RAC Rally memories Its that time of year!
A bit like those occasional dreams you get that you have an exam due and you haven’t studied, have been getting that nagging feeling that it’s that time of year when I should start planning for what up until the late 90’s was a proper round of the WRC in the UK and not just one confined to the Welsh principality. So on that note what are your memories of what was "our" round the RAC, traditionally the last event of the season and the one which everyone, whatever nationality seemed to want to do?
For me who never got to compete on “the Lombard” it usually involved a good couple of weeks planning to spectate/marshal after receiving the Rally Sport event guide or Rallypack, although on at least one occasion the pack arrived the week after the rally! The MC I was a member at the time of, had already been advised of which stage/s they would be looking after so that was factored in first with everything else fitted around that to include for contingencies if there was a stage cancelled, or most likely too much traffic to make it to one location and having to cut to the next, which over the course of a 4/5 day event wasn’t a quick task to complete.
Car hire had been secured a good few weeks prior and optimum capacity was 3 people per vehicle to allow for enough “living” space and for cost effectiveness, didn’t even think about overnight accommodation in those days as night stages and late finishes/early starts didn’t seem to make it worthwhile anyway if you could find it at all with some many people competing or following the event. Then it was a case of buying supplies, fresh stuff like the bacon was purchased last minute or enroute, and the other essentials such as toilet rolls and the camping gas, should really have thought more about air fresheners but always seemed to forget that after 4 days of housing 3 blokes an Astra wasn’t the most pleasant environment to spend time in! Looking back little or no consideration was made to keeping hydrated other than the beer supply..
A Sunday stage was usually visited as a standalone, this was pre the days of event passes so it was then a case of getting back home and either finishing packing up the car to set off that evening or after a couple of hours of fretful sleep hitting the road early on Monday with everyone on board.
No two RAC’s were the same, some have better memories than others. Day 3 was normally when people started to fall out, these were proper events that tested non competitors as much as the crews and taught you about life as well as watching great action on the stages. Met some great people from all over the world out in the woods all sharing a love of the sport and with little or no mention of politics or countries they were from. Saw some of the worst of humanity at play with cars been broken into or stolen but also the best with people helping each other out of tricky situations such as offs or breakdowns.
I know the Albert has tried to rekindle some of those memories and emotions as best it can in these less than free and easy times however maybe it’s the rose tinted specs of my younger years that longs for some of what went before as unrealistic as that is.
Hopefully the UK will see a round of the premier championship in the not too distant future however until then I’ll just try and remember the “good old days”.
