my road rally mk2

[onecamohv]

Re: my road rally mk2

nice update luke, although, serious lack of photos!!

well done on the win, epic result

[mexicotait]

my road rally mk2

nice update luke, although, serious lack of photos!!

well done on the win, epic result

The only picture I have I’m afraid




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[mexicotait]

my road rally mk2

nice update luke, although, serious lack of photos!!

well done on the win, epic result

The only picture I have I’m afraid




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[GavinR]

Re: my road rally mk2

Definitely a hero

[mexicotait]

Re: my road rally mk2

well my house is beginning to progress and by that I mean we are making more mess

I think we underestimated how hard it is to both be working 40+ hours a week and then coming home and working another five or so hours a night whilst living in a building site

Last weekend was spent travelling down to the Preston Road rally

My mates josh and Mick Davison were doing it and I volunteered to marshal and share the driving as it was a 300 mile trip

They had a good run finishing 15 th and 3 rd in class
Just a puncture dropping them a few seconds but they changed it in a neutral section and didn’t lose any real time


I think we were all questioning our sanity driving back on Sunday morning or rather I was everyone else was asleep


But a good event very rough in places but the format and organisation were brilliant
I might have to make the trip next year


This weekend I’m marshalling with my motor club on le jog

Meant to be the most demanding historic rally in Europe

My usual nav Ali Procter is sitting in with a guy in an ex works mini cooper s. Hoping they have a good run


Thanks to all the people for messages on here and fb means a lot

[mexicotait]

Re: my road rally mk2

Well that was some weekend went marshalling on le jog
Supposedly the hardest historic rally in Europe

My mate Ali was sitting in a Porsche 911 (not a mini) with an Italian business man so he has a full expenses paid trip down to lands end starting the rally on Friday they made there way through wales up to Chester through lots of snow before heading up through Lancashire via various tests and regularities through the Pennines up to Alston where we marshalled

I saw Ali briefly and he was enjoying it but looked knackered and this was only the second day
They then carried on through the borders and onto Peebles through snow and the darkness
Started again on Monday through Scotland to eventually end up at John o groats
Some very weary looking people taking the finishers ramp

Ali had a good event was lying fourth at on point but think they had trouble as they dropped down after seeing us

Good event and very well done by the organisers for keeping it going through some of the worst weathers

[Mash]

Re: my road rally mk2

Made a really good read this Mate, took me back to the eighties when I spent a number of years as a road rally navigator and chief mechanic for a lad up in Lancashire/Cumbria

At the start you mentioned that you'd converted some world cup Bilsteins to coilovers, and I'm interested to hear what that entailed ?

[mexicotait]

Re: my road rally mk2

I didn’t do these ones they came with the car
Simple enough just grind off the spring seats and fit the coil over conversion kits
Done a few sets for people
Now it’s so hard to find decent struts to convert for reasonable money most buy new

Hope that helps

[mexicotait]

my road rally mk2

Well passed it’s mot yesterday no problems which was nice
Shame I have to use it as course car this month or I’d have waited till may when it’s tax free

Still haven’t touched the car since moving house
But hopefully might have found somewhere else to keep it so I can knock down the horrible leaking asbestos garage and build a decent one in its place




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[mexicotait]

my road rally mk2

John Robson/Hexham Historic 24/2/18

This is the major event that our motor club run and is one of the last true road rallies to run in the north east. Using the roads around Northumberland that are deserted even during the day means that we can start much earlier at 8pm.


I was course car for this and my job entailed driving Ali around as car zero making sure the marshals were in the right place and that the route was correct.


I hadn’t needed to do much to the car just a good clean and fix the indicator lense.

Even had time to give it a clean.


Had a run out for some breakfast one morning just to make sure everything was fine.


Then on the sat morning I met up with Ali and Jonathon who were Clark of the course for the event to help set up the route putting boards out and markers for time controls and cautions a few bits of the route.

We were also using shepardshield which is a stage of the rac that runs through kielder forest. We ran through here putting some boards out and checking the general condition of the forest which was very good.


Onto the night itself I turned up early with my partner Jessica who was navigating for my friend Josh and I went to help signing on and directing marshals as well as trying to get interviews with the competitors for our website and social media pages which I run.


The before I knew it it was time to go straight into the first competitive section from the start at Derwent Reservoir sailing club along the B road slot right into a yellow taking the first rc then down a very rough and slippy white and into the first tc.

As car zero we run just a ahead of the main field so we have to be on the pace to try and wake the marshals up but also to act as a bench mark for the timing and route checks.

From this white we headed north west up a very tight section with lots of sq corners in before opening up to a fast flowing section with lots of yumps. We had a bit of a moment here where I ran wide on a square right and clipped a tree with the wing mirror and ate half the bank with my front left wheel. This led to a bad vibration through the wheel and me thinking we had a puncture. It wasn’t it was just mud in the wheel which fell out quickly enough.

Onto the next tc where the marshals were in the wrong place just before the forest we had to move them and then carry on the route
By this time car 1 was closing in on us so I knew I had to be quick through the forest. Luckily I know it well and we were on the pace hitting the limiter in 5th at one point (did I say it was fast).

Then slowed for the tougher part at the end of the forest we hit a big frozen puddle which we skated over before braking through hitting the rise of the hole hard which launched us onto the bank. We landed on the exhausted which broke but managed to carry on till the end of the forest.

The exhaust was blowing but we had to keep going until the next transport section or we’d be holding up the competitors.

The exhaust the broke off completely luckily the mounts were still in place so wasn’t dragging on the ground we just couldn’t here a thing and the old xflow wasn’t pulling well.

The next tc was manned by Ali’s wife so we stopped dumped my car with her and then continued in her Ford Focus.

Almost like we planned it
We managed to continue in that and by missing the halfway halt had made a bit of a gap to competitors behind us. We had a small section of forest at the end of the rally which we had set up early and knew everyone was there which was a good job as a marshal hadn’t turned up at an tc so Ali and I had to man that.

The event had a few problems all of them down to bad luck but it still ran well and the competitors loved it. This is only the second year that we have taken over the event and we are still learning but we were proud that we managed to keep road rallying alive in the north east!


I had a long night whilst everyone else was enjoying there supper I got a lift home picked up my road car and then went to the finish to pick jess up

We then towed the mk2 home pushes it into the garage and slept all of Sunday.



I had a look that night and pulled the manifold off



Took it into work and welded it up and strengthened it as well



Ideally I’d like to replace it with a nice 4-2-1 manifold but not having any money at the moment this fits and will have to do.

I was meant to be out next Wednesday but the lovely spring weather of heavy snow has spoilt that so it’s now been pushed back till the 28th

That will be my last as it’s time to put the car away and finally get on with building my garage.


Just need to sell a kidney or my missus first!!


Luke


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[garageman]

Re: my road rally mk2

Hi, Don't sell the missus and hang on to the kidney, perhaps you should sort out your MK2 spares cause it seems to me that is wear the money is, maybe I am just old but the cost of S/H parts is shocking. When your pocket money is limited it makes building a car hard going.

[mexicotait]

Re: my road rally mk2

Definitely I’m lucky that I stocked up on spares about ten years ago even before I had the car
They have since sky rocketed
For instance I picked up a set of group one rs alloys one at a time for a total price of 15 quid
Sold them as a set of four for 600 pound

[GavinR]

Re: my road rally mk2

Always a challenge running Course Car - being quick enough to stay ahead of the competing crews but tidy enough to get round
If you're the only Course Car - making sure the marshals are in the right place and everything else, it's even harder
But very satisfying when an event goes well

[mexicotait]

Re: my road rally mk2

One of the changes I’d like to make is to have two course cars for that very reason
As well as a back up in case anything happens


Anyway car is all back in one piece now just need to do something about the wipers

The springs seem weak and so the arms aren’t clearing the screen very well

[mexicotait]

my road rally mk2

Well after saying I’d be doing no more rallying this year I got a call to drive on the next round of the Hexham series and couldn’t turn it down.

After repairing the exhaust I was going to do a small auto test just to have a play and make sure the car was all good but as the snow came down it got cancelled so my mate liam and I just went for a play I out instead



The car seemed fine but when I gave it a quick check over a couple of days before the rally I found a track rod end was very worn. Couldn’t get one from usual places in time so I tried the local motorfactors but the ones they supplied were wrong even though the part number was right 🤬


I had a good search around but couldn’t get another one in time but managed to find a serviceable one in my dads garage and fitted it did the tracking and set off for the rally.

Got there with plenty of time signed on and chatted with the regulars including my dad who was doing it with a novice nav.

We were second last on the road and josh was on the ball from the start getting the first reg 11 seconds off and the second one on a zero.

Into the standard section and we were flying the car pulling well and handling beautifully. Caught and passed a couple of cars then into not as map junction following Chris Dodds in his proton where he got the handbrake spot on and I followed him round doing the same!

We followed them along the next section and they hit a pothole on the left hard
I took to the right and hit and even bigger one!

Then 100yards down the road car cut out!!!! Pumps were still running but it felt like fuel I tried tapping the top of the carb but had to take it off finding the float needle was stuck shut
Freed it off and managed to get it started and carried on having dropped three minutes.

The next few sections were hard work. The car was die then spring back to life although after a long section we took a slot right fast and it ground to a halt fiddled with it again and managed to get the old lump going both of us getting more and more annoyed at this point. Rolled down the hill to bump start it and it cleared and seemed to drive fine with the occasional splutter.
We finished the rest of the route back on the pace. Only had one moment when the map said there was a 90 right which turned out to be a hairpin but a quick tug on the handbrake got us round in style 😂

Then small blast to the finish. For a pint and to curse our bad luck. Still we finished and had an ok result. Strange to think a few years ago I’d have taken a 4th place happily but once you are on the pace and winning it’s hard to accept not being up there.

Anyway the rally was won by Chris Dodds and his navigator Pete. They were on the pace all night and it’s about time Doddsy had a win.

Had to get a tow to start the car after it flooded in the car park but drove home fine.

The car is definitely going away now and I think it knows hence it misbehaving 😂

So expect to see more posts about garage building and getting swamped under by bricks concrete and the planning department

Luke


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