Round five: Mid Wales Stages
Gareth Lloyd and Ryland James put a run of bad luck firmly behind them to win round five of the 2005 HRCR Classic Stage Rally Challenge, the Mid Wales Stages over the weekend (25/26 June).After eight stages in the increasingly dusty Hafren region, Lloyd/James ended the event 35s up on the similar Escort Mk2 of Martin Freestone and Chris Heyes.
"It hasn’t been the best year so far," admitted Lloyd before the start, after more engine work since the Mutiny Stages. However, all went well on the opening two stages on Saturday afternoon as the leading pair traded times and Lloyd/James went into the overnight halt just one second up on Freestone/Heyes.
Little by little on Sunday, Lloyd was able to extend his lead with a trouble free run. On the 13-mile stage in Sweet Lamb, Lloyd added a crucial 13s margin to make certain of victory. "Gareth always seems to go well in there," said James of the longest stage of the rally.Freestone/Heyes chased hard, but accepted second place and kept an 18-point championship lead. "No dramas at all," reported Freestone after a clean run through unfamiliar stages.
Having finally put alternator woes firmly behind them, Dick Slaughter and Geoff Dearing took their Escort RS1800 to third and finished the event well in touch with the leading crews. After more than an hour of competitive rallying, they were only 45s down on Freestone/Heyes.Another class D3 victory went to father and son Mark and Brett Clifford in their Escort Mk2.
"All of these stages are new to us, but we're loving doing the classic Welsh stages," said Clifford senior after a strong run to fourth overall and class spoils. Their only major drama was on the penultimate stage in Cwmysgawen when they teetered on the edge of a big drop! Paul Morris/Martin Jones took their Escort to second in D3.
After a catalogue of problems on recent events, Julian and Vicky Burch were pleased to get their Sunbeam Lotus home in fifth place, with only a cracked exhaust manifold to trouble them on the final stages. Ian Rix/Simon Sparey (Escort Mk2) completed the top six, despite losing first gear during the opening stage on Sunday morning.
