The calendar for the first part of the 2009 Dunlop/Gambia MSA British Historic Rally Championship has been confirmed, including a new opening event as the championship returns to the Bulldog Rally. Simon Marks of the Historic Rally Car Register, co-ordinator of the BHRC, said: "We're delighted to have the Bulldog Rally as the opening round of the 2009 Dunlop/Gambia MSA British Historic Rally Championship. We look forward to seeing a large number of historic rally cars tackling the classic stages in North Wales."The BHRC organisers also paid tribute to the work of Lindholme MSC, organisers of the Robin Hood Forest Stages, for providing the opening event of the season for a number of years. The Robin Hood is being rested from the calendar for 2009.The four confirmed events to date are:28 March; Bulldog Rally (gravel)17/18 April; Pirelli Historic Rally (gravel)30 May; Severn Valley Stages (gravel)tba July; Isle of Man Historic Rally (asphalt)The remaining four events making up the 2009 programme will be announced over the coming weeks.The BHRC organisers were sorry to learn over the last couple of days that the Mid-Wales Stages will not run in 2009 due to work and family commitments for the key organisers. The event has been a very popular date on the schedule and will be greatly missed by the BHRC crews.The events chosen to form the BHRC are based on extensive and on-going competitor feedback, with major emphasis on providing the best quality gravel stages available in Britain.