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December 2009

As usual, December is a busy month with the usual Christmas events and hangovers! The big club event was, of course, our fun quiz held this year on the 16th. We had a good turnout of members and everyone enjoyed themselves, especially when some of the sillier answers were given! Thanks to Hannah and Jayne for organising the quiz and well done to Cerith 'Daffy' Davies for 'downing' a 'yard of Guinness'!

The WWRS Christmas Stages took place on Monday 28th, the Bank Holiday meant that it wasn't held on 'the day after Boxing Day' which was a good thing because I was very hungover on Sunday and was in no fit state to go anywhere! I'm sure there are a few others who suffered with me! It was another dry but cold day, although not as cold as last year's event. Club drivers Peter Lloyd and Robert Tout filled the two top spots by finishing 1st and 2nd overall respectively - congratulations to them and their co-drivers. For full results, see 'Recent Results'. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported our club in 2009 (far too many to list), and wish you all a healthy and wealthy 2010.

On the subject of 2010, our Red Kite Stages rally is only a few weeks away. If you would like to help and haven't already offered, please approach a committee or organising team member.

The recent snow has made driving conditions very difficult and many are most probably wishing they had a four wheel drive vehicle. Some of our members visited the Brecon Beacons recently to survey the conditions but one found the snow too deep for even the 'King of 4x4s'! Perhaps they should have borrowed the 'Polar Hilux' from Top Gear!

Anyone got a tow rope?

 Photo: Dai John

November 2009

The Tout family (and Jordan Jones) travelled north to Anglesey for the Glyn Memorial Stages on November 7th and 8th. It proved to be a weekend to forget with both cars failing to finish. Rob and Laura retired with gearbox problems and James and Jordan retired when their steering broke. As we all know, it can be a cruel game!

Sunday 15th was the day of the Talbenny Winter Stages in Pembrokeshire and the recent rain meant that conditions were very slippery. Sherryn Roberts was once again co-driving for Carwyn Jones in his Honda S2000 powered MK2 Escort. They had a good day and finished 10th overall and 3rd in class. Graham Watkins and Mark Powell were also taking part, they finished 17th overall and 5th in class. Well done to both crews.

One of the most anticipated events of the year took place on the 21st/22nd. The Mel Harries Memorial Road Rally has long been a favourite event of our club members, and several club crews entered this popular rally. The recent bad weather has caused a lot of flooding and some roads along rally route were impassable. A number of route amendments were issued causing headaches for navigators, organisers and marshals. Club campainers Barry and Seyyan John suffered two punctures and then got fed up of replotting route. They eventually gave up and went home! New committee member Dai John fared much better. He and Dylan Jenkins battled to the finish and won 3rd overall, congratulations to them. See Recent Results for more info.

Barry John's decision to retire from the 'Mel Harries' was prompted by the fact that he and Matthew Wood-Griffiths had entered the Farrington Road Rally on the28th/29th. They travelled north to compete on this, the final round of the WAMC Road Rally Championship. They had a successful night and finished 24th overall and 2nd in class. This rally result means that they will get a good final result in the championship which will be confirmed. Well done to them both.

 Sherryn Roberts in the 'hot seat' at Talbenny

Photo: Owain Roberts

October 2009

The Breidden Road Rally took place on the 3rd/4th October, and Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths were out in Barry's 'new' Escort. They finished 27th overall and 3rd in class. Well done to them.

Sunday October 4th saw the running of the Peter Lloyd Stages at Pembrey. We were once again blessed with good weather and a number of club crews were competing. Rob and Laura Tout were running car 1 as they had won the event last year, but failed to finish after losing a front wheel. They were fortunate that the wheel wedged underneath the car preventing damage to the brakes etc. Better luck next time! Alan 'Gof' Williams was out in his trusty Sierra Cosworth, with Kevin Lewis in the 'hot seat'. They finished 5th overall and 3rd in class. Well done to them. Our club marshals were kept busy running the stage finish timekeeping. It proved to be an eventful day with lots of action happening around us. There was also a class for junior drivers as young as 14 years of age in 1000cc cars, an ideal opportunity for youngsters to get their first step up the rallying ladder. Best of luck to them. For full results, see 'Recent Results'. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

The Jersey Rally took place on the 9th to 11th October, and Peter Lloyd was competing in his Subaru Impreza with Nicky Grist co-driving for him. They won the event outright. Congratulations to them. I've fancied going out to watch/marshal on this event for a few years now. If anyone is interested in going out next year, let me know.

Wednesday 28th was the date for our AGM at the Rugby Club. I would like to thank everyone for supporting the meeting, welcome our new committee members, and thank those outgoing committee members for their efforts. 2009 hasn't been the club's best year, but I'm sure there are better times ahead. Thanks to everyone who has supported the club and its rallies and activities.

The last rally of October was the Cilwendig Road Rally. This event usually runs on or near Guy Fawkes Night but moved to a Hallowe'en date this year. Neil Griffiths was out in his Ford Escort with Dale Bowen navigating, they had a steady night and finished 26th overall. Well done to them.

 Alan 'Gof' Williams at Pembrey

Photo: Darren Morris

September 2009

September kicked off with the excellent Brawdy Stages in Pembrokeshire. A number of club members were competing on what proved to be a mostly dry day with only one rain shower to add a bit of drama. Best result of the day was secured by Rob and Laura Tout, who won the event overall. Congratulations to them. Another crew in the limelight were Mike Leather and Matthew Wood-Griffiths, who had a big spin right in front of the Ralio+  film crew. Some people will do anything to get on television! Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

The weekend of the 12th/13th would see a small group of us travel to Ireland for the Wexford Stages. We were greeted with a warm welcome, glorious weather and good rallying action. Our big mishap of the weekend happened on Saturday evening. After getting back to our B+B, we decided to have a lie down before going out drinking at 9pm - well, that was the plan anyway. I dozed off on my bed and woke up at 11.05pm, everyone else was still out cold! We had a very quick shower and headed out to the nightclub at 11.30pm, a good night was had by all. I have included a few pictures below.

The last rally in September was the Patriot Stages at Caerwent. This event enjoyed a full entry and we were kept busy at the stage start. Once again, we had a dry day with some sunshine, our late summer was going well! The most exotic car of the day was a 4.3 litre Aston Martin which made a glorious sound as it pulled away from the start line. Can I have one - please? Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

August 2009

The first rally to run in August was the Harry Flatters Rally on Epynt on the 1st/2nd of the month. It proved to be a sad day due to the accident which caused the death of John Phillips who was spectating at the time. My sincere condolences to his family and friends. For results, see 'Recent Results'. Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

With no Endurance Rally on the weekend of the 8th/9th, I took the opportunity to visit the Glyntawe soap box race organised by Maes-yr-Eglwys farm/HOVAC . It proved to be a nice dry day (unlike the previous years when the WERR did run!), and the event had 20+ competitors to try their luck hurtling down the farm road that was used for the event. Club member C.J Taylor had built himself a racer and entered the event but couldn't match the pace of the experienced locals. Well done to him for having a go though. I'm tempted to have a go myself next year! I have included a picture below.

Various club members took part in the Pembrey Autotest, Neath Valley Stages and Greenleeves Road Rally with various levels of success (see Recent Results), and we then had a strong turnout of competitors and marshals for the Mewla National Rally which run on Sunday 30th August. It  proved to be a difficult day as the poor weather conditions lead to several accidents which caused the cancellation of the first four, and final stage. Club members Kevin and Nathan Davies felt Epynt's bite as they rolled the Evo on SS4. They were both fortunately unhurt although other competitors weren't so lucky, I would like to wish those injured competitors a speedy recovery and hope that all those who suffered damage will get up and running again soon. Peter Lloyd won the event - his second Epynt win in August, but failed to clinch a second 'Epynt Challenge' title. That honour went to Damian Cole and his newly acquired Ford Focus. Congratulations to him.  Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

Club regular Steve Lloyd came along to marshal in his Land Rover Freelander but unfortunately got it stuck on the hill above Dixies, and needed a tow from a Mitsubishi Pickup. Land-Rover fans, look away now!

July 2009

As expected, summer lasted a few weeks and now we are well into the monsoon season which will most probably last until late August! I'm not too bothered myself, I don't cope well in anything more than 25 degrees heat! My hip has been getting stronger and I'm now back in work, not easy after having 9 weeks off!

Our members have been busy taking part in various events (see Recent Results), and we were asked to provide stage crews for two rallies, the Swansea Bay Rally and The Coracle Stages at Sweet Lamb. I didn't attend the Swansea Bay Rally as I had suffered some hip pain that week, but did go to the Coracle Stages in Sweet Lamb. Despite the forecast of horrendous weather, we escaped lightly with only a few heavy showers and quite a few dry spells. The weather in Sweet Lamb was certainly better than in Ystradgynlais!

Thanks to those who marshalled on both events.

My sister's boyfriend Stuart has recently built an Autograss racer, and his first race was in Stroud on 11th July. I went along to support him, do a bit of spectating and take a few photos. His car is a rear wheel drive Toyota Starlet fitted with a Vauxhall 16 valve engine. I have included a picture of it below. His car looks nice, but was quite tame compared to some of the more customised vehicles. Some were fitted with high performance car engines such as the Honda S2000 unit, others had V8s, and some even had twin motorcycle engines! I have included a picture of one of the more exotic machines below. Stuart suffered bad luck on the day, his diff failed during the first race. He has since raced again near Hereford and finished 3rd in two of his races. Well done to him.

Away from the motorsport scene, July saw James Tout's graduation from Cardiff University. His degree was a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Biochemistry. He will start his teacher training in Swansea Metropolitan University in September for a year and then go out to the world of teaching. Congratulations to him. |I have included his picture in 'Some Members'.

July has also been a memorable month for former club member Nick Charles, who now lives in New Zealand. His wife Phillippa gave birth to a baby girl at 22.20pm on the22nd. She has been named Carys. Congratulations to them both.

June 2009

June has not been a very good month for our club, our competing members have suffered bad luck with a number of DNF's (see Recent Results), and we have been forced to cancel the 7th Welsh Endurance Road Rally.

The decision to cancel the WERR was not an easy one, and we were criticised for cancelling so early. The simple facts were that we only had 11 entries, few telephone or Email enquiries and a number of our regular competitors had informed us that they would be unable to compete this year. Based on this information, we knew we had little prospect of getting enough entries to make the event viable. The feedback that we've received since cancelling suggests we would have had less than 30 entries, meaning the event would have lost a huge amount of money. By cancelling as early as we did means that people can make alternative arrangements for that weekend thus reducing lost bookings, monies or valuable spare time. As we all know, the rally organisers have worked extremely hard to organise this event, I would like to thank them for their efforts. We fully intend to run the event next year, lets hope 2010 brings better fortune.

On a more positive note, June 6th saw the wedding of club member Matthew Wood-Griffiths and Debbie Roberts at Gelli Aur/Golden Grove in Carmarthenshire. Congratulations to them and their families. Matthew arrived at the wedding in Mike Leather's Ford Escort rally car. A picture of them is included in our 'Some Members' page,

Saturday 20th saw the running of the 1000 Lanes Road Rally organised by HOVAC. Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths started car 40 in the Audi, but retired with suspension failure in the Walters complex. I have included a picture of their car below. C.J. Taylor was also unlucky to be deemed OTL at the final control! Better luck next time Guys! I was not able to attend the event but heard good feedback from those who attended. Well done HOVAC on running another excellent event.

After having my hip replaced at the end of April, I felt well enough to go to Caerwent for the Midsummer stages on the 21st June. This was my first marshalling outing for two months. We were fortunate to have a dry day and no stoppages due to accidents. Peter Lloyd/Graham Handley dominated the event in their Subaru Impreza and took victory. Well done to them. Rob and Laura Tout were running a strong second overall but retired with Gearbox failure. James Tout/Jordan Jones put in a strong performance to finish 35th overall and fifth in class, a result they were very pleased with. Well done, Guys. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.  

Barry John's Audi Quattro Sport at the start of the recent 1000 Lanes Road Rally

Photo: Dylan Jones

May 2009

May has been a busy month for our members with a number of events taking place. The month kicked off with the RDP Welsh rally on Epynt, which saw five crews take part. Best results of the day were Rob Tout finishing 2nd overall (despite suffering a puncture which cost him victory) and Kevin Davies finishing 6th overall, well done guys. For full results, see 'Recent Results'. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

 Thanks to those who marshalled on the Leukaemia Rally on the 17th at Caerwent.

Our monthly quiz night took place on Wednesday 20th, with a good turnout of members to pit their wits against the quiz master. This was my first visit to the club for some weeks after having my hip replaced, and I amazingly won the Individual contest - must be all those hours watching motorsport on TV in recent weeks!       It was good to see everyone again and I'm hoping to be out and about on rallies soon.

After doing well on Epynt, Rob Tout travelled (a long way) north to compete on the Jim Clark National Rally. The journey was worth the effort as he finished 11th o/a and 2nd in class. Well done, Rob.

The Classic Tracks Rally had two club crews take part but neither finished after suffering mechanical problems. Barry John broke the exhaust on the Audi and Neil Rees burst a coolant hose on his Peugeot. Barry didn't seem to mind his DNF as it gave him more time in the pub afterwards! Always look on the bright side, eh Barry!

May ended with another Epynt event. This time it was the new 'Welsh Marches Mini Epynt Stages'. Steffani Davies was driving her first Epynt event in the Evo with Dan Holley co-driving. They finished 54th o/a and 11th in class. Father Kevin was impressed their stage times, well done to you both.

April 2009

Saturday 11th / Sunday 12th saw Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths head west to take part in the Rali Bro Teifi. Barry's 'Audi Quattro Sport' proved reliable and they finished 32nd overall and 6th in class, well done to them

April 12th (Easter Sunday) saw the running of the Bob Shaw Memorial Rally at Talbenny airfield. We had five club crews take part with some impressive results (see Recent Results). We were once again blessed with good weather - a Godsend at Talbenny, it's not a pleasant place when it rains! Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

Due to the economic downturn, I was forced to take Easter week off work, so I arranged for an equipment sort-out on Wednesday 16th. Thanks to those who came along and cleaned/sorted our stage signage and equipment in readiness for the Welsh Endurance Road Rally in August.

I have suffered with hip problems since I was a child and decided in February to have the offending joint replaced. I was amazed to be called up on April 30th (a wait of less than 3 months) for the operation. I am now recovering at home and should be out and about soon. Thanks to everyone for their messages of support. For those of you with a strong stomach, I have included a picture of my new scar below. It's not pretty, 28 staples were used and it measures about 12 inches long!

When surgeons attack!

Picture - Darren Morris

March 2009

I'd like to kick off this report by congratulating Owain and Sherryn Roberts on their recent marriage - Best Wishes to you both.

March kicked off with the 'Bont Stages'. Barry John was competing in his recently acquired Subaru Impreza. He finished 3rd overall and second in class. Well done to him.

In my rallying world, March means 'West Cork Rally'. 2009 is the fifth consecutive year that our members have arranged to spectate on this famous event. We had a group of eight people on this year's trip, two more than last year. The weather on Thursday and Friday was quite poor with quite a lot of rain, but the sun shone on the two days of the rally, we couldn't have asked for better weather or a better welcome at the Bay View guest house. A newbie on our trip was Steve Hawthorn, notorious for crashing into Mike and Phil's hire van on rally GB. He would come to grief on this trip too - he managed to break the key in the bathroom lock and get himself locked in the toilet (I'm glad it didn't happen to me, I'd never live it down). Dai Wilmer was laughing too much to go and get help but our hosts finally found a spare key and released him. His new name for the rest of the weekend was 'David Blaine'! Sunday's spectating would also prove eventful. Mike Frayne parked his 4x4 in a field then went to spectate. While he was away, the farmer turned up with a big tractor and blocked the field gateway. Luckily, Mike and co found another gateway to escape through! Sunday night was our last night in Clonakilty so we made the most of it, although some of our group tried a bit too hard and were a bit 'under the weather' on Monday morning - you know who you are! Thanks once again to Miriam and Noreen for making us welcome at the Bay View, I'm sure we will be back next year.

Two dry days of rallying meant lots of pictures being taken. A few are posted in our 'Some Members' page. More pictures are posted in our 'Amman' group on Facebook.

Saturday 28th March saw the running of Llanelli Motor Club's Rali Elli which proved very popular. Best result was Barry John/Matthew Wood-Griffiths finishing 10th Overall and 1st in Class - Well Done to you both. For full results, see 'Recent Results'.

Sunday 29th March saw the running of Forresters Car Club Tour of Caerwent which enjoyed a full entry. Best result was Rob and Laura Tout finishing 5th Overall and 3rd in Class. Another good club result was Graham Watkins/Mark Powell with 20th Overall and 2nd in Class. Well done to both crews and thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

With summer fast approaching, organisation is well underway for the 7th Welsh Endurance Road Rally. Our organisers have worked hard to develop the rally and provide a challenging event for experts and novices alike. This year's rally should be one of the best yet, roll on August!

 A 6R4 enjoying a run in the West Cork lanes

 Picture - Darren Morris

February 2009

February kicked off with the Rali Cwm Gwendraeth. The recent wintry weather left icy conditions for the competitors to deal with on the Sunday morning, and  Amman were once again on hand to run the stage arrival/start. Club president Roy Whitney turned out as usual, this day being his 55th birthday! The first stage was delayed so that crews could have a non competitive drive around the stage to test conditions ahead of the first stage. After a freezing cold start to the day, the rain came, which kept the competitors 'on their toes'! Club members Rob Tout and Peter Lloyd would dominate the day, With Peter being the eventual winner in his new Impreza S12. Well done to all club crews and Thanks to those that turned out to marshal on a bitterly cold day.

The Rali Bro Caron took place on Saturday 21st. The only club crew out on this popular event were Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths in Barry's Audi 80 Quattro, they would finish 45th overall and 9th in class. A number of club members turned out to spectate on this event, with some then driving down to Epynt the following morning for the Tour of Epynt. One Facebook comment was "I'm not doing that again!" (I know the feeling, I did a Cilwendeg/Pembrey double header once - never again!).

Sunday 22nd saw the Port Talbot MC - Tour of Epynt take place on the military ranges. It was another cold, but dry day. Club crews experienced mixed fortunes, best result being Rob Tout/Dan Holley finishing 10th overall. See Recent results for full details. Dylan 'Smiley' Harries came along with his camera and took a number of good photos, some of which I wanted to post on this website. As he attempted to upload the photos to his pc, he accidentally erased them all! He was quite rightly gutted. He won't make that mistake again!  Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

From the pages of Ammanition - Rali Bro Caron - 26th/27th February 1994

Driver: Chris Birt

Navigator: Rob Liles

Car: Ford Escort MkI RS2000

Sponsor: Autoglym Car Care Products LTD

Chris picked me up in the Mercedes Lorry with the gleaming MK1 sitting pretty on the back - now this is the way  to go rallying. Got to Lampeter and went through noise & scrutineering OK with the scrutineer taking longer to sign the slip than what he did checking the car. Went to sign on but couldn't until we signed our marshal on first - pathetic!. Anyway, thanks to Malcolm 'Mr Bean' Walters and Gordon '12 inch' Thomas (or is it 1/2 inch) for being our marshals. As there was not much to do in so much time at the Black Lion Hotel, the crowd of us from Amman killed time by counting Mr Ginn's pints and debating how old Gof really is. (answers on a postcard please). As the weather turned really miserable, we left through the famous arch at 12.01am being car 51 away - last but one in class 2. The first selective started on a white close to Llandybydder and I had already decided that tonight would be the first time for me to try 'plotting on the go' - not to be recommended on rough whites though. It appeared to work well early on but the advantage in saving time resulted in a lack of accuracy plotting; I had a wrong approach to a triangle at PCI and the stroppy females on that control would not give in - one fail!. The route was quite enjoyable what I saw of  it  with a big emphasis on whities, of which two had to be pencilled in on the map as they were tracks through fields with Castrol arrows in place pointing the way. I think Chris was enjoying too, the farmyard sections had very greasy surfaces and he seemed to be performing happily to the spectators. We saw a couple of bad accidents throughout the night but one of the best was Graham & Alun who'd parked their 4-door MkII upright against a lamp post only 200 yards before the finish of the first half!!. Got  to petrol where the Police were busy talking to two competitors who'd alledged they'd been shot at by a farmer. Second half was considerably shorter than the first and it  all went OK with us getting back to the finish by 5am for a pint. Didn't bother having breakfast because we just wanted to have an idea of our result before going home. However, 4 1/2 hours later we discovered that we had clinched 2nd in class which was Chris's first award on a rally - well worth the wait. Many thanks to all the Amman marshals who turned out on such a bad night and also to Chris for getting the car round  unscathed, unmarked and undented, but it  was dirty!      

   Finished 18th overall and 2nd in class 2.

More next month.

 January 2009

After two weeks off work for Christmas (where did the time go?), January proved to be an extremely busy month. First up was the Historic Rally Car Register (HRCR) open day at Gaydon, which I attended to promote the club, Red Kite Stages and Welsh Endurance Rally. I met a lot of people, some showing interest in our events, some had already planned to do our events and others had taken part in previous Amman run events. I felt it was well worth attending the day and we will hopefully benefit from the extra promotion on our future rallies. Thanks to those that provided information/dvd's for the day. A picture of our display is included below.

The weekend of the 17th/18th was of course, the Red Kite Stages weekend. A big topic of conversation was of course - "What will the weather be like?". I think it's fair to say that we were quite lucky, with a largely dry day on Saturday (setup day), and then another dry day for the rally itself. A storm blew in on Saturday evening which caused terrible driving conditions for those who needed to travel, Our Chief Marshal Gavin Pickett unfortunately suffered damage to his car in the high winds, but luckily, no one was hurt.

The event itself ran quite smoothly and was well received by everyone that took part in their various capacities. I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone that supported the rally, we couldn't do it without you. One of the more unusual contributions were 300 packs of Brace's Bakery Welshcakes, which were distributed to our rally's marshals. I have put a picture of the delivery below.

Our final event of January was our Annual Presentation Dinner, which was held at the Glyn Clydach Hotel. Thanks to everyone who turned up on the night, and Congratulations to all award winners. Overall Club Champion is Tony Derrick, who had a table full of trophies by the end of the night! We had a few special items which were auctioned, thanks to those that placed bids. Some of our award winners can be seen in the 'Some Members' page.

December 2008

December kicked off with the 'Rally GB Quiz and Buffet' which was held on Wednesday 3rd. The evening also included a raffle, video show and rally driving games. We had a good turnout of members, and it was good to see people enjoying themselves. Thanks to everybody who provided food or items for the evening.

Next up was Wales Rally GB, which was once again well supported by our members. Various committee/club members had been asked to support the rally, with Mike 'Indiana' Jones and Phil Woodhouse running equipment in a hired Transit van. Their event would unfortunately come to grief when they collided with a Vauxhall Frontera near Walters Arena. Both vehicles were badly damaged and Phil Woodhouse was taken to hospital with chest pains, but later released. I'm glad to report that no one was seriously hurt in the incident. It turned out that the driver of the Vauxhall Frontera is a work colleague of mine. It's a small world! 

Wednesday 17th saw our annual 'Fun Christmas Quiz' take place. In the past this quiz had been hosted by John Morgan and Roy Whitney - thank you both - but they felt it was time that someone else took the reins. Craig and Sue Rowlands stepped in and provided an excellent quiz. We had the usual stupid/funny answers and (once again) a joint effort at downing the yard of ale at the end of the night! Thanks to everyone that supplied food/items for the evening, and a special thanks to Sue and Craig for organising the quiz.

Sunday 28th December saw us travel down to Pembrey for our final marshalling outing of the year. It was a dry but very cold day down at Pembrey, I was freezing cold and wished I'd stayed in bed! It proved to be a successful day for 4 of our 5 competing crews. Rob/Laura Tout would take their second Pembrey win, and Alan 'Gof' Williams would win his class and finish 3rd overall. James Tout finished well in his Peugeot, and Matthew Wood-Griffiths would finish his first stage rally in his Peugeot 205. The only club crew to suffer bad luck were Mike Leather/Tony Derrick in Mike's recently acquired Escort Mk1, they would retire early on. I have included a picture of them below. Thanks to everyone who marshalled on the day.

Happy New Year to you all.

Mike Leather/Tony Derrick, Escort Mk1

Photo: Darren Morris

November 2008

The first Saturday of November is famous in rallying circles for one thing - the Cilwendeg Road Rally. The cattle market in Newcastle Emlyn gets filled with cars instead of cows, and the evening is often accompanied with fireworks. I navigated on the event in 1996 for Gareth Liles in the 'Little Rusty Fiesta', we finished 6th in class and 25th overall.  We later won an award for 'wall modification' at our Club's following presentation dinner!

Fast forward to 2008, club members Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths would tackle the famous event in Barry's recently acquired Audi 80 Quattro (1.8 litre), They were first reserve entry and got a run which saw them finish 1st in class 2, and 23rd overall. This result is made all the more impressive considering Barry paid only £250 for the car. Barry was awarded 'The Emlyn Trophy' which had been won previously by such people as Melvyn Evans (1985), Peter Lloyd (1983) and Alan 'Gof' Williams (1982). Matthew was awarded the 'Barclays Bank plc - Cilwendeg Rally Challenge Cup' which had also been won by some famous names including Gareth Lloyd (1989) and Eurig Evans (1993). Well done to you Both. A picture of Barry and Matthew with their awards can be seen in the 'Some Members' page on this site.

By the time this article is published, Christmas will be only a few weeks away. I would like to thank everyone for their support in 2008, and wish you all a Merry Christmas and good fortune in 2009.

October 2008

October kicked off with the Peter Lloyd Stages at Pembrey, which was my first competitive outing for many years as I had offered to co-drive for Matthew Wood-Griffiths in his Peugeot 205. It had been a wet few days before the event and we were expecting the worse. When we arrived at Pembrey it was raining, but the rain stopped about an hour before the start and it stayed dry all day. There was, however, a lot of standing water in certain places which caused our car to cut out on SS1. This lost us several minutes but we got the car started and managed to keep going. On the next few stages we had a quite a few 'moments' including a near 360 degree spin on beach road! Matthew had never driven at Pembrey before but after a few stages was getting into the groove and gaining in confidence. Our luck, however, would run out on SS5 when we spun off onto the grass and something broke in the gearbox - we had a 'box full of neutrals'! Thanks to Matthew for the the very entertaining outing.

The highlight of the day was seeing Rob and Laura Tout win the event in their Mitsubishi Lancer. Rob has been competing for many years and has scored some good results in the past, this victory was well deserved. My congratulations to them both. Full results are shown in 'Recent Results'. Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

Our Annual General Meeting took place on Wednesday 15th October. It was good to see some new faces attend and take an interest in the club (I hope we didn't scare them away!). I would like to thank everyone that have supported the club this last year, a club is not a club without its members. I have to admit that I was not at my best on the night and actually struggled to read out the minutes of the previous AGM. I think I must have been tired.  More sleep needed - less work needed!

Talking of work, our Red Kite Stages organisers have been hard at work promoting the 2009 event which takes place on Sunday January 18th. As always, we need your help to run this event. A variety of different jobs need covering, please contact Chief Marshal Gavin Pickett if you are available to help. Another date already secured for 2009 is the 31st January for our Annual presentation Dinner, which takes place at the Glyn Clydach Hotel. Contact Barry John for more details.

Late August/September 2008

We had a free weekend after running the 6th Welsh Enduro, then it was up to Epynt for the Mewla National Rally, After running two stage starts, we only needed to provide radio cover for the remaining stages. This gave me a chance to take some photos which are posted on our 'Amman' group on facebook. We had a couple of club crews compete on the event but both suffered bad luck - see Recent Results. Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

September kicked off with a visit to Ireland for the Wexford Stages. It was raining heavily as we left home on Friday morning, and our fast sailing to Rosslare was in doubt, but as soon as we arrived in Fishguard, the weather cleared. Our 'FastCat' sailing proved a little bumpy, which proved too much for Cerith 'Daffy' Davies' stomach! Meanwhile Dylan 'Smiley' Harries had bought a bottle of Poteen (Irish Moonshine) which contained 70% alcohol. No prizes for guessing what sort of state he got into! We had a wet start on Saturday morning which provided us with some good 'bumps and slides'. The weather would clear in the afternoon and it stayed dry for the rest of the weekend, a welcome break from all the recent rain.

The weekend of the 13th/14th Saw some of us travel to Belgium for the 'Tour of Flanders' rally, While no less than eight club crews competed on the Brawdy Stages on Sunday 14th (See Recent Results). Our trip to Belgium benefited from excellent weather (apart from a thunder storm on Thursday night), a good time was had by all. Terry Frayne has written a brief report on both Wexford and Flanders rallies - click HERE.

Our last rally outing of the month was the Patriot Stages held at Caerwent. The rally had a full entry of 100 cars which made for a long day for everyone - especially the recovery crews. The Caerwent kerbs claimed a number of victims, some of which proved difficult to recover which caused delays for the following stages. I left home at 5.30 am and didn't get home until nearly 8pm! A big thanks to all those that came and marshalled on the day.

July/Early August 2008

I was forced to 'sit out' much of July due to my recovery after having my gall bladder removed, but the organisers of the 6th Welsh Endurance Road Rally have been extremely busy making preparations for the event. I was declared fit on Friday 18th, which meant I was able to attend the Swansea Bay Rally the following day. It was a busy day, with our club providing a start and finish timing crew for the rally. Dai Wilmer had come along in his VW camper so Gavin Pickett's daughters spent much of the day watching films on his new tv/dvd player. We had a few light showers of rain but we stayed dry. Thanks to everyone that came along and helped on the day.

The following Sunday (26th) saw us travel north to Sweet Lamb for the Coracle Stages. It was a very dry day which meant that the rally cars were throwing up huge clouds of dust. The sun was very strong and there were swarms of insects to fend off. By the end of the day, we were burnt, bitten and blasted by dust. We were glad to get out of there! Thanks to those that marshalled on the day. Facebook members can view my pictures from the rally - either from my profile or from the 'Amman' Group.

Another weekend, another rally. This time it was the Harry Flatters Rally on Epynt. I was allocated a radio position in the 'Irish Village', but due to its location, I could barely hear radio control, and the situation was made worse whenever clouds came over. We were once again lucky with the weather, with no rain to speak of. Jeff, Achmed and Nigel put their Land Rover to good use when they towed two stricken cars to a nearby junction so that they could be recovered by their service crews. Thanks to them and everyone else that came out on the day.

The 6th Welsh Endurance Road Rally - 9th/10th August

After 3 dry weekends, the heavens opened. Then they opened a bit further, and then further still! I found it quite amazing that despite the horrific weather, the competitors and various officials 'just got on with it' and didn't seem at all bothered by the rain. I suppose they are used to it after the last few years. Parts of the route became lakes (for example - Walters Arena), and other parts of the route became rivers (for example - Onllwyn Bar). Club stalwart and Clerk of Course John Morgan resorted to stripping off and wading in to deep water to clear a blocked pipe in Walters Arena. This meant that water would drain from the road and ease the passage of rally competitors - True Dedication. John and his fellow organisers did a superb job of running the 6th Welsh Enduro, the feedback from competitors has been brilliant. WELL DONE TO YOU ALL.

I would like to thank everyone that marshalled or officiated on the weekend, and thanks to those that came out on Friday and Monday to set up/take down and repair, we could not have done it without you.

 Tent Tribulations

I have been keeping an eye on the rally forums on the run up to the Endurance Rally. The following post by Rob Lloyd (car 21) caught my attention -
"Ordered a fancy "QuickPitch" tent off Amazon a while back. Weeks later, and still no tent. Give the company (not Amazon) a ring to find out that they had sold me a tent that was not in stock, despite the website saying two were available. Was then told that a delivery was expected shortly and I would be informed A.S.A.P. Another few days later and still no update. Rang them again and found that the delivery HAD arrived but my choice was not in stock, but I could have a pink one if I wished. After a rather vulgar outburst involving tent poles and sensitive areas I was given an instant refund.
A couple of hours ago, my sister asks if I need anything from ASDA. I rather jokingly said "A cheap tent please!", and she returned with this:



"See you in 2 weeks, I'll be in the gayest tent known to man" .

A fellow forum member saw the benefit of such a tent and replied; "At least you will be able to find it in the dark"! 

June 2008

Our club only had one 'official' outing in June, which was the Midsummer Caerwent Stages on the15th. Our role on the day was to run the stage finishes, and our location meant that our marshals were covered by a large canopy to keep them dry should it rain or to shade them in strong sunlight. As it turned out, we had a bit of both. We had no less than 10 club members attend as marshals on the day. Thanks to you all. We also had a number of members compete on the event, their results are posted in 'Recent Results'. As usual, the venue claimed many 'casualties' with only 40 odd cars finishing from around 80 starters.

The following weekend (21st/22nd) would see the running of the 1000 Lanes Road Rally. This event started in the Upper Swansea Valley and was contested by a large number of our club members. It proved to be a tough event with one club crew would make it to the end. Barry John and Matthew Wood Griffiths finished 21st overall and 3rd in class in Barry's recently acquired 1000cc VW Polo. He paid only £60 for the car but spent many hours preparing it for the event and fitted uprated suspension, bucket seats, harnesses, etc. the car is now for sale for £650 - Contact Barry for more details.

For some 15 months I've been suffering with my gall bladder which has caused me a lot of pain and misery. I finally had the gall bladder removed on the 25th June which will hopefully cure my illness. Thanks to the staff of Singleton Hospital who took good care of me. The timing of the operation fell at the worst possible time, but I felt I could not afford to give up the opportunity to get myself sorted before something serious went wrong. Thanks to everyone for their support during my illness.

As I write this, our Welsh Endurance Road Rally is just five weeks away. The rally organisers are facing a very busy time and the club has been asked to marshal on a number of rallies in the coming weeks (A full list is shown on our 'Club Activities' page). Please assist if you can, our sport simply wouldn't exist without volunteer help.  

More next Month.

May 2008

The club's first outing in May was the RDP Welsh Rally on Sunday 4th. A number of club members took part in this event, and  our club ran various stage starts/finishes throughout the day. I did not attend this event myself as I was still suffering after a recent episode of gall stone pains and did not want to risk being ill on top of a mountain in the 'middle of nowhere', although I'm quite sure I would have received better medical help than that available in Morriston Hospital. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day - members' results are shown on our 'Recent Results' page.

Some club members organised a Karting Day at Carew Karting on Saturday 11th. I went along but decided not to take part. After taking a few photos, I decided to have a go at shooting some movie clips. It proved to be well worthwhile because there were quite a few incidents which got filmed - although I did miss the biggest crash of the day! Pictures of the event winners are shown on our 'Some Members' page. After leaving the karting event, some of us decided to call up to Llys-y-fran to watch the hillclimb. There was a variety of cars taking part, ranging from a single seater racing car to a new BMW coupe. When I got home, I decided to have a go at making a film covering the karting event (where did all those hours go?). If anyone wants a copy, let me know.

Our next marshalling outing was at Caerwent for the Leukaemia Historic Rally on Saturday 17th. There was an interesting mix of cars taking part including some Reliant three wheelers, one of which rounded a corner near our control on two wheels. I haven't laughed so much in ages! Club regular Abi Somerfield was navigating in a red coloured Reliant (or PIG) which was painted like Starsky and Hutch's car! I have put a picture below.   Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

The bank holiday weekend saw a large 4x4 event take place at Walter's Arena. The All Wheel Drive Club held their 40th anniversary event which included trialing, orienteering and a comp safari. I called up on Saturday afternoon (before the rain started), and had a look around the camp site and watched some trialling. There were many weird and wonderful creations on show, including a Mitsubishi pick up truck fitted with Unimog axles, hydraulic suspension and no less than 3 winches! I have included a picture below. Jeff and Stacey Morris entered Sunday's Comp Safari in their Green Racer (see last month's photo) and finished 4th in class and 15th overall. Well done to them.

As we head into the summer, preparations are being made for our Welsh Endurance Road Rally which runs on 9th and 10th August. We will of course, be looking for assistance to run this two day event which takes place in and around the Neath Valley. We will be setting up on Friday and Saturday, then will need marshals/officials for Saturday and Sunday, then clearing away on Sunday afternoon. If you can help on any (or all) of these days, please contact Gavin Pickett. The event will include a night road rally, which is always popular with our members. We could not run our events without YOUR assistance.

More next month.

 A few pictures from May

The Flying Pig! Photo: Abi Somerfield

The Mitsimog! Photo: Darren Morris

 April 2008

April kicked off with the Port Talbot Motor Club's Red Dragon Rally. We had an excellent turnout of club members and assisted the event by running a stage start, a stage finish and several block cars. It was great to see so many of our members 'out in force' on a rally. It reminded me of my early days as a club member(1990-1991) when we would regularly have an army of members attending events. I would like to say a big Thanks to everyone that turned out on the day.

Saturday 12th saw the running of the Rali Bro Teifi. Committee Members Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths entered the Rally in Barry's recently resprayed Talbot Avenger. They were doing well until they collided with a steel gate post in a farmyard, and the resulting damage is too severe to warrant a repair. Luckily, neither crew member were hurt and Barry (ever the optimist!) is now building a four door Escort replacement.

The Pirelli International Rally took place on Friday and Saturday 18th/19th of May. Club Member Tony Derrick co-drove for Andrew Hockridge in a Citroen C2R2. They beat all the other C2R2's and finished second in the S1600 class. Tony then made the long journey all the way down to Pembrokeshire to co-drive for fellow club member Darren Tancock on the Bob Shaw Memorial Stages at Talbenny. Several other members took part in this event and Vice Chairman Terry Frayne wrote a report of the rally which is posted on the front page of our website. Thanks to all marshals on the day.

A 'Tabletop Rally' was April's round of our indoor championship, and a number of members tried their luck at the plotting and timekeeping exercise. Quickest on the night was Barry John (Sideways Squad) with a time of just 23 minutes. All the cans of Energy drink that he consumes must have turbocharged his brain! Or was it the Stella?

The Glamorgan Off Road Club (or GORC) organised a Competition Safari at Walters Arena on Sunday 27th April. Club Regular Jeff Morris Helped organise the event then took part in his V8 Landrover Racer. He was co-driven by various family members throughout the day and finished 6th overall despite a misfire. Jeff explained that trying to cure the misfire wasn't an option because the engine bay was covered in a thick layer of wet mud. Trying to dismantle and rebuild the vehicles electrical system would have ended in disaster! A number of our club members turned out to assist on the event which suffered a wet start, but dried up nicely in the afternoon. I managed to take some pictures of the competitors during the day, and a picture of Jeff is included below. Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

More next month. 

Jeff Morris in action at Walter's Arena

Photo:  Darren Morris

 March 2008

My last monthly roundup was submitted too soon to include our 'Cawl night' which took place on Wednesday 27th February in early celebration of St David's Day. We offered our members free cawl, welshcakes and we held a Welsh based quiz with prizes. The evening had a fair turnout of members but not as many as last year. Perhaps we should give away free beer as well (Smiley's suggestion!). Thanks to those that helped organise the evening.

March Kicked off with the Port Talbot Motor Club Tour of Epynt. It was a dry, but very cold day up on the ranges but at least it wasn't raining torrentially like last year. We had a number of club members competing on the  event. The better results were Peter Lloyd in his Subaru Impreza with 3rd overall and Rob Tout with 2nd in class in the Mitsubishi Lancer. Thanks to those that braved the cold and helped us run stage starts and a stage finish, and Jeff and his mates for doing a block car.

The weekend of 15th/16th March saw the running of the West Cork Rally in Clonakilty. As usual, a number of club members visited the event. I have included a brief account below.

Our last outing of the month was the 'Tour of Caerwent' organised by Forresters Car Club. This Event Always runs on the Sunday that the clocks go forward one hour, which means getting up at around 04.20am (we must be bonkers!). To be fair, we were rewarded with a beautiful sunny day at Caerwent whilst the Swansea valley got soaked all day - worth getting up for. Thanks to the hardy souls who came along to marshal. The day proved to last longer than expected because when I got home, I realised that the items that I'd put on Ebay to sell were now finishing at 10pm instead of 9pm because of the hour time difference, I could have gone to bed but curiosity got the better of me!

West Cork Rally - 15th/16th March 2008

I had spent the previous weekend in bed thanks to the 'Lurgy' (or man flu if you prefer ), I could have just as well gone to bed at 10pm on the Thursday night rather than leave home for the long journey ahead, I was still suffering and the weather forecast for the weekend didn't look good. I'm glad I went, as we were rewarded with an enjoyable weekend. Our group was made up of Myself, Dai Wilmer and Leighton Lewis in Dai's VW Bora, and Mike Frayne, John Oliver and Mike's friend Neil in their Mitsubishi Delica 4x4. This became known as ' The Angry Cat'!

After heavy storms early in the week, The early Friday crossing from Fishguard to Rosslare proved very calm and we did not experience any delays. After getting off the ferry, we stopped in Wexford for some (cheap) breakfast. I had to have the low fat option of scrambled eggs on toast not to aggravate my dodgy gall bladder. We made a further stop in Cork to empty our bladders and get some refreshments, then continued to Clonakilty.

As we drove down the hill into to the town, we noticed a large billboard with 'Vote Deirdre' written on it. We later discovered that local woman Deirdre Archbold had entered a television talent show called 'Your a Star' (similar to X factor). The town had gone Deirdre crazy, with posters everywhere urging people to 'VOTE DEIRDRE'. There were even rally cars carrying them! Our Landlady even coaxed us to text vote for her as it was the final weekend of the show. Much to the disappointment of Clonakilty folk, she eventually finished third, and I had wasted £3 on text votes, I want my money back!

After drinking far too much on friday night, we ventured out to spectate on Saturday morning. It rained lightly at first, but then dried up nicely for the afternoon. We visited the Famous Fisher's cross jump where cars jump across a main road. As I had taken my camera with me, I had a go taking some action shots. My best picture is printed below. The highlight of this location was seeing an Opel Manta get seriously airborn! I decided to sit out the last spectating location due to some hip pain, but played with Dai Wilmer's PSP and listened for updates on the Wales v France rugby match. We got back to our guest house in time to see the end of the rugby match, and see Wales win another grand slam. Result! Our Saturday night out was a quiet affair, and we headed home earlier than expected.

Sunday Morning saw more light rain, which proved quite entertaining at the hairpin bend on top of a hill. A number of cars skidded out of control and wiped out the hay bales! The last spectator location was also on top of a hill, giving an excellent view of the stage. A Honda Civic caused drama when it rolled just past our junction. The driver got out and gave the car 'a real good kicking'. I remembered the old saying 'A bad workman always blames his tools'!

Our Sunday night out was a busy one. We ended up in De Barra's Folk Club watching an excellent local band. The place was bouncing because it was St Patrick's day tomorrow. With Monday being St Patrick's Day, our usual stop in Waterford was hampered by diversions caused by the parade that was taking place. We eventually found somewhere to park, had lunch and a look around the shops. This proved quite eventful when one of our party 'passed very smelly wind' in a record store - It cleared the place like a bomb scare! 

We left Waterford and drove up to Rosslare, then stopped at a hotel overlooking the harbour for some liquid refreshments before sailing home. Thanks to John Oliver and Terry Frayne for organising what proved to be an excellent trip. 

More next Month.

January and February 2008

January and February have been very busy months with the Red Kite Stages and the Annual Awards Presentation Dinner taking much of our time. The Red Kite Stages ran successfully for the eighth time on January 20th. The event has grown from being a 'start of year shakedown' to a multi-championship rally which incorporates the 'Red Kite Historic Stages' and the 'Red Kite Historic Challenge'. The workload involved is huge, and gets bigger every year! I would like to pay tribute to the rally organisers for their efforts in running what has proved to be an excellent event. I won't name names because I'm bound to forget someone, but you know who you are. Well done to you all.

I would like to thank everyone who has supported the event, including the Competitors, Officials and Marshals, and our Sponsors and Advertisers. Let's hope that 2009 continues the rally's success.

February kicked off with the Wyedean rally on Saturday 9th. Club member Nathan Davies entered the rally in his Vauxhall Nova, but unfortunately rolled on the first stage. Both Nathan and his co-driver were OK but the car is a bit 'the worse for wear'! Paul Bevan had a much better day co-driving for Roger Taylor in a Ford Escort, finishing 1st in class. Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

Later that day, our Annual Awards Presentation Dinner took place at the Glyn Clydach Hotel. I have to admit that holding the Dinner on the same day as the Wyedean was not the best decision, but January and February have a very crowded calendar with several other presentation dinners and rallies taking place. It was suggested that we have an Awards Evening at the club on a Wednesday night, but many felt that we should have a Presentation Dinner. I apologise to those people inconvenienced. Thanks to those that attended the evening, especially those who rushed back from the Wyedean.

Sunday 17th February saw the running of the Rali Cwm Gwendraeth at Pembrey. We were blessed with a nice sunny day. Club members Rob and Laura Tout were entered in their Mitsubishi, but retired with mechanical failure. James Tout had also entered the rally in his Peugeot 106, but also retired with a broken driveshaft. Not a good day for the Tout family! Thanks to those that marshalled on the day.

February 23rd saw the running of the Rali Bro Caron. Club members James Thomas and C.J. Taylor entered the rally but were forced to retire with brake problems. Our members are not having much luck this year!

 More next month.

July Quiz - Teams 

Quinton Stages - 4th July

Paul Bevan was co-driving for Geoff Whittaker. They finished 41st overall and 2nd in class.

Well done to them.

Pembrey Autotest - 4th July

Barry John finished 10th overall.

Seyyan John finished 11th overall and won First Lady Driver.

Well done to them.

June Quiz

Gremlin Road Rally - 6th/7th June

C.J. Taylor was navigating for Neil Holverson, they failed to finish. Better luck next time!

May Quiz - Teams 

May Quiz - Individual 

Plains Rally - 16th May

Paul Bevan was co-driving for Geoff Whitaker, they finished 63rd overall and 3rd in class.

Well done to them.

Tour of Caerwent - 29th March

Rob and Laura Tout finished 5th overall and 3rd in class.

Graham Watkins and Mark Powell finished 20th overall and second in class.

James Tout and Jordan Jones finished 51st overall and 7th in class.

Well done to these crews.

Denzil Williams and Dai Bevan were non-starters.

Thanks to those who marshalled on the day.

Llanelli MC: Rali Elli - 28th/29th March

Leighton & Robert Howells finished 9th Overall and won the Novices Class in their 1400cc Nova.

Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths finished 10th overall and won the Semi-Experts class in their Audi Quattro.

C.J. Taylor was navigating but went OTL and did not finish.

Well done to these crews.

Leighton & Robert Howells on Rali Elli

Photo: Brian Gilbert (Photosport)

Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths on Rali Elli

Photo: Brian Gilbert (Photosport)

March Tabletop Rally - Individual 

March Tabletop Rally - Teams 

February Quiz - Individual 

February Quiz - Teams

Gwendraeth Valley Motor Club Rali Cwm Gwendraeth - 8th February

Peter Lloyd and Graham Handley won the event in their Subaru Impreza S12.

Rob and Laura Tout finished 2nd overall and first in class in the Mitsubishi Lancer.

Darren Tancock and Tony Derrick finished 25th overall and 3rd in class.

Cerith Davies and Barry John finished 28th overall and 9th in class.

Graham Watkins and Mark Powell finished 31st overall and 5th in class in Grahams newly acquired Escort.

Well Done to these crews.

Kevin and Sharron Davies Failed to finish after they rolled the Evo on its side.

James Tout and Jordan Jones failed to finish after suffering gearbox problems.

Get Connected Wyedean Forest Rally - 7th February

Chris Davies navigating for Sara Williams finished 28th overall and 9th in class, Well done to them.

Nathan Davies failed to finish after suffering overheating problems.

January Quiz - Individual 

January Quiz - Teams 

Red Kite Stages and Red Kite Historic Stages

Follow the link on our homepage for full Red Kite Stages results.

Cambrian Road Rally 17th January

Sion Roberts and Tony Derrick finished 4th in class and 23rd overall.

Owen Roberts and Sherryn Sanigar failed to finish when their exhaust manifold snapped.

__________________________________

Charity Donations

As a token of our appreciation for the warm welcome given by the residents of Llandovery, we have recently made two £250 donations to local charities.

The Red Kite Stages runs from the town every January using the Castle Hotel as its headquarters. We are also grateful to have use of the facilities of the Cattle Mart, Rugby Club and local Pet Food Supplier. The Neath Air Cadets collect the parking fees which the Club uses for donations to local causes.

Club members met Elizabeth Thomas, Chair of the Hospital League of Friends and Joanie Simon and Mair James from the Llandovery and District Friends of the Blind. Also present to lend his support was County Councillor Ivor Jackson who has supported the event in his role of Mayor in past years.  The evening was organised by past Mayor Gina Jones who enthusiastically flagged away every competitor from the town on this year’s event.

Our recent Charity Presentation in Llandovery

 Photo; Terry Frayne

Following the Club's recent success, we have also made a £500 donation to the Welsh Air Ambulance. Club members met representatives at Swansea Airport to present them with the cheque which will be used to fund the vital service. We would like to thank everyone that has supported our Club in recent times which has enabled us to make these donations, and best wishes to the three charities involved.

Our recent Charity Presentation at Swansea Airport

 Photo; Gavin Pickett

Championship Success for Trevor Baynham and Anthony Bailey
 

Despite a DNF on the recent Woodpecker Stages, Trevor Baynham and Anthony Bailey secured victory in the Pirelli MSA National Gravel Championship - Mintex Two Wheel drive Challenge. They have won this category with one round of the championship still to run. Congratulations to them both.  

 Trevor Baynham and Anthony Bailey in their Ford Escort

Photo: JMS Photographic.co.uk

Brawdy Stages 

Congratulations to Robert and Laura Tout on their victory on the recent Brawdy Stages. They won the event by more than a minute in largely dry conditions by more than a minute and a half from Jason Davies and Paul Williams in their Ford Escort. Another member to finish in the top ten was Sherryn Roberts who co-drove for Carwyn Evans in his Ford Escort. from a seeding of number 30, they finished 6th overall and 3rd in class. Well done top them. Full results to follow.

Rob and Laura Tout on the Brawdy Stages

Photo: JMS Photographic.co.uk

Mewla National Rally - 30th August

It was a day of mixed fortunes for our club members on the Mewla National Rally. Peter Lloyd and Graham Handley won the event in their Subaru Impreza, but missed out on a second 'Legend Fires Epynt Challenge' title. They pushed hard in difficult conditions to take victory on a day that spelt disaster for several crews including club members Kevin and Nathan Davies who rolled their Mitsubishi Lancer on SS4. Fortunately, they were both unhurt. Robert Tout and Dan Holley had a steady run to 10th overall and 2nd in class in their Mitsubishi Lancer, while Graham Watkins and Mark Powell brought their Escort home in 31st place overall.

Rob Tout and Dan Holley on the Mewla National Rally

Photo: Dylan Harries

Some of our members relaxing with a pint after retiring from the Classic Tracks Rally - 24th May

(From left to right) Barry John, Neil Rees, Mike Frayne, John Moulding and Matthew Wood-Griffiths.

Photo: Terry Frayne

Welsh Endurance Road Rally CANCELLED

Please click HERE for a statement by the rally organisers.

Club members' successes on the RDP Welsh Rally, 3rd May 

Club members' double success on the Rali Elli

Leighton & Robert Howells finished an amazing 9th Overall and won the Novices Class in their 1400cc Nova.

Barry John and Matthew Wood-Griffiths won the Semi-Experts Class and finished 10th Overall in their Audi Quattro.

The Quattro in action on the tracks within Pembrey racing circuit

Photo: Brian Gilbert (Photosport)

Club Members' Pembrey Success

The recent Rali Cwm Gwendraeth at Pembrey saw Amman club members finish First and Second overall. Robert and Laura Tout set the early pace in their Mitsubishi Lancer in icy conditions, whilst Peter Lloyd and graham Handley got to grips with Peter's new Subaru Impreza S12.

The icy conditions would turn to rain and standing water during the afternoon, and Rob and Laura pushed hard in the hope of a hat trick (they had won the last two Pembrey rallies and were pushing for a third win). Peter Lloyd, however, soon gained confidence in the difficult conditions and took victory by 32 seconds, leaving the Tout duo to take the runners up spot. Congratulations to both crews on well deserved results. For full results, please click on 'Recent Results' in the side pane.

Peter Lloyd's new Impreza S12

Photo: Darren Morris

Rob and Laura Tout take runners-up spot

Photo: Darren Morris

Annual Club Dinner and Prizegiving, 31st January

See the Chairman's Chat for more (click on left pane).

2008 Overall Club Champion Tony Derrick

Photo: Darren Morris

 RED KITE on Sunday 18th January

Michael O'Brian/Paul Spooner in their Ford Focus WRC03 were the convincing winners of our own Club's Red Kite  Stages by more than a minute, while Terry Brown/Den Golding in their Ford Escort RS1800 won the Red Kite Historic Stages by a similar margin.

For full results please go to:  www.amcrallyresults.co.uk

WINNERS, RED KITE STAGES  -  Michael O'Brien / Paul Spooner 

Photo: www.garyjonesrallypics.co.uk

CHRISTMAS PEMBREY STAGES RESULTS

Robert Tout does it again, FIRST OVERALL! See all our crews' achievements in Recent Results; see also Chairman's Chat and Meet the Members (click on Some Members in the side pane).

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Rob Tout wins at Pembrey (again)

Photo: Dylan Harries

2008 WELSH ENDURANCE ROAD RALLY - 9th & 10th August

Our own 2-day Welsh Enduro was held in South Wales in pouring rain, but the enthusiastic competitors have again voted it a hit in spite of the atrocious weather. Please click HERE for results and photos.

The Outright Winners in Walters Arena

OWEN TURNER and ANDREW DADSWELL

Rover 200, 1396 cc

Photo: Brian Gilbert Photosport

INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIP

MARSHALS CHAMPIONSHIP

OVERALL CLUB CHAMPION

                Paul Bevan

COMMITTEE'S AWARD

                Brian Thomas

CLUB PERSONALITY OF 2006

                Jayne Morgan

5th WELSH ENDURANCE ROAD RALLY - 18th and 19th August

It's over for another year, and from their many comments made to us at the Finish, the competitors have clearly considered the rally to be a roaring success in spite of the atrocious weather.

The Selar Selectif commander, Martyn Blandford Hall, emphasised how much all the crews were enjoying themselves, and on Sunday when all the rally cars had passed his deputy commented "Not one single miserable face amongst them all!" Considering the pouring rain, the really arduous driving conditions, and the technical problems experienced by so many, that was remarkable. Clearly you wanted a hard and testing rally, and that's what you got, with 42 finishers out of 54 starters.

                        Please click HERE for the results.

Added 17th September:  please click HERE for a  fascinating account of the rally - and the tribulations of competing - by the driver of car 13. THIS YOU MUST READ!

OUTRIGHT WINNERS

 OWEN TURNER and

 MATT FOWLE

 Rover 214 (1397 cc)

Our sincere thanks go to all the officials, marshals, land owners, and everyone else who made the Welsh Endurance Road Rally a success for the 5th year running.

In 2008 the 6th WELSH ENDURO will be held a week earlier, on 9th & 10th August. Next year SURELY we'll get some fine weather!

Get Well Soon Seyyan!

Seyyan John   Photo: Roy Whitney

Committee member Seyyan John suffered a horse riding accident on Friday 29th June. Her ankle is badly broken and she also dislocated her knee. She was airlifted to hospital and underwent 5hrs of surgery to repair the ankle.       We all wish her a full and speedy recovery.

Sunseeker Rally

Terry Frayne was a Guest recently at the Sunseeker Rally where he got the chance to meet the Championship Co-ordinators to discuss our own 2008 Red Kite Stages.

Russell Brookes (pictured with Terry) drove his Championship-winning Lotus Sunbeam on the Promenade Stages on the Friday evening. 

Thanks to Rick smith and Wug Utting for their hospitality

2007 Summer Dinner Dance - 15th June

Following the great success of last year's anniversary Dinner Dance, many people have asked for another Dinner Dance this summer. This event will have a 70's theme fancy dress or smart casual if you prefer (or you're too young to remember the 70's!). Please click on 'Club Activities' in the left pane for more details.

West Cork Rally - 17th and 18th March

                            Click HERE for Darren's report

Port Talbot Motor Club Tour Of Epynt  -  4th March

Rob Tout and Dan Holley Photo: Darren Morris

The weather was horrendous with wind and heavy rain, and we would like to thank those who turned out and marshalled. The journey home was a real adventure. Dai Wilmer decided to use the ‘old Trecastle road’, most of which was covered in standing water and had small rivers flowing down it! We stopped to take photos of the river in full flow, but when Dylan ‘Smiley’ Harries got back in the camper van, he dropped his phone! We had driven nearly two miles before he realised it was missing, and when we returned, we could see it lying on the road in pool of water! “Don’t worry, the phone is waterproof” he said, and it was!

Saint David's Day Quiz and Raffle  -  28th February

Some club members enjoying their cawl Photo: Darren Morris

We would like to thank everyone that supported our Saint David’s day quiz and raffle. The evening was very successful with an excellent turnout of members. Welsh cakes were provided by Gavin Pickett and Dai Wyn Thomas. Cawl was provided by the rugby club and Terry Frayne organised quiz questions. Thanks also to those that helped sell raffle tickets, serve food and clear up. The evening was the idea of Kath Morgan, who also had her birthday on the same day. Happy Birthday Kath!

2007 Red Kite Stages

Our special stage event in January was again a success. For details and results please click on the 'Red Kite Stages' link in the left pane. We would like to thank everyone who supported the event. We couldn't run such events without your help.

       2007 WINNERS

         SIMON HUGHES  &  

           CLAIRE MOLE

    Ford Focus WRC

Photo: Jonathan Suter

Simon and Claire had a drive on the Red Kite Stages in the VK Focus WRC of Steve Perez. They won this prestigious prize drive for achieving the most "fastest stage times" in the 2006 Fiesta Sporting Trophy Championship.
 

Peter Nieman, known to us all as "Joe", passed away on Thursday 22nd June after a long and patient fight against cancer. The funeral at Morriston Crematorium was attended by hundreds of his friends, a final farewell to a well liked and much respected man.

30th Anniversary Dinner

The Club's 30th Anniversary Dinner on Friday 9th June [2006] was a great success, with 160 members and guests attending. Phil Collins was the Guest of Honour.

                    Click here for Hannah Morgan's pictures

West Cork Rally

Here are the Club's intrepid Murphy's testers on their recent Cultural Trip to watch the West Cork Rally.

                                                                                Photo: Jill Austin / Dai Wilmer

Back row, left to right: Adrian Parry, Roy Thomas, Terry Frayne, Matthew Wood-Griffiths, Steve Griggs, Jonathan Oliver, Martin Oliver, Leighton Lewis, Darren Morris, Huw Jenkins, Richard Bowen

Front Row, left to right: Cerith Davies, Michelle Davies, Mike Frayne, Seyyan John, Dai Wilmer, Dai Lloyd, Barry John

Photographer (not in picture): Jill Austin

                    Click here for Terry Frayne's report

CHAIRMAN'S CHAT

February 2006

February kicked off with the Tour of Epynt on Sunday 5th. It was a nice dry day but a little on the cold side. Thanks to all those who turned out to marshal.

Wednesday 15th saw the running of our Navigational Scatter. This event proved a nightmare to organise, and the catalogue of disasters goes like this ...

Recce 1: crashed the Clio! If anybody asks, the banana-shaped radiator 'improves cooling'.

Recce 2: the potty bulb blew (Martin Oliver was driving), and I didn't have a spare bulb or a torch! Later I realised that I'd left my notebook with the Clues in Martin's car so I couldn't start typing the handouts!

Recce 3: almost ran over 'suicidal' dog!

 Then when I started printing the handouts the printer ran out of ink.

So, I copied the file onto disc so that I could print it in work, but at work I found that the disc was corrupt so I had to make a second copy!

Finally, the handouts were printed!

Next, I had told the Club members that the event would start at Glynneath's McDonalds, but I forgot to tell most of them that I would be parked on the Washery access road, not in the actual car park. At 7-20 I'm thinking "Where is everybody?" - they were all in Big M's filling their faces).

After all that, I would like to thank those that supported the event and hope that they enjoyed it. Thanks, also, to Neil Amber for being our one and only marshal.

_____________________

January 2006

There I was, sitting on the beach in my T-shirt enjoying the glorious sunshine. It was hard to believe that this was 2nd January in Wales! Dai Wilmer and I were down at Pembrey beach doing a bit of Kite Buggying. A week later we would be freezing cold on top of a mountain in mid Wales, trying to keep warm!

This year's Red Kite Stages fell on a very cold weekend and I would like to thank everyone for their support and for braving the weather. Snow and ice hampered the running of the most northerly stage (Esgair Dafydd) which was then cancelled on the second run. Gareth Thomas, the Clerk of the Course, and his organising team did an excellent job - as usual.

January proved to be a busy month for me. My supervisor being off work ill with a chest infection meant that I was working long hours to try and fight the backlog of work, and then there was the Club's annual presentation dinner to think about. I spent hours trying to come up with a Chairman's speech, but when I got up to give it I totally messed it up. It had been a long day, and I've decided that drinking alcohol when you're tired isn't a good idea!

This year's dinner was a small affair, but we hope to revamp it next year with a change of venue, and then I'm sure it will be better supported. I would like to thank those that attended, and I hope they enjoyed themselves despite needing waders to visit the toilet!

2006 is Club's 30th year, and Jayne and Kath Morgan have offered to organise a 30th Celebration Dinner or some commemorative event. We are open to suggestions and ideas. What sort of event would our members like?

That's all for now. More next month.