Flint, one of the 2300 Club Committee set up a camera overlooking the car park at the start of the Andy Mort Tour and this is the resulting time lapse of the cars assembling for the off.
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MullMurmurs – Chapter 9
( Provisional ) Leaderboard after 14 (of 17 Stages)
1 P MacKinnon/D Barritt (Subaru Impreza) 1h 54m 09s
2 C Duffy/I Duffy (Ford Escort MkII) 1h 54m 49s
3 W Bonniwell/K Rae (Subaru Impreza) 2h 00m 17s
4 J MacGillivray/I Frazer (Ford Escort MkII) 2h 00m 50s
As the 39th Tunnock’s Tour of Mull Rally enters the closing stages all eyes are on the battle at the front. Both Paul MacKinnon and Calum Duffy broke the record on the first stage of the night, the 22 mile Tuath/Calgary blast up the west coast. Paul was 20 secs under his ol’man’s record and Calum was 12 under. By the finish Psaul had no brakes and Calum was struggling for grip even in the near freezing temperatures and his hot rubber.
But it looks as though John Cope’s challenge has come to grief at Torloisk. The Subaru slid off on loose gravel across the road. So how slippy is it? James MacGillivray reckons “Mishnish was about the slippiest stage he had ever driven.” Willie Bonniwell had a fright at the Salen start when the car wouldn’t start and he had 3 minutes to change the plugs. Worse was Daniel Harper, the gear linkage broke on the start of the long one and he lost 2 mins stage fixing it. Tristan Pye smashed his bottoms lights when the Subaru landed nose first after a vicious jump and Kris Hall lost 45 seconds with a front puncture.
Denis Biggerstaff was climbing back up the leaderboard after his double puncture on the first stage, but Ireland’s finest is struggling again. The Subaru is fast running out of brake pads due to a problem with the calipers binding on. Eddie O’Donnell has been slipping back this afternoon. He lost power at one stage when the starter motor battery strap snapped and then later started losing gears in his gearbox. As ever, the enterprising Eddie was off home to borrow bits from a relative’s gearbox to repair his own to make sure he re-starts tonight. Young John MacCrone nearly threw away his 2nd in 1600 class this afternoon when he slid off on Mishnish, but he survived. Paul Miller was in trouble too, he had lost third gear and just as important, he had lost reverse gear! The box was getting noisier by the mile, but he is determined to carry on as far as it will take him. And ‘Fuey the Fireman’ is still going despite having to replace the gearbox and the throttle linkage in the Escort he borrowed from Iain Gardiner. Fuey is better known as Ian Noble, the Automotive Technician (you can’t call him a mechanic these days) who works in that beacon of industrial activity, MacKay’s Garage in Tobermory.
Jaggy met Freddy. No it’s not the name of a new horror flick. Freddy Ferodo is the team mascot of Chris Shield running at car 140. It’s a wee dug wearing clothes and has three ‘minders’, Emma, Ann-Marie and Jess who take this wee dug everywhere and wave it at the rally cars and take photos of it in different situations. Mad? Yes, but good fun, and Jaggy asked Freddy for his ‘pawtograph’ – think about it. Oh, please yourself!
Yer Auld Pal, Jaggy Bunnet – Saturday, 11.00 pm, Tobermory
Ewan Tindall’s return to rallying lasted just ten miles, when he was forced to retire from the M-Sport Stages on Saturday. The […]
The 6.30 alarm didn’t go off in room 122 in the Travelodge in Llandudno. Luckily we were awake, feeling the excitement, knowing […]
MullMurmurs – Chapter 8
Provisional Leaderboard after SS14 (of 19)
1 Neil MacKinnon/Daniel Barritt (Subaru Impreza WRC) 1hr 32m 20s
2 Dougi Hall/Andy Richardson (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8) 1.34.16
3 John Cope/Robert Fagg (Subaru Impreza WRC) 1.34.43
4 James MacGillivray/Ian Fraser (Ford Escort Mk2) 1.36.49
5 Daniel Harper/Chris Campbell (BMW MINI Cooper S) 1.37.34
6 Paul Kirtley/Jim Kitson (Subaru Impreza) 1.37.38
7 Tristan Pye/Kirsty Riddick (Subaru Impreza) 1.38.02
8 John Cressey/Stan Quirk (BMW MINI Cooper S) 1.39.55
9 Willie Bonniwell/Kevin Rae (Subaru Impreza) 1.40.19
10 David Miller/Andrew Bailey (Subaru Impreza) 1.40.20
They say that ‘things go bump in the night’, well they bump even harder in daylight. There are cars strewn across the landscape of Mull as the second Leg of the 38th Tunnock’s Tour of Mull Rally draws to a close, but there’s more. Rally leader Neil MacKinnon was late into the start of the final afternoon stage and was off the pace through it. Drama afoot? We’ll try and find out. But look at the scrap for fourth place. MacGillivray is the current holder, but Daniel Harper and Paul Kirtley are only 4 seconds apart.
It was dry again for this afternoon’s second Leg, but rain is forecast for tonight. So fingers crossed for a dry night – even if only for the Marshals’ sake. What a bunch of heroes these lads and lassies are, so drink their health tonight with a cup of tea and a tea cake.
Apparently George MacDonald’s (26) service crew visited him in his bedroom last night and gave him a good talking-to – and told him to get his finger out today! So, yes he was quicker. Who says rallying is not a team sport? …. John Easson Scholarship winner Alick Kerr (75) is getting confident enough to alter the suspension settings on the hired Fiesta and was much quicker as a result today, 43 seconds quicker over the Lochs than last night …. Rick Fry (95) passed two cars in Calgary so he’s on the pace after changing the turbo last night …. Ewen MacGillivray (103) had fuel starvation last night but fixed it this morning and now the clutch is slipping …. Ian Dawes (70) is happy with his pace in the MINI but commenting on Harper and Cressey in the top ten, reckons “they’re brain dead” …. Allan Cameron (76) had a puncture last night and the clutch failed but is OK today …. Allan MacKay (97) is complaining that his Lancer is too wide and that’s why he got two punctures but is more concerned about the efficiency of the heater, he’s positively sweltering …. a rather noisy approach heralded the arrival of Pete Gibson (102) minus his exhaust which he left behind in Tuath but worse was a 16 mile run with no alternator earlier today …. co-driver Patrick Daley has lost his voice shouting at Paul Reford (113) when the intercom failed – never did a bottle of fizzy Irn Bru taste so good …. a happier man today is John Paterson (48), he changed from 17 inch wheels last night to 15s for today and the Proton handles much better …. also happier was Speedy Runciman (147) who took over a minute off his Lochs time today from last night because they had the right Pace Notes and Haggis was on the ball with his calls proving that teamwork does work …. Barry Renwick (30) had three punctures last night but even more spins although he’s picking up pace better today …. Stephen Taylor (114) changed the suspension overnight and is much happier today …. Mark Constantine (99) knocked a tyre off a rim on a stone in the first stage last night but the fuel pump is cutting out and the lights are flickering, so more trouble ahead …. James Fairbairns (151) has electrical problems and it’s cutting out, he thinks it’s the coil …. losing a chunk of time last night was Ian Forgan (66) when the throttle cable broke in the last stage and he limped out purely on tickover …. local man Donald Brown is struggling with carburettor problems …. Chris Shield (141) lost 1st ands 2nd gears over the Lochs this afternoon with two stages to go …. Ross Hunter (152) punctured on SS11 and had to drive a mile before he found a safe place to pull over and change it …. in more serious trouble is Tim Stell (40) with intake manifold problems …. and it looks as though Stage 13 was unlucky for Tony Bardy (7), the Hyundai has given up the ghost and doesn’t want to go any further …. John Swinscoe (14) has left the road in Tuath with the Lancer in need of serious First Aid …. Tommi Graham (33) is out on SS9 and Paul Daniel (38) failed to leave the service area after limping in with mechanical problems after SS9 …. John Cowe (61) has broken something and is going no further while Lewis Gallagher (62) has broken a driveshaft …. Sandy Smith (69) has engine failure, class leading Matthew Tarbutt (71) is off in SS10 and we can confirm that Stevie Brown (91) has indeed parked the Nova upside down in a Tuath ditch …. Connor Corkhill (108) has mechanical trouble, Malcolm Davey (111) broke a driveshaft in Tuath and Bear Cub star, John MacCrone (144) looks as though he’s retired the co-operative-built Nova on the road section after Stage 9. Phew, things are getting hectic out there ahead of tonight’s Final Leg.
And a word from the 2300 Club organisers, all competitors (and followers) are advised that MacGochans will have hot drinks, pies and sandwiches for sale after the rally finishes in the early hours of Sunday morning for those in need of sustenance and refreshment at the conclusion of ‘the best rally in the world’.
Yer auld pal, Jaggy Bunnet, Tobermory, 5.00 pm Saturday