Class C2
Scott Gourlay was making his gravel driving debut with Greg Alcorn in the hotseat. The 205 crew caught cars on both the opening stages, and they were having issues with the car struggling to start once it was hot. That was traced to a dodgy fuel pump at 2nd service, the team managing to change it and keep them in the event with just 30 seconds of lateness left. 52nd overall and 3rd Moates Offshore Junior was their reward.
Class C3
Allan McDowall & Mark Casey took their 2nd maximum points score of the season in their Mk1 Escort. They felt they had picked too hard a tyre for the wet stages in the morning, but things improved as the day began to dry out. Allan glad to have a clean run after a difficult time on the Argyll rally in his Kadett, they finished in 40th place overall.
Class C5
John McIlwraith & Heather Grisedale’s day started poorly with a time-consuming puncture on the opening stage. On the 2nd loop they discovered that running on the puncture had damaged the front hub which the team managed to change at the last minute in service. The final loop was a bit smoother, inheriting the Groundwater Lift Trucks Subaru Cup win after Jordan Anderson retired, salvaging 33rd after a tough day.
Class M2
Robert Proudlock & Steven Brown were absolutely flying in their Opel Adam, battling for top front wheel drive honours with Peter Stewart & Harry Marchbank. Robert really enjoyed the stages, surviving a big moment at the end of Kinharvie as he pushed the Adam hard. 21st overall and the Moates Offshore Junior win was an excellent result.
Class M3
Meghan & John O’Kane started their day with a big backwards moment on the opening loop, thankfully into an open hairpin. Things were better from the 2nd loop but despite still feeling the car wasn’t handling great they were battling with the Evo of Aileen & John Forrest for top Lady honours. Swapping times all day the Fiesta driver came out on top at the finish in 44th overall.
Class M4
John Crawford & Josh Davison produced their best performance of the year so far. The MK2 leading the 2wd battle from start to finish, John saying the secret was bribing the officials at the start. The biggest drama came on the final stage with a rear puncture. John throwing caution to the wind to make sure they kept the win, the car sporting some ferns lodged in the front bumper as a consequence.
Class M5
David Wilson & Kerrie MacGillivray’s patience with their BMW was finally rewarded with a class win. The car now has more power and a new gearbox, but it was by no means an easy run, a fuel leak meaning they were battling fumes for most of the day. They enjoyed a good battle with Rob Wright & Mark Fisher’s Mk2, taking the class win at the finish by just 1 second.
Class M6
Ian Baumgart & Liam Whiteley enjoyed a day long battle with Duncan Campbell & Michael Cruickshank for the M6 win. In and around the top 10 times in the morning, Baumgart & Whiteley were delayed with a puncture in the 1st running of Ae. They then put on a charge to catch their fellow Impreza crew, surviving a visit to the undergrowth on the final stage to take the class by just 3 seconds at the finish.
Class H1
Stuart Egglestone & Brian Hodgson felt they went out on too hard a tyre for the conditions at the start of the day. Once things began to dry out the Pinto-powered Mk2 was absolutely flying, swapping times with the much more modified Escorts. 16th overall and 2nd 2 wheel drive car home was another excellent result.
Class H2
H2 was decided by just 3 seconds at the finish. Sandy Fairbairn & Craig Forsyth taking the class win ahead of Jim Robertson & Mike Curry. Sandy & Craig enjoyed an excellent run in their BMW with no dramas to report from start to finish, taking a solid 28th overall.
Class Pro2
Peter Stewart & Harry Marchbank were one of the happiest crews to see the return of gravel. Despite Peter feeling unwell and the car struggling for traction on the uphills they enjoyed the day long battle with Robert Proudlock & Steven Brown. Peter was the first to say how much he enjoyed the battle and how happy he was for Robert to come out on top. 22nd overall and 7th 2 wheel drive car home was enough to keep the 208 crew in the lead of the Autoshop 2wd points.
images courtesy of AF Motorsport Media
