sarah
Chief Marshall
Posts: 79
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Post by sarah on Dec 5, 2008 8:57:32 GMT
Wow I pulled out a blinder on that last stage! Didn't help in positions though. But it was a finish!
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Post by Roo on Dec 6, 2008 9:16:05 GMT
Follow the searing heat of the African desert, the championship heads to the tall pine forests and tranquil lakes of Finland, for the 1000 Lakes Rally. Weather was forecast to be fine for the duration of the rally, and the superb condition of the Finnish stages would ensure top quality rallying action. Stage 1 of Rally Finland saw the top five drivers separated by only eighteen seconds, and only one second separated the top three drivers. JJ and his Escort RS1800 were fastest out of the blocks, determined to make up for the team’s disappointment in Kenya. The two Talbot Sunbeam drivers Curt and Mary both set exactly the same stage time, while Bart was fourth fastest. Local driver Mixa was only 13th quickest, thanks to a spin only a mile after the start. On the second stage of the rally Will set a very quick time, which enabled him to jump from sixth place into the outright lead. Curt was able to move up to second, while early leader JJ dropped to third. A Lancia Stratos was still in fourth place, but it was now Sarah occupying that position, as Bart had suffered a puncture. Mitch also suffered a puncture on the stage, but the loss of control saw him in up in a ditch. Stage 3 was a fast and flowing stage, similar to stages that Sarah was used to driving on in New Zealand. The young Kiwi set the fastest time and moved up into third. Toyota driver Will was finally starting to show some potential and ended the day in the lead, ten seconds ahead of Curt. The two Ford drivers finished the day in fourth and fifth place, a good position to challenge for the lead on the second day. The first stage of Day 2 saw the lead change yet again, with Sarah’s third fastest time on Stage 4 enough to pass Will for the lead. A spin and a subsequent stall dropped Curt down to fifth place behind team mate Mary, while JJ moved up into a podium position. But all this changed on Stage 5, the famous Ouninpohja test. JJ had a heart stopping, high speed spin and dropped to seventh, but luckily no damage was done. Team mate Nick had no such worries, and although his stage time wasn’t the fastest, it was significantly faster than the drivers ahead of him, so the Englishman found himself in the overall lead. Just nine seconds behind Nick was the local favourite Mixa, who had now sorted out the setup problems that had plagued him on the first day. The Fiat Abarth team were having a rather disappointing rally so far, and it got worse when Luigi got up close and personal with the Finnish scenery, retiring from the rally. Stage 6 was the longest of the event, and it also contained some tricky jumps and crests that needed perfect precision. Being precise in a tail-happy V8 powered sports car is not always easy as Vivski found out on this stage, retiring after clipping a solid object hidden in the long grass. Fiat’s rally went from bad to disastrous, as Igor’s 131 Abarth ground to a halt with an overheated engine, caused by a heavy nose dive on one of the many jumps. The Escort drivers seemed to enjoy the stage, JJ setting the fastest time and Nick third fastest, with the Escorts first and second heading into the final day. Toyota drivers Will and Mixa were not far behind in third and fourth respectively. Day 3 of the prestigious 1000 Lakes Rally, and only another three stages remained to decide the battle for the overall victory. Toyota drew first blood on the opening stage, with both drivers quicker than the Escorts. Mixa was equal fastest on stage with Lancia driver Sarah, with Sarah moving up a place to fifth. Mixa was now within a second of third placed JJ, who had been passed by Will, who was now just five seconds of Nick McRae’s lead. Stage 8, the penultimate test, was a technical stage with many changes of camber and tightening corners. Roo’s flamboyant driving was finally brought to an end when his Vauxhall landed badly after a jump, ending up resting against a tree. In the battle for victory between Toyota and Ford, it was mixed news after Stage 8 for both teams. JJ struggled through the stage and dropped down to sixth between the two Talbots, while Will fell back to third behind his team mate. On the last stage, the two Talbot drivers ended the rally in similar fashion to the first by setting identical stage times. Although second and third places could not be replicated this time around, the team was still more than happy with the points gained from the weekend. Fourth place was a good result for driver and team, with Sarah’s ten points keeping Lancia in touch with the leaders in the manufacturers title. Mixa set the fastest time on the final stage, but by now the lead was too great, so there was no change to the top three at the conclusion of the rally. After a horrid Safari Rally, Nick was able to steer the Escort to its first win in the RFC, ahead of Toyota drivers Mixa and Will. Rumours were rife at the end of the rally that Toyota had employed team orders to allow Mixa ahead of Will, a rumor that was answered with a simple “no comment” by Toyota management. Next up, the championship heads to the island of Corsica for the Tour de Corse. The final tarmac rally of the season is sure to spice things up heading into the final two rounds of the season, and if the rest if the season is anything to go by, it will be a rally not to be missed!
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sarah
Chief Marshall
Posts: 79
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Post by sarah on Dec 6, 2008 9:20:54 GMT
Awesome! I love it.
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Post by Hurricane on Dec 6, 2008 11:50:04 GMT
Another disappointing result, but luckily Sarah got a good result to keep Lancia in the title fight.
I'm really looking forward to the Tour de Corse, as tarmac is my favorite surface to drive on.
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Post by Will on Dec 6, 2008 19:42:27 GMT
Jubilation At Toyota
"Of course I'm ecstatic to have finished on the podium at last, it's been a long time coming and I knew I could do it. After leading earlier on too, it gave a massive confidence boost and we were really setting some great times."
"Of course I was disappointed on the final stage to be told on SS8 to give up second place to help Mixa in the drivers' standings but that's how it goes and we're friends and team-mates so I backed off and it allowed him to get through."
Toyota are said to be in a state of jubilation after their 2-3 finish just behind the Ford of Nick.
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Post by mrdad on Dec 6, 2008 19:45:14 GMT
Cheer up Bart. You did have the pleasure of beating home a mighty Datto. Another great rally from Roo - shame there were no pics of Datto's but we do want to make it a close exciting season....
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Post by Mixa on Dec 8, 2008 13:45:51 GMT
I must have to say that I didnt knew anything about the team orders. Its quite awful to hear something like that but I can kinda understand it and thanks for my team mate for understanding the sitch as now every point counts. What comes to the drivers standings ofcourse its looking good but I dont want to say anything yet. Corsica is always a very demanding event and our Celica is between 2 that will it suit the roads. So far its been a great all arounder so Im confident with Corsica but theres always raining so it will be tricky for sure. Good luck to everyone for the coming rounds ps. Roo-when youve planned to open the regs for RFC-Group B? Its 2 rounds to go,thats why I ask.
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Post by Nick McRae on Dec 8, 2008 18:30:24 GMT
Chuffed to bits about my first RFC win, it certainly makes up for my bad run of late
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Post by Roo on Dec 11, 2008 6:52:03 GMT
The next round of the championship was situated on the island of Corsica, France. The Tour de Corse is the only pure tarmac rally in the championship, and the numerous tight corners and steep descents always test the brakes and commitment of the drivers. The first day dawned dry and clear, and with no gravel sweeping to worry about, championship leader Mixa could start the rally without any major disadvantage against the rest of the field. But the Finn, and Lancia driver Bart didn’t have the best of starts on Stage 1, both spinning and loosing almost a minute. It was a good stage for the Fiat team, with their Luigi setting the fastest time. Team mate Igor was equal second quickest with Talbot driver Mary, the pair just four seconds adrift of the lead. Mary’s tea mate Curt was fifth, four seconds behind Ford’s JJ. On Stage 2, Fiat scored their second stage win, but this time it was Igor who took the honours and moved into the lead as Luigi dropped to seventh thanks in part to a small spin at a hairpin. Vivski and Nick both enjoyed the stage, setting third and fourth fastest times respectively. The times allowed Vivski’s Triumph to move into third, eight seconds ahead of Nick’s Escort. Sarah appeared to be getting to grips with the Stratos on tarmac, setting second quickest time overall. However on the final stage of the day, Sarah’s quick run came to an end half way through the stage. A photographer caught the moment when Sarah slid wide on a slow corner, sliding into a ditch, breaking the front suspension. Although Sarah was able to drive out of the ditch, the suspension completely failed a few miles later, forcing her to retire from the rally. There were no such worries for team mate Bart, who set the quickest time and moved up to sixth. At the end of Day 1, Fiat driver Igor holds a lead of thirteen seconds over Mary and her Talbot, while third and fourth positions are occupied by Englishman Nick and Will. Intermittent showers were forecast for Day 2, and due to the terrain and unpredictable nature of the weather, tyre choice would be very difficult. Stage 4 was dry, and most drivers made it through without major incident. One driver who did lose time however, was overnight leader Igor. The Fiat driver was not a happy man at the stage finish, refusing to talk to the stage end reporters. Igor was now down in fourth place, one second off Mary and her Talbot and a further six seconds behind Vivski in second place. After a steady drive, Ford driver Nick now found himself in the lead. On Stage 5, parts of the stage were slightly damp from some developing drizzle, but not wet enough to warrant wet weather tyres. Nick push hard to extend his lead, and second quickest on stage helped him increase his lead to just over a minute. The most stunning performance on the stage was Bart’s drive in the Lancia Stratos. Fastest time enabled him to jump from fifth up into second place. On Stage 6 rain was falling in the last half of the stage, but the first half remained dry, creating tricky conditions for the drivers on the final stage of the day. Mary set the fastest time moving up into second place, while Roo set one of his best times of the rally so far, fourth fastest. The stage seemed to suit the well balanced Escorts, and JJ was able to set the second fastest time. Nick was oncourse for a stage win, but the Englishman was caught out on a wet corner, braking too late on a wet corner smashing through a stone wall and ending up in a creek. The crew were unhurt in the crash, but the same couldn’t be said about the Escort and Nick was forced to retire from the event. So heading into the final day, Bart’s storming drive up the leaderboard has him in the lead, ahead of Mary and Vivski. Will’s consistency sees him in fourth, while Igor and JJ round out the top six. The first stage of the final day was not only the longest of the event, but one of the most fearsome in the championship. The Borgo stage clings to a cliff face as it skirts the coastline on the southern side of the island. Any mistake on this stage would result in either a short and sudden trip into the rock face on one side, or a big drop onto razor sharp rocks on the other. A spin by Talbot driver Mary resulted in a trip into the rock face, forcing her retirement. Roo also had problems on the stage, when his Vauxhall’s gearbox got stuck in gear. Roo stopped on the stage in an attempt to make repairs and although the gearbox couldn’t be repaired, he was able to select third gear and drive on. There were no such worries for the Toyota crew, with Mixa and Will setting respective fastest times on this stage. Mixa was able to move up from eighth to fifth, while Will shot up into second overall. The penultimate stage was flowing in nature, with no hairpin bends to worry about. This was good news for Roo, who only had third gear, but his fourth fastest time on the stage was a big surprise. JJ was the fastest man over Stage 8, and his performance was enough to lift him into second place. Time gained by the Toyota’s on the last stage was all but lost on this stage, with Will falling down to sixth and Mixa to fifth. The final stage of the Tour de Corse saw Roo lose a lot of time due to tackling hairpin bends with only third gear. Igor made one last ditch attempt to catch the front runners, setting the fastest time. His efforts gained him two places, leap-frogging the two Celicas into fourth spot. Apart from that, the top three stayed the same, with Vivski finishing third and JJ second, both scoring moral boosting wins for their respective teams. After finishing the first stage equal last, Bart was able to claw back lost time in a steady and calculated drive, scoring his second rally win of the season, and Lancia’s third victory. The final round of the championship will get underway shortly in the mud covered, fog shrouded forests of Wales, a fitting finale for what has been a challenging and exciting season!
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Post by Roo on Dec 11, 2008 7:10:06 GMT
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Post by Mixa on Dec 11, 2008 10:22:40 GMT
thx,Roo. Many of the teams have contacted to several drivers already so it will be interesting to see where all of us are heading. So far I can tell that Toyota is interested to resign and the contacts from the mediterrannean countries has been strong.
It seems that I have a 12 point lead over Bart when heading to the last round. It sounds big but there are still 4 guys in a title fight as I dont have any wins to show for. It should be my one if I use a consistant strategy and the car keeps to work well. It still has been an awesome year and thanks for the competitors and for TTE about the opportunity they given to me. Also thanks for my teamie Will whos been a brilliant teamie so far happens what happens at the RAC.
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Post by Nick McRae on Dec 11, 2008 13:14:38 GMT
Gutted to crash out of the event, if we'd of won that stage the event looked to be in the bag. We'd been braking that late for all the damp looking corners all rally, was obviously just a bit too much wetness on the surface for the tyres. Sort of sums up a inconsistant season for us.
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Post by Will on Dec 11, 2008 13:17:53 GMT
Englishman Pleased With Safe Sixth
Toyota's second driver Will was in a happy mood after sealing sixth place in the Tour de Corse today, despite a possible second place finish that he lost after the final two stages.
"We were on course for a great end to a good rally, but sadly those 8th and 9th places in those last two stages put us down the order. But still, I'm pleased. Roll on GB."
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Post by Vivski on Dec 11, 2008 14:17:05 GMT
I was dangling there for a while, but managed to secure a podium. Very happy about that! It's been an up and down (and round and round) season in the Triumph.
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Post by sx4fan on Dec 11, 2008 15:41:37 GMT
Fiat driver Igor promised to give it everything to clinch the title in the final round of the season and help his team to topping the manufacturers' standings. In the wake of a highly-successful ending to his debut season the Fiat team announced that Igor would continue driving for their company in the next season, but - behind the wheel of their new Lancia.
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