Reid tops the Modified section on Ulster
Akin to Josh Moffett’s quest, the Modified, Historic and ITRC3 categories were also about getting to the end.
Simon Reid (Escort) sealed victory in the Modified category of the series by finishing ahead of his only rival, Colin Byrne (Escort), who had spurned a glorious opportunity when he crashed out of the lead on his home rally on the previous round in Cork. Both concentrated on getting to the finish without taking any great risks with Reid extending his lead after
Friday’s leg. The heated front windscreen of Byrne’s Escort packed up on SS5 but even then he admitted, barring retirement Reid’s retirement, he had settled for the runner-up slot.
Routine mathematics meant a third-place finish in
ITRC3 would secure the title for Ryan Caldwell (Ford Fiesta Rally4) and while he achieved his goal, it was almost slide-rule precision as class-winner Jason Dickson (Ford Fiesta Rally4) came within a point of his rival’s winning total.
In the Historic category, Welshman Neil Williams (Escort) capped a fine season with event and championship victory, the latter guaranteed when title rival Duncan Williams retired his Escort on a road section to SS5 with clutch failure.