A HOST of Powys crews were in action during last week’s RAC Rally which ended in Carlisle on Monday.
Jason Pritchard from Builth Wells shared his pride after ending on the podium.
Huge crowds gathered in Carmarthen for the start of the biennial historic rally which would thereafter be won or lost on 350-miles of competitive stages set in the legendary forests of Wales, Scotland and England.
The best crews in Britain went head to head over five days with Builth Wells star Pritchard ending third behind Irish driver Marty McCormack with Cathan McCourt second.
Pritchard said: “I am pleased to finish this marathon event and come away with a podium.
“Obviously we had our issues on the way. My helmet intercom failing on day one with a replacement system sent to us for the technicians to change in first service on day two.
“We also had brake issues on day one caused us to have a few spins and put us in a ditch on Crychan 2.
“Day three in Scotland saw us slide off on ice slowly but thankfully spectators got us back on the road.”
Pritchard and co-driver Phil Clarke’s tough rally continued on day four.
He said: “On day four we picked up two punctures on the first two stages, having to stop and change both times, and also had fuel pressure issues then alternator failure.”
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However with all the bad luck behind him, Pritchard went onto record his fastest times on day five to seal third place and round-off an all-Ford podium
He said: “I am now looking forward to taking on this event again in 2025.
“The support I’ve received from people all over the world has been amazing I’d like to thank all my sponsors and everyone who’s contacted me or even stop to talk to me about the event and say how much they enjoyed following us over the five days.”
Irish driver Marty McCormack won the classic Roger Albert Clark Rally to toast a record-equalling fourth victory which looked unlikely after he and co-driver Barney Mitchell slid their Escort into a ditch mid-way through the epic five day event which saw 165 crews in action.
Five days earlier, huge crowds had gathered in Carmarthen for the start of the biennial historic rally which would thereafter be won or lost on 350-miles of competitive stages set in the legendary forests of Wales, Scotland and England.
And, with an entry list including top international stars such as Kris Meeke, Machynlleth’s Osian Pryce and Oliver Solberg – all armed with feisty Escorts – the competition would be fiercer than ever before.
Pryce was fastest out of the traps but the 2022 British Rally Champion’s Ford was forced out on the Scottish leg with an oil leak. Meeke topped the leaderboard during the early exchanges but an engine issue put paid to his chances.
Their mechanical demises seemed certain to hand the spoils to young Solberg however the 22-year-old Scandinavian’s Escort suffered a driveshaft failure late on Sunday evening.
Even more cruelly, perhaps, Seb Perez was denied what would have been a thoroughly deserved second place when his stunning Lancia Stratos stopped on the very final stage.
With the crowd-pleasing Ferrari-engined Italian icon parked by the wayside, the Mk2 Escorts of Cathan McCourt/Liam Moynihan and Builth Wells’ Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke rounded-off an all-Ford podium – the perfect tribute to the late, great Roger Clark who twice won the original RAC Rally in a Ford Escort.
It was 26th overall and second in class for the pairing of Andrew Stokes and Newtown co-driver Jonny ‘Tad’ Evans in the Ford Escort Mk1 Rs1600.
With the event starting from Carmarthen and having the first two days in Wales the duo set about making a great start before the event headed north and into different territory for the pairing.
The event was to hold a mammoth last stage with it being a 39 mile stage in Pundershaw, the pairing finishing the rally and completing all the stages to come home 26th and second in class.
They thanked there sponsors of Evans Windows, CH Bennett &sons, Richards Bodyshop and Hopkins Grids for the support over the five days.
Newtown’s Alun Horn and Ryan Griffiths were also in action in a Ford Escort MK2 but struggled following the wrong tyre choice and shearing their axles on the opening two days and while their fortunes improved in Scotland the pair failed to complete stage 33.
Despite none of the big names making the finish, the Roger Albert Clark is being widely hailed – with the organisers and volunteers receiving huge praise from crews, fans and all involved.
“We had 1,600 marshals out on the rally and I’d like to thank every one of them for supporting the event,” said rally manager Colin Heppenstall.
“We’ve had a record entry and record numbers of spectators, so there is clearly still a big appetite for forest rallying in the UK. All the forestry areas we have visited have been very supportive of the event.”
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