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Irish Star Plays Host to Norwegian Rally Crew

Posted: October 14, 2004 10:56 AM - 4934 Hits

The Donegal Harvest Rally took place in Donegal Town on Saturday (9th October). Ireland's young rally star Shaun Gallagher did not compete in the event but was very much involved in this year's rally albeit in a slightly unusual way!

Posted: October 14, 2004 10:56 AM

Shaun spent the weekend helping and guiding a Norwegian crew of Nils Waerstad and Anders Granheim who made the long trip to Ireland for the event. Nils, a comedian, was taking part in the Harvest Rally to film a documentary for Norwegian television.

The pair, who had brought world famous driver John Haugland with them for support certainly had an eventful day. On the start line of the first stage Nils decided to check his brakes and under his foot the pedal went straight to the floor. In typical Donegal style it wasn't long before a crowd of people got stuck in to help and they managed to restore pressure to one wheel. So the crew set off into the first stage with one objective, get to the finish.

The Norwegian crew made it to first service and his mechanics set about fixing the problem and eventually sent Nils out for the second loop of stages with full brakes.

Incredibly the start of the third stage was an exact repeat of the first when the Sierra Saphire lost its breaks again. Niles got some pressure back into the brakes pipes before he was due to start and did survive the stage and make to service.

With a sense of déjà vu the mechanics set about fixing the car again and Niles left service for second time with working brakes.

Thankfully he didn't encounter any more problems during the day and drove the remainder of the stages on the limit, thoroughly enjoying every bit of the rally.

After an action-packed day Nils and co-driver Anders Granheim made it to the finish of the rally and amazingly made it onto the podium with 3rd in class 15.

Their exploits will be shown on Norwegian television in November/December this year.

Having competed very little recently Shaun Gallagher was delighted to play host to the Norwegian stars and hopes they will return to Ireland for another shot at the Irish stages very soon!

Shaun's plans remain unconfirmed however he does hope to compete in the final round of the British Rally Championship, the Tempest Rally in November.

01/09/04
Gallagher Forced to Miss French Cup Event
French Peugeot 206 Cup front-runner Shaun Gallagher will not contest round six of this year's championship.

The Letterkenny driver had put a substantial budget in place for 2004 and was also heavily reliant on prize money. Due to retirements this source of funding has been limited and with the costs of competing in the championship exceeding their expected levels the budget is now exhausted.

Shaun has many sponsors and backers who have contributed so much during 2003 and 2004 and would like to thank those for making it possible to compete in the French and British Peugeot 206 Cups. He does not wish to continue to rely on their generosity and is now seeking additional sponsors with the aim of competing in the next round of the championship in October.
25/07/084
Irish Driver Mixes With Frances Best Tarmac Specialists
Shaun Gallagher and new co-driver Gerard Callaghan made the long journey to Castes for round five of the French Peugeot 206 Cup, the Rallye Montagne Noire this weekend and took on the unique challenge of the tarmac rounds of South France.

The eleven stages, run in the mountains around Castres and Mazamet, can only be described as similar to those of Monte Carlo. They were also fast and flowing in places and wide enough for two-way traffic.

The opening stages of the rally were run on Friday night in the dark and first and fore most Shaun adjusted to competing with a new co-driver. The stages were damp, making tyre choice difficult however Shaun soon settled in and was lying 16th overall after the opening day against some of Frances best tarmac specialists.

The crews awoke to blistering sunshine on Saturday morning and the temperatures were already in the high twenties at the start of the first stage. Shaun knew that he would suffer because of this later in the day.

The opening stage was 18km long and on cold tyres at a square left with gravel Shaun went off and lost 40 seconds moving him back seven places. However he did not let this hamper him and began his move up the leader board making up five places in two stages.

By early afternoon the temperatures were well into the thirties. The second loop of three stages was basically trouble free apart from the heat and carrying too much fuel and the Mullen Express Transport team jumped from 18th to 12th position.

By the third run the corners were beginning to get very cut up and gravel that had been pulled out by competitors was making it very difficult for Shaun to commit to the apex of the corner but he was still taking every cut that he possibly could without damaging the car.

At the end of eleven difficult stages and after one of the tightest rally's of this years championship Shaun battled against forty three other Peugeot 206's and finished the event 12th in the Peugeot Cup.

"I really enjoyed that rally," commented Gallagher "We really got to experience so many things on the one event, we had night stages, really hot weather and fantastic roads to compete on. I couldn't ask for a better place to learn"
22/06/04
Class Winning Super 1600 Debut For Gallagher

Photo: Seamus Counihan


Shaun Gallagher made his debut in a Super 1600 Citroen Saxo at the Donegal International Rally this weekend and came away with a fantastic 13th overall, 1st in class A6 and top two-wheel drive car.

The rally was run in changeable weather conditions, making tyre choice virtually impossible. Having had no time to test the car, Shaun spent Friday testing different settings in an attempt to get the suspension correct for the Donegal roads. Despite this, Shaun lead class A6 right from the start.

He lost some time through the opening stages of Saturday when a bonnet pin broke causing the Saxo's bonnet to flap about. By the end of day two Shaun, who was co-driven on the event by chief engineer Charlie McGinty, was setting times inside the top twenty and was lying 17th overall with almost a four minute lead in his class.

Sunday began well and the Mullen Express Transport crew and they continued to move up the leader board, lying 12th overall after stage 18. However a serious clutch problem developed on the penultimate stage of the rally and at the final service Shaun was worried that the car would not make it to the finish. With cautious drive through the last stage of the event the young Letterkenny man managed to nurse the car to the finish over 6 minutes ahead of his nearest class A6 competitor.

"I'm delighted with the result" commented Shaun "It took a lot of learning to adjust to the car but it was a very successful weekend"
14/06/04
Rallye Terre du Diois - Round 4 - French Peugeot 206
Forty-three crews descended on the South East French town of Valence for round 4 of the French Peugeot 206 Cup this weekend. The Rallye Terre du Diois was a two-day, twelve stage rally run in the hills around Valence and Die.

Having competed in this event last year, Irish rally star Shaun Gallagher was confident of a good result and started the event with top five fastest times on the opening two stages. On stage three Shaun dropped lost time when a car that had gone off in front of him blocked the stage. Despite this was lying in 7th position at first service.

However the Donegal driver never got an opportunity to move from this position when on stage five a large rock in the middle of the road damaged the Peugeots fuel pump and the car stopped on the stage.

The team now has just one week to prepare for the next event, the Donegal International Rally on the 18th, 19th and 20th June. This event presents a new challenge for Shaun, as he will compete for the first time in a Super 1600 Citroen Saxo. It is vital that Shaun gets a chance to learn the Super 1600 car and this event provides the perfect occasion.

Shaun faces some stiff competition in Donegal, as he will compete against one of Britain's top Super 1600 drivers, Gareth Jones with top experienced co driver David Senior and local Donegal driver Seamus Gallagher who will compete in the same car.

Although this is Shaun's home event he has competed in it just once before. He will also be hampered by lack of testing and time in the car. Shaun will only collect the car in France on Monday and must make the long journey home to Letterkenny and fit in a recce for the rally all before Friday.

'I am really excited about Donegal,' commented Shaun. 'The car is the same spec as the car used by Sebastian Loeb when he won the JWRC in 2001 so it will take a little adapting to. I just want to get in and drive now!'
01/06/04
Testing Weekend For Gallagher In France
British Peugeot 206 Cup Champion, Shaun Gallagher, competed in round three of the French Peugeot 206 Cup this weekend. The Rallye Vins Macon was the first tarmac event of the year and presented a new challenge for the fifty Peugeot crews.

The event was a twelve-stage rally, based in the hills around Macon in South East France and run in hot sunny conditions with just one thundershower on Sunday afternoon.

For this event Shaun decided to implement a new driving technique to adapt to the French tarmac stages, which are unlike anything he has competed on in Ireland or the UK. This was a difficult task and on many stages paid off however it also lead to minor spins and overshoots on other stages. A puncture on day one also held the Mullen Express Transport crew back.

After twelve stages and almost two hours of competition with some of Frances best tarmac experts, Shaun and co-driver Richard Pashley finished the event fourteenth after what was a difficult and very competitive weekend.

"I am happy with the result," commented Shaun "The competition in France is so tight that the slightest mistake can cause you to loose four or five positions and it is virtually impossible to get the time back. But I learnt a lot and that's what's important"
17/05/04 Gallagher Suffers First Retirement of 2004
Donegal rally driver, Shaun Gallagher, suffered bitter disappointment when he retired from the second round of the French Peugeot 206 Cup while battling for third position.

54 Peugeot 206 crews started the Rallye Terre de l'Auxerrois, which consisted of twelve gravel stages run near the town of Auxerre. The gravel stages are unlike the traditional stages in Ireland or Great Britain as they are run through the Chablis Vineyards of Central France.

The stages were also different to the extremely rough conditions of the opening round and instead were smooth and fast with long straights separated by square rights and lefts.

The first day of the event was very tightly fought with just 25 seconds covering the top five cars at the end of six long stages. On the opening stages of day two Shaun moved into third position but disaster struck on SS10 when a broken driveshaft within sight of the finish line caused instant retirement.

"Of course I am disappointed," commented Shaun ?But this championships counts only your best five scores from eight rounds so things could be a lot worse.

Shaun's next event is the tarmac Rallye Vins Macon on 29th and 30th of May.
12/04/04
Gallagher Wins Opening French Peugeot Round
Irish rally star, Shaun Gallagher, 23, has won the opening round of the 2004 French Peugeot 206 Super Cup. Gallagher, who finished 3rd in the championship last year, battled through some of the roughest stages he has ever driven on to come away with his maiden victory in the French Cup.

Having worked with Skip Brown Cars in the British Peugeot 206 Cup for the past two years Shaun decided to have the car prepared by them for 2004 and as always it arrived at the event perfectly set up and reliability was second to none.

The Rally Terre d'Auvergne was a two-day, ten-stage gravel event, run in the mountains around Issoire and Clermont Ferrand. Despite spending the winter rallying on snow, Shaun was instantly on the pace and was settings top three fastest times from the beginning of the event.

In tricky, rough conditions, with patches of snow on the stages Shaun swapped times with Thierry Brun, Oliver Moni and Arnaud Augoyard and finished the opening day in fourth position, with just thirty seconds separating the top five drivers.

The second day of the event was drier and the pace increased even more. With that Shaun pulled back over twenty seconds in just two stages and was now just one position off the lead.

Fastest stage times on three of the days five stages saw Shaun and co-driver Richard Pashley grab the lead and extend their winning margin to forty seconds.

'I am absolutely over the moon, this is my first win in France and to win the first round of the year is even better. The team and car were top class and we had no mechanical problems over the entire weekend', commented Shaun.

Shaun's next event is the Rallye Terre d'Auxerrois on the 1st and 2nd May.
09/04/04 FIA B Seed Boosts Gallaghers Pre Event Preparations

Irish rally star, Shaun Gallagher, 23, will begin his assault on the 2004 French Peugeot 206 Cup when he competes in round 1, the Rallye Terre d'Auvergne on the 10th and11th April.

The event is a two-day gravel event run in South East France, consisting of ten long stages. The British Peugeot Champion who recently returned from Norway where he spent the winter working in the famous John Haugland Winter Rally School will again be co-driven by Richard Pashley and the crew will have to draw on their combined wealth of experience, as Shaun will be adjusting back to gravel following a winter of snow and ice rallying.

The Donegal driver's pre-event preparations received a massive boost this week when he received confirmation that he had been awarded a highly sought after Priority B seed from the FIA in recognition of his outstandingly successful 2003 season.

'I am really excited about the first round in France' commented Shaun. 'It'll be good to get back onto gravel and hopefully we can start the season off with a win.'

Live results and latest news will be available throughout the weekend on www.shaungallagher.com

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