First Rally Ever in 2022

By kind invitation of the Membership Secretary of the Southern Car Club, I was invited to join the Triple Caution Rally Group to see how a Single-Venue Rally is run, and do my first ever Co-Drive with Andrew and his newly built Ford Puma Rally Car.

When I arrived at the venue, after a good 3 hours drive, I was amazed at how packed it was! A large variety of cars came to test their set ups for their rally season, from small 1.6 litre Peugeot 205s to much quicker Darian GTRs and R5 rally cars.

To say I was both nervous yet incredibly excited in the Puma as we approached the start line. A real sense of 'Yes - this really is happening. And we're about to launch!" waved over me! I'd never read a set of notes before, so I was really hoping I'd do a good job of it! I completed 3 stages with Andrew, before he switched to his own navigator for the season to test with him. I was hooked. People often can't imagine that rallying is as exhilarating in the passenger seat as it is in the driver's seat. But boy oh boy it is! 

The day was incredibly successful, for all parties. The car had a great shakedown, I had my first taste of a Rally and we all had a great laugh in between. 

Many thanks to Andrew for the experience, and I hope I'll be back in the Co-driver's seat soon!