Robin Hood Forest Stages Rally 2007

For the 9th year running BMSC had been asked to set up and run a stage on the event. Previously we have run Birklands, Blidwith and created a 1.5mile spectator stage at Rother Valley. But for the third consecutive year we created the forest stage Clipstone North, always under the guidance of our own stage commander – Jon Binns.

The weekend began for Gary & me meeting at the caravan storage at 08:45 on Friday, a quick change of vehicles & equipment and we set off, only stopping before the M62 to change driver.

We arrived onsite at 11:30, slightly later than the 11:00 planned but still before the setup had got underway. We split up into small groups each with our assigned tasks to get started, first we all started with SS2. It was a nice day (well for March anyway) so the forest was very busy with walkers and cyclists, most of whom were curious about what we were doing knocking stakes in and taping parts of the forest.

At 17:45 we were running out of light so we packed in for the evening. By 18:30 we had moved the caravan into position and setup for the evening, all in time for meeting at the pub for 7pm for a meal and some drinks. As the first pub was fully booked and the second closed Karen was beginning to panic “I’ve joined the only motor club who cannot find a pub” she said. Luckily the third pub was both open and serving food so by 8 we were sat down with a pint.

At 9am we all met up again (all 8 of us) and we started by finishing off stage two before we all started on stages 10 and 13. Because all three stages share the forest, only parts can be set up and some stakes put in readiness for the changeover. After a lunch break at ‘Center Parcs corner’ we decided that the time had come to start closing parts of the forest and taping off tracks, all in preparation for the 19.17 first car time.

Gary & I where assigned as radio for post 18. While the stage was running I started to wire up the work lights and light bar. Eventually having passed most combinations I reached the golden moment where all the lights worked correctly. Most of the problems with this led from both my stupidity and me not knowing which side is ‘near-side’. Once this was working we tidied the trailer in preparation for the now infamous night changeover.

As 9pm came the course closer passed and 10 minutes later we started changing to the SS10 & SS13 configuration. Our post which was 18 was now post 2 on SS10 so we began changing each junction one by one until we caught up with some of the others. At midnight we agreed it was time to call it a day (is that a night?!) and finish in the morning.

An early start on Sunday to finish building SS10 & SS13 before the first car time of 12.36, as SS10 was running we got some time to relax a little, at least until our ‘very important’ changeover to add a extra junction for the modern cars. After the changeover (and completing Jon’s checklist!!) we could relax for a while and have something to eat, unfortunately SS13 was delayed by about an hour so it wasn’t until 6pm that we actually started clearing up and stripping down (the stage).

We had some good news during the packing up. We had won the stage of the event award for the third time.

With help of some marshals and the event equipment crews the stage was cleared up in the dark by around 8pm. Once we had packed up the caravan we left the site at around 8.30pm to drive home, getting home for bed at around 11.30!

All in all a great event although tiring, just got to recover at work on Monday!

Wales Rally GB: Thinking Back

So how was 'the big one' in 2006?
Friday: Post 7, SS3/6 Rheola
A late enough start to be able to cash in on the 'breakfast' element of B&B (even though it was 6:30am). The best bit was having the whole section to ourselves. Richard was the 'main man' for the sector, Jon had his new 'pole', it wasn't raining, we were good to go. With all the recent tree felling it was a while before I, at least, realised that we'd been here before. Not sure of the year, maybe 1999 or earlier. A perfect spot - car visible for at least a minute at a time. With the walky-talkies appropriately distributed there was much banter, especially when it looked like I might have been able to pick up a spare wing mirror for my new Skoda (turned out it wasn't).
Saturday: Service D, SS13 Cardiff
Time for breakfast again! This was turning out to be an exceptional year.
Service is always worth a visit. The only problem is being with the Binns; they know so many people it takes forever to get anywhere; they're always stopping to catch up with someone else!
No one came in particularly wrecked so it was pretty much the standard check over and change; albeit done in a fraction of the time your garage would have taken for the same.
Then it was along the M4 to the usual disorganisation that is the Cardiff stage. Everybody means well, but somehow we've not managed to pull it off quite yet. Once again Jon had problems with the comms and a 1-in, 1-out strategy was as complicated as we could run it. The decision to break and run the MPH show after the first 15 runners were through, a break of over an hour, was disastrous. That the vast majority of spectators were there for the rally was proved by most staying in their seats until the last car had completed the stage.
As I pulled into the B&B at gone 11pm the rain had begun to fall, a foretaste of what Sunday was to bring.
Sunday: Post 17, SS15/17 Trawscoed
This goes down as one of the most frustrating starts to a day of marshaling I can remember. Hitting the road at 2:30am to find most of Wales blowing across my path, to dodging trees and branches, to find that the route to sign-on had been changed, to an abortive attempt to find Post 1b, there were more occasions than I'd like to admit when the temptation to point the bonnet eastwards and head for home was as much as I could resist. I parked up alongside Richard, Matt & Gary only to find that they, too, had failed to find our assigned position. Over the next 2 hours we became the unwanted marshals, being moved from post to post, without finding a home. Finally we ended up at 17 and, in all honesty, it wasn't bad. Across the valley, hidden by dense trees, from the earlier part of the stage, we got at least 6 cars warning before our first arrived; the anticipation of how that first competitor will take your junction being one of the joys of a day in the woods. Sheltering under the trees from the rain, Richard and I ran into the organising crew for the Manx National (funny who you can find); having marshaled that event back in my younger days ('83/'84), I'd be up for it one year.
Summary:
All in all , not a bad year. The higher entry certainly gave us more to watch after the first day. Yet it still amazes me that a Stage Commander thinks his marshals can find a track no wider than a sheep's behind, at 4am, in a forest they've never been to before, whilst it's raining, when a little thought (a stake with '1b' stapled to it, perhaps?) would prevent a lot of frustration.
Any budding SCs out there, take note!
Peter

Welcome to the Buccaneer Motor Sports Club

BMSC is always looking to introduce new people to the world of motorsport, and it is our hope that by sharing the laughs, the action, the excitement, the involvement and the entertainment, we may encourage you to get in touch and get involved.

This blog will provide a diary of the activities that we have already done. For information on the activities that we are about to do, visit our site at www.bmsc.org.uk

Richard Lilley
Club Secretary