Murmur 4

Mull Murmur 4 (Click HERE for Printer Friendly Format)

- published on the island, during the event by Jaggy Bunnet

MullMurmurs – Chapter 4

Provisional Leaderboard after 7 (of 19 stages):

1 Neil Mackinnon/Mike Stayte (Subaru Impreza WRC)            47 Mins 55 Secs
2 Calum Duffy/Del Duffy (Ford Escort MkII)                                48m 09s
3 James MacGillivray/Ian Fraser (Subaru Impreza)                  50m 01s
4 Dougi Hall/Scot Bainbridge (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI)        50m 03s
5 Dave Miller/Andrew Bailey (Subaru Impreza)                         50m 18s
6 John Cope/Tony Cope (Subaru Impreza WRC)                     50m 22s
7 Tony Bardy/Reg Smith (Nissan Sunny GTI-R)                         50m 57s
8 Daniel Harper/Chris Campbell (BMW MINI S)                        51m 00s
9 Eddie O'Donnell/Donald Morrison (Ford Escort MkII)            51m 39s
10 John Swinscoe/Paul Swinscoe (Mitsubishi Lancer)             51m 43s

It was a crisp, cold, moonlit night, but the pace was hot and steamy. After 7 stages and despite losing the brakes on the first stage and running through the second with no front brakes, Neil MacKinnon holds a slender 14 second lead over Calum Duffy. The McKinstry Subaru looked pretty undramatic and serene at the head of the 150 car field, but Calum’s Escort is feeling the strain. It’s got an electrical fault. Over a yump the lights go out and then back on at the next one, only the bottom two spots stay on because they are wired direct to the battery. Hardly a confidence inspiring set-up but Calum is hanging in there.

James MacGillivray is now on the move, up to third and edging a subdued Dougi Hall down to fourth while John Swinscoe has popped into tenth place at the expense of Simon Proud who lost time after ‘brushing’ a hedge and a fence with the Escort which resulted in damaged steering. Paul Kirtley is still outside the top ten hampered now by brake problems on top of his turbo woes.

Denis Biggerstaff is still enjoying himself, but finding it strange in the dark jumping over crests and can’t see where the ground is, while George Collister from the Isle of Man is finding these roads quite different to what he is used to, but like Biggerstaff, hugely enjoying himself.

Daniel Harper had a puncture, but drove out, and Tristan Pye did the last group of stages with no left front shocker after his early trouble, but that will be fixed at service and Martin Healer went on fire – again! Giles Brooksbank is sporting some front end scars courtesy of an overshoot on an uphill hairpin and Rob Davies had a similar excursion but no damage. Frosty Smart s still running, but lost lots of time with a broken rear diff and Dave Miller is worried about gearbox noises following a hard landing in that last one.

Already out are Steve Davies with a broken crank, young Iain Ogg with a rod through the block, Duggie Ingram overheated, Haydn Williams with a broken driveshaft, Wattie Warwick is on the end of a rope and Mark Jasper is out – electrics! And we’re only a third of the way through the rally. I can hardly wait for daylight!

Keep up to date with: www.2300club.org and tune in to Oban FM on 103.3.

Yer auld pal, Jaggy Bunnet, Salen Hotel, 3.00 am Saturday.