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Circuit of Munster (Limerick) - 5 Jun 05

Posted: August 4, 2005 6:57 PM - 18669 Hits

Round 4 - 2005 Dunlop National Rally Championship
Round 3 - 2005 West Coast Rally Championship
Round 3 - 2005 Focus Owners Championship
Round 1 - 2005 Ford Ka Championship

  • Amended final provisional results
  • Ferodo Bonus Scheme Report
  • KaMotions Ka Rally Championship: O’Mahony Slides To Success.
  • Full Results available
  • HARRISON WINS CIRCUIT OF MUNSTER RALLY
    (Report courtesy of Irish Dunlop – sponsors of the Irish National Rally Championship)
  • Photos

Posted: August 4, 2005 6:57 PM

Amended final provisional results
from www.limerickmc.ie
Following the rejection by the Motorsport Ireland review committee of the two appeals by competitors these are the amended final provisional results for the Circuit of Munster 05 excluding car no 111. In the event of no protests or appeals being received these results will be deemed to be final 10 days following their publication today Tuesday 2nd August 2005.

Jim Harrision/Bell win a wet Limerick MC Circuit of Munster Rally
Photo: Joe Lane
Ferodo Bonus Scheme Report
Round 4 of the Ferodo Bonus Scheme took us back to the south of Ireland, for the Circuit of Munster stages rally. 24 Ferodo starters crossed the ramp, with classes 2,4, and 8 best supported. Right at the front of the rally, the ‘big boys’ were out in force, with Kevin Lynch, Jim Harrison, Charlie Donnelly and Ray Breen all hoping to add an overall result to their Bonus Scheme points haul. With 51 now registered for the Bonus Scheme, it looks like 2005 will be a record year, as more and more drivers sign up to chase part of the 10000 euro prize fund.

Willie Fannin still leads the Bonus Scheme, but his lead has been cut by 2 points, to just 5. Unusually, Willie only finished 4th in Gp.N, alowing both Gabriel Martin and Alan Ring to take points from him. The class 4 fight was so close that Willie was less than 1 tenth of a second behind Gabriel at the days end! Alan is a newcomer to the scheme this year, and is now 2nd overall in the scheme.

Jim Harrison and Kevin Lynch made it a 1-2 for Ferodo Bonus Scheme drivers in the rally, with Jim winning the event by 19 seconds. There were 4 Ferodo drivers in the top 5, with Ray Breen and Charlie Donnelly finishing 4th and 5th. Jim is now 4th overall, just 10 points off the lead, and looking like he could mount a serious challenge to repeat his bonus scheme win of 2003.

Both Enda Hallinan and Dominic Naughton took maximum points to take themselves into the top ten. Enda took his 2nd class win of the year in class 2, with Dominic first Ferodo driver home in the well supported class 6. Usual class 6 frontunners Ollie McPhillips and Ed Power were non-starters.

As well as the end-of-year points prizes, there is a draw for registered Ferodo competitors starting each rally. Winner of the 100euro in the Ferodo Bonus Draw for the Circuit of Munster is Civic driver Owain Drought. Congratulations!

Next round of the championship is Ravens Rock on the 26th June, where Kevin Lynch took a great win last year. Can he do the same again in 2005….?
KaMotions Ka Rally Championship: O’Mahony Slides To Success.
Brian O'Mahony from Carragaline, Co. Cork secured victory on the opening round of the 2005 KaMotions KA Rally Championship, at the Circuit of Munster Rally.

The expected June Bank Holiday sunshine, gave way to constant rain around the heritage town of Adare, turning the 8 special stages into an extreme test of both car and crew.

Brian, using the 2005 KaMotions Ka championship to hone his driving techniques set the fastest times on the opening loop of stages, closely followed by the impressive new-comer to the championship, Mark Buckley. Stage 4 saw both leading contenders strike the same pier on a very slippery junction but both were able to continue without much loss of time or bodywork!

Brian, clearly enjoying himself commented at the midday service "the Ka's are great craic, really fun to drive".

Mark Buckely, who challenged closely in the early stages, showed experience beyond his years to adopt a more cautious driving style after his close encounter with the stage 4 pier. Mark guided his Ka through the difficult final loop of stages to claim a magnificent 2nd place.

The Limerick ladies crew of June Fitzgibbon and Kelly Reidy had an adventurous rally, including a few memorable moments for the ladies, but they managed to keep control in adverse conditions claiming a creditable 3rd place.

The next round of the 2005 Kamotions Ka rally championship will see competitors tackle the Ravens Rock Rally in the "Sunny" South East.

Results: Circuit of Munster Rally, Adare Co. Limerick
1 Brian O'Mahony / John Higgins
2 Mark Buckley / Eric Kelly
3 June Fitzgibbon / Kelly Reidy
4 Colm Forde / John Trill

HARRISON WINS CIRCUIT OF MUNSTER RALLY
(Report courtesy of Irish Dunlop – sponsors of the Irish National Rally Championship)
British crew, Jim Harrison/Harvey Bell (Subaru WRC) took their second victory in a round of the Dunlop National Rally Championship, this time on the Woodland's House Hotel Circuit of Munster Rally, the fourth round of the series. They finished 19.03 seconds ahead of the Subaru crew of Kevin Lynch/Francis Regan. Provisionally, Lynch joins Ray Breen as joint leader of the series after four rounds.

Patrick Elliott/David Moynihan (Subaru WRC) were third. Meanwhile, the addition of two 30-second penalties, both for an alleged jump-start, demoted Charlie Donnelly/Paddy Toner (Toyota Corolla WRC) to fifth place. However, they are expected to query this decision later this evening and should they overturn the verdict, they would finish second overall.

The Group N category was won by the Cork crew of Kevin and Martin Kelleher (Mitsubishi), who finished 9.17 seconds ahead of Alan Ring/Derek Brannigan (Subaru).
The top crew in the two-wheel drive category was Ed O'Callaghan/Mike O'Connor (Opel Manta).

In difficult conditions Harrison and Donnelly were the only drivers to beat the ten-minute barrier for the first stage, Curragh Chase. But a 30 second penalty for an alleged jump start denied Donnelly his hard earned second place as Harrison made his customary quick start. Harrison admitted his liking for the opening stage and when he also punched in the quickest time on S.S. 2, Frost Hill, he led at the first service in Pallaskenry by some 26 seconds with Lynch in second spot and Elliott a further six seconds in arrears. Lynch clipped a rock and although the wheel deflated slightly, the steering damage caused by the incident was far more disconcerting for the Derry driver. Third placed Elliot like all the drivers remarked on the slippy nature of the wet stages.
Donnelly opined that he had made a cautious start, albeit unknowingly that he had been penalised 30 second for the alleged jump start, a situation that was also replicated in the case of Mel Evans and Sean Gallagher.

Ray Breen made a cautious start, he held fourth place followed by Denis Cronin, who had difficulty with the wipers of his Subaru WRC. Noel Redmond (Subaru) occupied sixth from then unfortunate Donnelly with Kevin Barrett, JJ Fleming and Niall Maguire completing the top ten.
Ollie O'Donovan's rally ended when he slid his P2000 Subaru off on the opening stage where fellow Limerick driver, Colm Murphy rolled his Subaru and the stage-interrupted rule was applied to the competitors that followed.

A repeat of the two stages saw Harrison and Lynch swap fastest times with Harrison a little too cautious on the third stage, nevertheless, at the mid way point, he led his rival by 23.5 seconds - Lynch lost time when he stalled on the start line of S.S. 4. Breen and Elliott were both trouble free in their respective third and fourth places with Donnelly moving up to fifth - a fraction of a second adrift of Elliott despite having overshot one junction.

Sixth placed Denis Cronin was concerned about the differentials of his Subaru, however, he maintained sixth in a top ten that was rounded off by Fleming, who spun on S.S. 4, Redmond, Maguire and Gallagher.

In Group N, Alan Ring (Subaru) held a slender lead - 1.41 seconds over Kevin Kelleher (Mitsubishi) with Michael Curran (Mitsubishi) third. Championship leader, Willie Fannin arrived at the service halt with a battle scared Subaru that showed front left and back right hand side damage.
Tadhg Linehan (Subaru) dropped out of contention when he was off on two occasions while a puncture ended the ambitions of Peter Clifford (Mitsubishi).

Lynch cut the deficit to 10.5 seconds on the fifth stage, Beigh Castle, but the loss of brakes on the next stage and a brief excursion gave Harrison a buffer of 19.03 seconds entering the final stages.
Donnelly continued to climb up the order and courtesy of the fastest time on the sixth stage, he slotted his Corolla into third place - 23.73 seconds behind Lynch and over 25 seconds ahead of Elliott. Breen and Cronin completed the top six with the latter experiencing difficulties with the bracket of the power steering mechanism.

Noel Redmond, in seventh, had an overshoot on S.S. 6 while Niall Maguire was trouble free in eighth spot. Mel Evans and Kevin Barrett rounded off the top ten with JJ Fleming in close attendance.

In Group N, Kevin Kelleher made a determined effort on the two stages and reeled in Alan Ring to lead his Kerry rival by some ten seconds. Michael Curran was third with Fannin and Gabriel Martin battling for fourth spot.
Unfortunately, the final two stages were cancelled as the organisers ran out of road closing time.
Harrison, like Lynch, now has two wins from four rounds.

1. J. Harrison/H. Bell (Subaru Impreza WRC) 47m. 24.72s.
2. K. Lynch/G. Noble (Subaru Impreza WRC) 47m. 43.78s.
3. P. Elliott/D. Moynihan (Subaru Impreza WRC) 48m. 33.60s.
4. R. Breen/A. Purcell (Ford Focus WRC) 48m. 34.64s.
5. C. Donnelly/P. Toner (Toyota Corolla WRC) 48m. 37.75s.
6. D. Cronin/H. O'Sullivan (Subaru Impreza WRC) 49m. 05.72s.
7. N. Redmond/D. Falvey (Subaru Impreza WRC) 49m. 05.82s
8. N Maguire/P. McLaughlin (Subaru Impreza WRC) 49m. 26.80s
9. JJ Fleming/R. ward (Ford Focus WRC) 49m. 35.33s.
10. K. Barrett/B. Goodman (Subaru Impreza WRC) 49m. 43.36s.

Dunlop Championship Positions (Provisional after Round 4):
=1. R. Breen & K. Lynch 58 Points;
3. J. Harrison 56 points;
=4. C. Donnelly & P. Elliott 47 points;
6. N. Maguire 38 points
7. N. Redmond 37 points.

Group N Winners - Kevin & Martin Kelleher
PRE-EVENT NEWS
  • MRallying homeward bound
  • Marshals Meeting Points
  • Programme Sales Locations
  • Entry List available
  • Ka Championship is go
  • Preview
  • Event Details
  • Regulations Available
03/06/05MRallying homeward bound
With summer finally upon us, the June bank holiday weekend will see Limerick's MRallying team defend their Circuit of Munster GpN crown against some of the hottest production class competition in the country.

With the Advance Survey car's co-driver Ger Loughrey taking last years award for highest placed club member, the local event will see both Colm and Ger most eager to extend their good run this year. Two victories in the GpN class of the International Tarmac Championship so far sees the Pirelli backed crew sit atop the championship standings.

The Thermia Heat Link sponsored car's last outing was a memorable victory on the Killarney Rally of the Lakes – this weekend will see the Subaru return to battle against an equally high calibre entry list.

According to Colm, "There’ll be more than 10 GpN cars there on Sunday capable of taking victory – we'll be leading them away and hopefully we'll return that way too! Seriously though, I've gotten loads of backing from local businesses this year, Transplant Trailers, Trackcare Engineering, The Gables Bar, Vanity Case Beauticians – it'd be nice to give something back to them on our home patch".

An ideal shakedown for the crew's title sponsor's Shell Donegal rally, the Circuit will provide a new challenge this year – moving its location closer to the Adare base with centralised servicing in Copsewood College, Pallaskenry. All stages will take place within a 15-mile radius of Adare with the first cars leaving the Woodlands Hotel at 8.40am on Sunday morning.

The crew would like to thank all their sponsors for their help and backing throughout the season so far - Pirelli tyres, Shell Racing Fuel, Thermia Heat Link, Transplant Trailers Sales, Trackcare Engineering, Eddie Garry car sales, Advance Surveys, the Gables Bar, Vanity Case beauticians and the Connemara Gateway hotel.

Marshals Meeting Points
Stage 1/3 - Campus filling station Adare at 6:30am
Stage 2/4 - Kildimo Food Court Kildimo at 7:00am
Stage 5/7 - Kildimo Food Court Kildimo at 10:00am
Stage 6/8 - Campus filling station Adare at 11:00am


Programme Sales Locations

Rally Office in Woodlands Hotel
Top filling station - Knockanne - Adare
Campus Filling Station - Adare
Londis - Adare
Coach Inn - Kilcornan
Kildimo Food Court - Kildimo
Keilys - Pallaskenry
Texaco filling station - Dock Rd Limerick
Corner House - Shanagolden
Roches filling station - Shanagolden
Reidys filling station - Foynes
Smithfield filling station - Croagh
Five Crosses filling station - Rathkeale
Centra filling station - Newcastle West
Texaco West End filling station - Newcastle West
Olympic filling station - Newcastle West
Moloneys Texaco - Newcastle West
Sheehans filling station - Templeglantine

1 Niall Maguire/Paul McLoughlin (Subaru Impreza WRC)
2 Patrick Elliott/David Moynihan (Subaru Impreza WRC)
3 Jim Harrison/Harvey Bell (Subaru Impreza WRC)
4 Ray Breen/Andrew Purcell (Ford Focus WRC)
5 Kevin Lynch/Gordon Nobel (Subaru Impreza WRC)
6 Ollie O Donovan/Paul Nagle (Subaru Impreza WRC)
7 Charlie Donnelly/Paddy Toner (Toyota Corolla WRC)
8 Noel Redmond/Diarmuid Falvey (Subaru Impreza WRC)
9 Denis Cronin/Helen Sullivan (Subaru Impreza WRC)
10 Tim McNulty/Eugene O Donnell (Subaru Impreza WRC)
11 Daniel Doherty/Michael Doherty (Subaru Impreza WRC)
12 Maurice Gass/TBA (Skoda Fabia WRC)
14 Melvyn Evans/Sean Mullally (Subaru Impreza WRC)
15 John Joe Flemming/Robbie Ward (Ford Focus WRC)
16 Sean Gallagher/Enda Sherry (Subaru Impreza WRC)
17 Colm Murphy/Ger Loughrey (Subaru Impreza N10)
18 Peter Clifford/John Young (Mit. Lancer Evo 7)
19 Willie Fannin/Mick Courtney (Subaru Impreza N9)
20 James O Sullivan/Adrian Deasy (Mit. Lancer Evo 7)
21 Kevin Barrett/Barry Goodman (Subaru Impreza WRC)

Juniors
J1 Colin O Toole/Anne-Marie Kennedy (Opel Corsa)
J2 Barry Meade/Colin Fitzgerald (Ford Escort)
J3 Seamus O Grady/Oonagh Roche (Proton Satira)
J4 Tim Radford/Jonathan McGrath (Peugeot)
J5 Eamon O Brien Jnr/Eamon O Brien Snr (Toyota Corolla)
21/05/05
The 2005 KaMotions Ford Ka Championship blasts into action at the upcoming Circuit of Munster Rally on the June Bank holiday weekend. The new season sees an affordable opportunity for younger rally enthusiasts to take to the stages for compelling Ka Competition.

The Ka championship has been given a new breath of life with the former championship winner Kenneth Mulvaney heading up the management team.

The 2005 KaMotions Ford Ka Championship provides a level playing field for young talent to be tested while encouraging a competitive element in a sporting environment.

“We are looking forward to a sporting Ka season where our young rally talent can be showcased in a low cost, exciting championship.” said Championship Manager, Kenneth Mulvaney.
17/05/05
Once again we come to the Woodlands House Hotel Circuit of Munster Rally the flagship event of the Limerick Motor Club calendar. This year the route of the rally is very compact and is designed to be very competitor friendly. Documentation scrutiny and mechanical scrutiny will take place at the rally HQ with a secure parc ferme after. The stages are all located within a 15-mile radius of the historic village of Adare and with centralised service in Copsewood College in Pallaskenry.

The format this year will be two stages done twice and then the next two done twice allowing for the minimal amount disruption to the residents with road closing.

Some of the top entries recieved and in no particular order are:
Niall Maguire and Paul McLoughlin winners of the 2004 event and the National Champions, Peter Clifford and John Young Top Part 2004 champions, Colm Murphy being navigated by clubman Ger Loughrey, Ollie O'Donovan and Paul Nagle, Other top entries recieved include Jim Harrison/Harvey Bell, Denis Cronin/Helen Sullivan, Patrick Elliot/David Moynihan, Kevin Lynch/Gordon Noble, Ray Breen/Andrew Purcell, Kevin Barrett/Barry Goodman, Willie Fannin/Mick Courtney, James O'Sullivan/Adrian Deasy, Melvyn Evans/Sean Mullally, Daniel Doherty/Michael Doherty, Tim McNulty/Eugene O'Donnell, Alan Ring/Derek Brannigan, Noel Redmond/Diarmuid Falvey, Johnny O'Sullivan/Pat Cashman, David McNulty/Martin McGarrity, Mike Curran/Fabian McShane.

More Details:
06/05/05
Closing date for entries is May 13th. Regs can be got by sending a SAE to Mary Fitzgerald, Boherard, Palakenery, Co. Limerick.
  • HQ: Woodlands House Hotel, Adare, Co. Limerick
  • Scruitiny / Parc Ferme @ the HQ
  • Start time 8:40am
  • Service Area: Agricultural College, Pallaskennery.
More Details:
27/04/05
Regulations and Entry Forms are available from the Event Secretary
Tel: 061-393 442 (+353 61 393 442) 7pm-9pm

Topics: Circuit of Munster (Limerick) 

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