Tipperary Light Car and Motorcycle Club host annual Sepam Stonethrowers Rally this weekend
Tipperary Light Car and Motorcycle Club will host their annual Sepam Stonethrowers Rally this weekend. Despite being on an opt out year from the Triton Showers National Rally Championship the event has attracted a strong entry headed by last year’s winner, Daragh O’Riordan.
The Cork driver will face stiff competition however, from Monaghan Rally winner, Josh Moffett. Both O’Riordan and Moffett will be in identical Ford Fiesta World Rally Cars. Moffett will use the event as a pre event test for the Ulster Rally the following weekend.
Last year’s Stonthrowers Rally winner, Daragh O’Riordan.
The fantastic Fiesta’s will be followed by the Subaru of UK driver Steve Wood who will start at number 3. Mick O’Brien will travel home from the UK to start at number 4 in his Ford Focus World Rally Car with Liam Brennan co-driving.
County Antrim driver Desi Henry has chosen the Stonethrowers as the debut tarmac event for his new Skoda Fabia S2000 while another crew of interest will be car 6, Daniel Cronin and Shane Buckley. Cronin will be driving an older model Subaru Impreza World Rally Car but has taken a number of notable results in the car in the past 12 months.
Leading 2 wheel drive crew will be the rapid Honda powered Ford Escort Mark 2 of Pat Donegan and Alan Keena but they will face stiff competition from Enda O’Brien, Michael Conlon, James Coleman and Sean Liston to name a few.
Top Group N seeds are Patrick Kearney and Alistair Wylie and they will start at number 21 in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9. A trio of crew have entered the historic section with the Welsh crew of Ian Davies and Rylan James leading the pack in their Mark 2 Ford Escort.
Local driver Andrew Sheehan is the top junior seed in his Honda Civic with Adam Coffey navigating. Event headquarters will be the Clonmel Park Hotel and the first cars will leave the hotel to tackle the first of 9 stages at 9.30am on Sunday morning.
Sunday also sees a number of other motorsport events taking place across the country. In Ballinalee in Longford, Midland Motor Club will hold their Autocross with proceedings getting under way from 11.30am. In Mondello Park, County Kildare, the Trial Drivers Club will hold an auto test.
One of the most skillful and precise disciplines of motorsport, the autotest will cater not only for purpose built autotest cars, but also full weight production cars. Also taking place in Mondello on Sunday will be a race meeting organised by Carlow Car Club.