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Niall Maguire & Enda Sherry secured a fine 3^rd overall on last weekend’s Birr Stages Rally, the opening round of the 2015 Triton Showers National Rally Championship. Heavy rain during the day left the stages in a trecherous state, but the pair held it all together to secure a podium finish whilst many of their rivals floundered in the conditions. Donagh Kelly & Kevin Flanagan followed up their win on the Galway International by winning in Birr after Declan Boyle/Brian Boyle punctured on stage 7. Gary Jennings/Rory Kennedy secured 2^nd overall and won the inaugural power stage, earning themselves three additional points.

Shane Maguire/Stephen Thornton capped off a good weekend for the Triton Showers/Maguire International team with 13^th overall and 4^th in Group N. The pair were beginning the defence of their National Group N title and a steady approach paid off with some useful championship points in the bag. Jim McKenna/Thomas Treanor finished 19^th overall and 3^rd in class 14 in their Mk2 Escort after a fun day fighting for traction out of the junctions. Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden took 27^th overall and 1^st in class 11R after leading the class from start to finish. The pair got the jump on their rivals on stage 2 and were able to maintain that advantage until the end of the day.

James McCarville was in the navigator’s seat for Armagh’s Darren Gass. The pair were competing in the McKinstry hire S14 WRC Subaru and held 3^rd overall until the half shaft let go bringing their event to a premature end on stage 7. Arthur Kierans was navigating for cross channel visiter Simon Chapman. Their rare Proton Satria was well within the top 10 overall but their rally came to an end after an off on the final stage. Emmet Sherry, competing in his 2^nd event in two days, was calling the notes for Laois’ John Lynch. Unfortunately they retired on stage 5.

The National Rally Championship continues with the Midland Stages Rally on Sunday, March 29^th.

Monaghan Crews Out of Luck on Spring Rally

 

It was a tough day for Monaghan competitors on Omagh Motor Club’s Spring Rally based in the forests around Fivemiletown. Josh Moffett & Jason McKenna were expected to be one of the top runners but their Lancer was sidelined by mechanical problems on stage 2. Emmet Sherry was navigating for rising Fermanagh star, Jon Armstrong. The pair were in the battle for the rally lead but their car slipped off the road and got stuck in a drain on stage 6. Enda McNulty/Paul Sheridan were also among the front running crews until their event came to an end on stage 5 whilst holding 3^rd overall.

Alan Smyth/Mac Kierans were forced out with drive-shaft failure on stage 6 and Damien McGauren/Michaela McGinn were forced to retire on the same stage after going off the road. Suspension failure sidelined Derek Mackarel/Raymond Conlon while holding 3^rd in class, with Adam Bustard/Matthew McKenna retiring on the event’s final stage. Gregory McDaid/Stephen Tierney made it as far Stage 2 before their event came to an end.

Cavan Navigation Trial

 

The penultimate round of the National & Border Night Navigation Championships takes place this Saturday night 28^th February. Cavan Motor Club are hosting the event with Damien McCabe acting as COC. The familiar surrounds of Maudabawn is the venue for the night and approximately 75 miles are in store for competitors. Full Report next week.

Carrick-on-Suir Forestry

 

The Irish Forestry Rally Championship kicks off this Sunday with the Willie Loughman Memorial event organised by Carrick-on-Suir Motor Club. A number of Monaghan crews are expected to head down to this event. Full Report next week.

Forthcoming Events:

March 8^th Mayo Stages Rally

March 14^th-15^th West Cork Rally

March 21^st Donegal Forestry Rally

March 21^st Monaghan Navigation Trial

March 22^nd Cavan Autocross

March 29^th Midland Stages Rally

Derek Mackarel got the better of his father Andy to take top spoils in the club section of last weekend’s autotest in Wright’s Quarry, Swans Cross sponsored by the Nothern Standard. The event was round 2 of the 2015 Trader’s Championship. Derek was fastest over all 9 tests to take victory by fifty seconds. Things were a lot closer in the battle for 2^nd place as only eight seconds separated the next five competitors. Andy Mackarel took second place just ahead of Martin Tynan with Damien Connolly, Richard Cassidy & Martin Connolly completing the top six.

The main Hewison Trophy section of the event was won by Steven Ferguson in his Mini Special. Multiple Champion, Eamonn Byrne took 2^nd place with David Thompson 3^rd overall in his Nova. This result secured Steven his fifth Hewison title. The class winners were Eamonn Byrne, Patrick Power, Timmy Lynch and David Thompson.

COC Brendan Flynn would like to thank all the marshals who turned out on the day as well as the Wright family for the use of their facilities.

Duffy/Johnston take spoils on Midland Navigation Trial

 

Colin Duffy & Sam Johnston took overall honours on last Saturday’s Midland Navigation Trial, a counting round of the National, Border and Munster Navigation Championships. Pakie Duffy & Evin Hughes laid out a challenging 80 mile route through North Longford and South Leitrim. It was the reigning National Champions, Duffy & Johnston who took a convincing win in the end from Aaron Duffy/Laurence Keenan who edged out Michael Tynan/Ciaran Tynan for 2^nd on the ‘Semi beat Expert’ rule.

Crews were in trouble as early as Via1, with no fewer than 22 out of the 34 starters taking a wrong departure. More trouble lay ahead on Plot & Bash at TP6 & TP7 where even the eventual winners were caught out with a wrong approach. By the first time relax section outside Arvagh, Michael & Ciaran Tynan led on 14 penalties, Colin & Sam were 2^nd on 27 penalties and Cork’s David Beamish/Muireann Hayes were 3^rd on 28 penalties.

By the 2^nd TRS at TP26, The Tynan’s still led but another tricky Plot & Bash sections from TP27 to TP30 would dramatically change the leaderboard with only two crews negotiating all four timepoints successfully. Colin Duffy & Sam Johnston were one of these, which brought them to a total of 30 penalties. Semi-Expert pairing Aaron Duffy/Laurence Keenan climbed to 2^nd place on 75 penalties beating Expert class winners Michael Tynan/Ciaran Tynan on a tie-break. Rory & Ciaran Coyle were the other crew to get all four timepoints successfully and they climbed to 4^th place on 76 penalties. Owen Murphy/Daire Hayes completed the top five on 80 penalties.

Derek Mackarel/Seamus McTigue took 6^th overall and secured victory in the Novice class from Thomas Wedlock/Andrew Wedlock. Colm Mohan/Conor Mohan took an impressive 14^th overall as well as securing victory in the Beginner’s class from Paddy & Oisin Sherlock.

The next round of the National & Border Championships is the Cavan Navigation Trial on Saturday 28^th February. The National Championship looks a two horse race between Pakie Duffy & Evin Hughes and Colin Duffy/Sam Johnston while Colin & Sam hold the advantage in the Border Championship with the Tynans, Duffy/Keenan and the Coyles still in contention.

 

Open Forum

 

Over 150 people attended the Open Forum in the Hillgrove Hotel last Thursday. A broad range of issues were discussed including safety, competitor input, rule changes, communication and the future of rallying in general. The club would like to thank the delegates from Motorsport Ireland for attending. It is hoped another forum may be organised in the future.

Eurocables Stages

 

A small number of Monaghan crews attended the Eurocables Rally in Kirkistown last Saturday. Stephen Wright debuted his new Ford Fiesta R5 with co-driver Gregory McQuillan. The pair held 5^th place until a technical problem sidelined them on stage 5. Elsewhere, Matthew McKenna guided Brian McFall to 14^th overall while Mac Kierans guided Alan Smyth to 23^rd overall.

Birr Stages Rally

 

The Triton Showers National Rally Championship gets underway this Sunday with the Birr Stages Rally kicking off the series. A full field of 140 enties plus 20 junior crews has already been received with defending champions, Declan & Brian Boyle starting at No.1. There are 4 Monaghan club members seeded in the top 10. James McCarville is sitting with Armagh’s Darren Gass at No. 4, Damien Connolly is with Peader Hurson at No.6 and Niall Maguire/Enda Sherry are at No.10. Shane Maguire/Stephen Thornton, Jim McKenna/Thomas Treanor, Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden and Arthur Kierans are also listed to compete on this event. Full Report next week.

 

Fivemiletown Forestry

 

Omagh Motor Club host their annual Spring Rally based in the forests around Fivemiletown this Saturday. Entries are still being received for this event but a number of Monaghan crews are expected to compete.

 

Upcoming Events:

February 28^th Cavan Navigation Trial

February 28^th ALMC Endurance Trial

March 1^st Carrick-on-Suir Forestry Rally

March 8^th Mayo Stages Rally

March 14^th/15^th West Cork Rally

Sam & Josh Moffett brought their respective Ford Fiesta WRC’s to 3^rd and 4^th place overall on last weekend’s Galway International Rally. The event was the opening round of the 2015 Tarmac Rally Championship. Sam & co-driver Karl Atkinson were involved in a rally long battle with the BMW Mini WRC of Eugene Donnelly & Paul Kiely which saw Donnelly come out on top by 0.7 of a second! Josh & his navigator John Rowan shadowed Sam on day one and despite a puncture on day two, they held on to a very encouraging 4^th place in their new car.

Reigning champion, Declan Boyle took an early lead on Saturday but a 3 minute road penalty after his Subaru failed to fire up before the start of the fifth stage dropped him to 6^th overnight. Fellow Donegal man, Donagh Kelly ended the day in the lead from Eugene Donnelly with Sam Moffett close behind in 3^rd. Josh Moffett was 4^th just 13 seconds behind his older brother. Monaghan native Pauric Duffy was in 7^th place and leading class 5 in his Ford Fiesta.

As Kelly manintained his lead on day two, Donnelly & Moffett had a mighty battle for 2^nd place which saw Donnelly snatch 2^nd on the final stage by less than a second. Josh Moffett maintained 4^th place despite a puncture on stage 10. Pauric Duffy & Kevin Glynn lost their class 5 lead after a problem on stage 11 which dropped them to 16^th overall and 3^rd in a class by the finish. Brendan Cumiskey/Ronan O’Kane finished 2^nd in class 4 and 9^th overall in their Subaru after being edged out by Aaron McHale/Paul McGee on the last stage.

Michael Conlon/Ciaran McPhillips had a great run in the National section to finish in 2^nd place overall behind Donegal’s Declan Gallagher/Ryan Moore. Kieran McCarra/Mark Hamaill had been running in the top 10 in the Nationals before retiring early on day two. Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden retired early on day one but were able to get their Escort back out on the stages before the end of the day under ‘Super Rally’ rules. The pair went on to set many fastest class times on day two. The next round of the Tarmac Championship is the Circuit of Ireland Rally at Easter which is again a round of the European Rally Championship.

Open Forum

 

Monaghan Motor Club will host an Open Forum for marshals and competitors on Thursday 12th February in the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan commencing at 8pm. The Chairman of the Rallies Committee has confirmed he will attend and it is hoped that the Chief Executive, President and Immediate Past President of Motorsport Ireland and members of the Rallies Committee will also be present. The agenda is as follows:

The Future of Rallying:

– safety

– competitor input to future rule changes

– marshal recruitment and training

– communications

This forum is not confined to Monaghan club members and members from our neighbouring motor clubs are also invited to attend

Midland Navigation Trial

 

Midland Motor Club are hosting a Night Navigation Trial this Saturday night in Drumlish, Co. Longford. COC Pakie Duffy has laid out an 80 mile route with the 1^st car away at 9.01pm. The event is a round of both the National & Border Night Navigation Championships which should attract many local competitors who are contesting these series. Full report will be published next week.

Club Autotest

 

Monaghan Motor Club host their annual Autotest in Wright’s Quarry, Swans Cross this Sunday February 15^th. The event is a round of the National Hewison Championship as well as a round of our Club Trader’s Championship. The Hewison Championship section gets underway at 11.00am, with the club championship competitors starting at 11.30am. Marshals are required for this event and anyone able to help should contact COC Brendan Flynn.

Upcoming events:

February 21^st Five-mile-town Forestry Rally

February 22^nd Birr Stages Rally

February 28^th Cavan Navigation Trial

February 28^th ALMC Endurance Trial

March 1^st Carrick-on-Suir Forestry Rally

March 8^th Mayo Stages Rally

Local Cork crews came to the fore on last Saturday’s 100 Isles Navigation Trial organised by Skibbereen & District Motor Club. The event was the fifth round of the National Night Navigation Championship and was won by Ger O’Connell/Denis O’Donovan on 16 penalties.

COC Eric McCarthy laid out a demanding 80 mile route north east of Clonakilty in some classic navigation terrain. It was O’Connell/O’Donovan who came out on top with Owen Murphy/Daire Hayes in 2^nd and Dermot Whelton/Mark McCarthy in 3^rd. Midland’s Colin Duffy/Sam Johnston finished 4^th to boost their National Championship hopes. Club members, Pakie Duffy & Evin Hughes made the trip down but had to settle for 7^th place after going over maximum lateness at the end of the night. Cavan’s Andrew Wedlock guided Derek Butler to victory in the Novice class and 8^th overall. Paddy & Oisin Sherlock also made the trip down from Monaghan and they took a fine 2^nd in the Beginner’s class.

Midland Motor Club will host the next round of both the National & Border Night Navigation Championships. This event is being organised by Pakie Duffy & Evin Hughes and will take place on Saturday 14^th February. The event will be based out of Drumlish and will be approximately 80 miles in length.

Galway International Rally Preview

 

The Irish Tarmac Rally Championship kicks off this weekend with the Galway International Rally once again the curtain raiser to the series. Two days of action gets under way on Saturday morning with six stages on the agenda. There will be a further eight stages taking place on Sunday before the finish in Galway City.

Leading Monaghan entries include Clontibret brothers, Sam & Josh Moffett in a brace of Ford Fiesta WRCs. Sam and co-driver James O’Reilly are seeded at 5 while Josh & navigator John Rowan slot in at 7. Michael Conlon & Ciaran McPhillips are amongst the leading two-wheel drive entries and are seeded at 19. Australia based Monaghan man Pauric Duffy & navigator Kevin Glynn are at no 33, Kieran McCarra/Mark Hamaill are back out at no. 40 in their Civic with Seamus Connolly/Gary McCrudden seeded at 45 in their Escort. A full report on their progress will be available next week.

Donegal Forestry Postponed

 

The Donegal Forestry Rally which was due to take place last Saturday has been postponed to a future date. The road conditions made running the event impossible and the club will advise a future date for this event once confirmed.

Open Forum

 

Monaghan Motor Club will host an Open Forum for marshals and competitors on Thursday 12th February in the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan commencing at 8pm. The Chairman of the Rallies Committee has confirmed he will attend and it is hoped that the Chief Executive, President and Immediate Past President of Motorsport Ireland and members of the Rallies Committee will also be present. The agenda is as follows:

The Future of Rallying:

– safety

– competitor input to future rule changes

– marshal recruitment and training

– communications

This forum is not confined to Monaghan club members and members from our neighbouring motor clubs are also invited to attend

Upcoming events:

February 14^th/15^th Midland Navigation Trial

February 15^th Monaghan Autotest

February 21^st Fivemiletown Forestry Rally

February 22^nd Birr Stages Rally

February 28^th ALMC Endurance Trial

February 28^th/1^st Cavan Navigation Trial

March 1^st Carrick-on-Suir Forestry Rally

Daniel McKenna & Andrew Grennan made their JWRC debut on the Monte Carlo Rally last weekend. The pair made a sensational start by going fastest on two of the first three stages before gearbox problems forced them into retirement at the end of the second day.

Monte Carlo is a unique event in the calendar. The Alpine passes, which make up the majority of special stages, are partially covered with snow and ice and the constant changing road conditions tests drivers & navigators to the limit. Daniel & Andrew had a brief chance to sample the conditions with a short shakedown stage on Wednesday. The following evening, the event began with two stages in darkness on the run from Monte-Carlo to Gap. To the surprise of their rivals, it was the Monte-Carlo novices from Monaghan who set the fastest time on the opening stage by 11 seconds! The pair were then 2^nd fastest on stage 2, but their early joy would be short lived as they were given a 2 minute, 20 second time penalty which demoted them to 7^th in class overnight. With the chance of a class win out of the question, the pair looked to regain as many positions as possible over the remaining stages.

They began Friday as they had on Thursday night, posting fastest class time on stage 3. However, gearbox problems had begun to set in and the loss of 3^rd gear left them at a major disadvantage. The pair struggled through the rest of the day’s stages but still held 6^th in class at the end of the day. A replacement gearbox could not be found in time and they could not borrow from fellow competitors, which left them with no option but to retire. Despite this major disappointment, Daniel & Andrew can take much satisfaction from the promise they showed which caught the attention of many within the WRC community. The rally was won by defending world champions, Sebastian Ogier & Julia Ingrassia, who led home a Volkswagen 1-2-3. The next round of the JWRC is the Rally of Portugal in May where Daniel & Andrew will hope to make up lost ground on their championship rivals.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

 

Daniel McKenna & Andrew Grennan’s appearance at Monte Carlo was the first by Monaghan Motor Club members in over sixty years at this iconic event. Brian McCaldin competed on the Monte-Carlo Rally several times in the early fifties. In those days, competitors on the Monte started at various points in Europe and then converged on Monte-Carlo. It’s hard to imagine crossing the Alps in the middle of winter in a 848cc Morris Minor or even in the heavier Hillmans and Sunbeams that McCaldin used. These cars were very nearly standard and had to endure up to 1000 miles of hard non-stop driving over roads that were in bad condition after two world wars. Service teams were unheard of so all spares and equipment, suitcases etc. had to be brought along for the ride. Quite often the crew was made up of three; driver, navigator and mechanic, but all would have taken turns at the wheel. Then when they arrived in Monte Carlo they had to do the “Special Stages” which equates to the present day rally as faced by Daniel & Andrew last weekend!

Donegal Night Navigation Trial

 

Donegal Motor Club hosted the third round of the Squealing Pig Border Night Navigation Championship last Saturday night. COC Barry Boyle laid out a challenging route through classic terrain in Mid-Donegal. Local men Paul Reid & Kevin Gallagher took overall honours on a clean sheet from defending Border Champions, Colin Duffy & Sam Johnston. Another local crew Joe & Aiden Friel completed the top three finishers. Monaghan club members, Aaron Duffy & Laurence Keenan took 2^nd in the Semi-Expert class. Eoghan Corr & Ruadhri Nash took victory in the Novice class despite a close call with a black bullock. Luckily, neither the animals inside or outside the car were harmed! Michael Carbin & Darragh Kelly had been having a great battle with Corr/Nash but were forced to make a mercy dash for fuel which dropped them down the leaderboard. Keith McConnon/Micheal McCluskey took advantage to claim 2^nd in class. Colm & Conor Mohan continued to impress in their first season navigating, by taking the Beginner’s class win from Emmet McCooey/Conor Boylan. Paddy & Oisin Sherlock finished 4^th in the same class despite car problems near the finish.

Donegal Forestry Rally

 

The opening round of the 2015 Valvoline Forestry Rally Championship takes place this Saturday.

The Allingham Arms Hotel in Bundoran is HQ for the event which will comprise of six forestry stages in south Donegal. Monaghan competitors on the entry list include Sam Moffett, Josh Moffett & Jason McKenna, Michael Conlon/Ciaran McPhillips and Derek Mackarel/Peter Deery. Paul Sheridan is once again sitting with Enda McNulty and Mac Kierans is navigating for Alan Smyth. Full report next week.

Skibbereen Night Navigation Trial

 

The fifth round of the National Night Navigation Championship takes place this Saturday night near Clonakilty. COC Eric McCarthy plans for an 80 mile route with the event kicking off at 11.15pm. A small contingent from Monaghan are planning on making the trip down for this one.

Forthcoming events:

February 6^th‘/7^th Galway International Rally

February 14^th/15^th Midland Navigation Trial

February 15^th Monaghan Autotest

February 21^st Fivemiletown Forestry

February 22^nd Birr Stages Rally