Left: Leading the Clubman Classification at the end of Leg 1
The Bentley 4½ of Peter Brennan & Mick Briggs


The Sun Shines at the Glen

A fabulous sunny day at the stunning Marriott Druids Glen hotel & golf resort on the fringes of the Wicklow mountains south of Dublin saw the crews assemble before the start of the third Emerald Isle Classic. As with many events the drama for competitors started with the journey to the start - David and Wendy Brown had travelled from Scotland but got within sight of Druids Glen before being forced off the road by a quarry truck. This resulted in a broken front suspension that required welding repairs. Eventually a local garage was found but in carrying out the welding repairs they managed to set fire to the breaking system so what should have been a relaxing day has been quite the opposite!. Another person in need of attention from our sweep crew mechanics was the Austin Healey of Harvey and Jan DuCros, their exhaust required welding but sensibly it was removed from the car first! They also had their speedo cable replaced so at least Jan has a fighting chance on the Regularities.

Geoff Hilton and Allan Morris had not even left the UK before calling on the services of the RAC to repair their Austin Healey 3000 - a broken rotor arm, new tyre being just some of the problems encountered - they blame it on having to travel on Friday 13th!

But the good news is that all cars are able to start as scheduled,

Many crew members have made long trips to be on the event - David Pierce and Richard taylor have flown in from the USA and are competing in a Volvo Amazon. Dick Schulte from Canada is partnering Mark Brennikmeyer in an MGA - Dick had the pleasure of driving the MGA across from the UK whilst driver Mark flew in!.

From not quite so far away we have Paul and Joost de Jong in a Volvo P1800S, Roger Furrer has an immaculate works replica TR4 out on it's first event. There is also a good local contingent with Tom Callanan, Robert Ganly, Pat Neville and Declan O'Riordan all flying the Irish flag.

Smallest car award probably goes to the outrageous A35 of Alastair Caldwell - still resplendent in its Carrera Panamericana livery it may well surprise a few people with its performance, it's a very late entry so co-driver Catriona hasn't had long to get the route down onto the maps and a visit to Dublin last night has not helped matters......

Oldest car on the event is the Bentley of Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs - winners of last year's clubman section they are out to repeat this feat. In a similar car is Le Mans Classic entrant Clive Woolley but taking life a little easier opting for the tulip route book Touring section. Also in this non-competitive category is the MGA of Mike and Elaine Pickersgill, the MGB of Ron Crissell and Sylvia Barber plus the Alfa Romeo Giulia of Michael Marshall and Nigel Williams.

The first day of the event starts with a test in the Druids Glen grounds before a regularity section though the famous Sally Gap - for many years a Circuit of Ireland stage. Further test and regularities follow before a lunch stop at Bunclody, there won't be time for a full Sunday lunch as crews set off for more tests and regularity sections before ending the day at Kilkenny.


Leg 1 - Kilkenny Times

Clear blue skies were the order of the day and the luxury of Druids Glen was left behind, first test was a quick slalom in the hotel car park and several cars shared equal fastest time Harvey and Jan duCros - Healey 3000, David Cook and John Topham - Morgan Plus 4, Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister - Triumph TR4. The duCros's went on to score a further two fastest times on tests - three out of four is good going. As usual the first test saw a car problem and the Porsche 356 of Ted Gaffney and Declan O'Riordan had a broken brake pipe, our sweep crew mechanics were on hand so the Porsche was soon under way once more. Next up was a regularity over the Sally Gap, best result here was Sue Shoosmith and Susan Godfrey in an Austin A90. This is a stunning result as this is Susan's first event on maps as opposed to tulips.

Lunch was at the Millrace Hotel in Bunclody, several cars required attention here but probably the worst affected was the Mini Cooper of Kevin Haselden and Dave Kirkham. What was initially suspected as being a blown head gasket has now been diagnosed as a damaged head and they are working hard to try and get it fixed so they can rejoin us in Limerick.

After their lunch it was straight into another Regularity where the best performance was by the MGB of John Bateson and Tina Lowe. A Time Control at a traditional Irish pub provided a pleasant refreshment break before a couple of tests to finish the day off. The first of these tests introduced crews to the "code board" principal and one very experienced co-driver - Trina Walsh was the but of many jokes as she had missed the board, he driver Robert Harley doing well to manoeuvre the big Bentley T1 around the tighter tests. The code boards are new to this event but serve a useful purpose in slowing the cars down. Robert Ganly has just celebrated his fiftieth birthday but a recent attempt to reconnoitre the test at Mickey Gabbett's estate backfired as he then went on to do a wrong test - me thinks that perhaps a little bit of mis-information has been given out - serves him right!

A respectable finish time at Kilkenny gave crews time to visit the Spanish Property Exhibition before retiring to the bar and then proceeding onto the group meal, lunches, evening meals with wine and even maps are all included in the entry fee making this 51/2 day long event very good value for money. The sweep crews were not so lucky and instead of being in the bar were get busy well into the evening. What would we do without them.

New pairing of Tony Arnold and Rory Dooley did well with a clean sheet on the last regularity of the day. Tony's Porsche is not doing so well on the Tests at the moment but will surely improve as the week goes on.

The Touring Section enjoyed their day courtesy of a tulip route book produced by Alan and Ethné Elliott from the Ulster Rally. This non competitive tour suiting either newcomers or those who just want to enjoy the scenery without the pressure of keeping to a time schedule or finding their way by map.

At the end of the day David Gidden and Steve Freeman in a Ford Lotus Cortina have a 10 second lead over the Volvo Amazon of Robert Ganly and Fred Bent, whilst in the Clubmen section the lead is held by Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs in a Bentley 3/4.5 - last years winners. In second place is the ex Monte-Carlo rally Cresta of Ian and Margaret Coomber.

It's off to Limerick tomorrow and Route Master Keith Baud has an additional challenge for that day - yes you've guessed it - a Limerick competition.


Leg 2 - There was a rally driver called Frank.......

That's one of the opening lines for the Limerick competition that has been providing tonight's entertainment - Route designer Keith Baud set the challenge at last night's meal and by the looks of the results some crews have spent longer working on their Limericks than finding the correct route.

Amazingly the sun was still shining as crews drove into the South Court Hotel at Limerick this evening. There had been a brief shower during the day but not enough to dampen the enthusiasm of the competing crews.

The pre start car park kept the mechanics busy including repairs to the carburettors on the Austin Healey 3000 of Geoff Hilton and Allan Morris - Geoff is a native Irishman but even with local connections it took a while to discover the source of his problem was a petrol filled float. After missing much of the morning route they rejoined and were in good spirits on arrival at Limerick, full of praise for the standards of organisation and support received. The Jaguar E Type of John Cornwall and David Battersby was also receiving some attention - a pool of oil on the groundsheet requiring investigation but all seems to be well and they arrived at Limerick in good time. Fellow E Type competitors John Tooher and Ian Stewart were due to have entered a Morris Minor but this developed a problem a couple of days before the start so the E Type was dusted off and brought out to play - talk about needing to readjust your driving style - John says that the Minor throttle may as well be a switch - it's either off or fullyon - not quite the same can be said about the Jaguar.

David and Jacqueline Baird, newcomers to the event, are having a good time in their Citroen 11Bl - it's so good to see somebody brave enough to rally an unusual car. Likewise the Jensen Interceptor crew of Pat Keane and Roy Pine are competing with the Mustang of Chris Rees and Malcolm Heymer to see who can use the most fuel in a week - at least that is one thing that is a little cheaper than back in the UK. Earlier in the week it was announced that Ireland and Norway are two of the most expensive places to go on holiday - but, as rally destinations, both are hard to beat and coming as a group helps to keep the costs down and competitors have been very impressed with the standards of hotels and all inclusive package arranged this week.

The first test today was the scene of much domestic strife and our man on the ground reckons that Kenny MacEwan is lucky to be alive - his efforts to drive and navigate on the test were not appreciated by wife Jane - not only is she an accomplished map reader but knows which way to point the steering wheel as well so Kenny better watch out as he may find himself evicted. John Bateson and Tina Lowe were also heard to be having "words" - that's the trouble when you stall the car - we can hear what you are saying to each other! Still at the end of the day they are in third place so it can't all have been bad.

David Gidden and Stephen Freeman have held the lead and into second place goes the Sunbeam Rapier of Patrick Batten and Cath Woodman, Cath is one of the few co-driver who use the Curta Calculator - an American device that looks like a pepper pot and is wound up to assist with accurate timekeeping on Regularity Sections.

One crew not out today was the Mini Cooper of Kevin Haselden and Dave Kirkham - they are still trying to get their cylinder head fixed. Last time contact was made the intention was to rejoin the event at Kenmare.

The lead in the Clubmen category has been taken by Ian and Margaret Coomber, a rare mistake by Mick Briggs costing the lead but its early days yet. Margo O'Brien and George Coelho are back out in their black Volvo Amazon, so far they have the award for the smartest bag on the baggage wagon.

Leg 3 - Kerry Gold

Day 3 of the Emerald Isle Classic sees no change at the top of the leaderboard David Gidden and Steve Freeman now holding a 14 second lead over Pat Batten and Cath Woodman. Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister have moved up into third place and there is just thirteen seconds between fourth and seventh place so there is plenty of potential for the leader board to change yet.

It was yet another glorious sunny day and those with open top cars are really making the most of the unexpected good weather. The scenery on the Dingle peninsula and across Molls Gap was stunning. On arriving at the Kenmare Bay Hotel many crews stayed out in the sunshine with a pint of the traditional black stuff but others were not so fortunate.

Paul Minassian and Tony Davies were busy working on a rebuild of the rear suspension of the Volvo PV544 Paul directing operations from on high whilst Tony got his hands dirty! As usual the sweep crew of Peter and Andy had worked their magic by fabricating a new shock absorber mounting bracket. It was good to see Kevin Haselden and Dave Kirkham back with us. In the missing days they have been having their Mini’s cylinder head rebuilt and driving around Ireland to find a new cylinder head gasket. Let’s hope the repairs will last the remainder of the week.

In the Clubmans section Isabelle Mathew and Keith Geddes took a wrong turn after lunch and decided that they’d enjoy the scenery and blow the competition for the afternoon. Ian and Margaret Coomber have retained the lead in their Vauxhall Cresta complete with drum brakes. Who says you need a quick car to do well on a classic rally? Good teamwork between the driver and co-driver is worth far more than a few extra bhp. John Tooher and Ian Stewart have taken their Jaguar E Type up into second place but with a slim twelve second lead over the Bentley 3/4½ of Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs. Then it’s a massive eight minute jump to the fourth placed crew of David and Jacqueline Baird.

First test of the day was at Tara Oil the proprietor of which is regular classic rally competitor James O’Mahony. The combination of the slalom and then figure of eight around the cones caused some difficulty with a large number of wrong tests. It seems there is still some confusion as to which side is left and which is right! Next test was at the Kilcornan karting circuit and this was a nice and simple test and gave the drivers chance to show their prowess. Fastest yet again was the Healey of Harvey and Jan Du Cros.

The Touring Competitors had another good day. Their highly accurate tulip route book giving no concerns and allowing them to visit many places of interest on route. Highlight of the day was the flying boat museum at Foynes. Their route does also crossover with the competitive route and they were able to have lunch at the fantastic Ballyseede Castle. These inclusive lunches are proving very popular, easing time pressures at lunchtime and always ensuring food is readily available.

It’s two nights at Kenmare so a chance tomorrow to do the laundry for some and the pleasure of rallying without a boot full of luggage. It will be quite a short day but the Masters are back out in the evening for a 'night section'.

Leg 4 - Kenmare reports

The bubble has burst and the Emerald Isle Classic has seen its first day of significant rain but competitors were still in good spirits when they returned to Kenmare this afternoon. The leader board has now changed in both the Masters and Clubmen sections.

Patrick Batten and Cath Woodman now have a 56 second lead over David Gidden and Steve Freeman but only 26 seconds separate third to sixth place so there is plenty of opportunity for changes yet. In the Clubmen section the Vintage Bentley of Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs is back in the lead following a mistake by yesterday's leaders. Peter and Mick won the Emerald Isle Clubmen section last year and are keen to repeat this success.

As usual with old cars there has been plenty of work to keep the sweep crew mechanics busy and although it was an early finish they barely had time to catch their breath before going back out on the night leg. Shaun Arnold was exceptionally lucky to have an alternator fault just before he clocked out, a swift diagnosis was made and the terminal re soldered. If it had happened on the night leg large penalties would probably have been incurred.

Today saw our first official retirement - the starter motor on the Ford Mustang of Chris Rees and Malcolm Heymer was failing intermittently and it's not the easiest of cars to push start. They arranged a hire car on some unofficial timings appear to be still very capable with a couple of zeros on the regularity sections.

Warren Kennedy and Andrew Johnson are back on speaking terms this morning, having resolved where they had gone wrong yesterday - the door lock was also repaired so no longer does Warren have to climb over Andrew to get in and out of the car.

Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister are hoping for a dry night - their TR4 has intermittently working wipers - Tom was seen in the hotel restaurant trying to get hold of a potato - trouble is the hotel only seem to serve mash......mind you we understand the hotel has a good rally pedigree having been used on many Circuit of Ireland rallies.

David and Jacqueline Baird are moving back up the Clubmen leader board - a disputed wrong test verdict being resolved in their favour, their current fourth place looks fairly safe as they have a three minute cushion over the Jensen Interceptor of Pat Keane and Roy Pine. A crew to watch on the remaining legs will be the Amazon of O'Brien and George Coelho - they realised tonight that they've been using the wrong method of regularity timing, this event not using the more common European system.

The gas guzzling Bentley T1 of Robert Harley and Trina Walsh wafts around the lanes as though on a touring holiday but Robert's not afraid to press the pedal on the driving tests. It was lucky we didn't set off the hotel fire alarms when a small soldering job on part of the dynamo filled the hotel foyer with smoke!

As co-drivers waited to receive their previously secret route information for the infamous night leg there was a good deal of banter about how easy or difficult it may be - after the 90 minutes of "plotting" time it was time to set off and the normally relaxed co-drivers looked distinctly nervous. Rumour is that although the plotting was straightforward finding the route may be a touch more difficult and the short sections don't give time for much error.

Leg 5 - Night Fever

As expected the Kenmare night section has shaken up the leader board. Gidden and Freeman are still in the lead but previous challengers Batten and Woodman have slipped well down - electrical gremlins causing them to get maximum penalties at several controls. Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister in second place are just 58 seconds behind.

Tony Arnold and Rory Dooley have moved up into third place - a good effort for this untested crew - they had never met until Tony drove off the ferry at Dun Laoghaire last Friday.

David MacKay and Brian Johnson had a good night in the stunning Aston Martin DB6 with just 30 seconds of road penalties. This is a good confidence boost for David as it was this time last year that he had an off, damaging the front end of the Aston in an Irish ditch. David and Brian are starting to work well as a team and we can expect to see some good results on future events.

Smokey and the Bandit AKA Colin Forster and Dave Harvey are having a good event - it's not always clear whether the smoke is from the car or Dave's cigarettes - Colin said tonight that oil consumption is actually dropping as the week goes on.

Paul Minassian and Tony Davies were one of only four crews to be "clean" on this night section with no penalties at Time Controls, another was the Irish pairing of Pat Neville and Eamonn Waldron - coincidentally both are driving Volvo PV544s. Pat is better known as a co-driver and Eamonn has only just come out of retirement making this an even better result. Also clean were the MGB GT of Roger and Maggi Byford plus the Mini Cooper of Kevin Haselden and Dave Kirkham. The repairs to the Mini carried out earlier in the week appear to be holding up well and Kevin had a broad grin on his face when he came back into the hotel - contrasting with the dour face earlier in the week when it looked like they may be on the next boat home.

Taking an early bath was the Ford Lotus Cortina of David Garrett and Nick Reynolds. A slight overshoot leaving the Cortina with minor frontal damage. The wall didn't even say sorry, they'll be fit to carry on tomorrow once the steering has been checked and will be looking to make up some places.

Hubert and Diane Lynch are having a problem with punctures this week - they had their third tonight but were assisted with repairs by one of the travelling marshalling crews who escorted them back down into Kenmare.

Even competitors who had not done too well were full of praise for the route design - sometimes needing a quick reminder that it is not expected that all competitors will make all controls on time - that's how a result is achieved. Failure to reach a point in time is penalised but does not result in exclusion.

The Clubmen competitors had a night off and most headed down into Kenmare town to sample the local restaurants and bars. Returning to the Kenmare Bay Hotel to join in with the returning Masters.

With two legs still to be run there is ample scope for the leader board to change.


Leg 6 - Sailing By

The fifth day of the Emerald Isle Classic sees the competition hotting up as the week reaches its climax. The Lotus Cortina of David Gidden and Steve Freeman retaining first place but the Triumph TR4 of Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister are hot on their heels, just over a minute separates the two cars. The gaps then start to increase down the field. In the Clubmen category it's even closer with Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs having a twelve second lead over John Tooher and Ian Stewart and then just another seven seconds back is the Vauxhall Cresta of Ian and Margaret Coomber.

Mechanical gremlins struck early for John Bateson - his MGB's clutch has been nursed along for a couple of days but just a short distance from the hotel it jammed in the open position leaving him with no drive. The sweeps made a temporary fix and hopefully the car will now hold together for the remaining leg to Waterford. Also suffering problems were the Volvo PV544 of Paul Minassian / Tony Davies - the alternator bracket had fractured but once again temporary repairs have kept the car in the event. Fuel system problems were the downfall of Michael and Sarah O'Shea - Fiat Dino and also the MGA of Mark Brenninkmeyer and Dick Schulte. The freshly rebuilt TR4 of Roger Furrer and Elaine Wade had thrown a fan belt, a temporary belt was fitted at the roadside and a more permanent solution fitted at the evening halt.

All competitors did however make it to the harbour town of Kinsale - reckoned to be the gourmet centre of Southern Ireland but they also said that about Kenmare. A good meal was also served up at Actons hotel but still some crews chose to venture into town - still it left more wine for those who stayed behind.

The Tourers had a good day - allowing for the occasional shower and have enjoyed the ease of finding their way with a comprehensive tulip route book - a feature to be introduced for the Clubman section of most future CRA events along with marked maps to provide a logical progression through to Masters.

Last test of the day had been arranged by Ken O'Brien from the local Vintage and Classic Car Club. It was in effect a short hill climb and once again fastest time was set by the Austin Healey of Harvey and Jan du Cros. A similar test will be on Friday morning and it is expected that once again they will be challenging for the fastest time.

It's a very intensive day tomorrow with three regularities and five tests so there will be plenty of chances for time to be lost and changes in the leader board. Final test is at the Faithlegg House HQ hotel so there will be plenty of observers for wrong test penalties!


Leg 7 - Have Faith

The 3rd Emerald Isle Classic finished at the Faithlegg Hotel on Friday afternoon with a final test in the hotel car park. This was a perfect finish for the event with some very close positions at the top of both Master and Clubman Categories meaning that the tension among leading crews was maintained right to the end. A mistake on this final test could mean a drop down the leader board.

David Gidden and Steve Freeman had a steady run as their lead by this point was unbeatable although they still looked a little nervous. This is David's first major victory and careful driving and good car preparation mean it's unlikely to be his last. But we must not discount the efforts put in by Steve Freeman, He was running first on the road for a couple of days and that position is very pressurised as there is only way to go - down.

Tom Callanan and Jo McAllister ended the event a scant two seconds clear of Tony Arnold and Rory Dooley. Both did very well particularly considering that Tony and Rory had never rallied together before. Tom has competed on all Emerald Isle Classics to date and each time his position has improved - he will be back next year to see if he can gain that additional place to win outright.

In the Clubmen category last year's winners Peter Brennan and Mick Briggs held their lead through to the end whilst the second placed Vauxhall Cresta of Ian and Margaret Coomber finished just 21 seconds ahead of the John Tooher's Jaguar E Type.

As is usually the way the day was not free of mechanical problems, Kevin Haselden and Dave Kirkham had only got a couple of hundred yards before a bolt fell out from the front suspension allowing the wheel to take upon a mind of it's own. Luckily the sweep crew were not far away and were able to affect a repair and the Mini Cooper was able to finish the event.

It was an intense day for competition with three regularity sections and five tests. One of the regularity sections started off on the public road and then entered a private estate where increased speeds could be run - the navigation was simple and the drivers could have a go without concerns about other traffic. At another location we were privileged to be able to have a test up a driveway - large penalties were to be imposed for any who dared to leave the tarmac.... Thankfully the big family wedding had been held last week - I don't think they would have been to happy if the wedding photos had included the tyre tracks of John Bateson's MGB which is now sponsored by Ransome - the lawn mower manufacturer.

At the fantastic Faithlegg Hotel the final test was held, Harvey Du Cros had been doing well on the tests all week with what seemed like a photographic memory but on this it failed him and resulted in a wrong test. They had still done well throughout the week and were rewarded with second in class award, first in their class having gone to the immaculate Aston Martin DB6 of David MacKay and Brian Johnson.

Next year's event is to be slightly shorter with the start moving to Monday easing the need for competitors to cross on a Friday. It is also likely that the Clubmen category will become a tulip route book making this a good introduction to rallying with the Classic Rally Association.