Sorting men from boys Down Under
John Floyd
The final event of the 2017 World Rally Championship, the Kennards Hire Rally Australia, will begin tomorrow with the customary shakedown stage.
Based at Coffs Harbour, approximately half way between Sydney and Brisbane on the Australian east coast, the competitors face a total distance of 947km with 318km of special stages, being a mixture of wide, gravel roads through open fields and tight, twisty tracks in a tropical rain forest.
As with the F1 season the championship for both driver and constructor was finalised at the last event, when Sebastien Ogier took his fifth World Drivers’ title and Ford their first Constructors’ title since 2007.
It is amazing to note that since 2004 that title has been won by French drivers – nine to Sebastien Loeb with Citroen and Ogier winning four with Volkswagen and now Ford.
The 21 stages challenge the drivers with many being covered with small stones that offer no grip especially running first on the road.
The ground below is hard, but if it rains it becomes extremely slippery.
With eight stages on both Friday and Saturday, the final day tests the competitors with five more. Saturday morning will probably be the most important day with the Nambucca stage, 50km of high speed gravel, which will certainly sort the men from the boys.