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Two Monaghan crew’s made the trip North on Saturday last to compete in the spectator friendly Lurgan Park Rally. Michael Conlon with young 17-year-old Cork girl Aileen Kelly on the note’s made the short trip to Lurgan as did father and son team of Arthur and Macartan Kierans. Armagh’s Darren Gass won the event in an S11 Subaru from Kenny McKinstry in 2nd and Dennis Biggerstaff 3rd, both in S8 Impreza’s.
With 8 short tests around the demanding Lurgan Park estate there was no room for error with numerous unforgiving trees ready to catch out even the most experienced crews around this famous circuit. The event consisted of a Mark II challenge section with all competing cars in the one class. Michael Conlon and Aileen Kelly had brake trouble over the first few runs but did manage to take the MC Blinds escort home in 18th over-all and 3rd in class, only 15seconds off the class winners. Arthur and Mac were disadvantaged from the start in their 2 litre pinto against the more powerful 2.4’s. Nevertheless they set about enjoying their runs, sliding the Kierans Engineering Services (KES) backed escort around the gravel and tarmac surfaced stage. Despite the more powerful machinery in their class they finished a respectable 28th over-all.

Monaghan Loose Surface (Gravel) Autocross

Sunday 14th August see’s Monaghan Motor Club run their annual gravel surface Autocross. Once again this event will be based at the McElvaney Pitwood quarry between Baileboro and Virginia. This event is a counting Round of the trader’s club championship and should see many good class battles. Coc for the event Enda Sherry urges all club members to show there support for this event and would ask competitors to send in there entry as early as possible. Standard forestry tyres are permitted for this event but no mud rough cut tyres are allowed.

Birr Multi Venue Autotest

Well done to Andy and Stephen Mackarel who competed on the Birr MC multi venue auto test last weekend. This type of autotest differs from the standard autotest by the fact that a navigator is needed to guide drivers around the course. In this event there were 11 tests to negotiate, two in farmyards, farm lanes, gravel yards, a sand pit and two on concrete at the HQ, garaghy’s garage. Andy and Stephen reported a very enjoyable day out in there corsa. This form of motor sport would be highly suited to anyone who wanted a day’s crack while at the same time experiencing competitive motor sport.

Night Navigation Classes

Its that time of year again and with the night navigation season less than two months away Monaghan Motor Club will once again be holding night navigation classes in the coming weeks. Maybe you are out of the sport for a few years and are making a big comeback or if you are only starting off and want to learn the discipline of night navigations well then these classes are for you. Watch this space for further details but it is anticipated that these classes will start around Thursday 18th or 25th August.

 Fine sunny weather conditions greeted a total of 32 starters for last Sundays annual running of Monaghan Motor Clubs grass surface autocross. Once again young Ballinode man Shane Maguire took charge as CoC and along with his group of helpers laid on a fine course in ideal surroundings overlooking Hollywood lake on the outskirts of Ballinode. From the off it was clear that the motorbike engined buggy’s had a clear advantage with both power and grip in the dry conditions. The format for the day was three runs over the course with two fastest times to count. Gerald Doherty set the benchmark on the first run with a time of 2.12 and maintained his lead throughout the day, taking another fastest time on the 3^rd run to win the event by 0.77 of a second from Joe McHale in a buggy special with Paul Barrett 3^rd also in a buggy special.

            There were some great class battles throughout the day with quarry expert Tommy Donlon in a 106 taking a comfortable 9 second win in class 1 from Philip Grall in 2^nd with Paul Barrett 3^rd, both in corsa’s. James Huddleston was the sole finisher in class 1a on a time of 5.18. There was a great battle in class 2a with the Carbin Carpentry backed 205 of Michael Carbin taking a 3 second win after the three runs from young mountain lodge lad Darren O Brien in a civic. Cathal Sheridan in his trusty nova was 3^rd a further 5 seconds adrift. This result gives Michael Carbin a good points haul towards his club championship bid, having competed in every round thus far.

            Class 3a was a one-man show with Anthony Masterson winning in his Honda Integra, as Paul Sheridan was the only other entrant taking 2^nd place but had mechanical trouble on his 2^nd and 3^rd runs. Class 4a was for the single seater motorbike engined buggy’s and the top 3 over-all awards went to the aforementioned Gerald Doherty, Joe McHale and Paul Barrett.  Midlands men Sam Johnston and Chris Kelly also made the trip to Ballinode with their buggy special’s but the results sheets suggest they had a troubled afternoon, presumably mechanical after setting top 5 times on the opening run. Amy Faughan had an enjoyable run and her times improved dramatically over the three runs to take the class 5a win in her civic, which is geared towards 16-18 year olds. The youngest but nevertheless closest class of the day was class 5b for 14-16 year olds. Young Carrickmacross lad Gavin McGivney in a mk2 escort took an incredible 0.01 second win from Aidan Lang in a fiesta with Ronan Corr in a nova just over a second adrift after there two best runs.

            Class 6 was for club members with unlimited cc. Michael and Martin Tynan in their Evo 5 with Andy Mackarel in his older Evo 4 were in this class with Richard Cassidy completing the four entrants to class 6 in his white astra. Indeed it was Richard who held the early advantage after the first run, as the EVO’s were subjected to a 5% time penalty for their 4-wheel drive status, which would amount to an approximate 7-second penalty per run. However Cassidy hit trouble on the second run with a broken drive shaft to allow Michael Tynan take the class win with Martin 2^nd and Richard 3^rd. This result also leaves Michael in a strong position in the club championship with the loose surface autocross next on the club calendar on 14^th August.

            Coc Shane Maguire would like to express his sincere thanks to all marshal’s for their help on the day as well as results team and anybody who helped out in any way on the lead up to the event or on the day itself. The field for the event was kindly offered by the Maguire family and many thanks to them for that. Shane along with all the Monaghan Motor Club committee and members would like to wish Dessie Brady a speedy recovery. A special word of thanks must also go to Ciara Heasty as well as the members of the Redcross ambulance who were present on the day for their prompt response and the professionalism they showed.

 Armagh’s Darren Gass and Andrew Cullen won the 2011 Aer Lingus Motor Club Stages Rally on Sunday last based at the City North Hotel on the M1 motorway. This event was a counting round of the Reis MSA British Rally Championship and saw no fewer than 14 crews make the trip across the water to test their skills on Irish soil. Last years welsh winners Damian Cole and James Morgan had to settle for 2nd on this occasion in his Focus WRC with English men Simon Mauger and Brian Cammack 3rd in their rapid class 14 escort. With a three stages three times format this event took in a wide area around the Slane and Collon areas with centralised service in Drogheda. Overnight rain coupled with scattered showers left tyre choice a lottery and indeed caught out many drivers on the first stage alone with 3 travelling British crews not making it off the first stage for one reason or another. Pre event favourite Robert Barrable and Monaghan’s Damian Connolly hit trouble on the first stage also with a broken spark plug forcing their early retirement. Gass took the early lead with fastest time’s on the opening two stages in his ex-Niall Maguire S10 Subaru WRC. As usual Monaghan was well represented with a number of crews making the short trip South to tackle the roads of Louth and Meath. Josh Moffett with regular Ardee man Domhall Lennon on the notes had a fantastic run all day, posting top 5 times and eventually finished 5th over-all, taking the competitive group N class for their efforts. Maurice Moffett with daughter Laura on the notes had an enjoyable day in the starlet and were 3rd two wheel drive car home in 6th over-all and 2nd in class 14. Next up were Stephen Wright and Martin Connolly in 8th over-all. A great run for this crew and once again Stephen proves he has come to grips with the EVO 6 on tarmac following some recent excellent results. Raymond Conlon acquired the services of Declan Tynan as navigator and they surely enjoyed their day with a top 10 finish and a class 13 win to boot. They did survive a late scare however with a burst oil pipe towards the end of the last stage almost ending their rally but luckily they got to stage finish before having to stop. Next up were Jack Maguire and Emmett Sherry in their class 13 escort, a steady run from this crew resulting in 12th overall and 2nd in class 13. Martin McPhillips had young Aghabog lad Macartan Kierans on the notes in the McPhillip’s Engineering backed twin cam and scorched their way through the stages to take a 22 second class win and 14th overall. Barry McKenna and Raymond Knox continued their recent good form to finish 15th overall and 4th in class 13 in the McKenna Agri backed escort. Martin and Ciaran Tynan finally had a run of luck to finish in 18th overall and 4th in group N, gaining some valuable experience in their new EVO 8. Suzanne Wright was navigating for Co. Downs Barry Greer in a class 6 fiesta and finished a creditable 21st overall and 2nd in class. Cathal Sheridan and Darren O’Brien took their class 10 nova home to 2nd in class and 35th overall. Stephen Rushe and Gary Reid had led class 10 after the first loop of stages but a bad stage time on ss4 dropped them back down the leader board to eventually finish 3rd in class 10. Johno and Padraig Doogan also made the trip South but unfortunately for them they came home with the title of only Monaghan crew not to finish. At the top Darren Gass had done enough through the opening loop of stages to ensure he could nurse his Subaru home to take the win, trading stage wins with Damian Cole throughout the day. Once again well done to all club members who finished and thanks to the club members who turned up to marshal on the day. Top 10 Result’s on 2011 ALMC Stages Rally 1 Darren Gass/Andrew Cullen (Impreza WRC) 69m 41s 2 Damian Cole/James Morgan (Focus WRC) 70m 11s 3 Simon Mauger/Brian Cammack (Escort) 72m 27s 4 Jay Stanley/Paul Williams (Escort) 73m 39s 5 Josh Moffett/Domhnall Lennon (Lancer Evo 9 Gp N) 74m 08s 6 Maurice Moffett/Laura Moffett (Starlet) 74m 35s 7 David Armstrong/Damien Fleming (Escort) 74m 47s 8 Stephen Wright/Martin Connolly (Lancer Evo 6) 74m 57s 9 Paddy McVeigh/Stephen O’Hanlon (Impreza Gp N) 75m 02s 10 Raymond Conlon/Declan Tynan (Corolla) 75m 22s

Monaghan Grass Surface Autocross

Sunday next 24th July sees Monaghan Motor Club host their annual grass surface autocross. For the second year running Shane Maguire takes on the role of CoC and with his team of helpers is sure to set out a demanding route. The venue is ideally located on the shores of Hollyrood Lake just outside Ballinode adjacent to Shane and Niall’s house. Competitors are urged to send in their entry as soon as possible as the club need an idea of start numbers to aid the smooth running of the event. Regulations and entry forms are available on the club website at http://www.monaghanmotorclub.net . Prize giving will follow the event in Maggie’s Bar, Ballinode. Once again the proceeds of this event will be donated to charity and this year Shane has picked the Co. Monaghan Branch of the Alzheimer’s Society. This is a very worthy charity that provides an excellent service and is based at the Drumkill Day Care Centre in Threemilehouse. Your support on the day would be greatly appreciated.

 Sligo Motor club hosted their annual stages rally on Saturday and was sure to show up some great battles across every class on this the 6th round of the National Rally Championship and round 5 of the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship. National series leader Tim McNulty once again opted to sit out this event so confidence was high amongst the top seed’s for the outright win. Dublin native Robert Barrable with Monaghan’s Damien Connolly navigating were first car on the road and justified their seeding when they led from start to finish taking an 11 second win in his super quick Skoda Fabia S2000 from Cork’s Darragh O’Riordan with Kevin Barrett 3rd, both in WRC subaru’s. Wesley Patterson and Martin McGarritty took the two wheel drive honours ahead of Frank Kelly with Carlow’s Sam Smith 3rd. Conditions were greasy as the 121 strong entry headed off into the Sligo countryside. Balinode’s Niall Maguire and Enda Sherry were the first to encounter trouble with a flat wheel on the first stage forcing them to drive the final 2 miles of the stage on the rim. A bad stage time would mean they were playing catch up for the remainder of the day, Niall and Enda eventually had to settle for 5th over-all and a good points haul for the border championship. Sam Moffett admittedly found it hard to get his rhythm but when he did settle in he punched in some great stage times to feature inside the top 5 stage times towards the end of the day. Sam with regular navigator James O Reilly took 2nd in class 4 behind the hard charging Gary Jennings in a similar EVO. Shane Maguire and Conor Foley gave Sam a run for his money throughout the day a narrowly missed out by just 3 seconds after 9 tough stages to take 3rd group N and 7th overall. Shane getting ever closer to the high standards he has set himself and is sure to feature inside the top 5 shortly. Incidentally Shane claimed the honour of Sligo Pallets Border championship drive of the day for his efforts. John McQuaid with Seamus O’Connor navigating continued his good run of form of late to claim top Monaghan two-wheel drive competitor with a fine 14th overall and 3rd in class 14. Michael Conlon and Aidan Boyle had featured inside the top 3 two wheel drive cars throughout the day but results sheets suggest they didn’t finish the final loop of three stages after setting some good stage times, trading places with Frank Kelly. Arthur and Macartan Kierans made a mends for their bad fortune in Donegal with a fine 21st overall and taking the class 12 honours. Arthur had a great battle with Meath’s James Cassidy but the latter slid his car off the road resulting in a full 10 points for Arthur and Mac towards their border campaign. With 3 class wins this crew are in with a shout of the title should things go their way on the Donegal harvest later in the year. Gerard McQuaid and Gareth Quinlan were next up at 24th and 3rd in class 11 to boot. Barry McKenna and Raymond Knox had a good run in their immaculate escort to finish 34th overall. David Smith and Austin Hamill took the class 6 honours in their trusty 106. Aaron McQuaid and Aidan Coyle had a god run, once again taking the class 10 award ahead of the hard charging Michael Carbin and Evin Hughes in there infamous 205. This result leaves Aaron and Aidan currently leading the border series with one round to go in Donegal but nothing is certain ion rallying and all is to play for with any one of five of six crews mathematically poised to take the title. Niall Maguire and Enda Sherry are in with a shout as are the aforementioned Arthur and Mac Kierans. Sean and Fintan Sherry plugged away all day and were eventually rewarded for their efforts, 3rd in the highly competitive class 10 for their troubles. But at the top it was Barrable and Damian Connolly who held their nerve to take the slender 11second victory from the hard charging Darragh O’Riordan who incidentally was suffering from flu symptoms and very nearly retired at first service. Kevin Barrett and Sean Mullally held on for 3rd over-all despite their Subaru being in the ditch’s a couple of times. Well done to all who finished and to any club members who volunteered to marshal on the day. Monaghan Grass Surface Autocross Yes its that time of year once again when on Sunday 24th July all roads lead to the shores of Hollyrood lake in Balinode for the annual Monaghan grass surface autocross, once again organised by CoC Shane Maguire and his band of merry men! This event promises to entertain both competitor and spectator alike around a specially designed track in the field adjacent to Shane’s (and Niall’s!) house. Entry forms are available on the club website at http://www.monaghanmotorclub.net and anyone hoping to compete are kindly asked to send their entry as soon as possible. For the second year running Shane has taken on the challenge of CoC and once again will be donating the proceeds of this event to charity, This year Shane has picked the Co. Monaghan Branch of the Alzheimers Society, who are based at the Drumkill Day Care Centre in Threemilehouse. This is worthwhile charity that does unprecedented work to help these people and your support on the day would be greatly appreciated

 The Ravens Rock Rally promoted by Carrick on Suir Motor Club was held on Sunday last, based in the scenic Marble City of Kilkenny. This was a counting round of the Dunlop National championship and with current leader Tim McNulty opting to sit this one out all was to play for among the top seeds. Local man Craig Breen made a rare appearance on Irish tarmac following some good recent results across the water and inEurope. He was the man to beat and his number 1 seed was justified as he led this event convincingly from start to finish to record a 1 minute 45 second victory

in his Fiesta S2000. Limerick’s Colm Murphy in a group N Subaru was 2^nd with Monaghan’s Sam Moffett and James O’Reilly having an excellent day at the office to take 3^rd overall in their EVO 9, this being Sam’s best result to date.

            Regular National contenders Robert Barrable, Niall Maguire, Kevin Barrett, Liam Mc Carthy and Wesley Patterson all opted out of this event for one reason or another but the battle was still intense at the front as Breen took the early advantage

from Colm Murphy who had a puncture on the first loop followed by Welsh driver Sebastian Ling in 3^rd at first service, but the latter crashed out on SS4 to allow Sam into 3rd. Ed O Callaghan had held the two wheel drive honours up until the 3^rd stage when he crashed out as did Paul Mulcahy in his Starlet while lying 9^th overall. Unfortunately Shane Maguire and Paul Kelly did not make it to first service as their front differential packed in on SS3 while lying in 9^th overall and poised to take some good points in the National series. Monaghan’s John McQuaid and Kerryman Seamus O’Connor were revelling in the conditions and progressed from 13^th o/a on the first stage to lie 8^th overall after stage 6. Further down the field Gerard McQuaid and Gareth Quinlan were putting in some good class times and consistently moved up the leader board from 39^th to 27^th through the nine stages. Conor Foley and Damian McKenna were putting the immaculate Mark I Escort through her paces but hit trouble on the penultimate stage where they dropped 4 minutes to their rivals and no stage time for the last stage suggests they were forced to retire after SS8. Meath’s Jack Newman in a class 11 Civic with  JP McAree navigating were only 5 seconds off 2^nd in class after the first loop of 3 stages but a broken front drive on SS4 forced them into early retirement.

            Back at the front the top 3 remained the same to the finish with Breen taking the win, Murphy 2^nd with Sam and James in 3^rd overall. Incidently, Breen took fastest stage time on 8 of the 9 stages with Sam Moffett fastest on SS8 by 2 seconds. This result moves Sam and James into 2^nd overall in the National championship. Washington James took the two wheel drive honours in his now infamous Darrian T90 with Frank Kelly 2^nd and 6^th overall. John McQuaid and Seamus O’Connor continued their tremendous run to eventually take a deserved 8^th overall, 2^nd in class 14 and 3^rd two wheel drive car home. They also claimed the honour of “Dunlop Drive of the Day award” for their efforts.

            Once again the Junior category of the event had a capacity entry of 21 starters and it was the familiar Starlet from the Moffett stable of David Moffett and Patrick Brides who led the way taking a start to finish victory, 9 seconds ahead of Cork’s Cal McCarthy with Christopher Snow 3rd. It’s worth noting here that these juniors were on a great pace with David and Patrick only 19 seconds of the pace of Rally winner Craig Breen on the final stage which would merit them 13^th overall in the main field! Well done to all concerned.

Barrable and Connolly compete inBelgium

Robert Barrable, winner of the Motorsport Ireland Billy Coleman award supported by the Irish Sports Council, in his Skoda Fabia S2000 with Monaghan co-driver Damien Connolly drove an excellent rally to finish 10th overall on the weekend’s GEKO Ypres Rally in Belgium. This was Robert’s first time competing on the Ypresevent which is seen as very much a specialist tarmac rally in the championship calendar. It was also the young Dubliner’s first time competing in a round of the Intercontinental Rally Championship (IRC). Robert and Damian set an early indication of their intention for the weekend and were lying 7^th overall after the first 2 stages but Robert undid all his good work on SS3 where he slid wide and caught the grass verge and slipped into a drain pitching the car in the air. This resulted in Robert losing about a minute and he slipped to 24th overall. Undeterred by the mistake the lads set about making amends and constantly climbed the leader board through the remaining 14 stages. Their goal was to finish in the top ten and they duly obliged to take 10^th and scored a championship point for their efforts.