Mid-Derbyshire Motor Club crew win Targa Rally

They were one of eight Mid-Derbyshire crews competing on the event.

The others were Mark Slatcher / Alastair Leggett in another BMW 318ti, seeded at 11, Richard Henman / Jason Simms in their Peugeot 106, seeded at 22, Dennis Cooke / Phil Prosser in their Citroen Saxo VTS, seeded at 23, Matt Chapman / Kevin Ablitt in their Peugeot 206 XSi, seeded at 24 , Jake Simms / Jack Slatcher in their Proton Satria, seeded at 27, Reg Walker and his son Chris in their Peugeot 205 Gti, seeded at 40 and James Wilkinson / Katie Lancaster in their Ford Puma, seeded at 41.

Ken and Jennie were seeded at 29. A total of 60 cars entered the event. The rally was split into two sections - the Interclub and the Clubman. The former was a round of the BTRDA Targa Championship and the latter, as the name suggests, was for Clubmen not chasing championship points. Ken/Jennie and James/Katie were in the Clubman section while the others were in Interclub.

The first two tests had narrow sections lined with trees, log piles and fences and demanded accurate positioning on the gravel tracks. The fastest MDMC crew was Mark /Alastair who were 13th overall. Matt/Kevin were only 5 seconds behind. The other MDMC crews were all within 28 seconds of them. The third test was key for these two crews.

It included splits and merges that allow part of the test to split off from the main route and to merge back into an earlier part of the test to increase the overall mileage. Mark/Alastair overshot the split and went off the track down a bank and Matt/Kevin missed the split and each picked up a penalty. These errors cost both crews a significant amount of time.

However, Reg and Chris set an outstanding time on the third test and jumped from 33rd to 8th overall. Ken/Jennie and Jake/Jack were tied in 17th= while James/Katie were 2 seconds back in 20th. The weather changed and drizzle set in to add to the challenge. After the fifth test Ken/ Jennie were up to 14th overall but more importantly they were up to 2nd in the Clubman section.

Jake/Jack were only 0.3 sec behind in 15th overall. Ken seemed to be enjoying the conditions and after the next test he and Jennie were leading the Clubman section and 12th overall. It then started raining harder and the surfaces got significantly more slippery and treacherous. It also meant that other MDMC members who were marshalling on the event got very wet.

In addition, it was also getting dark, and spotlights were definitely needed. On top of that Ken couldn’t get all the mud off his driving shoes so he needed to be careful on the pedals. Fortunately, he kept it all together over the last two tests and he and Jennie won the Clubman section while finishing an excellent 8th overall. James/Katie who had only started rallying a year ago eventually finished a commendable 3rd in Clubman and 16th overall.

In the Interclub section Jake/Jack finished 13th overall, Reg/Chris got up to 18th winning an award for 2nd Novice. Richard/Jason were 28th overall and Dennis/Phil finished 35th overall. The penalties that Mark/Alastair and Matt/Kevin picked up on the third stage meant they struggled to make up places and consequently finished 40th and 45th respectively.