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·        Centralised HQ, Scrutiny, Parc Ferme and Service Area

·        Regulations available.

Skibbereen & District Car Club have announced that this year's Fastnet stages rally will have a new H.Q.

After a long and successful association with the Marine Hotel in Glandore – so successful the event became known as the Glandore rally- it has been revealed that the Marine Hotel which is undergoing a major reconstruction, will not be hosting the rally this year.

The club would like to take this opportunity to thank Sean and Theresa O’Brien, their family and all of their staff for the tremendous contribution that they made to the success and the growth of the rally over the years.

The rally has had its Scrutiny and Park Ferme in Skibbereen now for a number of years and this year the town will also be the Headquarters, with the announcement that The West Cork Hotel, on the banks of the Ilen River is to be the Main Sponsor and Event Headquarters.

The West Cork Hotel - Fastnet Stages Rally will be the final round of the Dunlop National Rally Championship and the 023 Tiles Southern 4 Championship, both of which could yet be decided in Skibbereen on October Bank Holiday weekend. It is also a counting round in The Skibbereen and District Car Club Championship.

It is believed that this move will be hugely popular with both spectators and competitors as it means that Scrutiny, Park Ferme and Rally Headquarters are all within a few hundred metres of each other.

The rally will be using the trusted format of 4 stages repeated twice and the Clerk of the Course Michael O’ Riordan and his team of dedicated assistants have picked 4 stages which will ensure that whoever lifts the Fastnet Rock Sculpture at prize giving on Sunday 29th October will have worked hard over the weekend to deserve the honour.

Regulations for 2006 West Cork Hotel Fastnet Rally are now available to download from www.rally.ie