Sligo Pallets Drive of the day winner on the Sligo Stages Rally Shane Maguire, Conor Foley, Andrew Mullen & Elaine Doherty of Sligo Pallets.
Photo: Brendan Flynn
In Car
Posted: July 31, 2011 3:18 PM
Declan & Eoin Gallagher (Toyota Starlet)
Barry Gallagher/Gareth Johnston (Ford Escort Mk II) - SS8
Video Clips
Posted: July 31, 2011 3:01 PM
BARRABLE/CONNOLLY BEST IN THE WEST - Report Courtesy of Dunlop Proud Sponsors of the Dunlop National Rally Championship 2011
Posted: July 31, 2011 3:01 PM
LEADING from start to finish, Robert Barrable and co-driver, Damien Connolly (Skoda Fabia S2000), won the Sligo Park Hotel/Quinn Body Repairs & Recovery Sligo Rally, round six of the Dunlop National Rally Championship.
They finished 11 seconds ahead of the Subaru WRC of Daragh O’Riordan/Tony McDaid with Kevin Barrett/Sean Mullally, also in a Subaru WRC, a minute and 48 seconds behind in third.
Garry Jennings/Herbie Blackburn (Mitsubishi) won the Group N category and Wesley Patterson/Martin McGarrity (Ford Escort) were the top crew in the rally.ie Modified category.
In terms of the Dunlop National Rally Championship, Tim McNulty, who wasn’t competing in Sligo, still retains the lead in the ten round series, however, Barrable, courtesy of maximum Dunlop points in Sligo, has closed to within eight points on the Meath driver.
On the opening 16.87 kilometre stage, Carran Hill, Barrable set the best time – his Skoda Fabia clocked a time of nine minutes and 39 seconds – two seconds faster than O’Riordan, who felt unwell with a bout of influenza. Colm Murphy (Subaru) was a further 12 seconds behind followed by Garry Jennings (Mitsubishi), Kevin Barrett (Subaru WRC) and John Cairns (Subaru). All the drivers commented on the slippery nature of the stage. Late entry, Shane Maguire (Subaru) was seventh overall – four seconds in front of his father, Niall, who lost time with a puncture. Elsewhere, Roy White lost time when he had to slow to remove a water bottle that had slipped to the floor of his MG S2000. Late entry, Liam McCarthy spun his Toyota Corolla WRC.
Barrable gained an impressive 14 seconds from the second stage but O’Riordan was quickest on the final stage of the loop. At the Collooney service halt, Barrable held a 13 second lead, his Skoda damaged its front spoiler after contact with a bollard, the Dubliner remarked that the rear tyres were a little too hard. O’Riordan in second spot was 21 seconds ahead of new third placed driver, Kevin Barrett, who lost a few seconds on the opening stage when he slid wide exiting a right hand junction. Maguire moved into fourth and although Colm Murphy occupied fifth, he withdrew due to transmission troubles. The Limerick driver had no fifth gear in his Subaru and with no replacement gearbox, he decided to retire.
Garry Jennings (Mitsubishi) was next in classification. The top ten also included Shane Maguire (Subaru), Wesley Patterson, who led the Modified category and the Mitsubishi pair of Sam Moffett and Trevor Bustard. Retirements included Roy White (MG S2000) and John Cairns (Subaru)
On the repeat of the stages, Barrable reigned supreme on stage four and five to extend his lead to 23 seconds but O’Riordan set a staggering pace through the sixth test to cut the deficit to eight seconds. At the service halt, the Cork driver opined, “I liked that stage (stage six), at the last service we changed the anti-roll bar and softened the dampers, it made a big difference.”
Meanwhile, rally leader, Barrable couldn’t explain why he lost all that time on S.S. 6. Third placed Barrett, who was a minute behind O’Riordan, had a moment on S.S. 5 when his Subaru drifted wide.
Jennings, in fourth, had an exhaust manifold problem but was only two seconds behind Barrett. Niall Maguire (Subaru WRC) lost time on S.S. 5 when he hit a chicane and stalled his Subaru WRC.
Sam Moffett (Mitsubishi) held sixth place from Wesley Patterson (Escort) and Shane Maguire (Subaru), who shared equal seventh. The final places in the top ten were held by Trevor Bustard (Mitsubishi) and Frank Kelly (Escort). Liam McCarthy was just outside the top ten, his Toyota Corolla WRC suffered injection problems.
Gaining 16 seconds on Stage 7 and five seconds on the penultimate stage, Barrable entered the final test with a 29 second lead. Although O’Riordan took 18 seconds off Barrable on the final stage, Barrable had done enough to take his first victory in a round of the Dunlop series to move to second overall in the series – eight points behind Tim McNulty.
At the Sligo finish, Barrable remarked, “We were under pressure on that final loop, but we got a good rhythm going, I knew Daragh would be quick on the final stage, but we did enough on the other two stages.”
O’Riordan collected 18 Dunlop points for his second place finish and Barrett, who was third, completed the podium line-up. Jennings took the Group N award and Patterson was the top performer in the Modified category.
The Dunlop “Drive of the Day” award was won by David Leonard (Citroen Saxo), who was co-driven by Darragh Mullen, seeded at 32, they finished 18 th and won Class 11.
Derek McGarrity (Subaru WRC) was the principal non-starter.
Barrable/Connolly make Championship ground after Sligo victory
Posted: July 31, 2011 3:01 PM
Robert Barrable, in his Skoda Fabia, won yesterday’s Sligo Stages Rally by 11 seconds from Daragh O’Riordan in a Subaru WRC. Barrable is now just 8 points behind Tim McNulty in the Dunlop National Rally Championship with four rounds left.
Barrable, who was top seed in Sligo, led from Stage One and was fastest again over Stage Two before O’Riordan cut Barrable’s lead to 13 seconds on Stage Three in slippery conditions. On the second running of the stages it was Dubliner Barrable who was fastest over the fourth and fifth stages before O’Riordan put in a blistering sixth stage as the stages dried up to cut the lead to 8 seconds going into the third and final running of the three stages.
Cork native O’Riordan was unable to turn it around enough in the final stages of the day and Barrable took the Sligo Stages Rally in a time of 1.15.34 with O’Riordan 11 seconds behind and Kevin Barrett in his Subaru WRC in third position another 1 minute and 48 seconds back.
Barrable, who was the Motorsport Ireland Young Driver of the Year last year, took 20 points in the Dunlop National Rally Championship for his victory today. He has now narrowed the gap to Tim McNulty, who was unable to compete in today’s round as his co-driver, Paul Kiely, was Clerk of the Course of the event. The next round of the Championship will take place in Galway next month.
Pretenders ready to challenge for the throne in Sligo
Posted: July 8, 2011 1:42 PM
The Dunlop National Rally Championship rolls into in the north west on Saturday for the sixth round of the series, the Sligo Stages Rally. With Championship leader Tim McNulty absent for the second event in a row due to his his co-driver Paul Kiely being Clerk of the Course for the event, McNulty’s rivals have the opportunity to close the points gap at the top of the leaderboard.
Top seed for Sligo is Motorsport Ireland’s Young Rally Driver of the Year, Robert Barrable, in his Skoda Fabia. Barrable recently finished 10th at the Ypres Rally in Belgium, a round of the Intercontinental Rally Championship, and will hope to close the gap on McNulty who is currently 28 points ahead in the standings. Barrable, who is only two years rallying has adapted well from being a single seat driver and will be hoping to take the 20 points on offer over the nine stages in Sligo on Saturday.
Another driver who will have their focus on narrowing the gap on McNulty is Monaghan’s Sam Moffett who is currently second in the National Rally Championship standings, 26 points off top spot. Moffett performed well in Kilkenny recently taking third place in the last round and he will also have an eye on securing maximum points this weekend in his Mitsubishi Evo 9.
Some of the other notable contenders in Sligo this weekend include is Cork native Daragh O’Riordan who won the Rally of the Lakes in Killarney and recently finished third at the Topaz Doneal International Rally, while second seed is Derek McGarrity in his Subaru WRC will be hoping to put in a good run after retiring on day two of Donegal.
The Sligo Stages Rally begins on Saturday morning with three stages in Carran Hill, Windmills and Blast Hill being run three times over the course of the day with the event finishing up in Sligo town on Saturday evening.
SLIGO SET FOR SATURDAY’S DUNLOP ROUND SIX - Preview Courtesy of Dunlop Proud Sponsors of the Dunlop National Rally Championship 2011
Posted: July 8, 2011 1:35 PM
The Sligo Park Hotel/Quinn Body Repairs & Recovery Sligo Rally, round six of the Dunlop National Rally Championship on Saturday next, has a very competitive entry that features most of Tim McNulty’s championship rivals. For the second event in succession, the current Dunlop series leader is an absentee. On the Raven’s Rock Rally (Round 5), his Subaru WRC wasn’t re-fettled in time, however on this occasion, his absence is because his regular co-driver, Paul Kiely, is actually the clerk of the course of the nine stage event in the west of Ireland.
Nevertheless, no matter who wins the rally on Saturday next, McNulty/Kiely will still retain the lead of the ten round series even though their rivals will have the opportunity to close the deficit.
Top seed, Robert Barrable in his Skoda Fabia S2000, will contest his fourth event of the Dunlop campaign and with three top three finishes already secured, he is expected to slot into second place in the series. Currently third overall and 28 points adrift of McNulty, the Billy Coleman award winner is enjoying a fine debut season in the ex-Jan Kopecky car. From seventh in the Rallye Sunseeker, the first event in the car, Barrable then went on to win the West Cork Rally in Clonakilty. On his Dunlop forays, he has finished third in Monaghan and second in both Carlow and Cavan. He was also third on the Pirelli Rally, a round of the British Rally Championship but retired from the Jim Clark Rally in Scotland.
In the Ypres Rally, that marked his debut in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC), Barrable, seeded at 34, was fifth quickest through the second stage, however, he slipped off the road on the third test and dropped down the order to 24th. from where he forged a fine recovery to finish tenth overall and take points in both the Driver’s and Manufacturer’s series. Although he is likely to miss the next Dunlop round in Galway (due to his participation in the Barum Rally in the Czech Republic), Barrable still wants to finish as high as possible in the series.
Antrim’s, Derek McGarrity (Subaru WRC) returns to the Dunlop series after missing several rounds, the Glengormley driver will offer strong competition in County Sligo.
Cork driver, Daragh O’Riordan, also in a Subaru WRC, had a superb battle with Barrable on the West Cork Rally and only lost out by the narrowest of margins. In the second round of the Dunlop series in Monaghan, Barrable was third and O’Riordan finished fourth, Sligo will offer another interesting battle.
Having missed the last round in Kilkenny, both former Dunlop champion, Niall Maguire and Kevin Barrett return to competitive action in Sligo. In terms of the Dunlop National Rally Championship, the Subaru WRC pair are sixth and seventh respectively.
The entry of Fermanagh’s, Garry Jennings (Mitsubishi) adds spice to the Group N showroom battle where opposition for the Motorsport Safety Team Group N award, includes Colm Murphy and Sam Moffett. Murphy took maximum Dunlop points from the Raven’s Rock Rally as Moffett, who finished third overall, annexed 18 points to move into second place overall – 26 points behind Dunlop pacesetter, Tim McNulty. The top ten in Sligo is completed by John Cairns (Subaru) and Trevor Bustard (Mitsubishi).
Lisburn’s, Wesley Patterson (Ford Escort) is the top seeded driver in the Modified category where Welsh ace, Washington James and Frank Kelly who leads the rally.ie series within the Dunlop National Rally Championship. Other opposition features Damien Gallagher, Sam Smyth, John McGettrick, Michael Conlon, John McQuaid, Michael Curran, Arthur Kierans and Daniel Conaghan, all in Ford Escorts, local stalwart, Dominic McLoughlin (Peugeot 205) and Lloyd Hutchinson (Mini).
Following a two-year absence, Clonmel’s, Roy White, in his MG S2000, made a return to rallying in the last round in Kilkenny and has decided to compete in all the remaining rounds of the Dunlop campaign. Other entries include Andrew Mullen (Mitsubishi), John Hendy (Toyota Corolla) along with Escort pair, Seamus Hegarty and Ian Gunning.
McGarrity withdrawls
Posted: July 8, 2011 1:31 PM
Derek McGarrity has withdrawn from Sligo, Car not Ready
Please be aware that the closing date for entries for the Sligo Stages Rally 2011 has been extended. Seeding of entries will take place on next Friday evening 1st of July.
Entry list will be posted on the club website Saturday evening.
SLIGO STAGES RALLY OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED
Posted: June 14, 2011 9:12 AM
Photo: James Burke
Thursday night last was the occasion of the official launch of the 2011 Sligo Stages Rally held in the home of Rally Headquarters and joint title sponsor, the SLIGO PARK HOTEL. It was a relaxed occasion to bring together everyone who has been involved in the planning stage of the event to date and look forward to a sporting success on Saturday July 9th. Among the gathering of organisers, competitors, sponsors and dignitaries was Dominic Quinn, who through his crash repair and recovery business, QUINN BODY REPAIRS & RECOVERY, is jointly sponsoring the Sligo Stages Rally for the third consecutive year. The Ballygawley based business has grown from a small body repair business just over ten years ago, to today being one of the most modern, efficient and comprehensive services provider in the breakdown, recovery and crash repair sector in Ireland.
SLIGO PARK HOTEL’s association with the local rally stems back three decades and throughout those years the management and staff have together embraced the whole atmosphere surrounding the event. This year, accommodating the moving of the event to Saturday, the hotel has been a strong driving force behind the rekindling of the post event celebrations.on Saturday night, which with the inclusion of live music and disco will bring a lighter note to the day’s proceedings. Renowned for its homely atmosphere the Sligo Park will have attractive packages to make an enjoyable weekend for the whole family.
Speaking on Ocean FM on the night of the launch , Clerk of the Course Paul Kiely alluded to the wealth of experience locally in the whole planning of events , which was built upon during the WRC events ,combine this with the Pauls own vast stage mileage as a competitor , the result should be another great Sligo Stages Rally .
A crucial part of any rally is the whole sponsorship package, and indeed each individual stage sponsor plays a vital part.
Gusclad ,sponsor of Special Stage 1, has its manufacturing and distributing base in Ballyfarnon ,Boyle producing a vast array of cladding for the building and diy market , has consistently supported Sligo rally for a number of years as stage sponsor . Owner Ian Gunning himself has progressed to be a very capable competitor in what is a very competitive class 13 in recent years.
A new name to Sligo Rally but with a long history connected to rallying in Ireland , Team Auto Shop with their new outlet at Henderson Motorpark have come on board as stage 2 sponsor .While the name ,Team P R Reilly , adorned many rally heroes cars of yesteryear it’s encouraging to see the brand re- enter the field of rallying
The Gulf name, is synonymous worldwide within different sectors of motorsport, and therefore distributor for Ireland based in Colooney, under ownership of Dermot Fallon, is a welcome supporter for our rally as sponsor of Stage 3 .The provision of office facilities during the day of the event in the heart of service is also appreciated.
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Competitors are reminded that entries close on June 27th and that will give them ample opportunity to plan a recce for Sunday previous or arrive for a Friday and make a weekend of it. ‘’The sun always shines for Sligo Stages ‘’
Regulations for the 2011, Quinn Crash Repairs and Recovery/ Sligo Park Hotel - Sligo Stages have been published for download , with entries due for opening on May 30th. , The format is a three by three stage loop with a central service location. The three stages carefully selected by C.O.C. , Paul Kiely ,will reflect what a competitor demands from himself , combining the vast experiences acrued by Paul , both in the driving seat but particularly as winning navigator on numerous national and international events.
Changing the event to a Saturday was an immediate consideration of Paul’s to encourage competitors to mingle among friends in the relaxed atmosphere of post event celebrations.Headquarters , Sligo Park have a number of special packages to accommodate those planning a weekend surrounding the event . In an effort to rekindle the celebrations that Sligo Stages Rally night was renouned for in the past , a ‘Rally Dance’ is planned for Saturday night , including both a live band and a disco. As part of the process to further raise the profile of the event , it is planned to hold a ceremonial start in the heart of the town centre on Friday night.
Clerk of the Course , Paul has taken the decision to move the July event to a Saturday for 2011 with the intension of encouraging a social aspect to the whole weekend . Being in the heart of the holiday season it is intended that crews might relax on the Saturday night in the welcoming athmosphere of the Sligo Park Hotel . Paul has always felt that the pressures of driving home after a enjoyable days rallying on a Sunday is a bit of an anticlimax and demanding on crews .As with other tarmac Saturday events , Recce will take place on the previous Sunday and on Friday.
The Sligo Park Hotel , Dominic Quinn Body Repairs sponsored event is a round of both the Dunlop National and the Border Championship.
Paul Kiely takes on C.O.C role
Posted: February 11, 2011 1:14 PM
Connacht Motor Club are delighted to confirm that at a recent committee meeting Paul Kiely was ratified as Clerk of the Course for the 2011 Sligo Stages Rally.The multiple Tarmac Championship navigator title holder has for over 20 years accumulated vast experiences across all areas of competitive motorsport . Not alone as a navigator but also as a driver , Paul had exhibited and ability to compete at the highest level both on national and international rallies .
Bringing all those experiences to the table Paul got his first taste at an organisational level when in 2009 he took on the role as Deputy C.O.C for the Sligo Mini Stages .Taking on the guiding role on Sligo Stages 2011 he is adamant to introduce his individual touches to the event .
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