Mercy dash to the Batman Rally Car

Al & Toby have just headed off to Timaru (1 1/2 hours south of here) to join the rally car at the end of Special Stage 38. They are allowed 1 hour to make any necessary repairs before the cars all go into Parc Ferme overnight.

The wheel bearings are noisy and need replacing before anything too major happens, so Al has obtained some new ones and is off down there to replace them.

Andrew started the day 4 minutes in front of the 2nd place getter, 2006 winner Brian Stokes, (race is run every 2 years) and with 2 stages to go that lead has gone down to 2.26 minutes.

Of course it is always harder being first on the road each stage, as you get the loose gravel, especially if the roads have just been graded. The benefit of starting 2nd or below for each stage is that a lot of the loose stuff has been swept off by the first car through and you can also see their lines in the road.

One of the disadvantages of starting further back, is the dust created by the cars in front, especially if you are a faster car starting from behind after the overnight regroup and you all but catch the car in front of you that started 1 minute ahead.

But ahhh, such is motorsport, and fingers crossed it all goes well in the final stage of the day and that Al makes it down there in time for the 1 hour service before Parc Ferme.