Fiesta men Whyte and Retson get Tarmac warm-up run
Two drivers used the Granite Stages at Leuchars Rally for pre-ypres Rally Tarmac testing in preparation for the next round of the British Rally Championship next month.
Lawrence Whyte also used the event to try out a new co-driver, Paul Beaton, in his bid to establish a long-term relationship as he seeks to gain experience in rallying.
“I haven’t done any Tarmac since my karting days,” said the former quad racing champion. “I didn’t really like that as I wanted to go sideways all the time – and that’s not the quickest line!
“We learned a lot today about tyres and settings, but on that last run we set the suspension too low.
“The car bounced over the sleeping policeman bumps, I got two wheels on the gravel and the tail stepped out and hit a concrete post.”
Such an incident would not normally be a problem but there was little room for manoeuvre in that stretch.
Whyte added: “Paul and I got on well so I’m looking forward to Ypres.”
Also having his first taste of Tarmac for some time, Finlay Retson, had a rather more successful outing with his Ford Fiesta R2, during which he learnt much about tyres.
“Actually, this is the first Tarmac rallying I’ve done since my Junior 1000 campaign two years ago,” he said. “We’re here to try tyres and settings.”
He came away with first in class and sixth place overall.