CORK MOTOR CLUB
Over 30 years of motorsport
Liam McCarthy and Kieran Murphy driving a Toyota Corolla WRC, finally got their wish when they won the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally in Clonakilty last weekend.
For close on 20 years, they have tried gallantly to win their home event. They have come close in the past. However, they finally claimed that win last Sunday evening when they finished 34.3 seconds ahead of Welsh pair of John Dalton and Gwynfor Jones (Darrian). Former winners, Denis Cronin/Helen O'Sullivan (Subaru WRC) were third.
One of the performances of the event was that of Keith Cronin, who set a number of fastest times in his Mitsubishi to claim fourth.The Escorts of Phil Collins, Frank Kelly and Kevin O'Donoghue took the next three places. Darragh O'Riordan, in a Renault Clio S1600, was eighth with Thomas O'Rourke and Tomas Davies ninth and tenth respectively.
(Read full report by clicking here)
Kieran Murphy winning navigator, Darren McCarthy COC and Liam McCarthy winning driver at the finish ramp in Clonakilty after the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally. (Pics Ger Leahy)
(Read full report on the rally by clicking here)
Click here for full 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally Results
Rallynews (by Brian & Liz Patterson)
Report on Citroen Racing Trophy rounds 1 & 2 on Quality Hotels West Cork Rally
Report on Irish Mitsubishi Challenge rounds 1 & 2 on Quality Hotels West Cork Rally
Group B Cars in West Cork Check weather HERE Press Release 3
Withdrawals Programme outlets Final Instructions 1 Press Release 2
Full Entry Regulations Hotel Rally Rates Press Release 1 HANS device
Time & Distance Saturday Scrutiny Schedule Time & Distance Sunday
Read the final report on the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally here
Results available by clicking here from Saturday
Read about Citroen Racing Trophy Read about Mitsubishi challenge
Qualilty Hotels West Cork Rally video night
Cork Motor Club have organised a video night which is devoted to the Quality Hotels West Cork Rally 2009. This will take place in the Carbery Suite of the Quality Hotel Clonakilty on this Saturday (April 18) at 8.30pm.
Extensive footage of the event was taken by Bernard Crowley & his CMV Productions crew and will be shown over the course of the evening. There will also be some in-car footage featuring the likes of Keith Cronin & Manus Kelly as well as some other crews who took part in the event. The night is intended for all of those who helped out on the event and as a result got to see very little of the action. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome.
McCarthy and Murphy win Quality Hotels West Cork rally
Some people say that if you try hard enough what you want will come to you. This was definitely the case for Liam McCarthy and Kieran Murphy who realised their long time ambition on Sunday, March 15, when they took overall victory on the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally. The West Cork Rally took place for the 31st time this year. Despite the economic woes at present, a full field of 151 cars were present on the start line for what would be one of the driest events in a number of years. There was some disappointment before the start when top seeds Donie O’Sullivan & Paul Nagle had to withdraw from the event because of problems with the paperwork for their new Proton Satria Neo S2000. Also missing from the start list were number 10 seeds Brian O’Mahony & John Higgins, whose engine began to give trouble on the way to scrutiny. There were to be eight stages on each of the two legs. The first day was north and east of Clonakilty around Ballinascarthy, Clogagh, Ring and Dunworley. Day two was west of the town bringing the crews to Sams Cross, Rossmore and Ardfield.
Day 1
John Dalton in his Darrian T90 GTR led the field away in brilliant March sunshine to the first stage in Ballinascarthy. In spite of the fine weather, the test was described as being very slippery in places by the leading crews. Liam McCarthy took the initiative straight away by pulling out a 5 second lead over Keith Cronin in his Mitsubishi Lancer. Jim Harrison was taking it steady and was a further three seconds back. Dalton and Denis Cronin made up the top five. It was to be a short event for local driver Sean O’Donovan who rolled out of the event and temporarily blocked stage 1 in his Subaru.
McCarthy extended his lead on the next stage to ten seconds with Harrison slotting into second. Keith Cronins chances of springing a surprise on the event evaporated as he was off the road and into a field for 90 seconds on stage 2, dropping him outside the top ten. This promoted Phil Collins into fifth place while a superb start had netted local driver Fintan Canty sixth place. On the third stage Keith Cronin set a brilliant time, twelve seconds quicker than leader McCarthy to haul himself back into the top ten. The stage was interrupted when Edward O’Callaghan had a big accident and blocked the stage, fortunately without serious injury to the crew.
Keith Cronin again set fastest time on the following stage as Denis Cronin also began to creep up behind Jim Harrison who still hadn’t gotten into his stride. Dalton was fourth with Collins fifth and Keith Cronin had now climbed to sixth. Ashley Field was having a very good run to hold seventh, followed by a trio of Escorts in the hands of Canty, Adrien Heatherington and Leonard Downey.
Stage five was the classic Ring test, and John Dalton set a scorching time here to take 13 seconds off McCarthy while Denis Cronin also closed the gap to the leader. Harrison was now losing some ground but just about held third. Not so lucky on Ring was Fintan Canty who crashed heavily on the exit of the village and Adrien Heatherington who retired with clutch failure midway through the test. Liam McCarthy took some time back from the chasing pack on stage 6, Dunworley, as Harrison dropped behind Denis Cronin into third. Keith Cronin lost more time here as he had a lurid 360 degree spin which cost him over a minute as he tried to restart his stalled engine. This allowed Phil Collins back into fifth place.
Dalton repeated his heroics on the second run over Ring to move into second place, while Cronin consolidated third place from Harrison. There was a dramatic change to the leaderboard on the last stage of the day with the second run over Dunworley. Jim Harrison stopped mid stage with mechanical problems and seventh placed Ashley Field went off the road and out of the rally on the first junction of the stage. Liam McCarthy took fastest time to lead overnight with more than 30 seconds to spare. Keith Cronin in fifth place took maximum points for round 1 of the Mitsubishi Evo Challenge. Damien McCarthy was top points scorer for round 1 of the Honda Cup and held ninth place overall. Adrian McElhinney won the first round of the Citroen C2 Cup and held 20th overall while the Historic Rally was being led by Eddie Murphy in his Mk 1 Escort.
Top 5 at the end of Day 1
1 – Liam McCarthy / Kieran Murphy – Corolla WRC 1:13:07.5
2 – John Dalton / Gwynfor Jones – Darrian T90 GTR 1:13:40.5
3 – Denis Cronin / Helen O’Sullivan – Impreza WRC 1:13:46.3
4 – Phil Collins / Derek Brannigan – Escort Mk2 1:16:00.8
5 – Keith Cronin / Greg Shinnors – Lancer Evo 9 1:16:55.2
Day 2
The second day dawned bright and sunny as the previous day and there was little change over the first few stages. John Dalton decided to give it a go and almost came to grief on the first stage, but got away with it. Denis Cronin had problems with his gearbox jumping out of 4th and 5th gear which was costing him a little bit of time. Damien McCarthy had lost 4th gear and damaged a rim on the first stage which started losing him time. Manus Kelly had overtaken Frank Kelly for sixth place on the first of the morning stages.
On the next stage Dalton cut the gap to 28 seconds and the charge was now on. Behind the leading half dozen all hell was breaking loose as no sooner were drivers appearing in the top ten then they were out of the event. Manus Kelly crashed his Escort on stage 11 and Diarmuid Keohane had a halfshaft break on his similar car. Gwyn Thomas had made it to 9th before a timing belt broke and he was out. Marty McCormack was up to eighth but went off the road on stage 12. Damien McCarthy had now lost fifth as well as fourth gear and was struggling to stay going.
As the crews tackled the first run over Ardfield (Stage 13), Dalton knew he had to do something along the smooth coastal stage to try to grab a shock win. He took a staggering eight seconds off McCarthy to close the gap once again. There was now just 24 seconds between the leading two, while Denis Cronins gearbox problems prevented him from making a challenge and he comfortably held third place. Liam McCarthy responded to the challenge however, and replied by taking three seconds back on the 14th stage. The gap was now out to 27 seconds with just two stages to go.
Leonard Downey had been as high as seventh, but then had problems with an overheating engine which caused his retirement after the penultimate stage. In a very sporting gesture Martin Cunningham had given a loan of a gearbox to Damien McCarthy who was struggling to stay in the event. Cunningham had gone ahead by over 50 seconds, but McCarthy began the fightback. This was resolved on the final stage with McCarthy overhauling his rival by setting a superb time to pip Cunningham by just six seconds.
Dalton took another seven seconds back from McCarthy on stage 15 to leave just twenty seconds between the leading two with just one stage to go. However Dalton wisely decided to back off rather than risk everything on the last stage and McCarthy took the win by 34 seconds in the end. Denis Cronin took third place with nephew Keith in fourth place and taking maximum points again in round 2 of the Mitsubishi Evo Challenge. Phil Collins led a trio of Escorts to take fifth place, his best ever West Cork result, with Frank Kelly in sixth place from Kevin O’Donoghue who was seventh.
Daragh O’Riordan took class 6 and eighth overall in his Renault Clio. Thomas O’Rourke was top points scorer in the 2nd round of the Honda Cup with a superb drive to 9th place in a standard class 3 Civic. The top ten was rounded off by Thomas Davies from Wales in another Mk2 Escort. Adrian McElhinney was 15th overall and took round 2 maximum points in the Citroen C2 Cup. The Historic Rally was won by Denis Moynihan in his Mk1 Escort, with the Junior Rally won by David Brosnan in his Honda Civic. The Sunday Run was won by Adrien Heatherington who thrilled the spectators with some spectacular driving. A new winner has been added to the Quality Hotels West Cork Rally list in Liam McCarthy, and it can’t be said that he hasn’t deserved for all the years of trying and near misses.
Top 5 Overall
1 – Liam McCarthy / Kieran Murphy – Corolla WRC 2:13.42.3
2 – John Dalton / Gwynfor Jones – Darrian T90 GTR 2:14:16.6
3 – Denis Cronin / Helen O’Sullivan – Impreza WRC 2:15:13.5
4 – Keith Cronin / Greg Shinnors – Lancer Evo 9 2:17:24.6
5 – Phil Collins / Derek Brannigan – Escort Mk2 2:18:58.7
Kevin O’Driscoll, Press & Media Officer
Tel: 00 353 86 2866 256. Email: Kevin@westcorkrally.com
McElhinney Masters Opening Citroen Racing Trophy Rounds
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Round One:
Donegal
driver Adrian McElhinney emerged victorous on the opening two rounds of the
Citroen Racing Trophy, on the double header event in West Cork.
The
Trophy for the Citroen Sport C2 R2's was frenetic right from the drop of the
flag in Clonakilty. Tipperary's Paul Manton was rapid right from that flag,
with some fast times on the opening stage to lead after three stages, but a
rare engine failure was to finish his weekend, resulting in no scores on the
opening two rounds. Soon into the round one lead however was Adrian McElhinney.
He had been held up on stage one when he caught five cars that had been bunched
together because of an accident, but a very fast time on stage two proved he
meant business, and he took up the front running. In second was young Monaghan
driver Sam Moffett, who admitted to being a little rusty on the opening loop,
but was still marginally ahead of last years championship runner up, Barry
Evans. Barry was getting used to new co driver Alister Wylie on the first
tests, and also admitted to have picked the wrong tyres on the opening loop,
but fastest time on stage four meant he had Moffett in his sights.
Clones
driver Martin Tynan admitted also to making a slow start due to a lack of seat
time, and he also wasn't happy with the rear suspension in the middle loop of
stages. Cork's John Quill made a welcome return to the series, and came off the
famous Ring stage in West Cork euphoric! "That was just absolutely brilliant"
he said, the fast flowing West Cork roads a pleasure to drive in the dry
conditions. John had a dramatic start to the day with a costly spin on stage
one. New C2 recruit Stephen Baxter overtook John only to go off into a field on
down the stage, rejoining in front of John, before crashing into bank on the
next corner, letting the startled John Quill through once more. But by the end
of the stage they had swopped positions once more! Perhaps they were taking the
new Citroen Racing branding too literally! Baxter and Mark Kane where two
newcomers to the Citroen C2 R2's and despite the odd drama, both where setting
impressive stage times on their debut. Mark Kane's early dramas included a lack
of intercom, and an engine limiter fault that was cured by borrowing an ECU from
Paul Manton's stranded machine, but both of these drivers were making an
impression.
On
the final tests of the day, Adrian McElhinney was building on his lead, and
also now having to revise his braking distances, as the new Carbon Lorraine
pads he fitted at service where seriously shortening the C2's stopping
distance. Behind him Sam Moffett had a spin on stage 5 and also a major moment
when the C2 took to the grass at high speed on stage 8, but held onto his
second place despite Barry Evans rapidly closing.
Round One Results
1 Adrian McElhinney/ Shane Buckley Citroen C2 R2
2 Sam Moffett/ James O'Reilly Citroen C2 R2
3 Barry Evans/ Alister Wylie Citroen C2 R2
4 Martin Tynan/ Andrew Greenan Citroen C2 R2
5 Mark Kane/ Don Montgomery Citroen C2 R2
Round Two
The
fastest driver in the Citroen Racing Trophy for the R2 cars was Adrian
McElhinney however, with another superb drive, showing his speed in 2008 was no
flash in the pan. With two maximum scores it's a perfect start to the series
for Adrian in his self prepared C2 R2. "It's a dream start to our year, and
it's great to be in the prize money. Our aim this year is to contest the
Trophy, as it's such a great series, and this weekend has given us the perfect
start. As ever the competition was tough, but the camaraderie was equally as
good, and we can't wait for the next round."
Round Two Results
1 Adrian McElhinney/ Shane Buckley Citroen C2 R2
2 Mark Kane/ Don Montgomery Citroen C2 R2
3 Barry Evans/ Alister Wylie Citroen C2 R2
4 John Quill/ Alan Hartigan Citroen C2 R2
5 Stephen Baxter/ James Allman Citroen C2
R2
Cronin storms to victory in rounds 1 and 2 of Irish Mitsubishi series
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Liam Egan overcomes mechanical maladies to end in second place -
Excellent showing by Stanley Ballantine nets third in series, albeit
with 11th hour transmission troubles.
The Clonakilty-based Quality Hotels West Cork Rally is one of Ireland's classic
rallies and this year hosted the first two rounds of the 2009 Mitsubishi
Ralliart Evolution Challenge Ireland, with Saturday's eight stages representing
round one and Sunday's eight stages round two.
On both days, Keith Cronin and co-driver Greg Shinnors dominated the Evolution
Challenge field and such was their pace in the dry and sunny conditions, they
recorded a total of six fastest overall stage times, finished fourth overall
and won Group N.
Round One:
Cronin/Shinnors were quickest of the Mitsubishi runners on the first stage and
were on blistering form, posting a time that was good enough to see them third
overall. However, on the very next stage they slid into a ditch when the wipers
smeared the windscreen and Cronin momentarily lost visibility. After losing
over a minute extricating the car they were on their way again, but a broken
intercooler pipe meant the car was down on power.
For the remaining
three Evo Challenge competitors, who were seeded further down the field, it was
to be a frustrating day, with three stages cancelled due to accidents taking
place ahead of them, the first of which was on SS1.
After completing just
one stage before the first service halt, Stanley Ballantine/Donnacha O'Callagan
were second of the Evos, with Liam Egan/Colin Harkness third after suffering a
loss of power towards the end of SS2 due to a split turbo pipe. Tom White/ Robert
Murphy were in fourth, but concerned about their car's transmission as the
driver was having to hold the gear level to stop it jumping out of second.
A repeat run of the
first two stages followed and Cronin/Shinnors extended their Evo Challenge lead
to a margin of over two minutes minutes before the second service halt, whilst
for the others there was another hold up when stage three was cancelled.
Ballantine/O'Callaghan
were consolidating second place and having a good run in their first rally
together. But for Egan/Harkness is was not their lucky day: the power steering
stopped working on SS4 dropping them over ten minutes when they tried to fix
the problem in the stage. White/Murphy's transmission troubles were getting no
better as they had now lost fifth gear.
The next pair of
stages almost saw Cronin/Shinnor's run come to an end, when they survived a "flat in fifth" spin on SS6 and found themselves going backwards down the stage
at high-speed. Thankfully, they came to a halt unscathed, although it took over
a minute to restart the stalled engine. After a good run through SS5, the
remaining trio of Evos were to miss yet another stage when SS6 was also
cancelled.
Cronin opted for a
slightly more cautious approach on the final two stages and, other than a loose
turbo pipe, he and Shinnors made it back to Clonakitly to scoop top points in
the first round of the Irish Evo Challenge. Ballantine/O'Callaghan finished a
strong second and, just when it looked like third was in the bag for White/Murphy,
their car's gearbox finally expired on the last stage of the day, allowing
Egan/Harkness to fill the final podium position.
Round one results
1 Keith Cronin (Bantry)/Greg Shinnors (Limerick) 1:16:55.2
2 Stanley Ballentine (Strabane)/Donnacha O'Callaghan (Mallow) 1:20:23.8
3 Liam Egan (New York)/Colin Harkness (Beragh) 1:37:38.3
Retirements
SS8 Thomas White (Foulksmills)/Robert Murphy (Campile) Gearbox
Round 2
With White/Murphy's Lancer repaired overnight by the James Foley Rallysport
team, the full complement of Evo Challenge crews set off for another eight
stages on Sunday. Again, it was Cronin/Shinnors who set the pace and pulled out
a margin of nearly a minute by the time the cars reached the first service halt
after the first pair of stages.
Ballentine/O'Callaghan
assumed second place once more, but for Egan/Harkness and White/Murphy history
started to repeat itself: the turbo-charger on Egan's car lost its boost at the
end of the second stage of the day, whilst White was seeing his gearbox issues return.
Cronin/Shinnors
continued to forge ahead, their four fastest overall stage times on Sunday
raising a few eyebrows amongst the other competitors in both Mitsubishis and
WRC cars. In contrast, White/Murphy's rally came to an end on stage 11 when the
gearbox finally cried enough, whilst for Egan/Harkness, the character-building
issues still persisted, their car now overheating due to a leaking radiator.
Then, just when it
looked like Ballentine/O'Callaghan were assured of a comfortable second place,
a problem with their car's centre differential saw them coast to a halt on
SS14, allowing Egan/Harkness to inherit the position. But it was Cronin and
Shinnors' weekend, their impressive performance being the talk of the rally.
"I'm very pleased with
the way things went this weekend", said Cronin. "We were lucky to get away with
a few things on Saturday, but Sunday went really well and the car was
fantastic. The result is just what we wanted."
Round two results
1 Keith Cronin (Bantry)/Greg Shinnors (Limerick) 1:00:29.4
2 Liam Egan (New York)/Colin Harkness (Beragh) 1:12:00.5
Retirements
SS11 Thomas White (Foulksmills)/Robert Murphy (Campile) Gearbox
SS14 Stanley Ballentine (Strabane)/Donnacha O'Callaghan (Mallow)
Transmission
Rounds three and four
of the Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge Ireland take place on April 12th
& 13th, when the series heads north to Dundalk for the Circuit or Ireland
Rally.
The 2009 Mitsubishi
Ralliart Evolution Challenge Ireland is also supported by: Pirelli tyres,
Sunoco fuel, James Foley Rallysport, Carbone Lorraine brake pads, Murray
Motorsport, Speedline Corse wheels, PIAA lights, Pacenotes, Sparco racewear and
Mitsubishi Motors Ireland.
Series standings after
round two
Drivers: Keith Cronin 24; Liam Egan 18; Stanley Ballentine 10.
Co-drivers: Greg Shinnors 24; Colin Harkness 18; Donnacha O'Callaghan 10.
Latest withdrawals from West Cork entry list
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The following competitors have withdrawn from the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally:
8 Alan Ring; 16 John O'Donnell; 24 Philip Cross; 26 Trevor Bustard; 29 Simon Kehoe; 84 Ger O'Brien; 89 James Collins; 98 Ed O'Neill; 154 Michael Barrable; 164 JJ Wall; 167 Francis Kelly; 178 Barry O'Keeffe.
First reserve is now competitor No: 163 John Hendy.
View seeding list here
Group B cars back in West Cork Rally
An added attraction for rally fans over the weekend is the appearance of the Slowly Sideways Group B cars. These cars representing some of the best rally cars of the 70’s and 80’s will be presented for scrutiny at 7pm on Friday evening before parading around the town of Clonakilty. They will then be parked at Emmet Square from 7.30pm to 8.30pm for display to the general public. The cars will run before the main field on stages 1, 2, 5 & 6 on Saturday, and stages 9, 10, 13 & 14 on Sunday. The following is a list of proposed cars taking part.
B1 is the Escort RS1600 of Conor Falvey/Liam Buckley (Irl). This Group 4 car was used on the 1974 British Championship by Coleman and is in the Thomas Motors colours. B2 is the Lada VTS of Pat Horan /Noelle Horan (Irl). This Group B car was used on the 1984 Polish championship by Dimitri and is in the Works colours. B3 is the Triumph TR7 V8 of John Anderson/Pamela Morrison (Irl). This Group B car was used on the 1979 RAC by Lampinen and is in the Works colours. B4 is the Lancia Delta HF of Paul Hilliard/Linda Taylor (Irl). This Group A car was used on the 1988 Monte Carlo by Biasion and is in the Martini colours. B5 is the Austin Rover Metro 6R4 of Bernard Daly/Philip Doherty (Irl). This Group B car was used in1986 as a Development Car by Pond and is in the Rothmans colours. B6 is the Mazda RX7 of Fintan Foley/Fionn Foley (Irl). This Group 2/B car was used on the 1982 RAC by Millen and is in the Works colours. B7 is the Talbot Lotus Sunbeam of Kieran Mc Anallen/TBA (Irl). This Group B car was used on the 1984 RAC by Toivinen and is in the Works colours. B8 is the Manta 400 of Humphrey Deegan (Irl). This Group B car was used on the 1985 Circuit of Ireland by Fisher and is in the Shell Oils colours.
A spin with Billy Coleman
The club offered the 00 spin after Frank O Mahoney donated the prize for the recent fund raising function for Paul Gallagher held at the Commons Inn
Quality Hotels West Cork Rally Press Release 3
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As St. Patrick's
Weekend draws closer the Quality Hotels West Cork Rally is about to
take place for the 31st time . There is a large variety of cars of
various makes and models, as well a scattering of crews from all over
the island as well as some from the UK. The event is fortunate to have
to have full field of cars ready to take part in the event in these
difficult economic times.
Paul Nagle, who co drove for Kris Meeke in their fantastic IRC win in the Curitiba Rally in Brazil over the past weekend, will back in the passenger seat alongside Donie O’Sullivan in their new Proton S2000. This crew, who won the event last year, will lead the 151 cars away on Saturday morning, will be hoping for a record equalling third win on the event. Only one other crew on the entry list has won West Cork before, Denis Cronin and Helen O’Sullivan who won in 2005. Drivers of the calibre of Liam McCarthy, Keith Cronin and Jim Harrison will be hoping to add their names to the winners list by next Sunday evening.
John Dalton, Phil Collins, Brian O’Mahony and James Stafford will be up against it if the weather is wet, but if it’s dry then anything could happen should the four wheel drive men hit trouble. Dalton and Collins will be favourites for class 14, but Adrien Heatherington, Kevin O’Donoghue, Manus Kelly or Ashley Field could spring a surprise here. Class 13 is also very tight with the likes of James Stafford, Ed O’Callaghan, Fintan Canty, Leonard Downey and Rodney White battling it out.
Class 11 is the mainly the domain of the Honda Cup runners with Damien McCarthy, David Guest, Jason Ryan and Thomas O’Rourke likely to be in the mix, with Jason McSweeney who is not registered for the series also likely to be on the pace. Brian O’Mahony will be fancied for class 6, but will face competition from the quick Citroen C2 R2s driven by the likes of Marty McCormack, Adrian McElhinney and Barry Evans. Daragh O’Riordan in his S1600 Renault Clio cannot be discounted for class honours either.
Another attraction over the weekend is the appearance of the Slowly Sideways Group B cars. There are ten of these cars representing some of the best rally cars of the 70’s and 80’s. They will be presented for scrutiny at 7pm on Friday evening before parading around the town of Clonakilty. They will then be parked at Emmet Square from 7.30pm to 8.30pm for display to the general public. The cars will run before the main field on stages 1, 2, 5 & 6 on Saturday, and stages 9, 10, 13 & 14 on Sunday.
Two time winner of the event Billy Coleman will drive Frank O’Mahonys Metro 6R4 as a 00 car. He will be co-driven by Adrian O’Sullivan from Bandon, the lucky winner of a draw to raise funds for Paul Gallagher who was seriously injured in the Galway International Rally in January.
The stages as usual for West Cork are classics, and will run as follows;
Saturday
S1 & S3 – Ballinascarthy
S2 & S4 – Clogagh
S5 & S7 – Ring
S6 & S8 – Dunworley
Sunday
S9 & S11 – Sams Cross
S10 & S12 – Rossmore
S13 & S15 – Ardfield
S14 & S16 – Hayes’s Cross
Kevin O’Driscoll
Press & Media Officer
Tel: 00 353 86 2866 256
Email: Kevin@westcorkrally.com
Marshal meeting points with GPS co-ordinates
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Stage Commanders for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally are Maria O’Donoghue, Finian Twomey, Mick O’Riordan and Richard Percy.
If you can help by marshalling on the rally, please give your name and details to the chief marshal Edel Fahy and she can be contacted by email at edelfahy001@gmail.com or 087-7946207.
The following is a list of meeting points and times plus Sat Nav co-ordinates for each special stage for both days.
Marshals Meeting details for Saturday March 14 are as follows:-
Stage 1 & 3 Ballinascarthy - Clonakilty Rugby Club @ 8.00 a.m. N 51 38.724 W 8 52.137
Stage 2 & 4 Clogagh - Gaggin Comm. Centre @ 8.30 a.m. N 51 43.856 W 8 48.604
Stage 5 & 7 Ring - Key Motors - Clon Bypass @ 11.30 a.m. N 51 37.138 W 8 54.333
Stage 6 & 8 Dunworley - Lislevane Church @ 12.15 p.m. N 51 36.457 W 8 44.793
Marshals Meeting details for Sunday March 15 are as follows:-
Stage 9 & 11 Sam's Cross - Pike Bar @ 8.30 a.m. N 51 36.047 W 8 57.552
Stage 10 & 12 Rossmore - Ballingurteen Pub @ 8.45 a.m. N 51 40.595 W 9 01.280
Stage 13 & 15 Ardfield - Key Motors - Clon Bypass @ Noon N 51 37.138 W 8 54.333
Stage 14 & 16 Hayes Cross - Pike Bar @ 12.30 p.m. N 51 36.047 W 8 57.552
2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally Programmes - Sales Outlets
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The Quality Hotels West Cork Rally programme for 2009 will be for sale at the following outlets from this Saturday (March 7) morning:
The Quality Hotel Clonakilty, Rally HQ
Noel White, Texaco, Clonakilty
Crowley's Service Station (Maxol), Clonakilty
Hartes Spar, Clonakilty
Paddy Meade's Newsagent, Clonakilty.
Nyhan's, Londis Service Station, Bandon Bypass
Kevin O Leary's, Clonakilty Road, Bandon
Cahalane's Garage, Cork Road, Bandon
Foley's Texaco Service Station, Timoleague
Spar Filling Station, Skibbereen
Galvin's, Dunmanway
EMO, Denis Cronin, Ballylickey
Donovan's, Ballinascarthy
Glenview Motors, Macroom
Coleman's Car Care, Wilton Shopping Centre, Cork City
Maxol Station, The Liberties, (on road to Bandon beyond Viaduct), Cork.
Final Instructions 1
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Thank you for your entry for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally.
The seeded list is available by clicking here.
Sign on for Recce will be in the Quality Hotel, Clonakilty:-
Saturday 7th & Sunday 8th March between 8.30am – 12noon or
Thursday 12th & Friday 13th March between 8.30am – 12noon
Judges of fact will be keeping an eye on this.
You will have 30mins once you have finished mechanical scrutiny to attend documentation scrutiny in the Quality Hotel.
Ed Colton - Motor Sport
Caroline Kearney to Replace Greg Shinnors as C.L.O. for Juniors.
Please obey the rules of the road and respect the local people.
And finally please support our sponsors.
Darren McCarthy,
Clerk of the Course
2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally
Quality Hotels West Cork Rally 2009 Press Release 2
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Entries have now closed and seeding has been completed for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally which takes place on 14th & 15th March. The event which will be running for the 31st time has proved to be as popular with competitors as ever even in these recession hit times. 151 cars will start in the main field and the downside of the events popularity is that there are over thirty drivers on the reserve list. As always there is a large variety of machinery even within the top 10.
Top seeds are 2008 winners Donie O’Sullivan and Paul Nagle in the very exciting Proton S2000. This is the car which proved ultra competitive in the hands of Niall McShea on Rally Ireland recently. John Dalton & Gwynfor Jones are at 2 in their rapid Darrian T90 GTR and will be hoping for dry roads help them to go one better than last year when they finished second. Long time competitors Liam McCarthy and Kieran Murphy will have their Corolla WRC out again at number 3 and are still looking for their first West Cork win.
Jim Harrison and Harvey Bell are making their first appearance in West Cork since 2002 when they finished 3rd overall. This was their best result overall in the event to date. They will start at number 4 and will be Subaru WRC mounted this year. 2005 winner Denis Cronin with Helen O’Sullivan on the notes in their older model Subaru WRC are at five. Rapid Welshman Phil Collins is at 6 in his potent Mk2 Escort with Derek Brannigan co-driving as usual.
Numbers 7 & 8 sees the top GpN runners go head to head. Keith Cronin / Greg Shinnors and Alan Ring / Adrian Deasy should have a big battle for supremacy over St.Patricks Weekend, and neither will be far away from the podium at the finish. James Stafford and Frank Dwyer will also be hoping to repeat last years fine fourth place in their Darrian T90 GTR and they will start at 9. Rounding off the top 10 is Carrigalines Brian O’Mahony with John Higgins on the notes in their Renault Clio S1600.
Outside of the top ten, the modified entry continues to be strong with entries of the calibre of Adrien Heatherington, Ashley Field, Kevin O’Donoghue, Manus Kelly and Edward O’Callaghan to name but a few. Trevor Bustard is the leading Mitsubishi Evo Challenge entrant at 26; Marty McCormack leads the Citroen C2 challenge from number 34, while Damien McCarthy does likewise in the Honda Cup at number 36.
Denis and Dan Moynihan lead the Historic Challenge in their Escort Mk1. Their rally will begin on Saturday afternoon on Stage 5. Billy McCarthy & John Falvey are the top seeds for the Junior Rally which will cover stages 13 to 16 on Sunday afternoon.
Accommodation may be still be sourced by contacting Joan White on 086 3776451, (00 353 86 3776451 from the UK) between 7pm and 9pm or by emailing joan@westcorkrally.com. For more details please log onto www.corkmotorclub.com or www.westcorkrally.com
Kevin O’Driscoll, Press & Media Officer, Tel: 00 353 86 2866 256. Email: Kevin@westcorkrally.com
Full entry for 2009 West Cork Rally
Entries are now closed for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally and it looks like a full 151 crews will start on St. Patrick's weekend. A total of 183 crews have entered the main rally plus 18 entries for the Historic and 18 also in the Junior section. Seeding has now taken place and an entry list is available here.
While the Quality Hotels record their seventh year as sponsors of the event, a new associate sponsor is announced. Adrian O’ Connell of O’ Connell Crash Repairs, Van Conversions and 24hr Recovery Services has come on board to lend financial support to the rally. Adrian is also a member of Cork Motor Club and is prominent in organising and marshalling on various motorsport events.
Marshals are still being sought for the two days of the rally on Saturday & Sunday March 14 and 15. If you do intent to help please contact the event's chief marshall Edel Fahy at edelfahy001@gmail.com or 087-7946207.
Marshal Training in Showgrounds
The Marshal training for the Quality Hotels West Cork takes place next Tuesday night, February 24. Venue will be the Showgrounds, Ballintemple in Cork with a start time of 8.30pm.
The Showgrounds have been used before for this type of training and have proved ideal. The arena enables the complete set up of a special stage indoors, so weather conditions are not a factor.
Full training for the different roles of marshalling on a special stage will be given. Also the setting up of junctions, i.e. safety on stages, areas where spectators may not stand, procedure of what to do in case of an accident, spectotor control, etc.
Stage Commanders for the rally are Maria O’Donoghue, Finian Twomey, Mick O’Riordan and Richard Percy.
The chief marshal is Edel Fahy and she can be contacted by email at edelfahy001@gmail.com or 087-7946207. If you can help by marshalling on the rally, please give your name and details to Edel.
Regs & Entry Form available NOW
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Cheques should be made out to: Cork Motor Club Ltd
Click HERE for REGS 2009 West Cork
and click HERE for ENTRY FORM Page One & ENTRY FORM Page Two West Cork
(Both Entry Form pages are needed
Click here for rally details
Special Hotel rates for rally weekend
Special Rates from Rally Headquarters for rally weekend.
Please deal direct with the hotel and mention the Quality Hotels West Cork Rally
Details of 2009 West Cork Rally
Pictured at the launch of the Quality Hotels West Cork Rally 2009 were Darren McCarthy (Clerk of the Course), Noel White (Chairman Clonakilty Fundraising Committee), Michael O'Regan (Mayor of Clonakilty) and Jason Hegarty (Deputy General Manager Quality Hotel Clonakilty).
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The 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally will take place on the weekend of March 14 & 15. The event will, as always, be based in Clonakilty, Co. Cork and rally headquarters will be at the Quality Hotel & Leisure Centre, Clonakilty, Co. Cork. Tel 023 35400 (00 353 23 35400 from UK). Website: www.qualityclonakiltyhotel.com
This year's rally will see a new COC with Darren McCarty taking over the top spot from Brian O'Connell. Darren, who is the rally's fifth COC, will follow the tried and tested format for the event. There will be 8 stages run over four locations each day giving a total of 16 stages. Centralised servicing will take place after every two tests.
Entry fee: Despite the recession, Cork Motor Club have not increased the entry fee for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally. There will also be a Historic and Junior section in the rally.
Entries open on publication of Regulations. These will be available here as soon as they are passed by Motorsport Ireland.
Time schedule for the rally is as follows:
Friday, February 20: Entries close.
Wed Feb 25 Final instructions posted
Sat & Sun March 7 and 8 and Thurs & Fri March 13 & 14 Pace Note making
Fri March 13 Scrutiny in Clonakilty
Sat March 14. Day One of rally
Sun March 15. Day Two of rally
Stage Commanders are Maria O’Donoghue, Finian Twomey, Mick O’Riordan and Richard Percy.
The chief marshal is Edel Fahy and she can be contacted at Edel Fahy (edelfahy001@gmail.com) or 087-7946207. If you can help please give your name to Edel.
This year's West Cork Rally will be part of the following championships: Southern 4 Rally Championship, rounds 1 and 2 of the C2R2 Irish Cup; rounds 1 and 2 of the Irish Mitsubishi Evolution Challenge and rounds 1 and 2 of the Honda Cup Ireland.
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HANS device:
This year sees Ireland's governing body Motorsport Ireland introduce the compulsory use of the HANS device for all stage rallies in the country. A number of helmet suppliers have said that they will hire out these devices at rallies in Ireland. The following website addresses may be of use to you. www.ears.ie www.ruthmotorsport.com www.murraymotorsport.ie www.ccsracenrally.com This information is offered without any recommendation or endorsement. There may also be others who can offer the same service with the HANS device. If you have any technical questions, please ring Motorsport Ireland on 00 353 1 6775628 or email info@motorsportireland.com and they will help out.
Entries Secretary: Caroline Kearney, 2 St. Patrick’s Terrace, Blarney, Co. Cork.
Tel 087 9301184 (00 353 87 9301184 from UK) (6PM to 9PM only please). Email: Caroline@westcorkrally.com
CLASSES
The event will include the following classes:
Class 1. Group N up to 1400 cc.
Class 2. Group N 1401cc to 1600 cc.
Class 3. Group N 1601 cc to 2000 cc.
Class 4. Group N over 2000 cc.
Class 5. Group A up to 1400 cc.
Class 6. Group A 1401 cc to 1600 cc.
Class 7. Group A 1601 cc to 2000 cc.
Class 8. Group A over 2000 cc.
Class 9. Modified cars up to 1450cc - 2 wheel drive, normally aspirated.
Class 10. Modified cars 1451cc to 1650cc not more than 2 valves per cylinder, 2 wheel drive,
normally aspirated.
Class 11. Modified cars 1451cc to 1650cc more than 2 valves per cylinder, 2 wheel drive, normally
aspirated.
Class 12. Modified cars 1651cc to 2050cc not more than 2 valves per cylinder, 2 wheel drive,
normally aspirated.
Class 13. Modified cars 1651cc to 2050cc more than 2 valves per cylinder, 2 wheel drive, normally
aspirated.
Class 14. Modified cars 2051cc to 3500cc 2 wheel drive, normally aspirated or turbo charged
- see note 2.
Class 15. Four-wheel drive cars whose homologation has expired and other specified cars.
- see notes 3,4,5,
Class 16 Historic Rally Cars (see additional Historic Regulations).
Class 17 Junior Rally (see additional Junior Regulations).
Historics
Class 16 (a) Historic Rally Cars Pre 1967 up to 1650cc
Class 16 (b) Historic Rally Cars Pre 1967 over 1650cc
Class 16 (c) Post Historic Rally Cars 1967 – 1974 up to 1650cc
Class 16 (d) Post Historic Rally Cars 1967 – 1974 up to 1650cc
Class 16 (e) Classic Rally Cars 1974 – 1979 up to 1650cc
Class 16 (f) Classic Rally Cars 1974 – 1979 over 1650cc.
Juniors
The following vehicles are eligible to take part (excluding Super 1600 and Kit-car variant 1600): Class 17 J1: Cars up to 1400cc; Class 17 J2: Cars 1401cc to 1650cc.
4. Eligible Competitors. Any person holding an MI/MSA National B or higher graded Licence valid for 2009 provided that the Driver is under 27 years of age on 1st January 2009.
Closing date Friday, February 20.
Cheques will not be lodged until the closing date.
Entries received without payment will be placed on the reserve list. Failure to pay before closing date will incur a late entry fee of €730.
Entries withdrawn before first post on Friday, February 20, 2009 will receive a full refund.
Entries withdrawn before first post on Friday, March 6, 2009 will receive a refund less €30 admin fee.
Entries withdrawn before first post on Thursday, March 6, 2009 will receive a refund less €130 admin fee.
Entries withdrawn after this date will not receive a refund.
Withdrawal of entry will only be accepted by post, fax or email.
First Steps this weekend for West Cork Rally
The club will take its first steps over the stages of the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally this weekend when PR starts on the stages.
While new COC Darren McCarthy and his team have been busy over the past few months setting up the event, all club members will get a chance to get involved this Saturday and Sunday. Meeting place and time is the Quality Hotel in Clonakilty at 10am and if enough volunteer all the PR can be done on the one day. This is one of the most important tasks in the organisation of the rally and Darren has asked that ALL club members help out.
Quality Hotels West Cork Rally 2009
As most of you will already know, there will be a new face at the helm for the 2009 Quality Hotels West Cork Rally. While the Quality Hotel continues as rally sponsor, Darren McCarthy has taken over the reins of the club's top event from the outgoing COC Brian O'Connell. Brian's term saw the rally continue to improve and a lot of new ideas and innovations were introduced during his spell as the top honcho. And Brian will continue to be involved in the 2009 event giving Darren any assistance or advice he may require.
And while the rally needs one person at the top as COC to guide it, hundreds are needed to run it.
At present Darren is putting together a team to organise and run the 2009 rally and he is looking for you, the club members, to help out. His first priority is to appoint the stage commanders for the West cork rally and is anxious to hear from any club members interested in acting in this position on the March event.
And no, you do not have to have done the job before. If you have, so much the better, but this is not a prioity. There will be plenty of training given if needed. "There will be help available to anyone who volunteers for this fantastic Clubman Rally," assures Darren.
The stages are currently being selected and some of the key jobs have been filled. However, yet again this year, club members seem to be a bit slow, or maybe just a bit shy, in coming forward to volunteer for the job of Stage Commanders.
If you are someone who would like to get more involved in the organising side of rallying, please consider making yourself available as a Stage Commander or Deputy Stage Commander and every effort will be made to give you as much help as possible.
This also applies to our female club members who as we have seen, are more than capable of doing these jobs. The job of Stage Commander is far less physical than it used to be, as there is now an Arrowing Crew so there are no stakes to be driven and so much of the ‘hard labour’ has been taken from the Stage Commander.
West Cork has always been an event where club members come out and help. The new Clerk of the Course could do with that help right now, and help to continue the tradition and status of the West Cork Rally. The best rally run by the best club with the best members.
