Saltash driver Alan Cookson and London co-driver Julian Wilkinson are hoping for better luck on next Saturday's Border Counties Rally.
The pair return to action in their SparDevon.com, VK Vodka Kick, Riverside Property Services and Kumho Tyres-supported Subaru Impreza World Rally Car for the second round of the Pirelli MSA National Gravel Rally Championship following their retirement on the opening round, the Rallye Sunseeker, last month.
The crew were up to an impressive tenth overall before their rally came to a premature end on stage nine as they left the road when all five wheel studs sheered off at the front driver's side and the wheel parted company with the car, causing them to go off into the scenery.
They are now hoping to make amends in round two as Cookson and Wilkinson aim to collect some points on the Kielder Forest-based event and will be boosted by last year's result when they finished 19th overall and second in the Subaru Trophy in their old Group N Impreza.
“Our aim on the Borders is basically to try and finish after the part failure on the Sunseeker resulted in us missing out on points, which was especially hard to swallow after we were on the pace of many of the top ten seeded crews after finally getting the car working as it should,” Cookson said.
“The whole team was obviously disappointed after the Sunseeker and hoping that our luck will change soon, but I'm really looking forward to getting back out there.
“After all the work that has gone into re-preparing the car both mechanically and cosmetically, and with no time to test it to make sure everything is working as it was on the Sunseeker, we will just ease our way back onto the infamous Kielder stages, find a comfortable pace, then see how our times are at first service and go from there.”
Cookson and Wilkinson have also secured a new sponsor ahead of the Border Counties Rally in the form of Glasgow-based Robert Wiseman Dairies, which means their car will be in a new livery for the event.
