Pre Carrick Forest (2)
2014 Triton Showers
South East Stages Rally Championship
Not for the first time, but alas for the last time, in the TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship the outcome of this dual surface, class based, clubman rally championship has gone to the wire.
The long standing sponsorship of the South East Stages Rally Championship that was initiated in a casual conversation between Kevin Barrett and Ann Fitzgerald that TRITON SHOWERS would sponsor the championship has now run its course.
Not only has the South East Stages ‘lost’ its championship sponsor it has also to find a replacement registrar as Ann Fitzgerald has finally decided to call it a day. Ann has been registrar for the South East Stages Rally Championship for the past 28 years. It has been a ‘job well done’ and a hard act to follow.
But back to the business in hand, and to speculate as to the outcome of the 2014 TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship. There are four competitors in the shake-up for the overall awards.
Current leaders Micky Conlon / Ciaran McPhillips, Escort MK2, class 5 have 74 points from five rounds. Winning his class with maximum points and dropping his lowest score will gross 77 points. This crew has competed on both forestry and tarmac.
Second overall are Douglas Stewart / Billy Ryan, Peugeot 206, class 3 have 70 points but from four rounds. He has been the class winner on all three forestry rounds to date and should this form continue then the 2014 TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship is perhaps his to lose. A class win in the Willie Loughman Memorial forestry rally will gross 85 points. He stepped outside his forestry comfort zone to notch up 10 points in the tarmac Tipperary Stonethrowers Rally.
Third overall are Niall and Gary Fitzpatrick, Escort MK1, class 2 have 69 points also from four events but all on tarmac. A class win in the forests of the Suir valley would gross 84 points. The hinterland that is Buckstown (Motorsport), a stronghold of rallying in South Kilkenny, has assured me that an entry is in the post for Niall and Gary. In a way it will the third part of a notable triple for the South Kilkenny outfit: Niall crossed the threshold getting married, Kilkenny won the senior hurling All-Ireland hurling final and the final icing on the cake would be to win the 2014 TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship.
It’s fair to speculate that in the shakeup for third overall are Andy Nash / Frank Dwyer, Honda Civic, Class 3 should he win the class, has the potential to claim third overall. That is the current and speculative position to the outcome of the 2014 TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship.
Class 1.
1 Pierce Doheny / E. Dunne. Opel Corsa. 66 pts.
2 Ken Treacy / P. Knox. Peugeot 206. 33 pts.
3 Andrew Fanning / D Gibbs. Ford Ka. 26 pts.
Class 2.
1 Kieran O’Sullivan / P. O’Gorman. Escort MK2. 52 pts.
- Francis Kelly / C. Egan. Opel Corsa. 47 pts.
3 Pascal O’Shea / R. Hennessey Ford Escort MK2 40 pts.
Class 3.
1 Andy Nash / F. Dwyer. Honda Civic. 60pts.
2 Richard Dalton / G. Nash. Honda Civic. 49 pts.
3 Bobby Hennessey / S. J. Stamp. Escort MK2. 37 pts.
Class 4.
1 Liam O’Neill / D. O’Neill. Escort MK2. 50 pts.
- Sean W. Benskin / J. Fitzgibbon. Escort MK2. 48 pts.
- Ray Benskin (jnr) / N. Hegarty. Escort MK2. 40 pts.
Class 5.
1 Emmet Lyons / Kevin Purcell. Honda Civic. 59 pts.
2 Shane McGirr / Martin MacGarrity. Toyota Starlet. 45 pts.
3 James Coleman / Liam Brennan. Escort MK2. 36 pts.
Class 6. 1 Paul Barrett / Declan Tumilty. Mitsubishi EVO 6. 48 pts.
2 Mark Murphy / A. Wyllie. Mitsubishi Evo 8. 34 pts.
3 Kevin Barrett / S. Mullally. Subaru WRC. 28 pts.
Juniors. 1 Conor McCarthy / D. O’Donovan. Honda Civic. 43 pts.
2 Sean W. McGrath / D. Walsh. Honda Civic. 36 pts.
3 Shane Norris / C. Boland. Honda Civic. 11 pts.
ROUND 1. The Sean Conlon Memorial Forestry rally. February 2nd
- ROUND 2. The Munster Moonraker Forestry Rally. Ballyvourney in Co. Cork. April 13
- ROUND 3. Carlow Stages Rally. Seven Oaks Hotel, Carlow. May 11
- ROUND 4. ALMC Forestry Rally based in Glendalough Hotel, Wicklow. May 17 2 stages X 2.
- ROUND 5. Carrick-on-Suir Ravens Rock Rally. Waterford. June 29 Tarmac
- ROUND 6. Tipperary Stonethrowers Rally. Clonmel. August 10 Tarmac
- ROUND 7. Wexford Stages Rally. Wexford. September 13th / 14 Tarmac
- ROUND 8. The Willie Loughman Memorial Forestry Rally Oct. 12 Rally based in Carrick-on-Suir. Stages in the Suir Valley.
Awards Night
The TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship awards night will take place in Dooley’s Hotel, The Quay Waterford on Saturday 24th January 2015.
J.O’Brien obriejoe@gmail.com 086 315 4442
On behalf of all the clubs that have been rounds of the TRITON SHOWERS South East Stages Rally Championship for the past twenty years, I say a heartfelt thanks to Kevin Barrett and Triton Showers for their unstinting support for the only dual surface rally championship, The South East Stages Rally Championship. Not forgetting the effort and enthusiasm that the registrar Ann Fitzgerald put into the organising and running of the championship. Her knowledge of the sport and the competitors has been legendary and her ability to produce the results in record fashion will be missed.
As with all things in life and motorsport, time moves on. There are others who will step up to the mark and will in their own individual way make their mark on this championship.
