DirtFish Senior Staff Writer David Evans is co-driving this weekend rather than reporting as usual, and in addition is recounting it all for DirtFish readers. He told us yesterday about his haphazard journey to the Chester Rally Revival; now that he’s got there here’s how he’s getting on in the car…
Come along for the ride, they said. Navigation, it’ll be no bother, they said. Just be a bit of fun, they said.
They said lots. What they didn’t talk about was that horrible moment of realization when you’ve got it wrong. The pub that should be at that junction’s not there. And where’s the telephone booth gone? It’s clearly here on the map. Now? Nowhere to be seen.
Bugger. And now I’ve gone quiet. And the man to my left knows it.
“All OK, David?,” enquires Ian Gwynne, my driver for the day aboard the same awesome Subaru Legacy RS Colin McRae and Derek Ringer used on the 1992 Swedish Rally.
Moment of truth. What do I say? Front up, be honest and work our way out of this together?
Er, no.
“Yes, fine mate. All good. Just a little way further down here…”
Oh, sweet Jesus. I have no idea where we are. Phone. Get the phone, Google maps will save me. Not without even a sniff of mobile phone service it won’t.
Mercifully, I find the road out of Llangollen. We’re back on track. For now.
The first morning of the Chester Rally Revival has been… eventful. And amazing.
Apart from the odd map-reading mistake (apparently this is my responsibility), Ian and I have had an absolute ball. We did two stages at a kart track, with Ian hooking the Legacy up beautifully in a series of big and very fabulous drifts.
And now it’s time for a sandwich having just finished a run through Weston Park.
I was caught out terribly, looking at the view and remembering famous onboards instead of telling Ian where we were going.
Thundering through the watersplash, windscreen full of water, we almost missed the immediate 90-right because I was busy telling Ian that was where Malcolm Wilson clipped the post and broke the windows on Bryan Thomas’ side of the Pilot-backed Ford Escort RS Cosworth in 1993.
Weston was an absolute blast, once we were out of the tighter bits, Ian opened the Subaru up and you couldn’t help but smile as the flat-four boxer bellowed out between the trees.
And, even better, the sun’s out.
So, for now, Ian and I are still speaking and, most importantly, we’re here having passed the right and requisite number of controls. Mostly from the right direction.
Let’s see if that’s the case when – or if – we get back to Chester.
The story in full…
Chester Revival blog part one: Getting there
Chester Revival blog part three: Reaching the finish
