New to Endurance rallying?Picture shows Mike Biss / Cath Woodman on one the forest selectifs on their way to 1st overall on 2007 Audi South West Endurance Rally. c:: www.rallyphoto.co.uk |
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Here is an introduction to this fantastic new motorsport discipline…
In July 2003 the Amman and District motor club introduced a new and very exciting format of rallying, with the first ever Endurance Road Rally to be run in the UK. The event was the Welsh Endurance Rally, which was an immediate success and continues to grow.
Several other clubs have started to run similar events to the new rules as laid out by the MSA, not least of which is the 4th Lombard Revival Rally (8-11 November 2007), that retraces the route (about 1200 miles) of the old Lombard RAC Rally. An Endurance Road Rally is unlike any other form of rallying. Performance is not determined by the amount of money you spend on a rally car, thereby offering competitors the chance to win rallies on talent alone.
In conventional special stage rallying, only a privileged few have the budgets available to be in with a chance of winning rallies outright. In navigation rallying, the crews’ result is influenced predominantly by the navigator’s ability.
Now, in between these two disciplines, has come a totally new low-cost rallying formula, where the emphasis is placed on both the navigation skill and also the ability of the driver to drive at speed.
Car specification: a petrol engine no bigger than 1400cc or a diesel up to 2000cc, but no turbos. You cannot tune the engine. Gearboxes, transmissions and brakes all rely on standard showroom components. Seats can be changed and suspension uprated. You need to strengthen the bodyshell, fit a sump guard and fit minimal safety equipment. Most competitors drive the car to and from the rally… then go to work in it (or wife goes shopping in it) on Monday morning!
The competitive element is made up of a number of stages, or “selectifs”. These are timed and run on closed private grounds or forests. You are set faster standards than navigation rallying, but not as fast as special stage rallying.
Endurance Rallying is the ultimate clubman’s rallying formula as it means the majority of competitors are on the same performance level, instead of a minority who do all the winning. It is drastically more cost effective and every bit as competitive as stage rallying.
The new concept that has proved popular in Britain with more than 130 cars attracted to the 2005 Lombard Revival Rally following the successful World Cup Rallies and Welsh Enduro Rallies.
Thanks to QUB Motor Club for help with the above introduction!
The Enduro Rally Association have a very good website and in particular a more detailed history of this great "old sport".!
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