5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 NICKY GRIST CO-DRIVER ACADEMY LAUNCH

Having established himself as Britain's most successful rally co-driver and ranked among the best in the World, Nicky Grist is now in a position to pass on his years of experience with the introduction of the Nicky Grist Co-Driver Academy.

The Abergavenny based World Rally Championship co-driver, who has guided former World Rally Champions, Colin McRae and Juha Kankkunen and has himself won 21 world championship events and has formally launched the Academy today (Monday 19th February).

“More than any other form of motor sport, rallying is a team effort,” explains Nicky.

“The synergy between driver, co-driver and car is what makes the difference between winning and losing. So far, there has been no specialist academy for up-and-coming young co-drivers ­ but I’d like to pass on my experience and teach everybody who is interested in co-driving the tricks of the trade.”

Nicky’s courses unravel the black art of co-driving, through a well-balanced mixture of theoretical and practical instruction. The academy is ideal for those who are serious about making it to the top in co-driving, as well as those who compete for fun on an amateur basis – or even for people with little or no experience who just want to get started or see what it is like.

Nicky himself started co-driving when he was aged 21 in 1982, whilst also competing as a golf professional. The Welshman rapidly rose through the ranks to take up co-driving full-time, making his World Championship debut alongside Juha Kankkunen in 1993. In 1996 he was asked to pair up with World Rally Champion Colin McRae. Nicky is also a well-known columnist and TV presenter, as well as the official distributor of Stilo helmets in the UK.

“I’ve really enjoyed myself throughout my professional career, both in the car and out of it, but I also feel that the time is right to put something back,” said Nicky. “The co-driver is a crucial part of any winning partnership yet they often do not get the recognition and career development that they deserve.”

The co-driver academy has three different levels catering for co-drivers of all experiences. The Beginner and Intermediate courses are based in Gloucestershire where they link in with GwynneSpeed rally school, here pupils get to practice what they have learnt in a rally car at speed. The Professional course is hosted by Nicky himself in his home town of Abergavenny, this gives the experienced co-driver the opportunity to learn the fine art of the professional co-driver in a classroom environment.

Nicky will be keen to help the co-drivers who are eager to progress and make the career change into professional co-driving and will be on the look out for dynamic individuals to enrol as his personal protégé

The Academy offers year-round courses, for individual as well as corporate clients.