4×4 Exporters Galway Summer Rally Preview
The 4X4 Exporters Galway Summer Rally takes place this weekend, 29th and 30th August.
The event will have a Ceremonial Start at the TopPart premises at Loisbaun, Tuam Road, Galway at 8pm on Saturday next, following afternoon scrutineering of cars at the Galway Airport premises from 2pm. These are ideal opportunities for people to see the rally cars and drivers prior to the start of the competition.
Headquarters for the event is the Clayton Hotel, Ballybrit, Galway. The rally route will cover 9 closed road stages on Sunday 30th August. The rally Service Park will be in Athenry Mart, by kind permission of the Mart Committee. Sunday evening will see the Finish at Galway Airport from approximately 5.00pm. Admission to all events is free over the weekend.
At the recent launch, Clerk of the Course, Mark Parsons, said “Galway Motor Club is indebted to the staff of Galway County and City Councils, An Garda Siochana, the Road Safety Authority, the 300 volunteer marshals from all over Ireland, and most of all the residents of the route in the East of the county for their assistance with temporary road closures to ensure the safe running of the event.” He also thanked sponsors 4×4 Exporters and associate sponsors Bluebird Care and DHKN, Chartered Accountants.
Road Safety: The 4 x 4 Exporters Galway Summer Rally is an event that is sanctioned by the FIA under an official Permit issued by Motorsport Ireland, and supported by the RSA – The Road Safety Authority of Ireland. The ‘Keep the Race in its Place’ campaign is extremely successful in talking to predominantly young people who follow motorsport. The Galway Motor Club is eager to remind everyone of the need to drive safely at all times – hence the message “Keep the Race in its Place’’. All competing cars will carry this logo and message, and extensive signage to promote this road safety message will be visible. A traffic management plan has been put in place with the support of the Gardai.
Nominated Galway Charity:
The club is delighted to have Ability West as its partnered Charity for 2015.
Ability West provides quality services and supports to over 530 individuals with intellectual disability in over 55 locations throughout Galway City and County. Their mission is to provide an individual and holistic service to each person availing of their services, with each person supported and valued within an environment which promotes their overall autonomy, health and wellbeing and enables them to reach their potential.
Rally Programmes: The Official Rally Programme contains full listings of stage times, service area times, detailed Ordnance Survey Route Maps and all of the information required to locate the many spectator access points. The Programme costs €10 and is available from the Clayton Hotel and from various filling stations, newsagents and outlets in the city and county listed on the rally website, www.galwaymotorclub.ie
Leading Entries :
The entries have been seeded by the organisers and the rally winner is likely to come from one of the top 10 seeds. There will be a total of 161 cars taking part in the event including 20 Junior Drivers. The event is a counting round of the Triton National Championship, the TopPart West Coast Rally Championship and the Sligo Pallets Border Rally Championship.
The Top 10 seeds:
Number Driver Co-Driver Address Car
1 Declan Boyle Brian Boyle Donegal Fiesta WRC
2 Niall Maguire Enda Sherry Monaghan Subaru WRC
3 Alan Ring Adrian Deasy Kerry Subaru WRC
4 Steve Wood Keith Moriarity Wales Subaru WRC
5 Kevin Barrett Sean Mullally Maynooth Subaru WRC
6 Paddy McVeigh Gary McElhinney Donegal Subaru WRC
7 Roy White James O Brien Cork Rover
8 Peadar Hurson Damien Connolly Tyrone Subaru WRC
- Daniel McKenna Kevin Glynn Monaghan Fiesta R5
10 Aidan Wray Kieran McGrath Down Mitsubishi Evo
Leading Local Entries:
Members of Galway Motor Club taking part in the event will be seeking to put their name on the prestigious Conroy Cup. The top seeded Galway drivers are:
Car Driver Navigator Address Make/Model
17 Dean Raftery Mark Kane Craughwell Citroen DS3
21 Paul Curley Jason Ollernshaw Loughrea Subaru WRC
25 Tom Flaherty Patrick Curley Galway Escort Mk2
36 Stephen Greaney Kieran Feeney Galway Escort Mk2
42 David Quigley Des Sherlock Loughrea Honda Civic
The top drivers in Ford Escort Mk2 cars will be competing for the Grp4 Fabrications “King of the Mk2” award.
