Last weekend was very busy for the members of Brecon Motor Club, with crews competing in various parts of the country and marshalling on Rali Ceredigion, the only closed road special stage rally in Wales, writes Mark Griffin.

On Saturday two crews from the club were entered on the Woodpecker Stages Rally which started from Ludlow racecourse and used Haye Park and Radnor Forest.

Mike Simpson and Dale Gibbons were out for the second time in a recently acquired Group 4 Ford Escort Mk2 and were lucky to survive an off-road excursion at the end of the third special stage where a number of cars rolled. They survived and completed some more miles in the car which they plan to use on the RAC Rally next year.

Dai ‘Block’ Jones and Glyn Price from Pentrefelin were out for the 101st time in their now familiar BMW 325 and recorded yet another finish - the pair never without a smile throughout the day!

BMC 2022
Damian and Charly Cole entertain crowds lining the route in their Skoda R5 (Mark Griffin)

Elsewhere Bleddyn Thomas and Sam Weller spent the day in Weeton Barracks near Preston competing on the 061 Targa Rally in their Ford Escort RS2000.

15-year-old Sam from Brecon has been contesting the BTRDA Targa Rally Championship all year with Bleddyn and the pair have been improving with every rally. Saturday was no exception as they spent the day well inside the top ten and eventually finished a very creditable tenth overall in what is a very competitive series.

Saturday evening saw the Get Connected Rali Ceredigion begin with four stages in total with two on the promenade at Aberystwyth.

Two Brecon Motor Club drivers were keen to make an impression. Jason Pritchard didn’t get off to a great start spinning the car between high banks but survived the evening to be in with a chance of making a mark on the Sunday.

Unfortunately a terminal off-road excursion for Jason and co-driver Phil Clarke meant the Volkswagen Polo R5 would go no further, also denting any hopes of a good result in the British Rally Championship. Abergavenny driver Damian Cole retired his Skoda R5 early on Sunday morning.

Craig Jones however had a better weekend and was delighted to bring his hybrid Ford Fiesta into 16th place overall and second in the British Clubman’s Rally Championship. He and co-driver Ian Taylor took a steady approach which paid off.

Craig described the roads as the best he had ever rallied on and was full of praise for the organisation of the event.

The event was won outright by New Zealanders Hayden Paddon and co-driver Jared Hudson, the former World Rally Championship star won comfortably by almost 40 seconds from Osian Pryce who secured maximum British Rally Championship points.

The club also fielded a team of marshals and ran a number of special stage finish controls. Marshals are the lifeblood of events like this and Brecon Motor Club is extremely active throughout Wales and often beyond.