Nine ST Trophy crews headed north for round 5 of the championship, the Carlisle stages. The event was based at the popular H&H Auction Mart in Carlisle just off the M6. The 5 special stages lay 30 miles to the north east in the Kielder complex. The weather had been good leading up to the Rally so dust could be an issue on some stages.
The first loop of stages before service seemed to be cutting up badly and all crews reported how rough it was with lots of loose rocks on the stage surface. Several crews arrived back to Carlisle having suffered punctures and this theme was to continue throughout the day.
Steven Brown & Russell Fair were the first casualties retiring on Stage 2 after clipping a rock and a gatepost and damaging the front suspension. Brown had complained about an ill handling car up to that point.
Wesley Gilford and Sam Colman sadly found one of the deep Kielder ditches in the Kershope stage. There had been a torrential down pour mid way through the stage and the surface had become so slippery according to the new crew.
Kalvin Green & Rhys Stoneman also retired on the Kershope stage with mechanical issues.
The rest of the crews battled on through the rain and the rough conditions to make it back to the finish in Carlisle with Ewan Tindall & Paul Hudson topping the time sheets, this being only Ewan's second forest rally making the result that much more impressive. It's clear Ewan is going to be one to watch in the future.
Mat & Tim Tordoff's controlled drive paid off with 2nd place and Zak Hughes & Tom Wood rounded off the top 3 after a fraught day.
The crews head to mid wales again for the next round, The NG stages, on July 14th.
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