BUILD UP & LEG 1

I had agreed to act as sole service crew on the Tank S Rally based in Emmelord in Holland. Steve had arranged for Martin to sit with him on this event, on the journey out Steve said he was interested in having a go at doing the Roger Albert Clark later that year in November, so over the next few weeks a deal was struck and it was on. Only one more thing to sort out, build a car, Steve has a few Manta shells so the best was chosen and the build started. He decided on the same colour scheme as the tarmac car, Philips but not a 400 model.

November soon came around and as a shakedown Steve brought the car down to Wales at Higgins` Rally Experience site and it turned out to be a nicely balanced car. Scrutineering was on the Friday afternoon at the Yorkshire Showground, also the venue for first two stages. So with scruitineering out of the way with no problems the car was parked up for the night and it was off to the B+B to go over the maps and the road book oh and do the one or two amendments.

Saturday was an early start we were running at car 69 in the open event and it was pointed out many times that our number would read the same upside down, not that we intended to try this. Two runs through the showground were soon out of the way and it was on to the real stuff, two runs through Dalby, Langdale and Staindale with a service slotted in at Scarborough. On the road section only a couple miles in we had our first problem, Steve couldn`t select a gear and it turned out a circlip had come off the pin that holds the gear lever to the selector shaft, two zip ties later and eventually a replacement bolt did the trick, but the damage had already been done, because halfway through Dalby, Steve could not select a gear, the cable had seemed to have stretched.

We limped through the remaining stages and at service Mick and the boys worked their magic and changed the clutch cable within time allowed, so it was off for another run through the three stages. This time we made better progress, we came out of Langdale in a better mood now that our rally had really started but it was the first long road section over to Croft circuit for two stages, these were very slippy and because of the openness combined with the dark you had a great deal of difficulty trying to get reference points around the circuit, a bit boring the only thing of note was we knocked a wing mirror off and you guessed it, on my side.

Out of Croft and another two hour road section down the A66 over to Greystoke, M-sports little play area, by now it had been raining steadily for the last two hours. The road surface in Greystoke has been re-surfaced in places but still very rough in others, I have since found out that a quarry has been opened up, the shale put through a crusher and cement added in the process and laid as forest roads horrible bloody stuff it stuck to everything

We only had one hairy moment considering the conditions, about halfway into Greystoke suddenly we came round a tightening ninety right and mid corner we came across spectators trying to get the red Lancia off the inside bank, we only just missed the spectators and the car. At Carlisle the overnight rest halt the car was checked over and new rubber fitted for the next morning. At the B+B we arrived as last orders were being called but we managed a few scoops, residents perks.

LEG 2

Second day dawned wet and windy, Carlisle service area was now like a lake all the teams perched on their own little islands. Breakfast was a bacon and egg roll a cup of tea, courtesy of Steph, just the job that time of the morning. On the run out to the first stage our first run into Scotland we noticed a dusting of snow on the mountains but when we started to climb up to the forest of Ae we hit the snow line, a bit of a surprise two inches at least.

So onto the stage, and as you can imagine it was very wet and slippy, but two miles in we picked up a misfire and that plagued us all the way to first service. On one of the very long straights in Ae I gave Steve plenty of advance notice of an open hairpin right but we still overshot the corner, but luckily we didn`t get stuck like some other teams. At the first service in Dumfries the service/chase crew changed the plugs and tyres and put in some go go juice and it was off to Heathall stage and another run through Ae, but on the Heathall stage a strange thing happened as we went through the watersplash my potti misted up stopping me seeing the map magnified so it was back to the standard mince pies.

The second run through Ae was very much the same as the first, this time with no misfire and the snow had started to melt. We came out of Ae in 15th. place overall, off to service with no problems just the re-group causing more confusion than anything else. Another run through Heathall then onto Castle O`er, Twiglees, Kershope and Ash Park with no service just what the chase crew could do and they did a brilliant job of keeping us going. The stages were very slippery, so we took them steady but we picked up another misfire, back to Carlisle, the lads sorted out the plug problem and checked her over. It was a fairly early finish to leg two so we were able to have a good meal and a few sherberts with all the crew.

LEG 3

Guess what yes another early start, still wet and cold no sign of any snow today though. The car had a quick once over because we had some tough stages all in the kielder complex before any service would be allowed. We came out of Kershope 2 in 13th place o/a in the open rally only for the clutch cable to play up again on the next stage causing gear selection problems and then we cracked the exhaust on Pundershaw 1. When we got to the main service area at kielder water the guys had some major repairs to carry out, and as usual they did it, all in forty minutes unlike the escort opposite us who looked as if it had taken a big impact and had come off second best.

Not far to go now but the last of the forest stages were still in the killer kielder complex Bewshaugh 2 and Pundershaw 2 which was the longest of the event at just under 19 miles long. On that stage the clutch cable decided to play up again, it seems that modern clutch cables have a sleeve of PTFE to act as a lubrication but when it gets hot it acts as a shrink wrap and prevents the cable from moving so stretching. On the road section to Croft as we were up on road time we pulled over in a layby and the chase crew took the sumpguard off ready for the service to change the cable, Mick and the crew did it in record time once again so it was off for two blasts around Croft only for the clutch to start playing up again it turned out that the hook at the top of the clutch pedal which holds the cable had decided to part company with the rest of the car so a quick blast with the welder and fingers crossed hoping that it would hold and get us to the finish back in Harrogate. It did and we finished in 10th o/a and 6th in class. A brilliant four days never to be forgotten.

I would like to thank all the back up team for a brilliant and a professional job that would put some of the bigger teams with bottomless budgets to shame, never say die. I`d also like to thank Steve for asking me to try and tell him which way to go in the forests, so it`s off to 2007 Steve will have to get back into the workshop and get prepping again, apparently Dick was so impressed with the shaver he bought the company or should I say the manta, no probs Steve has one or two more to choose and do another build, but he`ll have to hurry the RAC website is already counting down for 07.

P.S. do they do a hydraulic clutch for a manta ???