Sportinglife.com team uphold the honours for Geoff Jones Motorsport
Media duo Tony Jardine and Jim Holder, Editor of Motorsport News, took this weekend’s Bournemouth Rallye Sunseeker by storm in their Sportinglife.com Subaru Impreza, the most powerful car Jardine has ever driven.
Geoff Jones Motorsport is the top team which provided Tony Jardine with his biggest challenge to date. Finishing 17th overall and ninth in class, Jardine and Holder placed themselves high amongst WRC class cars, which formed part of an outstanding entry list for the Rallye Sunseeker’s 21st birthday as a national status event.
The Sportinglife.com team, supported by Kumho Tyres, finished well on the first night of the rally (Friday 24 February), in 23rd position, following two spectacular stages which guided teams through the winter gardens and along the seafront to Boscome pier. Thousands of spectators lined the stages braving the freezing conditions, creating a fantastic atmosphere for what was the opening round of the prestigious MSA Gravel Rally Championship.
On Saturday, team boss Geoff Jones was unfortunate to retire from the event. Testing a Subaru cup car for Prodrive, he dropped out of the rally mid-morning with a broken turbo charger pipe - leaving the Sportinglife.com team to uphold the honours for Geoff Jones Motorsport.
Following repairs to the Subaru, Jones from Machynlleth in Powys, Wales, was allowed by the Clerk of the Course to continue testing for a further three stages. Jardine and Holder had an eventful morning in the Wareham forest complex, losing some time as Jardine tried to get used to the raw power as he grappled with the four-wheeled drive turbo-charged Subaru for the first time in anger.
Co-driver and fellow journalist Holder explained further, “I missed a vital pacenote call on special stage six which could have meant the end for us. We were already going through a very fast right hander down hill, and I called the next note too late. We were heading for the trees and a big ditch but Tony threw the car sideways and kept us on track - Tony’s superb driving skills saved the day and possibly our lives! I then also turned two pages of the pacenotes on stage eight!” Gaining in speed and confidence throughout the event the media pairing won back time in the afternoon after 66 competitive stage miles.
They entered the last stage just 0.3 seconds behind regular international competitor Wug Utting and, despite their best efforts, a big fourth gear slide towards a gate post meant they finished 6 seconds behind their immediate rival Utting.
Jardine, Vice President of the Rallye Sunseeker organisers Southern Car Club, said, “I still can’t get over it – absolutely brilliant, that is the fastest and most sophisticated car I have ever been privileged to drive, it was like a rocket ship. It took me half a day to get used to all the systems and gadgets which could propel the car off the start line like a scolded cat. I had to concentrate and learn to drive the car properly before I could even start to think about setting good times. I would like to thank Geoff Jones for giving us the opportunity to participate in such a competitive and well prepared car, I hope the top 20 result has repaid his confidence in me. ”
Jones was equally enthusiastic about Jardine’s result, saying: “After I went out it gave me the chance to watch Tony’s times and I have to say I was impressed by his pace. He had a lot to get used to with such a powerful car, but right from the first stage he was among the times of some of the most experienced drivers out there. He had some good battles all day and didn’t put a mark on the car, and that’s a real credit to him.”
The Rallye Sunseeker was won overall by Craig Middleton in his Hyundai Accent WRC – Middleton’s first ever win on a national event.
