Posted: April 6, 2005 9:00 PM - 18856 Hits
Round 2 - 2005 National Forestry Championship
Round 2 - 2005 South East Stages Championship
Round 6 - 2004-2005 Irish 205 Challenge
Posted: April 6, 2005 9:00 PM
Tipp Top Easter for McHale/ Nagle
Gareth McHale/ Paul Nagle (Corolla WRC) took a slender 9 second victory on Round
2 of the "McCauley Trailers" National Forest Rally Championship based in
Mitchelstown Easter Sunday 27h March. The young Dublin man withdrew his entry
from the Circuit of Ireland to concentrate on the Forest Championship and now
holds a 6-point lead in the series. The event was a great success with 97
starters including a host of 205 Challenge contenders on their final round of
the inaugural Irish 205 Challenge. Hankook Tyres came on board as event sponsor
to launch their new competition tyres.
McHale led from the opening 10-mile Kilworth stage, where he held an 8 sec
advantage over Adrian McElvaney/ Paul Goodman (Impreza 555). John McCarthy
(Corolla WRC) and Dermot Kelly (Escort WRC) tied for third 1 sec in arrears
while Pat Norris (Impreza 555) and Glen Allen (Escort WRC) tied in fifth 11 secs
down. Stephen Moore/ Tony McHugh led the Gp N category, 7th fastest in Kilworth
having rebuilt his N10 Subaru overnight after melting a piston on the Easter
Stages. Brian Lawlor/ Peter Kavanagh were flying, 8th fastest and best 2WD.
James Murphy/ Anthony Nestor (Escort Cosworth) in 9th had ECU troubles and Derry
man Johnny McKenna (Evo 6) completed the top ten.
The event moved to the Goaten Bridge complex near Clogheen for ss2. This was a
very fast flowing stage with plenty of flat out downhill smooth sections. Glen
Allen/ Damien Connolly (Escort WRC) set FTD, the Tyrone man won the Easter
stages with his new Corolla WRC and was anxious for a result on his final fling
in the Escort. Adrian McElvaney was only 2 secs adrift - the Monaghan man now
just 6 secs off the lead. Third fastest Gareth McHale tied with Pat Norris, 2
secs down on McElvaney. Third placed John McCarthy was slowed a little by an
oil leak that had smeared his screen. Going into ss3, "Cambaun Wood" there was
only 14 secs separating the top five so it was all to play for.
John McCarthy with his Hankook shod Corolla got it together and stamped his
authority over this classic stage, set FTD and a new record as he stopped the
clocks on 6:49 - 5 secs up on young gun McHale. There was plenty of drama as
Dermot Kelly first on the road slid wide on a fast downhill approach into a
square left and cut a tyre. Adrian McElvaney was sidelined again as his Impreza
blew a head gasket - a real disappointment as this man has the pace and only
needs a bit of luck to clinch victory. Kevin O'Kane/ Martin Hanna retired their
Impreza WRC due to an engine misfire. James Murphy put his Escort off the road
ending his day. Glen Allen lost time due to a fault with the response system.
At the lunchtime service halt in Mitchelstown Gareth McHale continued to lead
albeit 6 secs ahead of McCarthy's Corolla. Pat Norris/ Declan Tumilty held
third 20 secs back. Dermot Kelly was a further second down while Glen Allen
completed the top five after the first loop. The Gp N contenders were having it
out hot and heavy as only 9 secs separated the top four. McKenna led, Moore
trailed by a second, Pete Willoughby (Evo 8) was 2 secs back and Cavan's Patrick
Elliott also in an Evo 8 rounded off the top four - six secs off Willoughby.
The 2WD brigade fought tooth and nail as Brian Lawlor (Escort 16v) held a top
ten spot and led Frank Kelly (Escort 16v), who was at a loss as to his time on
the opening stage but had swopped times with Lawlor on the other two.
The event returned to Kilworth Forest where Gareth McHale settled the score -
the Dubliner seems to up the pace at his pearl. McHale opted for the wider
Kumho tyre at service and was well impressed with the high-speed stability - the
result: McHale set a blistering time 13 secs clear of Pat Norris and a
staggering 19 secs up on McCarthy's similar Corolla. McHale was on a roll and
set FTD through ss5, the repeat of Goaten Bridge. McCarthy stopped the clocks
only 1 sec down as did Glen Allen who seemed to revel in these flat out fast
forests.
The final stage was a repeat of "Cambaun Wood" McHale seemed safe with a 26 sec
advantage and set his mind to bring it home, but a costly stall on the start
line left it all to play for through this final seven-mile test. John McCarthy
ruled the roost and seems to be untouchable on "Cambaun" as he set a new all
time record 6:47 - 2 secs quicker than his previous run and 17 up on McHale.
Dermot Kelly suffered another puncture on his favourite stage, not so kind to
him this year. Pat Norris was second fastest despite a misfire and Glen Allen
lost almost half a minute with an off road excursion.
Gareth McHale/ Paul Nagle turned in a fine drive; his second win on only his
second drive on gravel with his Kumho shod Corolla. The young Dubliner has no
regrets having pulled out of the Circuit of Ireland as he now holds a six point
led in the "McCauley Trailers National Forest Championship". John McCarthy/ MJ
Morrissey came on very strong in the afternoon; the Cork man has shown a return
to form and victory in the Toyota beckons. Pat Norris/ Declan Tumilty took
third with their Impreza 555. Glen Allen/ Damien Connolly finished fourth on
their final Escort outing - Glen will use his newly acquired Corolla WRC in
Wicklow. Dermot Kelly/ Greg Shinnors (Escort WRC) finished fifth, their
progress hampered by punctures.
Group N was all to play for; only 10 secs separated McKenna, Moore and
Willoughby before Cambaun, where Willoughby set fourth fastest time - McKenna
trailed by a second with Moore a further second back. Tyrone man Stephen Moore
clinched (class 8) Gp N and 6th overall, Pete Willoughby/ Greg McCarthy were
second in class and 7th overall - 8 secs off rival Moore. Patrick Elliott/ Mark
Bowens (Evo 8) took third in class and 8th overall. Johnny McKenna/ Paul Howe
dropped to 9th overall after incurring road penalties. Brian Lawlor/ Peter
Kavanagh (Escort 16v) had to cope with an ailing gearbox all afternoon. The
Wicklow pairing finished 10th overall, best 2WD and took class five honours by
only 5 secs from Frank Kelly/ John Shevlin (Escort 16v) who were just outside
the top ten.
Ventry brothers Alan/ Tony Dineen took another class 1 win with their Nova.
Class 2 went to Mick Nevin/ John Kinahan (Escort). Donegal's Adrian S
McElhinney/ Martin McMenamin pushed hard taking the spoils in the 205 Challenge.
Matt Shinnors/ Janice Mackeral (Escort 1600 16v) powered their way to 20th
overall and class 3 honours. Jason/ Patrick Roche (Escort 2.0) finished 21st
and clinched class 4. Andrew Kearney/ Owen O'Neill were the only survivors in
class 7, taking max points with their 206. Conor Kelly/ John Quill (Nova) took
the junior class by storm with a 34 sec victory on his second ever event.
The numbers continue to grow with more competitors including juniors having
signed up for the Championship. Jim O'Brien and his team ran a successful
event, perfect weather and newly surfaced stages made for a supper rally and it
was great to see the majority of competitors make the finishers list.
Results 1 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) 53m 09s 2 John McCarthy/Mick Morrissey (Toyota Corolla WRC) 53m 18s 3 Pat Norris/Declan Tumilty (Subaru Impreza 555) 54m 05s 4 Glenn Allen/Damien Connolly (Ford Escort WRC) 54m 23s 5 Dermot Kelly/Greg Shinnors (Ford Escort WRC) 54m 57s 6 Stephen Moore/Tony McHugh (Subaru Impreza N10) Gp N 55m 48s 7 Pete Willoughby/Greg McCarthy (Mit. Lancer Evo 8) Gp N 55m 57s 8 Patrick Elliott/Mark Bowens (Mit. Lancer Evo 7) Gp N 56m 34s 9 Johnny McKenna/Paul Howe (Mit. Lancer Evo 7) Gp N 56m 52s 10 Brian Lawlor/Peter Kavanagh (Escort 2.0) 57m 13s Class winners: Alan Dineen/Tony Dineen (Nova) Mick Nevin/John Kinahan (Escort) Matt Shinnors/Janice Mackarel (Escort) Jason Roche/Patrick Roche (Escort) Brian Lawlor/Peter Kavanagh Andrew Kearney/Owen O’Neill (Peugeot 206) Stephen Moore/Tony McHugh. Juniors: Conor Kelly/John Quill (Nova). Leaders after: SS1-6 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) Fastest Times SS1 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS2 Glenn Allen/Damien Connolly (Ford Escort WRC) SS3 John McCarthy/Mick Morrissey (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS4 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS5 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS6 John McCarthy/Mick Morrissey (Toyota Corolla WRC)Full Results and Times on:
No Driver/Co-Driver (Car Make) CC 1 Dermot Kelly/Greg Shinnors (Ford Escort WRC) 1998 2 Glenn Allen/Damien Connolly (Ford Escort WRC) 1994 3 Gareth McHale/Paul Nagle (Toyota Corolla WRC) 2000 4 Kevin O’Kane/Martin Hanna (Subaru Impreza WRC) 1997 5 Pat Norris/Declan Tumilty (Subaru Impreza 555) 2000 6 John McCarthy/Mikey Morrissey (Toyota Corrolla WRC) 2000 7 Adrian McElvaney/Paul Goodman (Subaru Impreza 555) 1998 8 James Murphy/TBA (Escort RS Cosworth) 2000 9 Patrick Elliot/Mark Owens (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 8) 1996 10 Pat Willoughly/Greg McCarthy (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 8) 11 Johnny McKenna/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6) 1998 12 Stephen Moore/Tony McHugh (Subaru Impreza N10) 2000 13 Brian Lawlor/Peter Kavanagh (Ford Escort MK 2) 14 John Drislane/Barry Goodman (Subaru Impreza WRC) 15 Trevor J Harding/Charlie Boland (Subaru Impreza) 16 Paul Mulcahy/Karl Baumann (Toyota Starlet 1600 16V) 1600 17 Andrew Mackarel/Richard Cassidy (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 4) 18 James Coleman/Eoin O’Neill (Ford Escort) 2300 19 Noel Driver/Joe Shinnors (Snr) (Ford Escort MK II) 2000 20 Patrick Keenan/Finian Hannigan (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 7) 2000 21 Don Keating/TBA (Subaru Impreza) 22 Peter McCullagh/Alan Dolan (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6) 1997 23 Liam McGrath/Denis Jackson (Ford Escort) 24 Aidan Jackson/TBA (TBA) 25 Ray Benskin/Peadar Walsh (Ford Escort MK 2) 2000 26 Ml O’Connor Snr/Denis Collins (Mitsubishi Lancer) 2000 27 Graham McElintock/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO) 2000 28 Jason Roche/Patrick Roche (Ford Escort MK 2) 2050 29 Brendan Murphy/TBA (TBA) 30 Bob Scanlon/Graham Lewis (Mitsubishi EVO 6) 2000 31 Brian McGillin/David Dochertey (Subaru Impreza 6) 1994 32 Pat O’Connell/Aidan Bourke (Peugeot 206) 1600 33 Sean W Benskin/TBA (Ford Escort) 2000 34 Pat Price/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 8) 1960 35 Michael Murray/Tommy Doyle (Subaru WRX) 1998 36 Connie Smith/Breen McNamie (Ford Sierra RS Cosworth) 37 Frank Kelly/TBA (Ford Escort MK II) 1968 38 Thomas Sheehan/Deirdre Sheehan (Nissan) 1298 39 Michael Nevin/John Kinahan (Escort MK 2) 1600 40 Matt Shinnors/Janice Mackarel (Ford Escort) 1587 41 A Kearney/Owen O’Neill (Peugeot 206) 42 John Reid/TBA (Ford Escort) 43 Kevin Dalton/Alan McCormick (Vauxhall Nova) 1300 44 PJ O’Connor/Liam O’Connor (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6) 2000 45 Michael Tynan/Colin Brady (Vauxhall Astra) 1998 46 Alan Cummins/Declan Norris (Ford Escort MK 2) 1600 47 Jimmy Devane/Diarmuid Lynch (Nissan Sunny) 2000 48 Michael McGillin/Alan Kenna (Ford Escort G3) 1998 49 James Fagan/Ray Greene (Ford Escort) 1598 50 Seamus Anderson/Alan Kinsella (Ford Escort MK 2) 2000 51 Michael Cuddihy/Alan Mulcahy (Sunbeam) 1600 52 Joe McDonald/Barry Hamilton (Ford Escort) 1640 53 John Meade/Kevin Kearney (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1598 54 Patrick Shanahan Jnr/J. Irwin (Toyota Starlet) 1400 55 Joe Conway/Ciaran McCullagh (Ford Escort MK 11) 1600 56 David Warren/TBA (Ford Escort G3) 1600 57 Mike O’Connor/Mandy Dowling (Opel Manta) 2000 58 John Bagge/Damien Walsh (Toyota Starlet) 1600 59 Ollie Williams/TBA (Ford Escort) 2300 60 Denis Heaney/Martin Brady (Toyota Corolla WRC) 2000 61 Kevin Corcoran/Michael Haley (Opel Corsa) 1398 62 Mark Andre/Alex Richards (Ford Escort MK 2) 1600 63 Mark Kinirons/Paul Gallagher (Skoda Felicia) 1600 64 James O’Flynn (Honda Civic) 65 Andrew Fanning (Ford Ka) 66 Tom Dunne/Declan Grogan (Peugeot 106) 1600 67 Clement Lonergan/Martin Luddy (Honda Civic) 1600 68 David Dunne/Kieran O’Connor (Ford Escort) 69 Mervin Galbraith/Chris O’Connor (Vauxhall Nova) 1400 70 Damien Quinn/Peter Conlon (Subaru Legacy) 2000 71 Conor Kelly/John Quill (Opel Corsa) 1300 72 Ger Gowen/James Mullins (Peugeot 205) 1598 73 Seamus O’Grady/Oonagh Roche (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1598 74 Nicholas Doherty/Philip Doherty (Peugeot 205) 1580 75 Adrian McBride/Brian Smullen (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1600 76 Emma Britton/Paula Mooney (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1580 77 Michael Murphy/Pat Cashman (Peugeot 205) 1580 78 Stephen McGee/Joseph Timoney (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1598 79 Brian Hennessy/Laura Brennan (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1600 80 Kieran Hayes/Derek Flynn (Peugeot 205 GTI) 1600 81 Graeme Colfer/Jack Newman (Peugeot 205) 1580 82 Adrian S McElhinney/Charlie McGinty (Peugeot 205) 1600 83 Sean Sheehy/Eamonn Sheehy (Toyota Starlet) 1600 84 Moss Fitzgerald/Vincent McCarthy (Toyota Corolla) 1600 85 Liam Graham/TBA (Honda Civic) 1600 86 Tim Foley/TBA (Honda Civic) 1600 87 Gordan Coleman (Nissan Almera) 88 Ivan Bryan/Alistair Wyllie (Toyota Corolla) 1600 89 Pat Curran/Kevin Barry (Ford Escort) 1650 90 Ashley McAdoo/Adam Murray (Opel Corsa) 1400 91 Donal Keane Jnr/Ger McCarthy (Toyota starlet) 1483 92 Martin Kirwan/Olive Costello (Opel Corsa) 1300 93 Denis Nagle/Irene O’Donovan (Hillman Avenber) 1600 94 Colman Kirby/Jermima Ottman (Nissan Sunny) 1410 95 Michael Piggott/Declan Piggott (Honda Civic) 1342 96 Sidney Bourke/Robert Hughes (Peugeot 106 ) 1600 97 Brian Connolly/TBA (Peugeot 106) 1294 98 Hans Matthia/Sinead O’Keeffe (Swift ) 1300 99 Richie Nugent/Bobby Nugent (Honda CRX) 1400 100 JJ Wall/William Fitzpatrick (Peugeot 106) 1400 101 Gavin Walsh/Henry Jenning (Talbot Sunbeam) 1600 102 James Cunnigham/Joe Fitzgibbon (Toyota Corolla) 1600 103 Alan Dineen/Tony Dineen (Vauxhall Nova) 1300 104 JJ Coughlan/Jim Ahern (Peugeot 205) 1600 105 Johnny Kenneally/Ken Carmody (Ford Escort MK 11) 1300 106 David Power/Kevin Power (Peugeot 205) 1400 107 Owen Murphy/Anthony Jordan (Rover ) 1397 108 Darren Donnelly/Barry McGillin (Toyota Corolla GT Coupe) 1598 109 Raymond Benskin Jnr/Ollie Kierce (Ford Escort MK 4) 1600 110 John Houlihan/Ann Houlihan (Ford Fiesta) 1600 111 John Foley/Michael Barry (Nissan) 1998