British & Irish Rally calendars 2023

[AndyRAC]

I'm guessing the 10 miler would be Brenig, plus the western part of Clocaenog; you actually turn left alongside the lake through some gates and take in part of the forest and then come out near the dam; I rode it on my MTB a few days before RallyGB back in 2018/19.

[Steve Boyd]

Or, close the 'B' road and run Brenig & Alwen together as one stage.

[AndyRAC]

Yes, which they did in 2018.

[Sal yet again]

Had the misfortune to make my first ever visit to a Rally Day at Castle Combe on Saturday. Luckily the weather behaved but the show itself was lacklustre at best with only a handful of "Clubmans" cars circulating and one "feature stage" with some replica Quattros and a couple of Impreza WRCs to liven things up. Julian Porter and Howard Davies tried their best but with not even a current Rally 2 car or a single MK2 Escort present they ran out of anything meaningful to try and talk about. Very sparse trade stands and a few owners clubs displays couldnt really justify the entrance fee. Appreciate that there was talk earlier this year of a new demo type event in the UK and that this was just one venue's attempt however if that is the best the UK has to offer then we are screwed.

[AndyRAC]

I'm sure all those involved are well meaning, but it needs a massive rethink; it's a tired old format - and not particularly well promoted (well there's a surprise).

We need a proper weekend event at a central UK venue - when WRC teams, etc can turn up. Add in a competitive element, like the Hill Climb competition at the Goodwood festival....

[Steve Boyd]

Yes, which they did in 2018.

But not on the Cambrian!

[the sniper]

Had the misfortune to make my first ever visit to a Rally Day at Castle Combe on Saturday. Luckily the weather behaved but the show itself was lacklustre at best with only a handful of "Clubmans" cars circulating and one "feature stage" with some replica Quattros and a couple of Impreza WRCs to liven things up. Julian Porter and Howard Davies tried their best but with not even a current Rally 2 car or a single MK2 Escort present they ran out of anything meaningful to try and talk about. Very sparse trade stands and a few owners clubs displays couldnt really justify the entrance fee. Appreciate that there was talk earlier this year of a new demo type event in the UK and that this was just one venue's attempt however if that is the best the UK has to offer then we are screwed.

Sorry to hear that, for you and the organisers. It almost seems inconceivable that there wasn't Mk2 Escort! Crikey, a first for a UK event...? Feel lucky to have gone in 2017, with the likes of the 2017 WRC Fiesta, R5s, Group As (Inc. ST185 Celica), Group Bs, Escorts, as well as the likes of Wilson, Grist, Evans, Tanak and Latvala wondering about... Almost recommended Rallyday to a colleague looking to attend their first event and take their kids, glad I didn't now.

Like British rallying in general, it's very hard to come back once you fall too far.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

That's really disappointing to hear. They have been quite good in the past.

It seems the promotion was really poor - like I only heard about it on the day it started from social media. If the possible attendees were the same no wonder it was lacking in cars.

The country has loads of Rally2 car owners, mostly doing BTRDA or MN Circuit events, so there's no excuse. And I know Chris Ingram was there but even he didnt/couldn't show off a Rally2 car !

[Sal yet again]

Maybe it was the move to a summer date or promoter greed/issues however lots of people I talked to on the day and have seen comment on social media in the aftermath have said this was the final nail in the coffin for them. The lament in Julian's voice couldnt be hidden that there wasnt more modern machinery or even a MK2 so it wasnt that everyone was on message all day!

Not going to Goodwood FOS this year and that may be a mistake as understand there will be a sizeable rallying presence there however if the powers that be want a "proper" rally based show event they just cant leave it to the market to decide it would appear.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

Rally Day video:

https://youtu.be/VNhX1c3baKg