Dick Archer and co-driver Ashley Trimble took the spoils on day two of the BRC Challenge after another day of tough stages on Rally Isle of Man.
The day started with impressive times being set on SS14 by Archer, Peart and Friday’s victor Callum Black. With all three drivers dipping under the 10 minute barrier, it looked like being a real fight with Black and Peart hoping to increase their hold at the top of the championship.
Black was quickest on the Cronk stage taking nine seconds out of the hard charging Archer. But during the next stage at Glascoe, disaster struck the pairing of Black and Wakely when the gearbox let go, “I’m disappointed, we got to a hairpin in the stage and the car lost all drive” remarked a visibly disappointed Black.
The quickest of all was not Archer or Peart, but a determined Jonathan Cunningham in the Fiesta ST. Despite knowing that a finish here would give the Cumbrian based Irishman the Fiesta SportChallenge title, he still wasn’t holding back, determined to put his problematic first day behind him.
With Black out, the fight continued into the afternoon and the Island fog which enveloped the stages. “The fog was just horrendous” became a competitor mantra at the second service halt.
Archer admitted to mishearing a pace-note on SS19 and taking a four-right flat out. “I arrived too quick and had to cut the corner more than I would like, I picked up a puncture but managed to drive out the stage”. Astonishingly he still posted the fastest stage time.
Not allowing the men to hog all the limelight, Louise Cook continued her steep learning curve with a good debut drive on the Isle of Man. After recovering from an off on SS14 she finally finished fourth.
George Morrison claimed fifth place and another RC1 class victory in the venerable Peugeot 205 ahead of Andrew Chalmers’ ailing Suzuki Swift. “We lost drive and had to take the top off the gearbox in the stage, we had no wipers or intercom”. Not to be beaten he added “we’ll drag it kicking and screaming to the finish”.
Third place went to Jonathan Cunningham and Richard Millener in the Ford and in finishing secured the Fiesta SportChallenge series. “I can’t believe it” said a relived Cunningham, “I always wanted to do a single make championship just to test myself against equal machinery”. “We were both holding our breath on the final stage; the tension in the car was unbelievable” remarked a jubilant Cunningham.
Second place went yet again to Chris Peart, proving the new car has the pace and reliability to be a real threat in the BRC Challenge. The Burton Pidsea driver’s day wasn’t totally without incident though, as the Yorkshireman suffered a puncture and then lost the intercom, which left the pair struggling to keep pace on the final stage.
Archer also had his moments, spinning on SS14 and dropping nearly a minute. But with the conditions worsening it didn’t seem to hamper his progress as he took five fastest times and the second day victory.
“The event was brilliant today” said Archer, “we dropped time on the last stage but that hasn’t hindered us”. “I would like to say that it has been a pleasure to have Ashley Trimble calling the notes this weekend.” added a very happy Archer
With the event winner not competing in Yorkshire and Black not scoring on day two, the door has been left open for Julian Wilkes and Will Rutherford to gain some ground on Black in Ulster and take the MSA Dulux British Rally Championship’s support series down to the wire.
The series moves to Northern Ireland towards the end of August, as the Ulster Challenge Rally gives the other half of the field an opportunity to score points on their chosen “overseas” double header event.
– Credit: Stu Coady (UK Journalism – University of Central Lancashire); www.rallybrcchallenge.co.uk