SPIN TO WIN FOR GEMMELL
Victory didn’t come easily on low-entry event in Scotland
Organiser: East Ayrshire Car Club When: September 1 Where: Kames Motorsport Complex, Cumnock Championships: Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge Stages: 16/16 Starters: 9/11
Colin Gemmell and Derek Keir won an action-packed Albar Kames Trophy Rally last Sunday and, although their Ford Escort Mk2 finished two minutes clear of the opposition, their victory wasn’t without incident.
A lurid full 360-degree spin onto wet grass on the fifth stage allowed a hard-charging Ross Auld to take the lead, only for him to lose it on the next stage when he outbraked his Escort Mk2 approaching the split and he missed the second loop.
Andrew Blackwood and Richard Stewart scored their best result with second place overall in their Fiesta ST as the Junior 1000 graduate held off the Opel Kadett of Billy Hamilton/donald Durrand.
Kyle Mcbride and Jane Nicol were the early leaders in the Junior 1000 Challenge but they crashed out of contention on SS13. Six seconds behind Mcbride’s
Toyota Aygo at the lunch halt, Ollie Hunter and Richard Crozier converted that to a six-second lead after the next two stages in their Peugeot 107. Cameron Davidson and Ian Mcrae finished runnersup, half a minute behind the leaders in their VW Up!.
There was a tie at the finish for third place with Owen Paterson and Calum Macpherson awarded the podium finish on 14-year-old Paterson’s first ever rally. Their Peugeot 107 was a second quicker on the opening stage of the day than the Toyota Yaris crew of
Jack Hall/robin Nicolson, thus taking the final podium spot. Marcus Mcelwee was initially in the hunt until driveshaft failure in his Skoda Citigo on the third stage.
Results
1 Colin Gemmell/derek Keir (Ford Escort Mk2) 21m38s; 2 Andrew Blackwood/richard Stewart (Ford Fiesta ST) +2m00s; 3 Billy Hamilton/donald Durrand (Opel Kadett); 4 Graham Bruce/david Aitken (Escort Mk2); 5 George Ross Auld/amy Mccubbin (Escort Mk2); 6 Murdo Bruton/ Niall Cowan Jr (Citroen C2); 7 Duncan Ferguson/alex Murphy (Escort Mk2); 8 Hugh Murdoch/ewan Murdoch (Escort Mk2); no more finishers.
Class winners: Bruton/cowan Jr; Blackwood/stewart; Gemmell/keir; Oliver Hunter/richard Crozier (Peugeot 107).