Double victory for XS Racing in Yorkshire

News from XS Racing (Chesterfield)

There was a double victory for XS Racing in the final round of the 2008 Dunlop/Gambia MSA British Historic Rally Championship, the Trackrod Historic Cup in Yorkshire on Saturday (27 September).
 
While Steven Smith and John Nichols guided their Porsche 911RS to another victory in category two, Peter Smith and Russ Langthorne had one of their best results to date, winning their class and finishing third overall in category two in their Ford Escort Mk1. To complete a great day for the team, Drew Wylie and Howard Pridmore were second in class and Andrew Siddall and Captain Thompson scored another finish, even though brake problems after a rock knocked a brake pipe off left them down in fifth place in class.
 
Right from the start of the rally, which used four classic forest stages in the Yorkshire forests, Smith/Nichols set the pace in category two and went a couple of seconds clear of their rivals on the opening stage in the Dalby complex on Saturday morning. But with fellow Porsche driver Tim Mason pushing hard on his home event, Smith had to attack the final 15-mile stage in Langdale forest to make sure of victory, despite a scare over a brake problem, also caused by a damaged brake pipe after a rock flicked up under the car.
 
"Even without the brake problem, the last stage in Langdale was a dream," said Smith after being 13s faster than Mason in the 15-mile stage to make certain of victory.
 
Meanwhile, to mark his 59th birthday, Peter Smith returned to compete in his native Yorkshire forests for the first time in 30 years and came away with a brilliant result. As well as finishing third overall in category two, he won class C3 by nearly a minute over team mates Wylie and Pridmore. "These Yorkshire forests are the best stages," said Smith. "The car was fine and everything was really good."
 
Wylie admitted that he'd had a couple of minor offs in Langdale, but escaped to take second in class, while Siddall/Thompson bagged fifth despite their problems.
 
Meanwhile, another success for XS Racing came in the Formula 1000 rally class where the team's driver coach and former British Rally Champion Alistair Sutherland and Gill Cotton won the 2008 title after a low-key campaign in a Nissan Micra. Though rallying just for fun, it was a great result for Sutherland who won every round of the championship, including winning the final round, the Plains Rally, by over five minutes.
 
On the same weekend as the Plains Rally, XS Racing was busy at the Goodwood Revival Race Meeting, running a Jaguar C-Type in the two-driver 90-minute race on Saturday evening. The car was running in the top four after the driver change and re-fuel stop, only to be forced out with a broken gearbox.
 
One of the next rallies for the team will be November's Roger Albert Clark Rally, when a two-car squad from XS Racing will tackle the challenging three-day rally in Yorkshire, Kielder and Scotland. The team will field a freshly prepared Escort Mk1 for Peter Smith alongside the familiar Escort of Andrew Siddall.
 
XS Racing specialises in all types of historic rally preparation and parts supply across a wide range of cars. XS Racing can be contacted on 01246 233777.