2014 Defender Challenge series / round 2

 

• Round two of rally series to take place at Somerset Stages Rally on Saturday 12 April
• Entry confirmed for Land Rover sponsored Race2Recovery – world’s only disabled rally team
• Three new teams and two novice drivers to make this their first ever competitive rally drive

 

Rally2: a popular ruling! / Écarts de conduite

Between them, since the beginning of the season, the WRC’s front-runners have notched up no fewer than 18 ‘offs’ or accidents leading to their ‘retirement’ on the day in question or their elimination from the event itself. So far, eight factory drivers have made use of the Rally2 ruling.

Despite a small mistake on SS8 in Sweden, Sébastien Ogier (VW/Michelin) is the only works driver who has yet to take advantage of the Rally2 ruling in 2014 and who has competed every one of the 75 stages contested this year, winning 39 of them.

In contrast, Robert Kubica has only finished 47 stages. After claiming the season’s first two tests, the Pole crashed out of the Rallye Monte-Carlo on SS9. After that, he went off three times in Sweden, once in Mexico and twice more in Portugal.

Kris Meeke’s season began well, too, with a podium result in Monte Carlo. The Briton was then caught out in Sweden, Mexico (twice) and Portugal. Thanks to the Rally2 facility, however, he has been able to complete 60 stages.

The list continues with two ‘offs’ for Elfyn Evans (Sweden, Portugal), two for Andreas Mikkelsen (both in Mexico), and one each for Neuville (Monte Carlo) and Tanak (Portugal), not to mention excursions leading to other problems for Ostberg (Mexico), Neuville and Hanninen (both Sweden). Only Sordo (Monte-Carlo, Portugal) and Hirvonen (Mexico) can blame mechanical trouble for their eliminations.

So what is behind this phenomenon? Well, a number of drivers are competing in factory or near-factory cars for the first time this year, like Elfyn Evans, Kris Meeke, Robert Kubica and Juho Hanninen. Indeed, the first season can often be difficult at this level owing to a combination of team pressure and lack of stage knowledge. Neuville and Ogier both had troubled maiden seasons with Citroën in 2012 and 2009 respectively, and many will still recall Colin McRae’s debut with Ford WRT in 1999 (nine ‘offs’ in 12 rallies, plus three cars destroyed in testing), not to mention the mistakes made by Marcus Grönholm the same year at Peugeot.

The weather can also take part of the blame, since drivers had to cope with inconsistent grip on Sweden’s fast-melting ice, while Portugal was marked by horrendous conditions. Bizarrely, there were very few ‘offs’ among the front-runners on the traditionally complex Rallye Monte-Carlo, quite possibility due to the fact that ‘safety crews’ were authorised in the French Alps. Even so, the flamboyant drivers seem to be paying the price. Four rounds into the season, 12 crews have win stages, which is more than we have seen over a full campaign these past five years.

THE KEATING WHEEL COMPANY

“The Keating Wheel Company” is a short film by Lucent Productions about the life and times of Brian Keating and his company of the same name. Brian has spent the past 40 years reviving and preserving some of the most iconic vintage motorcycles in the world, many of which he still has parked in his collection.

I like Brain’s philosophy of preserving rather than restoring, there’s something beautiful about the patina that these motorcycles develop over the decades and there’s a lot to be said for Brian’s methodology. If you have a few minutes spare, make sure you hit play and watch this film, it’s just under 10 minutes long and it’s beautifully directed.

cool ..nodus !