There was plenty of drama at the head of the field and the same could be said for the various class battles on the Beatsons Jim Clark Reivers Rally. Let’s see who came out on top.
Class C2
Having already contested the national event with Meghan O’Kane in the hotseat Nikki Addison was well up to speed on the tarmac by the time the Reivers Rally began. With regular navigator Rachel Matheson alongside the 106 pilot suffered an overshoot early on but the big drama was Rachel being unwell on the road sections. The stages weren’t so bad and they were rewarded with a class win.
Class C3
Graeme Sherry & Ewan Lees were another crew who competed on the National. Bouncing the diff off the tarmac on the Saturday livestream, Graeme had shot off to Edinburgh to pick up replacement bits. The team sorted the car for the Reivers and the Manta was showing no ill effects. There was an unfortunate argument with a lamp-post that rearranged the rear bodywork but they would survive to secure the class win.
Class C5
Taking both the class victory and their 1st Subaru Cup win of the season Mike Moates & Gary McDonald had issues in the morning with losing the brakes. That cost a lot of time and they spent the afternoon entertaining the crowds without falling off the road.
Class H1
Making it 2 wins in a row, Stuart Egglestone & Brian Hodgson picked up where they left off on the Speyside. The fast tarmac stages highlighted the Pinto’s lower power and lack of a 5th gear a bit more than the forests but they were still able to take the Historic win.
Class H2
1st in class and 2nd Historic car home Escort legend Steve Bannister was making his return to the SRC with regular co-driver Callum Atkinson alongside. Steve also taking the honours in the Haddo Energy Super Seniors category.
Class M2
After an ordeal of epic proportions searching the nation for replacement pistons Keith & Mhairi Riddick were relieved to just see the start. Hampered by severe brake problems on the opening loop some tinkering and a change of driving style helped in the afternoon. Absolutely delighted to finally see the finish after a horrible start to the season they were rewarded with the M2 win.
Class M4
With John Crawford & Paddy Munro failing to make the finish, Jim McDowall & stand-in co-driver Heidi Woodcock would take the class win. Jim clearly enjoyed the switch to his more familiar sealed surface as well as the resumption of the battle with fellow Super Senior Alistair Brearley.
Class M5
Getting up to speed on tar in his Evo on the National event, Gordon Murray was back in his Speyside class winning Escort for the Reivers and the sole M5 starter. With Phil Sandham alongside once again things weren’t quite as smooth as they could be. 2nd gear was giving issues on the 1st loop and they would finish the day without a clutch.
Class M6
Hawick driver Ian Baumgart was a last minute entry and, reunited with Sinclair Young, produced another solid, clean performance, keeping the Subaru on the road while others fell off to take his 2nd consecutive class win.
Class Pro2
Yet another team to compete on the National, Peter Stewart & Dave Robson had unfortunately done their best work on the event that didn’t have points at stake. Not finding the flow on the Sunday as well as on the previous 2 days the 208 crew would still take the class win & Peter top honours in the Autoshop 2 Wheel Drive Championship.
Images courtesy of GF Rally Images
