South Downs Stages Rally
Report by David Harbey
9 December 2025
Something different at Goodwood – photographing the South Downs Stages Rally.
Alongside the familiar Revival and Members Meetings, Goodwood hosts a wide range of track days and a circuit rally. For 21 years, Southsea and Bognor Regis Motor Clubs have promoted the Phil Collings Memorial South Downs Stages. I’d previously photographed the 2019, 2020 and 2022 events.
The rally offers smooth asphalt, stages run in the dark and covered service facilities with power (unlike the Welsh forests !).
Of late, it has been run towards the end of the year so giving competitors a final event before the winter’s prep for the following season. It’s interesting to see Goodwood “undressed”.
The organisers post stage maps online so you can see where the chicanes will be. These seemed to be more robust this year or competitors were better behaved. Of course, Goodwood looks deceptively simple on the stage map but, as any racer will tell you, getting a good lap time there takes a fair degree of skill.
South Downs Stages Rally – Goodwood Woodcote
Like the Revival and Members Meeting, some spectators never seem to go further than the start / finish area, but I decided to walk the track. Rally cars on a damp track taking Lavant or St Mary’s the wrong way did offer some different photographic possibilities. I started the day at the entry to Woodcote (between 9 and 10 on the stage map).
South Downs Stages Rally – Goodwood Lavant
Moving then to the entry to Lavant (7) there is a great angle and, of course, being Goodwood, there is little obtrusive circuit furniture to distract the eye.
The sun was perfectly positioned to get the faces of the crews. At this stage, the reader might have spotted that there are more than a few Ford Escorts featured for which I make no excuse. They made up around 15% of the entry, are rear wheel drive and photograph well, nuff said!
The low sun may have contributed to this moment … or perhaps the damp track, or the rear wheel drive 325i. To be fair, they did win the award for Best Novice.
South Downs Stages Rally – Goodwood St Marys
On then to one of my favourite corners at Goodwood where you can almost reach out and touch the cars as they pass. It was time to try some lower shutter speed panning shots as the crews entered St Marys (6).
It’s a blind exit and the track was getting irregular drizzle.
Walking further to the entry to No Name corner (4) there’s a great shot back to St Mary’s or of the cars through No Name. Turning round there’s a shot of the chicane before Fordwater – and the drizzle.
South Downs Stages Rally – Goodwood Fordwater
At Fordwater (the corner between 3 and 4) the damp track is very visible.
There’s another chicane (3) on the straight down to Madgwick.
South Downs Stages Rally – Goodwood Pits
To complete the lap and for the final morning stage, I was opposite the pits (18) where this Escort, in particular, was hanging the tail out.
The final element of the morning stages was a short run through the access roads before the flying finish. Standing at 21 gave a range of angles amidst the tape which was blowing around in the gusty wind.
The lunch break at Goodwood is, in deference to local residents, taken as a full hour so time to grab some lunch and get ready for the afternoon starting at the chicane on the inside of the circuit (opposite 19). The damp track encouraged some opposite lock and just occasionally the reflection in the standing water worked from time to time.
With dusk setting in, I moved to the outside of the track at 19. This is where the split in the stage worked for the afternoon stages which were run clockwise. Cars stayed right to carry on for their second lap of the track.
Cars stayed left to take a tight 90 degree left and then right to the flying finish.
The final stages ran in darkness, but having had a 6.30am start and two hours plus journey home up the A3, M25, M1 it was time to call it a day.
If you are looking for a relaxed day shooting rally cars on track, with pretty much access all areas, then next year is in the diary for Saturday 5th December 2026. The South Downs Stages Rally are on Facebook here.
Photographic Post Script
As usual I was using my Nikon D850 combined with either my Nikkor 70-200mm zoom lens or the Nikkor 300mm PF prime. Supplemented with a 1.7x teleconverter when I wanted more focal length in an easy to handle format.
