The British Rally Championship
A personal view of Rallying in Yorkshire and other things by David Harbey.
20 February 2025
Inspired by my recent RAC Rally retrospectives reports, I’ve delved back into the archives again – well, four A4 binders of 35mm slides. The ageing scanner has been cranked back into life. I rediscovered a selection of images from British Rally Championship events from 1988, 1989, and 1991.
The eighties were a good time for rallying. The British Rally Championship attracted all manner of top drivers. Ari Vatanen, Stig Blomqvist, and Pentti Airikkala, for example, taking on local stars like Jimmy McRae, Russell Brookes, and Dai Llewellin. For the fan, especially in the deep south (aka south of Birmingham), there was regular coverage on the TV – which was all free to air then ! It was unsurprising, therefore, that the sport had a great following.
I also travelled further afield during this time period. My Manx International memories can be found here – Tudor Webasto Manx International Rally – Manx Memories 1987-89.
At this point, a slightly self-indulgent diversion, if I may. Rallying was also accessible in a way that motor racing typically wasn’t. My local motor club would run Friday night 12-car rallies. Or half-night scatters to cut your teeth as a driver, navigator, or organiser. You could marshal or help a mate from the club run his car or simply go and spectate.
NatWest Bank Motoring Club
As I mentioned in the third RAC Rally report my mate Chris and I were members of the Chilterns section of the NatWest Bank Motoring Club. That’s how we ended up doing a couple of road rallies in the mid-80s. Using the family Golf GTi – bog-standard spec, no sump guard or extra lights.
Chris had the advantage of being an experienced navigator from his earlier days up north. He could read the road off an Ordnance Survey map – assuming there was no “not on map” – and, even better, he was happy for me to drive.
His lack of recent events meant that we were classed as novices for the 1986 Kent Rally. I wasn’t going to go flat out, but looking back, the photos seem to indicate that I was enjoying it. My first road rally saw us finish 30th overall, 2nd in class, and win the NWBMC Emmett Cup!
Our second event was, I believe, the last pre-plot road rally in late 1987. We sat in the Little Chef waiting for the 10 p.m. start. Chris plotting the route from Doncaster out towards the North Sea and back again while I drank coffee.
The water-splash was one memorable part of the route; Chris had called the first ford but hadn’t spotted that it was immediately followed by a second one – that came as a surprise to both of us ! 18th overall on the Morning Star Trophy was a decent result.
Cartel International Rally – North Yorkshire stages
But I digress, the 1988 Cartel International Rally was the season opener and attracted a good entry of Group A cars. Starting from Bradford and taking in the classic North Yorkshire stages. I only seem to have kept images from the opening stage at Harewood House. However, they give a decent flavour of the Group A machinery taking part.
I also mentioned that Chris and I were regular contributors to the NMWBC magazine. This included interviewing Phil Collins (not that one, the other one) who both drove and prepared rally cars and was a friend of a tutor at the NatWest staff training college I got chatting to.
The red Cosworth is driven by Peruvian, Ramon Ferreryros. Phil prepared his Group N spec car and, we discovered, Ramon was living just down the road from us. Another magazine interview followed. Ramon, at the time, was very fast, but didn’t always finish. He did win Group N on the Ypres 24 Hours Rally that year – the trophy nearly filled the living room of his accommodation.
The other photos from Harewood that year do show the wide range of cars competing further down the entry.
The British Rally Championship 1989
The 1989 British Championship again opened with the Cartel based in Bradford. This time the cars tackled the Harewood Hillclimb early on the first day.
Then off to the classic North Yorkshire forest stages. The memory is hazy, the record keeping even worse, but I think these shots are from Gale Rigg on Saturday afternoon or Dalby on Sunday.
Having slept in the car at Oliver’s Mount, I was able to grab some shots of the cars at the Mere Hairpin. It’s still on the bucket list to see motorbikes race there.
For the final stage of the event, it was back to Harewood House.
Audi Sport International Rally 1989
At around this time, I’d met Nick Petrusic through the NWBMC. He worked for the bank and with a relative, Steve Wedgbury, was rallying a Skoda. I helped with press releases for the team which was supported by the West Midlands Skoda dealers. Unfashionable as it may have seemed, Steve could make a Skoda go!
I have two shots from the Audi Sport International rally that started in Telford in the Autumn of that year where they finished 46th overall and 5th in class from a start number of 103.
As an end-of-year thank you, I took Nick’s place in the Carfax Stages on Enstone Airfield. On a single-venue event, the occupant of the left-hand seat really doesn’t have a lot to do, but it was good to see Steve at work firsthand.
Beaujolais Run
1989 was a busy year. In November, Chris and I took part in our first Beaujolais Run. We managed to borrow a car from the local Trimoco dealership and raised funds for charity. We also had a great time driving through France at the dead of night, attempting to make it from the vineyard to Calais in the shortest distance. Finishing a very pleasing 18th overall and 2nd in class, having shared driving / navigating duties.
1990 was busy with the arrival of twins mid-year to accompany our two-year-old. I was still doing press releases for Steve and Nick, and the year ended on a high note when Chris and I managed to blag a Fiesta RS Turbo from Trimoco for the Beaujolais Run and finished 7th overall and again 2nd in class. Good friend Steve Lewis joined us in his Alfa 75 V6.
Talkland International Rally
In 1991, Messrs. Wedgbury and Petrusic ran a Favorit – Skoda’s new front-wheel-drive car – in the British Championship. That could only mean a trip to Yorkshire – the first few shots are somewhere on the Talkland International Rally on a wet day.
Oliver’s Mount
Then back to Oliver’s Mount. 13th overall and 1st in class A5 was a fitting result for Steve and Nick, followed by more top-three class results that year.
Family and work life were getting increasingly busy. I was still doing NWBMC local events, and my one and only mention as a competitor in Motoring News came early that year. Steve Lewis and I finished 5th on the Ace of Herts Scatter— a half-night event where specified points on the map had to be visited in any order you chose. Unusually, I was in the left-hand seat navigating, and it all fell right on the night.
Steve was enjoying the Alfa, including the “dab of oppo” off the M1 J9 roundabout. Steve went on to race TVRs and be a top-level instructor at Silverstone. I stuck to banking and corporate cards, but we each got a trophy that night!
Ford Motorsport at Boreham
Finally, given my daily commute into London on the train, I had plenty of time to read Autosport from cover to cover. Chris, meanwhile, read Motoring News. This came in handy when Ford ran a series of motorsport quizzes.
We were particularly adept at them and had three visits to Ford Motorsport at Boreham— once to drive an RS200 (yes, 200) for two slightly nervous laps around the perimeter road of the former airfield. On the other occasions, we were chauffeured at high speed by Gwyndaf (2025 Swedish Rally winner Elfyn’s dad) Evans in a Sierra Cosworth.
That brings an end to my, occasionally self-indulgent, wander through the archives of The British Rally Championship. I hope that it has been of interest and even, for some, prompted memories of earlier times. The Olympus OM2n and OM10 served me well over the years. Good days and good memories.
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