2013 Welsh National Forest Rally Championship

Young Welsh Rally Competitors Learn From The Masters

Posted: September 4, 2013 8:47 AM

Young rally drivers and co-drivers from Wales got the opportunity to benefit from the experience of some leading names in the sport recently as the organisers of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship held a junior training day.

With the support of Bob Francis Crane Hire Ltd, the Championship took over the Sweet Lamb Rally Complex, inviting competitors from their under 25 Challenge to go along for a day of training and practise.

Also on hand was former British Rally Champion Gwyndaf Evans to assess and advise drivers while his former co-driver Howard Davies imparted his wisdom on the importance of pre-event preparation as well as co-driving. Leading car preparer Geoff Jones offered advice on setting up and maintaining a rally car and freelance journalist and PR practitioner Peter Hughes shared his experience on dealing with the media.

Championship co-ordinator Dave Evison commented afterwards,
“I was really pleased with the support we have received from the rallying community and the positive feedback coming from both the young competitors and those who were on hand to share their expertise”, adding, “I think it is an important role for any national Championship to nurture young talent and we intend to continue and expand this programme.”

Championship contenders will shortly be visiting Prodrive’s headquarters in Banbury to see how they run their operation and talk to some of the company’s key personnel.

WRC Cars Get a Warm Welcome in Wales

Posted: January 24, 2013 10:01 PM

A new class has been added to the 2013 Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship to cater specifically for World Rally Cars. WRC Cars previously ran in class B13. Championship co-ordinator David Evison says that the change has been made to reflect the rise in entries of WRC cars on championship events.

“We don’t believe in making changes simply for the sake of it”, David explains, “but, wherever possible, we like to reflect what our competitors tell us they want.”

A similar rise in interest from competitors with Group N cars under 2000cc means that an N3 category has also been introduced. Alongside the two Group N classes and the WRC class, the championship will continue to run eight open classes.

With the In Car Services Welsh Clubman’s Forest Rally Championship now open exclusively to two wheel drive cars, the Pirelli series is the only Welsh forest rally championship with classes for four wheel drive machines.

As well as looking at the cars taking part, the championship organisers have considered the profile of the competitors and, as a result, the upper age limit for junior competitors has been changed to 25 on January 1st 2013. However, previous junior champions will not be eligible for awards. Meanwhile, a category for competitors over 50 has also been introduced.

As part of a safety initiative from the Welsh Association of Motor Clubs and in common with all the association’s stage rally championships, the championship regulations ‘strongly recommend’ that competing vehicles carry a seat belt cutting device at all times. This should be easily accessible to both driver and co-driver when they are strapped into the car. This move has been prompted by an incident on an event last season.

Competitors will count their best six scores from the championship’s eight rounds, which this year include for the first time the Rally Marketing Mid Wales Stages and the Nicky Grist Stages. With the registration fee held to £30 again this year, organisers report strong early interest in the championship and among those to register already is 2012 champion driver Matt Edwards.

PIRELLI MSA WELSH STAGE RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP

Posted: January 11, 2013 2:36 PM

Organisers of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Stage Rally Championship have unveiled their 2013 calendar, including two events new to the series, which will enjoy the support of the tyre manufacturer as title sponsor for a second year.

The new events are the Rally Marketing Mid Wales Stages and the Nicky Grist Stages, with the organisers saying that their aim is to provide competitors with top quality events in a championship that also offers value for money.

Launching the calendar, Championship Coordinator David Evison said,
“We view Wales as the home of rallying and our aim is to provide a Championship worthy of that. We have looked to put together a balanced calendar with, generally, a minimum gap of four weeks between rounds.”

He added, “Seven of the Championship rounds include stages used on Wales Rally GB but with a registration fee of just £30 and most events offering Saturday morning scrutineering and signing on to save on accommodation costs we think we are offering the best value possible.”

With the majority of the events within one and half hours travelling time of the major conurbations in the North West and the West Midlands and awards on offer to both under 25s and over 50s, David is confident that the series will attract a wide range of competitors.

Speaking about the inclusion of his event in the Championship, Rally Marketing Mid Wales Stages Clerk of the Course Chris Tomley said he was “very pleased to be a round of the Championship” and promised competitors a “cracking route” that will include two runs of Pikes Peak and a 15 miler in Hafren North combined with low road mileage on the Newtown based event.

Representatives of the Championship will be on hand at the WAMC’s Championship Launch Day which will take place on January 19th at the Metropole Hotel in Llandrindod Wells starting at 1pm.

Championship Rounds

Posted: January 11, 2013 2:32 PM

1. Wyedean Forest Rally - (Sat) 9 Feb 13
2. Mid Wales Stages - 3 Mar 2013
3. Rally North Wales (Bulldog) - 6-7 Apr 13
4. Plains Rally - (Sat) 18 May 12
5. Severn Valley - (Sat) 15 Jun 13
6. Quinton (Nicky Grist) Stages Rally - (Sat) 13 Jul 12
7. Woodpecker Stages - (Sat) 31 Aug 13
8. Cambrian Rally - (Sat) 19 Oct 12

WELSH ASSOCIATION OF MOTOR CLUBS