By Barry Lindsay
Two Spadeadam crews ventured back to Otterburn for the Lindisfarne, struggling for entries the event only just ran. Peter Taylor with Jack Morton on the notes were seeded at 3 following last years second place was wanting to go one better in the Clio. Barry & Michael Lindsay were at 7 in the 106.
Tyneside Stages on Otterburn saw Barry & Michael Lindsay finish 8th Overall (2nd in class), Geoffrey Harkness & Caroline Lodge were 23rd Overall (4th in class).
On the Solway Coast James McWhir navigated Michael Hunter in the Lada Samara to 15th Overall (3rd in class).
By Barry Lindsay
It was that time of year when the crews head to Otterburn for the first of three visits, the Tyneside organised by Alnwick DCC & Berwick DMC. This year a round of the National Tarmac championship as well as the North of England and ANECCC championships meant an entry of 66 crews. Peter Taylor & Andrew Roughead were the best seeded of the SMC crews but had to withdraw due to work. Barry & Michael Lindsay were seeded at 25 in the 106, Geoffrey Harkness & Caroline Lodge were at 47 in the Corsa.
Scrutineering and Recce were on the Saturday and the event the day after, Caroline wasn’t available for the Recce so Barry with nephew Martyn tackled the recce to note chicanes and gravel before marking the other set of notes the next day.
By Dave Coleman
After a run of 4 first stage retirements out of the last 5 rallies, the plan for Greystoke was to get to the end! We arrived at Greystoke to be greeted by sunshine and dusty conditions, highly unexpected after the recent weather but it was a nice change to do an event where it wasn’t raining.
Young Kyle was sitting next to me, eager also to get some stage miles under his belt after his co driving début at the Border Counties ended in a ditch only 5 miles into the first stage.
So the plan was; go steady and keep it on the track. Whilst feeling low in confidence in a massively under powered car (54bhp) it was ‘great’ to see we had a Subaru running in the mid 20’s slot in behind us at 30 sec interval. We weren’t far into stage before he appeared in the mirror, hunting us down. So I pulled in as soon as I could so’s not to hold him up. After that we went through the stage with no problems, and getting the feel for the super smooth track.
Dave Coleman / Kyle Gass
Stage 2 was longer at 6.3 miles and felt good, we were still behaving and keeping the car neat and tidy. The split junction was tricky – through a chicane into hairpin left and immediate square right. Not sure I got it right all day but certainly made a couple of spectators move. Continue reading
By David Love
Where was I, oh yes, three weeks until the rally and starting on the Goodie Bags. The Stage Commanders meeting would be held on the following Sunday so on the Wednesday night I got together with Chris Walker and Les Bellingham to make up the stage packs containing over 300 arrows, 400 plastic signs, 350 tabards and 12 kilometres of safety tape between seven stages. We make a list of the equipment going to each stage so that the S C’s know what they’re getting even if they don’t collect the equipment at the meeting.
Friday the 13th was the first closing date for entries with the 20th being the closing date for late entries. If any rally organiser is honest he will admit to accepting entries up to close of scrutineering as very few rallies are getting maximum entries. After the first closing date for entries we have a better idea of entry numbers for each event and can decide the highest competitor number in each event and if I’ve guessed correctly I’ll have ordered enough rally plates, numbers, etc, if not mild panic will ensue. Although most people talk about the Pirelli International Rally we do run five separate rallies each with its own competition number range. The International Rally starts at 1, the Tour of Cumbria, which runs behind the International, starts at 51 followed by the Land Rover Rally at 91. The Historic Rally starts at 101 with the Challenge Rally at 201. To complicate things further the International uses WRC type door plates and large hi-vis numbers and the other rallies which run under a National Permit use the larger traditional door plates and smaller hi-vis numbers.
By Clive Alcock
Even before becoming a member, I’d always found Spadeadam Motor Club and its members proving the most helpful and enthusiastic on events; the most rallying-focused of our local clubs. So when, over three years ago now, ‘Grendel’ the Group 2 SAAB went back across the sea to Sweden to be replaced with a lighter, quicker car more obedient to the tiller, less phased by the laws of physics, it wasn’t long before signing-up.
The ‘barn-find’ Sunbeam 1600 ti (with an ‘RAC’ registration which its Coventry vendor never mentioned; made my cheque-signing hand twitch) taking its place is a Scots-built car first registered by his dad’s Dundee dealership, then campaigned on Royal Deeside under Balmoral Garage colours. Its old-fashioned pushrod engine (built by Mike Stewart) fundamentally tough, gutsy and reliable; handling fantastic; but cursed with their standard design fault of a pair of spitting twin webers sited above the exhaust manifold. Why a Pendragon premier in chilly August gave us no problem; but its first Pirelli outing (2011) in one of those belting Aprils now taking the place of summer – and run with a Scot in the left hand seat (medic Steven Brown from Highland Car club) – was cursed with fuel vaporisation in the heat. Removing one headlamp for airflow giving only half a solution, and why we could only cough, gasp and splutter our way round Kielder to second in class; in what most folk assume a Sunbeam Lotus. Expect more by way of BHP.
Pirelli 2011
Interspersed with a brace of punctures for good measure, 2011’s still our toughest and most difficult rally ever; but at least I could maintain my long tradition of driving the car home afterwards. Continue reading
The Scottish Rally, James McWhir was the only member to finish in 51st (7th in class) navigating Mike Hunter in the Lada Samara. Rory Young & Allan Cathers had a dramatic end on a jump / dip then a corner with a fire break. Darren Martin & Martin Steele retired with a slipping clutch.
The Greystoke Stages saw Darren Martin / Martin Steele with new clutch finish 22nd OA (10th in class) while the repaired Skoda of David Coleman & Kyle Gass finished 43rd (6th in class). Clive Alcock’s Sunbeam retired with a fire in the carburettor.
Jim Clark International Peter Taylor was showing his tarmac pace in the Clio. Up as high as 3rd Overall on Saturday before crashing out on Sunday. Jim Clark National Barrie Thomson & Jerry Hettrick finished 37th (5th in class)
Phil Jobson & Caroline Lodge retired with Gearbox problems. Rory Young & Allan Cathers retired with electrical problems. On the Reivers Rory & Allan retired with Mechanical problems.
At the Severn Valley Jonathan & Caroline Lodge were both Navigating in the SAAB team. Caroline getting 7th OA (1st in class) with Steve Higgins. While Jonathan was 17th OA (9th in class). Turnbull Trophy at Albermarle, Peter Taylor took outright honours by winning in his Clio. Given the very tricky conditions and very wet at times, the win was deserved. Geoffrey Harkness & Caroline Lodgi took their second class win in a row & 21st Overall. Richard & Simon Clark were just behind in 22nd Overall in a Subaru. Barry & Michael Lindsay retired with a broken driveshaft.
By Caroline Lodge
Jim Clark Rally 2012
I was really pleased when Phil asked me to navigate for him this year and was really looking forward to this rally. After a nasty hiccough before we set off to scrutineering, (Thanks Barry for your help that day). We got sorted and got ready for a couple of laps of Duns on the Friday night, before the ‘proper stages’ the next day. Duns was a blast and we were both laughing when we got to the stop line. Snowy was running and handling well and we set a good time on our first run.
John Ross and Neil Thomlinson – our service crew came to say hello before our second run, this was held up by drunk locals having a fight and a woman going into labour! The second run was just as much fun, and we went to park ferme. (after changing a wheel due to a puncture we’d picked up on the road section). The we were off to our very nice digs in Jedburgh, the ‘boys’ went in search of food and dined on whatever the local Turkish place had left – goat burger anyone?
On the Pirelli Peter Taylor finished an impressive 5th O/A (4th in class) then went to the Manx National and finished 9th O/A (1st in class & 1st FWD) in the Clio. Clive Alcock did the Tour Of Cumbria part of the Pirelli finishing 8th O/A (1st in class) in the Sunbeam. At Ingliston Geoffrey Harkness / Caroline Lodge were 16th O/A (1st in class), Barry & Michael Lindsay were 23rd O/A (3rd in class). Richard Clark & James McWhir were 36th O/A (9th in class)
At Hamsterley Darren Martin & Martin Steele were 24th O/A (3rd in Class) in the Subaru.
Spadeadam Motor Club 
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