O'Riordan/McDaid Win Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes!
Posted: January 26, 2013 5:08 PM
Daragh O'Riordan and Tony McDaid marked their maiden international rally victory by taking overall honours at last weekend's Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes, round three of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. In winning the event, O'Riordan becomes the third different driver to score maximum points this year.
The Championship leader prior to the Rally of the Lakes was Kevin Barrett, but engine failure scuppered his plans to extend his lead.
In fact, in an unprecedented situation, none of the leading top 10 Tarmac Championship contenders managed to add to their points total.
O'Riordan led the rally after stage three, when early leader Tim McNulty was forced into retirement with engine troubles. McNulty, who was targeting a third Lakes victory, was fastest on the opening Molls Gap stage by 13 seconds, only for engine gremlins to stop him in his tracks.
Following the retirement of Tim McNulty and Paul Kiely, O'Riordan led the rally by 41 seconds after stage three from 2010 winner, Denis Cronin. By the end of leg one, O'Riordan had edged out a lead of almost two minutes in his Subaru Impreza WRC. Having set fastest time on all but the opening stage, nobody had an answer for the County Cork driver.
The final day saw O'Riordan continue where he left off, with another string of fastest times sealing his position at the top of the order. In the end, he secured the rally spoils by almost four minutes from Denis Cronin and Coleman Hurley, with Eoin Doyle and Peter Brennan third.
Mark Sheahan and Mark Kane were the leading two-wheel-drive contenders and finished fourth overall with their Citroen C2 R2 Max. They also secured maximum Championship bonus points as first non-WRC finisher, while Ger O'Donovan and Sean Hayde sealed the Group N win as well as fifth overall.
Fellow Group N contender Alan Ring was another driver who failed to reach the finish. He held third overall when he was forced to withdraw from the event with engine troubles on day one.
In the Modified category, Geoffrey Dolan and Conor Murphy took the National Rally win as well as maximum points. Their success propelled them into an 18-point championship lead, with Eugene Ferry second ahead of Noel O'Sullivan.
And in the Historic category, maximum points for William Todd places him second in the series standings, just three points behind Mervyn Johnston. Alan Courtney secured maximum Post Historic Category Championship points in his Porsche.
Citroen Racing Trophy Ireland Victory for Sheahan in Classic Rally of the Lakes!
Posted: January 26, 2013 5:01 PM
The Rally of the Lakes in Killarney provided a truly tough test for round two of the Citroen Trophy Ireland, on the classic stages in the beautiful Kerry countryside. An impressive ten Citroen C2’s lined up for the Saturday morning opening stage, the famous Molls Gap test on the main Killarney to Kenmare road. Fastest up “the Gap” was Limerick’s Mark Sheahan, whose fast start had him placed an early fifth overall in the main event. Second fastest on Molls Gap was Mayo’s David Carney, who is really picking up the pace after his learning year last year. However David was soon out knocking a wheel of the Citroen C2 Max. Round one winner Kieran Daly, got away with a huge spin on Molls Gap. “It was just cold tyres on the one of the opening right hander’s over a crest. We were very lucky; I have never got away with anything as big as that before!” Despite the early time loss Kieran was second of the C2’s, 40 seconds off the lead after stage 4, but engine failure on stage 6, the famous Caragh Lake test forced his retirement.
Kevin O’Connor in his C2 R2 was an early third, the car re built after its West Cork crash. However power steering problems, and soon gearbox mounting problems were blunting his challenge on the rebuilt car, and he too was soon a casualty of the opening days, bone dry but arduous stages. That allowed Joe Shrimpton up into second, with Donegal crew Scott McElhinney and Karl Reid third, but fellow Donegal driver Joe McGonigle’s rally was short lived with mechanical issues, but he rewarded the Sharkey Motorsport team, who re-shelled his car after his West Cork accident, by winning the Sunday run of the event. Dublin driver Graham Colfer having a promising start, running his C2 Max in the National section of the event, but not so fortunate was fellow Dubliner Peter Barrable who was suffering intercom problems and a puncture on Caragh Lake. Nevertheless he was increasing his rally experience with former top Irish co-driver Dermot O’Gorman along for the run. Cookstown’s Samantha Thom with Johnny Baird on the pace-notes, was having a great run, after her West Cork problems. Her DJ Motorsport C2 R2 Max was running faultlessly and the former rally-cross ace was having a good run on her first visit to Killarney.
By the end of the day Mark Sheahan’s lead was just over two minutes, with Graham Colfer 2nd, Joe Shrimpton now just 3 seconds back in 3rd with Scott McElhinney over a minute further back in 4th. Samantha Thom held 5th, 10th overall in the main field with Peter Barrable in 6th. Interestingly at this stage four Citroen C2’s were in the top ten of the International Rally, and Pirelli were shipping extra slick tyres overnight from the UK, for the hot dry conditions.
Day two was a challenging day, including some of the toughest stages in Ireland, the Cods Head and Ardgroom tests, undulating, twisting stretches of tarmac right on the South West coast of Ireland. For Mark Sheahan it was a day of preservation, but his Ryan Motorsport car was running perfectly and a sideways moment on the opening third running of the Molls Gap stage, and contact with a chicane was to prove the only drama of the day. Samantha Thom too had a huge spin approaching the Gap and was lucky to get away without hitting a retaining wall, but she continued and began to set more and more competitive times. Joe Shrimpton lost time with a sticking brake on stage 12, Ardgroom and he was embroiled in a battle for 2nd with Graham Colfer, the Dubliner having the upper hand. Scott McElhinney was set to finish fourth, very much enjoying his run, with Samantha Thom recording fine fifth. Peter Barrable sadly dropped out in the closing stages, but five of the ten C2 chargers finished this grueling event.
For Joe Shrimpton and Ciaran Geaney, third was an excellent result for the relative C2 newcomers, with Graham Colfer finally getting a good finish in second. However the weekend belonged to Mark Sheahan and co-driver Mark Kane, who was previously a Citroen Racing driver. “Everything went well from the first stage” commented the winning driver. “It was a tough rally, the toughest I have ever done, sore of the car, on the tyres and on the crew, but a fantastic event.” With it came a fabulous fourth overall result on the International event and of course the 4000€ first prize. Next time the Citroen Racing Trophy will be in Donegal in June.
Citroen Racing Trophy Ireland- Round 2-Results
1 Mark Sheahan/ Mark Kane 2hr27mins28.4s
2 Graham Colfer/ Alan Dolan +2m 12.8s
3 Joe Shrimpton/ Ciaran Geaney +3m.02.5s
4 Scott McElhinney/ Karl Reid +4m36.8s
5 Samantha Thom/ Johnny Baird +6m38.5s
Points after Round Two
1 Joe Shrimpton 14pts
2 Scott McElhinney 12
3 Mark Sheahan 10
= Kieran Daly 10
5 Graham Colfer 8
Sixes and Sevens for Shrimpton + Geaney
Posted: January 26, 2013 4:59 PM
It was a tweet released by Joe Shrimpton that gave the game away last Wednesday night. All it said was "Well...... It's Killarney weekend, can't wait !!"
It was obvious that Joe and Ciaran were looking forward to the Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes that took place this weekend in Killarney. In the lead up to the event, before Joe headed to Ireland he said "I am really looking forward to this event so much, I mean the first stage is the famous Molls Gap and then it straight into another classic, Ballaghbeama"
Joe and Ciaran had a very good recce over the famous Kerry stages, and were eager to improve on their points tally to date in the Citroen Racing Trophy Ireland Championship, here in Killarney and bring home another good result in their DJ Rally HIre / MB / GGH Hire / Millers Oils / JTS Cushions / BBAG Extreme Lounging Citroen C2R2 and maintain their challenge in this years Championship despite Joe never having competed on the event before.
Joe and Ciaran had two very good runs over the opening two stages, namely the afore mentioned Molls Gap and Ballaghbeama, but were already finding that tyre wear in the warm and sunny conditions was harder than anticipated. The good thing was that all the Citroen runners were finding the same thing, so it was a level playing field but at the first service of the day at the Liebherr Factory just outside the town, they were 4th overall in class and running well inside the Top 10. The DJ Rally Hire Citroen C2R2, had some minor adjustments, to take into account the tyre situation and allow Joe and Ciaran to keep pushing for the next loop of stages to come. Joe said at service "Its been a great morning for us, and the stages are amazing to drive and having finally driven Molls Gap, I can empathise with all the people that rave about it, Ciaran and I really did enjoy it. The cars good and we are having some great battles with the likes of Mark and the rest of the boys, but there is a long way to go here still"
Another visit to Service during the day only served to confirm that all the runners in the Citroen Trophy were having issues with wear rate , and getting through a large amount of tyres collectively.So much so that Bill Adair, of SW Adair tyres arranged for another supply to come in from the UK overnight, as all Citroens must run on Pirelli Tyres.
On the second loop of Stages, Joe and Ciaran shaved 9 seconds off their first time on Molls Gap, an indication of how hard they were going, and had now firmly cemented their place in the Rally Top 10, and then it was on to the infamous "Caragh Lake" stage where the pair really showed commitment to their notes and maintained the charge in hand for them and the rest of the team. Joe said after the Caragh Lake stage "What a stage that was, it really was good......really was. Sometimes when you do the recce you don't always see how the stage will flow, and you get into your rhythm, but Ciaran and I were really on it in there, very happy and a really enjoyable stage"
Similar to earlier in the day Joe and Ciaran, were improving their times on second runs over stages, and the fact that the pace in general on the event was so hot and competitive, it was a clearly delighted pair that returned to the final service of the day outside Killarney in an amazing 7th Overall and 2nd in Class behind leader Mark Sheahan.
Navigator to Joe, Ciaran Geaney said at Service "We have had a really good day y'know, to be back here on Saturday night in Killarney on the Rally of the Lakes and hold 7th overall is brilliant, it really is. Joe has driven well all day, and bettering his times on second runs over stages, but also he has been good on his tyres and on the longer stages it allows him to up his pace on the guys around us. We should be ok for tyres tomorrow, but it does not worry us to be honest as Joe looks after his, and that really helps us"
Team Manager Willie Woods was clearly delighted with how the day had gone for the team, and said "It has been a good day, and everything has worked well for us. Joe and Ciaran have done a great job in the car, and Derek and his boys the same outside the car, but we still have to get through tomorrow as well, so lets see......."
Sunday morning dawned sunny and cool, in Killarney, and there were damp patches on the first part of Molls Gaps to catch out the unwary, but Joe and Ciaran were very quick out of the blocks and set fastest time up the Gap to take time out of leader Mark Sheahan and keep their challenge on course and improve the points tally in the Citroen Trophy Ireland Championship. Next up was a trip over the Tim Healy Pass, one of the classic Irish Rallying stages, where Joe and Ciaran continued to remain on a charge though Joe admitted that he needed to tidy his driving up a bit, and was also finding that the problems experienced on Saturday with tyres were an issue once again. Joe said at Service in Castletownbearhaven "Its the same as yesterday, in that the tyres are great but the warmth and conditions do take it out of them, despite Pirelli having some excellent compounds, but the trick is to make it work for you on the stage. Co-Driver Ciaran has a similar view and added "Its actually working for us, in that we need to look after them on the stage, and Joe is driving smoothly and thats where the times are coming from that are keeping us in the hunt"
From Service is was off to another duo of classic stages, namely Ardgroom and Cods Head but on Ardgroom Joe and Ciaran lost about 40secs when a stone jammed between the wheel and the caliper, easily fixed on the road, but time was still lost though they still remained in second behind class leader Sheahan should trouble strike.
The final loop of Sunday stages took in repeats of Cods Head and Ardgroom and a one off run over Kilmackillogue where Joe and Ciaran continued to maintain a steady charge in the warms conditions, ever aware of the demand on their tyres and the fact they are competing on a Championship for the year. Consistent Second fastest times meant that the pair returned to the finish in Killarney in a a superb 6th overall on the Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes behind class winner Sheahan and take the lead in the Citroen Racing Trophy Ireland and head to the next round in a great position.
At the finish, a delighted Joe said "Its been a great weekend, it really has. I do forget sometimes that my experience is much less than the other guys I am up against, but they drive so well it makes me so determined to keep with them. Mark drove very well this weekend, but we are happy how it has turned out for us."
Similarly Ciaran said "6th overall on an International eh......not bad for a guy who's only doing his 7th ever event, thats all I can say. He was great in the car all weekend, he really was and we have had a real laugh on the road sections between us, y'know so despite the intensity of it all, we are having a ball on every event we do"
Team Manager Wille Woods was delighted with how the pair had driven and the car had run well all weekend. He said as the cars arrived back into the Historic Kerry town, "Yeah, its been good, another event finished, experience gained in many areas and a brilliant 6th overall, yeah I am happy" and he went on to add "thats why I am smiling, Joe and Ciaran were on it all weekend, kept is steady, drove sensibly and he is leading the Championship, so in many ways its perfect. Derek and the lads did a great job as usual, and so did Bill Adair in getting more tyres over too."
The last word went to Joe just before he headed to Parc Ferme, when he said "I have looked forward to this event for a long time, I knew all about the stages, and the calibre of the drivers who have been on them down the years of history, so to get there and compete this weekend, was sort of a dream of mine and to come away leading the Championship and get 6th overall is really cool"
Class winners:
Roland Doherty/P J O’Dowd (Opel Corsa)
Victor Beamish/Susan Beamish (Vauxhall Nova)
John Daly/John Joe Daly (Ford Escort)
Diarmuid Lynch/John Falvey (Ford Escort)
Charlie Hickey/Johnny Hickey (Ford Escort)
Tony Murphy/Brid Murphy (Ford Escort)
Graeme Colfer/Alan Dolan (Citroen C2R2)
The battle for Tarmac Championship points now turns to round three of the series, this weekend's Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes. More than 100 entries have been received, with last year's winner, Denis Cronin, seeded first in his Impreza WRC.
Number two seed Tim McNulty will be in the hunt for his third Lakes victory, while Derek McGarrity and Diarmuid Falvey have also entered the rally in their Impreza WRC.
Kevin Barrett and Daragh O'Riordan will wheel out their World Rally Cars, while Aaron MacHale and Brian Daniels return to action with their Evo 9. Alan Ring and Adrian Deasy are next in line, with the top 10 completed by two-wheel-drive competitors, Barry Meade and Fergus O'Meara.
Scrutiny takes place this Friday while the event gets underway on Saturday morning. Competitors will tackle a total of eight stages on the Saturday, starting with the famous Molls Gap.
Another eight stages are on the agenda for Sunday, with the winner due to cross the Gleneagle Hotel finish ramp on Sunday afternoon
B1 Opel Manta 400 Pat Laracy/Ian Laracy B 1985 Coleman DOTI
B2 Saab EMS Noel Hurley/Cyril Casey 2 1977 Blomqvest Works
B3 Austin Rover Metro 6R4 Bernard Daly/Philip Doherty B 1986 Pond Rothmans
B4 Subaru Legacy RS Paul Hilliard/Kieran Mc Namara A 1992 Colin Mc Rae Rothmans
B5 TriumphTR7-V8 John Anderson/Pamela Morrison 4 1979 Sunstrom BL Works
B6 Renault 5 turbo Jonathan Radley/Eoin Sheehan 4 1981 Ragnotti Renault Sport
B7 Mazda RX7 Fintan Foley/Fionn Foley 2 1982 Rod Millen Works
B8 Audi Coupe Quattro James Hall/ Tony A 1986 Lewellin Shell Oils
B9 Hillman Avenger Denis Nagle/ Irene O Donovan 1 1976 Maunsell Chrysler
B10 Mk1 Escort TC Mick Buckley/Aidan Buckley 2 1978 Roger Clark Ford Works
B11 Porsche 911 Conor Falvey/Liam Buckley 4 1975 Waldegard Martini
B12 Peugeot T16 James Tanahill/Richard Tanahill B 1984 J.P.Nicolas Peugeot
Saturday Stages
Molls Gap
Ballaghbeama
Caragh Lake
Shanera
Caragh Lake 2
Sunday Stages
Molls Gap
Healy Pass
Cods Head 1
Cods Head 2
Ardgroom
Killmackillogue
2011 Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes Launched
Posted: April 18, 2011 10:38 AM
Last years winner Denis Cronin will lead the field away from the town centre start for
the 2011 Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes on Friday April 29th.
Denis started his first Rally of the Lakes 30 years ago in 1981, seeded at number 95.
Last year he started at number 5 and achieved a lifelong ambition by winning what he
regards as his home International Rally.
Coleman Hurley replaces last years winning co driver Helen O’Sullivan who has not
yet fully recovered from a back injury suffered in Fastnet Rally last year.
Following him will be Tim McNulty who so dramatically lost lead in last year’s event
when the gear box of his Subaru S12B failed with just three stages to go. Tim has
already won this event twice in 2006 & 2009.
One of the great battles of this year will be for the Bertie Fisher Trophy for the fastest
time in Molls Gap and with the stage being used three times it will mean that the
fastest crew on the first stage will have to defend the Fisher Cup lead on two further
occasions.
130 entries have been received to date and a number of crews have asked that space
be reserved provisionally for them as they are taking part in either the Monaghan
Stages Rally this weekend or the Circuit of Ireland over the Easter weekend.
The event is once again sponsored by Cartell.ie who came on board for the first time
in 2010 and it also has the ongoing support of the Gleneagle Hotel and Ordnance
Survey Ireland.
Day one of the 2011 International Rally of the Lakes will consist of 4 stages, Molls
Gap, Beallaghbeama, Caragh Lake and Shanera, each of which will be used twice.
First car will start Molls Gap at 8.03 and will arrive back to overnight Parc Ferme at
18.15.
Service throughout the day is centralized at Liebherr Container Cranes on the main
Killarney to Killorglin road.
The action restarts on Sunday with Molls Gap, followed by a loop of three stages,
Healy Pass, Cods Head & Ardgroom in the Beara Peninsula, each of which are used
twice, followed by the final stage at Killmackillogue.
The leading cars are expected at the Finish Ramp at the Gleneagle Hotel at 17.25.
Service on Sunday will be on Dinis Island Castletownbere, courtesy of BIM and the
Castletownbere Harbour Master.
Apart from the battle for the International honors the National section will be hotly
contested with last year’s winner Barry Meade facing stiff opposition from drivers
such as Fergus O’Meara, Martin McGee, Kevin O’Donoghue, Charlie Hickey,
Eugene Ferry, Vincent O’Shea and John Hickey all in Ford Escorts.
Also capable of challenging for a win in the National Section are Eoin Doyle from
Mooncoin in a Subaru Impreza, John Somers from Wexford in a Toyota Celia and
Joe Connoly from Kilkenny in a Ford Escort.
Last years Historic Winner Todd Falvey does not have his car ready following an off
in the West Cork Rally and in the absence of another previous winner Ray
Cunningham the title is wide open for the taking, but there are a number of strong
contenders who have reserved places which may be taken up after the Circuit of
Ireland.
Last years Junior Winner Kevin O’Connor competes in the National section this year
but among the 25 Junior crews one to watch could well be J8, Daniel Cronin, younger
brother of British Rally Champion Keith Cronin.
Danny competes in his first Rally of the Lakes in a Peugeot 206 with the experienced
Sean Duggan from the Healy Pass as Co-Driver.
Speaking at the Launch, Clerk of the Course Dermot Healy said that he was happy
and relieved that such a fine entry had been received in such a challenging economic
climate.
He felt certain that once the rally route became known the opportunity to compete on
what are undoubtedly the finest tarmac stages in Ireland if not in Europe was the
deciding factor for many competitors.
Mayor of Killarney Donal Grady said he was delighted to have to opportunity to
welcome everybody present to the launch of the 2011 Cartell.ie International Rally of
the Lakes.
He had seen the Rally of the Lakes grow over the past 32 years and it is now regarded
as the event which kick starts the tourist season in Killarney each year.
He congratulated Killarney and District Motor Club on organizing yet another fine
event and assured the Club that Killarney Town Council would do everything possible
to facilitate the running of the rally and to ensure that everybody who comes to
Killarney for the weekend will leave with a great impression of the town.
Other speakers included Chairman of Killarney and District Motor Club, Diarmuid
Cronin, Jeff Ahern from Cartell.ie, Patrick O’Donoghue of the Gleneagle Hotel
Group, Brian McArdle Ordnance Survey Ireland, Tom Randles President of Killarney
Chamber of Commerce and Tourism and Aaron McHale who spoke on behalf of the
Road Safety Authority, who are using the event for a major road safety awareness
campaign.
Entries are filling up with over 80 entries received for the main field already, Junior and Historic categories are proving to be very popular and are attracting a lot of interest. Both of these categories should be considered by any eligible competitor.
In the Historic section the Club have put together a Special deal for 600euro the cars will start on first stage Sat morning (no waiting around), all cars will be seeded in the main field, and they will get a total of 14 stages, with an extra long service Sat evening and a free Entry to next year’s event for the winner.
2011 Rally of the Lakes is going to be the Junior Rally of the year. Round 2 of The Windscreen Company Southern 4 Junior Rally Championship. The full day Sunday is on offer consisting of 8 special stages for 350euro. Including the famous Molls Gap, Healy pass, Cods Head, Ardgroom. With centralised service in Castletownbere. and a free Entry to next year’s event for the winner. “The next Billy Coleman winner should prove himself in Killarney”.
Rally of the lakes are delighted to announce that we have secured the well renown Donegal band “Hugo and off the Cuff Band” to play at the prize giving in the Gleneagle Hotel INEC.
Due to this years event being run so close to the Circuit of Ireland KDMC have an early Recce option available on Sat16th and Sun17th to any competitors competing in both events.
Rally Launch - Sunday April 17th
Posted: March 16, 2011 2:35 PM
The Official Launch will take place at 7.30pm in the Brehon Hotel Killarney on Sunday April 17th.
2011 Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes Press Release 1
Posted: March 16, 2011 2:32 PM
Killarney and District Motor Club are delighted to announce that Ireland’s leading vehicle history record company Cartell.ie have come on board for a second year to support the 2011 Rally of the Lakes as main sponsor.
Ordnance Survey Ireland and the Gleneagle Hotel who have been the main supporters of the Rally of the Lakes for many years continue as Associate Sponsors.
The 32nd Rally of the Lakes will take place over the May bank holiday weekend of 30th April – 1st May and will be a counting for:
· Round 3 of the Irish Tarmac Championship 2011
· Round 2 of the Southern 4 Championship 2011
· Round 2 Citroen Racing Trophy 2011
Killarney man Dermot Healy has taken on the role of COC for this year’s event.
Having been involved with the Rally of the Lakes in one form or another over the past 20 years. Dermot and his team have put together the most famous classic route of stages available, such as 3 runs at the famous Molls gap over the weekend. Beallaghbeama,Caragh Lake, Shanera with centralised service in Killarney on Saturday and Healy pass, Cods Head. Ardgroom. With centralised service in Castletownbere on Sunday.
Entry fee for International rally is 850euro and National rally is reduced to 800euro.
For this you’re competing in Irelands pinnacle tarmac rally with 16 of the best stages this island has to offer, totalling over 240 stage km.
A free Entry to next year’s event is up for grabs for the winners of each category.
In the Historic section we have put together a Special deal for 600euro the cars will start on first stage Sat morning (no waiting around), all cars will be seeded in the main field, and they will get a total of 14 stages, with an extra long service Sat evening and a free Entry to next year’s event for the winner.
The Juniors get a full day Sunday, 8 special stages on offer for 350euro and a free Entry to next year’s event for the winner. “The next Billy Coleman winner should prove himself in Killarney”.
This year’s event will kick off with a ceremonial start in Killarney town on Friday evening at 8pm.Followed with 2 hard days of rallying and returning to the finish ramp at the Gleneagle hotel Sunday evening at approximately 5pm.
Classic Stages For 2011 Rally Of the Lakes
Posted: March 16, 2011 2:27 PM
The Route for the 2011 Cartell.ie International Rally of the Lakes includes Molls Gap, Ballaghbeama, Caragh Lake, Healy Pass, Cods Head & Ardgroom
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