Going from there to the Rally Show at Chatsworth was a complete turnaround. The event was part of the 50th anniversary celebrations for the British championship, and was great fun to be part of. Chatsworth used to be a real haven for spectators on the RAC Rally, so it was great to be there - the sunshine helped too - and be part of having rally cars roaring around the fantastic grounds of the house again.
It was also a good chance for the TQ.com team to bring some friends and sponsors along to a more relaxing type of rally too, a single venue where they could see lots of action in one place and get a feel for the BRC in a more relaxed non-competitive environment. We went on to win our section of the event too.
I do love to win, but it was more about having fun that day, winning was just a bonus. I was surprised more BRC crews didn’t turn out for the event though. I think more crews could have taken advantage of what was a well put together, fun, family orientated day out, and it would have been nice for the spectators to see more BRC crews compete there.
From there it was back to the BRC. To date we had enjoyed third place finishes on the Pirelli and the
Jim Clark, and we know that good finishes are going to be the key to the championship this year.
Next was Rally Isle of Man and I actually got a day off on the island before the rally - well, sort of…
We went over to the island earlier than planned this year for the wedding of former
Motorsport News journalist Jo Holland and Mini driver Neil Burgess. I know Jo well, and she had asked me earlier this year if I would drive her to the wedding if she got married on the island before the rally, so a plan was hatched. I drove her from Douglas to Castle Rushen in Castletown in one of our BRC Subaru Impreza N14s, we even put her married name ‘Burgess’ on the back windows of the car as a surprise. It was great fun, and she had no worries about getting dirt on her dress, she seemed more excited about finally getting a run in one of the TQ.com cars!
