers seat with Francis Keenan on the maps as the finished 3^rd over-all. Francis’s regular driver Darren Babbington was forced to sit this event out due to work commitments so Ashley duly obliged.

            The first 7 time points of the night were just south of Foxfield with tp’s 2,3 and 4 all plot and bash sections. Only three crews managed to clean this section as the semi-expert crew of Kevin Keenan and Barry Garvey emerged as early leaders but would later be forced into retirement. Time points 8 to 15 headed north and into the Benbrack forest area of the Cuilcagh mountains. Time points 13 and 14 were very tricky with multiple wrong approaches to 13 and a slot right through a hole in the hedge to 14 saw 28 crews miss this time point completely. Results sheets show that event winners Kelly/Johnston were in the lead at Control B as they led on “semi over expert” ruling from Michael and Ciaran Tynan, both crews on 3 penalties. Packie and Colin Duffy were still very much in the hunt on 5 penalties along with Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes. In the novice class Darren Quinn and Nigel McCloughry were well ahead while another midlands crew Shane Dalton and Michael Reilly had a clear lead in the beginners class.

            There was no let up in the tightly timed lanes through the 2^nd half of the event which stayed North of Balinamore with twisty and testing lanes to every time point. The leader board changed numerous times throughout the 2^nd half but it was the midlands men who held station as they had their personal battle for the club championship. Towards the latter end of the event almost all crews were forced to skip a time point or two as they were over the maximum 15 minutes. Incidentally the eventual top 3 finishers were the only crews not forced to skip time points, testament to how well they were going. Drumlin winners and national championship leaders prior to this event, Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes were forced into retirement in the second half as their car bared all the hallmarks of inhaling water along the flooded midland lanes. Michael and Ciaran Tynan also dropped out of the top 5 and into retirement after their car drifted wide on a fast but narrow lane to clip a rock and bend both back wheels. These two high profile retirements demonstrate how demanding navigation trials can be.

            With these retirements the top 3 were confirmed as Kelly and Johnston went on to claim a start to finish win and ensure Chris Kelly lifted the 2011 Midlands club champion title. The Duffy’s did all in their power to overturn Kellys bid but unfortunately it wasn’t enough on this occasion and had to settle for 2^nd on the night and 2^nd in the club championship. Ashley and Francis scored a memorable 3^rd over-all; maybe Darren Babbington will have a job getting the keys back off Ashley next night out! Andy Mackarel and Liam Higgins were 4^th over-all and 1^st in expert class ahead of Cork’s Colin Fitzgerald and Daire Hayes with Trevor Farrell and Noel Hall 3^rd after a tough night. With the top 3 over-all coming from the semi-expert class Sean McKenna and Gary Farrelly took 3^rd in class behind the Duffy’s and McAdoo/Keenan, albeit a long way back for their high standards.

Results sheets suggest the novice class was more or less a one horse race as Darren Quinn and Nigel McCloughry took a convincing win on 102 penalties. This crew showing all the signs of moving up through the ranks very quickly with some recent good results. Arthur and Macartan Kierans are down as 2^nd in the novice class on the night. Having set a very high benchmark over the past number of events Mac may be a little disappointed with this result but on a tough night for any beginner/novice they still finished 8^th over-all. Ciaran McElroy and Cootehill’s Damian McCabe took 3^rd in the novice class. Andrew Stewart and Robert Howard led the field home in the beginner’s class ahead of the ever trying Eoghan Corr and Gary McCrudden. Early beginners leaders Shane Dalton and Michael Reilly seem to have hit major trouble through the second half of the event as they were forced to skip 13 consecutive time points but managed to hold on for 3^rd beginners award.

            So after a tough first half to the navigation season the Squealing Pig Border navigation championship is still wide open with almost all of the top 10 sporting a bad score. With the well-deserved Christmas break impending next local event is Monaghan club navigation trial on 14/15^th January. Best of luck to any local crews travelling to Skibbereen, Co. Cork on 10/11^th December for the reserve round of the National Navigation Championship.

Midlands Motor Club Navigation Trial Top 12

1 Chris Kelly/Sam Johnston (Subaru Impreza) 46 marks

2 Pakie Duffy/Colin Duffy (Subaru Impreza) 52m

3 Ashley McAdoo/Francis Keenan (Subaru Impreza) 54m

4 Andy Mackarel/Liam Higgins (Subaru Impreza) 76m

5 Darren Quinn/Nigel McCloughry (Subaru Legacy) 88m

6 Colin Fitzgerald/Daire Hayes (Subaru Impreza) 105m

7 Trevor Farrell/Noel Hall (Subaru Impreza) 171m

8 Arthur Kierans/Macartan Kierans (Subaru Impreza) 192m

9 Garreth Beagan/Stephen Thornton (Subaru Impreza) 197m

10 Dave Fitzgerald/Glyn Gaffney (Subaru Forester) 198m

11 Joe Shinnors Jnr/Greg Shinnors (Subaru Impreza) 202m

12 Sean McKenna/Garry Farrelly (Subaru Impreza) 225m.

 

Michael Conlon and Aidan Boyle brought the infamous MC Blinds escort to Newry on Saturday last for the Newry and District Motor Club Gullion Stages Rally. After a daylong battle with Damian Toner/Paddy McCague they were edged out of the over-all win by nineteen seconds after 7 demanding stages. Weather conditions made the famous Gullion and Camlough stages even more challenging by virtue of thick fog in places coupled with the slippy forest tarmac. Local men David Armstrong and Damian Fleming were 3rd, also in an escort. Micky and Aidan started off with two stage wins but by stage 3 they were level with Toner, both their stage times never more than a second apart. By stage 5 Toner had pulled out a 5 second lead, albeit in a more powerful car. Over the final two stages Micky and Aidan kept the pressure on but Toner didn’t let up and went on to take a deserved win. They final stage of the day, big gullion was cancelled due to the thickening fog with visibility at a minimum. Clones man Raymond Conlon with Adrian McCrudden on the notes also made their annual pilgrimage to Newry and had a great run to 6th over-all. This result also merited 3rd in class for the Conlon Travel backed twin-cam. Martin Connolly was on the notes for Barry Greer in the fiesta and they took a 13-second class win and 9th over-all. Cootehill’s Mervin Wedlock and Damian McCabe also made the trip northeast to Newry and finished 19th over-all. Last minute entrants Laurence Sherry and Jonathan Treanor had an enjoyable day through the Gullion and Camlough mountain stages to take 3rd in their class. Well done to all the travelling Monaghan men.

Dunlop National Rally Championship Prize giving

The 2011 Dunlop National Rally Championship Awards Presentation was held on Saturday night last in the Clayton Hotel Galway. The series was won by Meath’s Tim McNulty and Paul Kiely after 10 rounds throughout the country. Monaghan’s Sam Moffett and James O’Reillys consistency paid off as they finished 2nd over-all and took the group N honours. Maynooth’s Kevin Barrett and Sean Mullally were 3rd over-all. A host of Monaghan crews collected class awards on what was an enjoyable and entertaining night in Galway. Shane Maguire and Damian Connolly took the class 4 honours, Damian navigating for Robert Barrable. Ballinodes Niall Maguire and Enda Sherry won class 8 in their Subaru. Aaron Mc Quaid was 2nd in class 10 with his navigator Aidan Coyle going one better and taking 1st in class 10. Gerard McQuaid finished 2nd in class 11 while his navigator Gareth Quinlan took 1st in class. Arthur and Macartan Kierans were once again on the winner’s podium, taking the class 12 honours with a win on the final round in Skibbereen. John McQuaid and Seamus O’Connor finished 2nd in class 14 in their powerful escort. Carrickmacross men Johno and Padraig Doogan were also presented on the night for their over-all junior rally championship win. David Moffett finished 2nd in class 16 in the junior rally championship while his navigator Patrick Brides took the class 16 win. Once again well done to all club members who picked up awards on the night. Monaghan Motor Club Annual Awards and Ladies Night Keep free Saturday 3rd December for Monaghan Motor Clubs annual Awards ceremony in the ideal surroundings of the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan. This year’s awards ceremony has a little twist as the club has decided to recognise the unsung heroes of the club. These are the people behind the men who are always there to support the boys when things go well and there with a shoulder to cry on when they may not go according to plan. These are the LADIES of the club. We want to show the club’s appreciation to the wives and girlfriends of the competitors. There will be lots and lots of spot prizes on the night. Spot prizes for the ladies only will include: €200 spa voucher for the Radisson Hotel in Cavan, €100 spa voucher for the Hillgrove Hotel, €100 voucher for Hi-Maintenance. There will also be vouchers for Lingerie, Hair & Jewellery. Only ladies present on the night will be eligible to win any of the prizes. MC and DJ on the night is the one and only Sean McCaffrey. Club championship results are available on the club website and tickets for the night are available from any committee member. Hope to see you all there as this promises to be a night to remember. More information next week.

Midlands Navigation Trial

All roads lead to Foxfield, Fenagh, Co Leitrim this Saturday night for Round 3 of the Squealing Pig Border navigation championship and Round 4 of the National navigation championship. Full Report next week.

 Monaghans infamous Drumlin night navigation trial was the place to be on Saturday night last as a full entry of 50 starters faced the 110-mile route through the drumlin hills of North Monaghan. Sean Mac Dermotts GAA centre in Threemilehouse was the ideal venue as CoC Stephen Thornton and Garreth Beagan laid on fabulous route to test man and machine to the max. Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes had an almost faultless night to take the event win on a total of 9 penalties. In doing so they also clinched the Gary Nesbitt club navigation championship from Michael and Ciaran Tynan, both crews finishing on the same points but 2 event wins for Carbin and Hughes give them the outright win. For Michael Carbin it was double success as he lifted the traders club championship trophy for the first time. 2^nd over-all on the night went to the Tynan’s finishing on 13 marks. Any other night 2^nd over-all on the drumlin would be a great result but not this time as they missed out on the traders and gary nesbitt championships by the slenderest of margins. Kevin Keenan and Barry Garvey had an excellent run to take 3^rd over-all on the night on 15 marks, although their car had some battle scares to prove how hard they were trying.

            The first 10 time points of the event were fairly straightforward although an inviting lane to time point 4 caught out 26crews for a wrong approach. Time points 11 and 12 also caused some confusion for a lot of crews. Known locally as Corr’s lane, a slot right between two turkey houses and then a lane round the farm to 12 saw all but 5 crews drop time. Time points 13 to 20 were in the Aghabog area with absolutely no time for error, even the slightest slip up would surely result in dropped minutes. Tp 21 & 22 was plot and bash sections with muddy and flooded lanes coming thick and fast. Event winners Carbin and Hughes only dropped a single minute through this section, as did Trevor Farrell and Noel Hall leaving them joint leaders at petrol halt. Kevin Keenan and Barry Garvey were on 2 pens and leading the semi experts ahead of midlands men Packie and Colin Duffy. Arthur and Macartan Kierans were using their local knowledge to great effect as they were also on 2 penalties and 3^rd over-all at mid point. Midlands men Shane Dalton and Michael Reilly were streets ahead in the beginners class by mid point on 38 penalties. Expert crew of Andy Mackarel and Liam Higgins were forced into retirement at mid point with a burst fuel tank.

            The second half of the trial snaked Southwards again from Monaghan to the outskirts of Ballybay and then west towards Aghabog and Corcaghan. If the first half of the trial lacked anything, then the second half surely made up for it. Lane after lane mean’t the times were very hard to make up. Tp’s 32 and 33 saw all crews dropping time, the same lane being used twice with two different departures. There was always going to be a sting in the tail on this event as tp 40 to 42 were all plot and bash sections. The approach to tp 39 was very tricky as miss your slot right deemed you inside 50 yards of the time point and the reward was 15 for a wrong approach or 30 for double visit penalties. The following plot and bash sections could only be described as going “round the world for a short cut”. A lot of thought went into this by the CoC’s as 3 of the time points plotted within a quarter of a mile of each other, while two more time points on the approach roads left figuring out the route very difficult. With precious minutes ticking away it eventually became apparent that two lanes had to be traversed three times each just to make the time points in the correct order without going through other time points which were all within close proximity. All sounds very confusing and indeed it was even for the experts but all that remained was to get the time points without any more time delays. Event winners Carbin and Hughes were now first on the road and dropped 6 minutes through this section while the Tynan’s dropped 7 and with the short run back to Threemilehouse they finished 1^st and 2^nd respectively. Keenan and Garvey dropped a massive 12 penalties from tp’s 38 to 43 but still did enough to hold onto a well deserved 3^rd over-all.

            Arthur and Macartan Kierans rounded off a great months rallying with 4^th over-all, a great result considering Mac is only on the maps for less than a year. A wrong approach to tp39 meant they could have been 2^nd over-all but nevertheless a great result for the Aghabog men. Trevor Farrell and Noel Hall rounded off the top 5 on 33 penalties and 2^nd expert, another victim of the approach to tp 39. Donegal brothers Rory and Ciaran Coyle took 3^rd expert on 39 pens. Keenan and Garvey took the semi-expert class win with Packie and Colin Duffy 2^nd, Colin picking up a massive 50 for an early clock in to Control D, dropping him from 4^th to 11^th over-all. Another midlands crew Chris Kelly and Sam Johnston were 3^rd in class but a long way back on 108 pens, a poor result by their high standards. Ciaran Mc Elroy and Damian McCabe took 2^nd novice award behind the Kierans’ with Brendan Ward and Sean Kelly 3^rd.

            On a tough night for a beginner it was Keith McConnon and Martin Swinburne who held their nerve to take the class win on 129 pens. Another midlands  crew in the form of Shane Dalton and Michael Reilly took 2^nd beginner on 159 pens with Paul McKenna and Gary McCrudden 3^rd beginner on 224 pens.

            So that’s the Drumlin done and dusted for another year and well done to

Stephen and Garreth on an excellent, tough, tricky and well-run event. Also thanks to Stephen Hagan and Fintan along with anyone else who helped out in any way. Next up is Midlands navigation trial on 26^th November in foxfield, approx 6 miles outside Ballinamore. Well done to Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes on winning the Gary Nesbitt club navigation championship and also to Michael on winning the 2011 traders club championship. Keep an eye on Monaghan club website for club navigation results with all awards being presented at our annual dinner dance on Saturday 3^rd December in Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan. Hope to see you all there, more information next week.

 

Monaghan Drumlin Navigation Trial top 12

1 Michael Carbin/Evin Hughes (Subaru Impreza) 9 marks

2 Michael Tynan/Ciaran Tynan (Subaru Impreza) 13m

3 Kevin Keenan/Barry Garvey (Subaru Impreza) 15m

4 Arthur Kierans/Macartan Kierans (Subaru Impreza) 25m

5 Trevor Farrell/Noel Hall (Subaru Impreza) 33m

6 Ciaran McElroy/Damien McCabe (Subaru Impreza) 39m

7 Rory Coyle/Ciaran Coyle (Subaru Impreza) 39m

8 Brendan Ward/Sean Kelly (Subaru Impreza) 48m

9 Stephen Wright/Muireann Hayes (Subaru Impreza) 48m

10 Martin Tynan/Fintan Clerkin (Subaru Impreza) 61m

11 Pakie Duffy/Colin Duffy (Subaru Impreza) 68m

12 Donal McArdle/Thomas Wedlock (Subaru Impreza) 74m.

 

Banna Beach Stages Rally

Shane Maguire and Sean Mullally made the trip south on Sunday last to contest the Banna Beach Kerry Mini Stages Rally. This event was the final round of the Top Part West Coast Rally championship. Shane was in 2^nd over-all prior to this event but unfortunately the Gods weren’t with them on this occasion as a turbo fire put an end to Shane’s rally at the start of stage 2. The Ballinode man had set a great time on SS1, which was 4^th fastest and only 8 seconds off the rally lead. But disaster struck as the turbo caught fire on SS2. Luckily for Shane at least 6 cars behind stopped and helped extinguish the blaze with their own extinguishers. Were glad to report that Shane’s group N Subaru is not much the worse thanks to the quick actions of all competitors involved.  Despite the drama there was a silver lining as Shane managed to hold on for 2^nd over-all in the Top Part West Coast Championship.

            The rally was won by Barry Meade and Liam Moynihan in a class 14 escort followed by Mike Quinn and Grainne McEnery who take the West Coast championship win. Brian O’Mahony and Richard Talbot were 3^rd over-all in the unique sounding Metro 6R4. Monaghan’s John McQuaid and Seamus O’Connor were just edged out of 5^th over-all on the final stage but are sure to be satisfied with 6^th over-all. This result rounds off a fantastic season for the Emyvale men who have consistently climbed the leader boards this year.

            Gerard McQuaid and Gary Quilan had a great run in class 11 to take 3^rd and 22^nd over-all just ahead of fellow Monaghan competitor Anthony Hand with Laura Furey on the notes. 24^th over-all for Anthony and Laura is also a good result considering he hasn’t competed regularly this year due to work commitments but the pace is obviously still there.

 

Motorsport Ireland Young Rally Driver of the Year

The nominees for the 2011 Motorsport Ireland Billy Coleman award have been announced and incredibly 5 of the 7 nominees are Monaghan motor club members, highlighting the calibre of young drivers within Monaghan at present. The Selection Panel for the Billy Coleman Award will meet on Thursday 17 November to interview the seven candidates for the title of Motorsport Ireland Young Rally Driver of the Year 2011.

The drivers who have qualified for the interview stage are: Gerard McQuaid, Glaslough, Co Monaghan (Highest Placed Junior driver overall in Dunlop National Rally Championship). Derek Butler, Mallow, Co Cork (Highest Placed Junior driver overall in National Forest Rally Championship). Douglas Stewart, Churchtown, Dublin (2nd Junior driver overall in National Forest Rally Championship). Johno  Doogan, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan (Winner of Junior Category of Dunlop National Rally Championship). Vincent McAree, Ballinode, Co Monaghan (Wildcard). Sam Moffett, Clontibret, Co Monaghan (Wildcard). Daniel McKenna, Scotshouse, Co Monaghan (Wildcard)

            The Billy Coleman Award is presented annually to the most outstanding young Rally driver during the current year. The award consists of a support package for Rally competition in 2012 to the value of €50,000.  Funding for the award is provided jointly by Motorsport Ireland, its affiliated clubs, and the Irish Sports Council.  The formal presentation of awards to the Champions of Irish Motorsport will take place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Santry, Dublin on Tuesday 6^th December 2011. Good luck to all the lads and hopefully Monaghan Motor Club will have another Billy Coleman award winner this year.

Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship

 The Sligo Park Hotel was the venue on Saturday night last as the awards ceremony for the 2011 Sligo Pallets Border Rally championship took place. A large crowd attended this popular event to see the father and son team of Arthur and Macartan Kierans lift the 1^st over-all award. Class wins for the Aghabog men in Monaghan, Cavan, Sligo and Donegal gave them a maximum score of 40 to take the over-all win of this popular and competitive championship. Arthur and Mac had also made the trip south to Cork the previous week and wrapped up a class win in the national rally championship.

Arthur and Macs prizes included Sligo Pallets rally jackets, crystal, a rally action portrait of their season personally signed by rally legend Carlos Sainz and also a paid entry for next years Mayo Stages Rally. This dynamic duo are also on the starters list for this weekends upcoming drumlin navigation trial and are sure to be in contention for class and indeed top ten honours on home territory. All in all a perfect rally season for the KES motor sport team. Arthur and Mac took the opportunity of thanking the Border Rally committee and host clubs for running an excellent championship, which is competitor friendly in every aspect. They also thanked Sligo Pallets who were main sponsor for the series. Arthur also paid tribute to Sharkey Motor sport for their trojan work in having the car perfectly ready and reliable for every event. He also thanked Hugie McElvaney for his support throughout the year and finally to everyone else who played a part during the year, no matter how big or small.

Second over-all honours also befell a Monaghan crew as Aaron McQuaid and Aidan Coyle’s three class wins and a second place saw them finish on 39 points. Class wins in Monaghan, Sligo and Donegal with 2^nd in Cavan and Newry suggests a good campaign for the McQuaid Tyres backed escort team. Cootehills Damian O’Reilly had lead the series through the early rounds but slipped back slightly through the latter stages to finish on 38 points and take 3^rd over-all driver.  Donegal’s Derek Henna took the 3^rd over-all navigators award as he co-piloted for Adrian Cannon in a class 2 civic.

The night kicked off with a fabulous dinner followed by the awards

ceremony. There were many other Monaghan and local crews in attendance to collect their trophies for the season past. Shane Maguire collected his award for 2^nd in class 4 following a tough but consistent year for the Ballinode man in his group N Subaru. Sean Agnew and Seamus Connolly were the class 6 winners in their citroen  C2R2 pocket rocket. David Smith and Austin Hamill were 3^rd in the same class in their Peugeot 106 and considering they only had 3 finish’s coupled with numerous gremlins along the way, 3^rd in class is surely welcomed. Niall Maguire and Enda Sherry led the class 8 field home in their Subaru, ahead of good rival and friend Kevin Barrett and Sean Mullally. Indeed Niall and Enda were in contention for over-all honours through mid-season but a class win and three 2^nd places were enough for the class 8 win. Worth noting also that Niall/Enda, Kevin/Sean along with Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes in their class 10 205 were the recipients of the team award for this years Border Championship. Championship sponsors Andrew Mullan and Elaine Doherty of Sligo Pallets were 3^rd in the competitive class 8 in their EVO 8.

Cootehills Damian “Junior” McCabe took the class 9 navigators award just ahead of local rival Gene McDonald who collected 2^nd in class 9. With McQuaid and Coyles promotion to 2^nd over-all the class 10 honours went to the father and son team of Sean and Fintan Sherry. Two 2^nd and a 3^rd in class  rounded off a great year for this crew in their McAree Eng backed escort. The MC Blinds backed escort was also at the top of its class as Mickey and Aidan collected their class 13 awards. A class win and three 2^nd places rounded off a successful campaign for this experienced crew who showed a tremendous increase of speed in all competitions this year. John McQuaid took 2^nd in class 14 honours whilst his navigator Seamus O’Connor was 3^rd in class. There were many other Monaghan crews who were just outside the class honours or who didn’t compete in the minimum four rounds of the six round campaign so maybe next year is their year.

            Andrew Mullan and Elaine Doherty (Sligo Pallets) also took the opportunity of thanking the six host clubs Mayo, Monaghan, Cavan, Newry & Mourne, Sligo and Donegal for the excellent events they ran, all of the marshal’s who voluntarily helped on each event, County Councils, Gardai and anyone else who helped in any way to make the 2011 Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship such a resounding success. The night concluded with a disco and celebrations, which lasted into the early hours to round off what was an exceptional year for crews flying the Monaghan flag in the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship.

Cork Startrek Navigation Trial

Richard Cassidy and veteran Paul Phelan made their long journey south to Cork worthwhile on Saturday last with an overall victory on the Cork Startrek Navigation Trial. Following a 130-mile route they finished on 7 marks in Richards trusted vectra. Their closest rival’s Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes finished on 12 marks to take the expert class win. With no further results available on going to press it seems that some regular national campaigners must of hit trouble in the Cork countryside. Midlands men Chris Kelly and Sam Johnston were outside the top 10 while local Cork men Colin Fitzgerald and Daire Hayes were also missing from the top 10 finishers.

Cork Startrek Navigation Top 12

1 Richard Cassidy/Paul Phelan (Vauxhall Vectra) 7 marks
2 Michael Carbin/Evin Hughes (Subaru Impreza) 12m
3 Darren Quinn/Nigel McCloughry (Subaru Legacy) 22m
4 Johnny Kenneally/Ken Carmody (Opel Vectra) 31m
5 Joseph Shinnors/Greg Shinnors (Subaru Impreza) 34m
6 James Fitzgerald/Pat Cashman (Subaru Impreza) 36m
7 David Beamish/Muireann Hayes (Toyota Carina) 40m
8 Derek Butler/Olivia McCarthy (Honda Civic) 62m
9 Alwyn White/Adrian Tobin (Toyota Carina) 75m
10 Brian O’Mahony/David Swanton (Vauxhall Vectra) 79m
11 Alan Shinnors/George Shinnors (Subaru Impreza) 79m
12 Ger O’Connell/Denis O’Donovan (Subaru Impreza) 89m

Monaghan Drumlin Navigation Trial

The Drumlin hills of North Monaghan will once again be alive this Saturday night 12^th November with the running of the infamous Drumlin Navigation Trial. Coc for the event is Stephan Thornton, ably assisted by Garret Beagan and their team with Sean McDermotts GAA complex in Threemilehouse the venue for plotting and results. No doubt Stephen and Garreth have laid on a tough route, which is normally associated with the Drumlin and are appealing for all marshals to make themselves available and be at HQ by 8.00pm latest. This years event is the 3^rd round of the National and Squealing Pig Border navigation championships but more importantly for some its is the final round of the traders and Gary Nesbitt club navigation championships. As it stands things couldn’t be much tighter as Michael Carbin and Michael Tynan are tied on points with Andy Mackarel only 2 points adrift for the coveted traders trophy. All three would be considered as potential winners along with their respective navigators of Evin Hughes, Ciaran Tynan and Liam Higgins. So with a maximum of 18 points up for grabs all is to play for through the drumlin hills of Monaghan. Many class awards are also up for grabs on the night in the club championship. Watch this space for full report next week.

 Stephen and Suzanne Wright ended there 2011 rally season in style on Saturday last with a 3rd over-all finish on the Down forestry Rally. This event was the final round of the Valvoline National Forestry Championship. Corks Owen Murphy has already claimed the outright win in the series and opted out of this event. With 7 tough stages around the Castlewellan area of South Down it was Donagh Kelly and Kevin Flanagan who took a 14 second win from veteran Kenny McKinstry and Kenny Hull in 2nd. Indeed McKinstry/Hull led the event entering the final four mile stage but slid their impreza off the road briefly to allow Kelly in for the rally win. Stephen and Suzanne Wright consistently moved up the leader board throughout the 7 stages and were eventually rewarded with 3rd over-all. Yet again Stephen setting some fine stage times to cap off a great year for the young Swanns Cross team. The McAree engineering backed Evo 9 of Vincent and Jp McAree were not as successful however. Vincent and Jp, who were joint leaders of the forestry championship through the early stages of the campaign, really were down on their luck over the last few events. A broken centre diff last time out while a burst sump on this event forced them into retirement on the road section to ss4. Worth noting however that the McAree Evo was lying in 3rd over-all when they were forced to withdraw, only 10 seconds off the rally lead after the opening two tests. Hopefully Vincent and Jp can find a better run of luck in next years campaign but well done to the lads on 2nd over-all in the 2011 Valvoline Forestry Championship. Stephen and Suzanne Wright were just one point off claiming 3rd over-all in the series but are sure to be happy with 4th over-all and a class 6 win.

 Cavan Autocross Once again it was Mickey Conlon who led the field home at Cavan Motor Clubs Latton based quarry cross on Sunday last. Wet weather conditions left the track very slippy on the day with numerous cars picking up punctures along the way. Indeed the MC Blinds escort picked up two punctures on the one run but Mickey managed to take the win on his other two timed runs. Once again it was young Cootehill man Darren O’Brien who kept the pressure on Mickey throughout the day in his Honda civic to take 2nd over-all. No results sheets were available at going to print but Monaghans Conor Maguire had a good run in is MK1 escort to take a class win while Richard Cassidy was 4th in class following a puncture.

Upcoming Dates Keep free Saturday 5th November for the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship Prize giving in Sligo Park Hotel.

 Valvoline National Forestry Prize giving also takes place on 5th November in Clonmel Park Hotel. Dunlop National Rally Championship Prize giving takes place on Saturday 19th November in Clayton Hotel, Galway.

 Monaghan MC Drumlin Navigation Trial takes place on 12th November in Threemilehouse.