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2014

April 2014 Wexford Hillclimb Review

wex3With a great entry for the event, the question on everyone’s mind was whether or not anybody would be able to catch Simon McKinley in his Lant.

As drivers lined up for the first run of the new year, it was clear that Simon was out to set a benchmark early, going three seconds quicker than his closest competitor and he was only looking to get quicker.

At the end of the first day in Fethard, Simon won by over four seconds. There was a great battle for second place, which ended up in a tie between Rory Stevens in his beautiful Radical SR8 and Robert Bell who was putting his winter upgrade to good use.

Fourth went to the fastest saloon driver,  Eanna Carroll, in his lighting quick Honda Turbo Civic. Eanna is really getting to scratch that itch after the long Winter lay off.

Fifth was Thomas Rafferty in his rallycross Fiesta. Sixth was young gun Robert Dwane in his Falcon Mini. James Doherty was seventh and Peter Boggan in eight in his Escort. In ninth place was Keith Power in his Clio and tenth went to Brian Ledwith.

Class Winners for Saturday:

wex1Class 1 went to Gary Cunningham in his Fiat Punto
Class 2 went to James Doherty in his Starlet
Class 3A went to Robert Dwane in his Falcon Mini
Class 3B went to Eanna Carroll in his Honda Civic
Class 4 went to Mick O’Shea in his MGB
Class 5 went to Jim Keating in his Vee
Class 6 went to Robert Bell in his Crossle R1
Class 7 went to Rory Stephen’s in his Radical SR8
Class 8 went to Keith Power in his Clio
Class 9 went to Niall Fortune in his MK2 Escort

Wwex2ith the chat of Saturday night over and Rory “Grandad” Stephens leaving everyone with an itch, Sunday morning saw the event move to a new venue in the village of Carrick. Large crowds lined the course before the first run. Simon was first out of the box and set the pace early. Unfortunately, Rory Stephens suffered clutch failure in the Radical. Robert Bell had a minor run in with a round bale on the practice run. Out of sight in first place, Simon set a blisting pace seven seconds clear of second Eanna Carroll in second place. A great run by local legend Peter Boggan saw him bring his Escort home in third. Fourth place went to Emmet Dunne showing good pace in his Van Dieman. Fifth was Robert Dwane in his Falcon Mini followed closely by James Dorerty in his Starlet in Sixth. Thomas Rafferty took seventh and Eddie Lyons in his Escort Cosworth took eight and Ninth went to Keith Power in his Clio and tenth place went to local man Leon Galvin in his Escort.

wex4Class winners for Sunday:

Class 1 went to Gary Cunningham
Class 2 went to James Doherty
Class 3A went to Peter Boggan
Class 3B went to Eanna Carroll
Class 4 went to Mick O’Shea
Class 5 went to Eugene French
Class 6 went to Emmet Dunne
Class 7 went to Thomas Rafferty
Class 8 went to Keith Power
Class 9 went to Niall Fortune

Article by: Brendan Harpur

 

dsc0331
2014

Ian Quinn RIP

We are very sorry to hear of the passing of Ian Quinn, a great hillclimber. We just received the following message from Paul Doyle:

It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that I am writing this. My very good friend and role model, Ian Quinn, passed away today, while surrounded by his family and loved ones. Never in my lifetime did I expect to have to write this as I always thought Ian was invincible. He was an inspiration to many and loved by everyone. He lived for his family and his love of cars and especially hillclimbing. I would ask that you all pray for his wife Chris and the kids who have a very tough few weeks and months ahead. Rest in Peace my good friend and God speed. xxx

On behalf of the Hillclimb community, we would like to offer our sympathy to Ian’s family.

Funeral arrangements are as follows:

Prayers will be held tomorrow evening (April 15th) at 8pm in the family home. House will be open tomorrow from 2.00pm onwards for anyone who would like to pay their respects. Funeral on Wednesday at 1.30pm in the Church in Inistioge and back to Thomastown afterwards for burial. The Hearse will stop on the Quay in Thomastown for people to park their cars in the carpark and walk with the hearse to the graveyard.

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2014

2014 Clare & Galway Hillclimb Weekend Press Release

Team PR Reilly, Clare Coast Hotels, Clare Galway Hillclimb Weekend 2014

Preparations are well under way for Rounds two & three of the “Naylor Engineering National Hillclimb & Sprint Championship 2014” which takes place on Saturday April 26th. and Sunday April 27th. among the fabulous Burren Landscape of Ballyvaughan, in North County Clare.

This year’s 12 round Championship takes place over seven weekends taking in some of the most scenic parts of Clare, Galway, Wexford, Limerick, Wicklow and Donegal and the events bring a much needed boost to the local economy with demand for accommodation, food and entertainment.

The Clare Motor Club have teamed up with the Galway Motor Club to co – promote the Hillclimb Weekend which is based in Ballyvaughan. The Clare Club will run the famous Corkscrew Hill on Saturday under clerk of the course Dermot Kelleher. The 1.51km very smooth hill which consists of challenging hairpins and fast sweeping bends will pose a challenging test for all competitors in the various classes.

Sunday sees the Galway Motor Club returning to the famous Ballyallaban Hill which unfortunately has to be shortened this year from its usual 2.2 miles to 1.4 miles due to the road condition. Starting above the entrance to Ballyallaban House, the hill is extremely fast with a number of long straights interspersed with tight bends. One of the advantages of the shorter hill is that it guarantees drivers extra mileage for their money. Aiden Connolly from Ballyvaughan is stepping up to the mark this year as Clerk of the Course for the Galway Motor Club run event.

This will give competitors a great opportunity to compete on two of the best and most challenging hills in the Hillclimb Championship Series.

“Team PR Reilly Ennis” and Clare Coast Hotels have stepped in as main sponsors for the weekend event.

Andy Nevin of Team PR Reilly who supply car parts and accessories and who have just opened a brand new outlet in Ennis said that he was delighted to be associated with the ever popular Hillclimb Weekend.

Alan Logue of “The Clare Coast Hotels” and “Logue’s Lodge”, Ballyvaughan are also very happy to be associated with the Hillclimb Weekend and will have a special weekend menu available each night over the weekend including prizegiving, video footage of each day’s action and music till late.

The Clare and Galway Motor Clubs are very grateful to both Andy and Alan for their generous sponsorship.

All the championship contenders will attend including current Hillclimb champion Simon McKinley who dominated last years championship in both his Lant Single Seater and his famous white Escort.

Simon who was fastest in last years Corkscrew Hill will be looking for a repeat performance in this years Championship.

Event secretary for the Clare / Galway event is Aisling Grimes and Aisling can be contacted on 087-6102860 between 6.00pm and 9.00pm.

Entry fee is 230 euro for both day’s or 125 euro for a single day with drivers getting a practice run followed by at least three timed runs each day.

 

wexford2014
2014

Wexford Hillclimb Preview

With the first rounds of the Naylor Engineering Hillclimb Championship on the 12th and 13th of April fast approaching, Brendan Harpur and his team are busy putting final plans in place for the weekend. With a dominating  performance from Simon McKinley  last year in both his Lant single seater and his famous white escort  can he repeat his performance from last year again or can anyone stop him? With talks of new cars coming out and the likes of Dermot Nolan having to drive and work  night and day to get his car ready with his upgraded engine after his disastrous season last year he will be looking to come back with a bang this year and he could well be the one to watch this year. We are sure to see several close battles thoughout all the classes at the first rounds in Wexford. Get your entries in as soon as possible!

wex 1
2014

Wexford Hillclimb Preview

With just 4 weeks till the start of the Naylor Engineering National Hillclimb & Sprint Championship 2014. Rounds 1 and 2 of the Championship will begin in Wexford on 12th and 13th April.
Day 1 will be around Fethard and day 2 is a new hill south of Wellingtonbridge. Clerk of the Course for both days is Brendan Harpur and with his team of helpers can guarantee two great days racing on challenging roads.

Enteries are limited to 85 cars a day so get your enteries in asap to guarantee your spot. Entry fee for 2 great days racing is only €220 which will get you at least 3 timed runs each day.

Below is the Registration form for the Championship. You must be registered the weekend of the racing for the points from Wexford to be included with all other rounds.

Registration Form 2014 Web Version

NVWilliamsMGTC
Uncategorized

Norman Williams RIP

We are sorry to hear of the passing of Norman Williams last Wednesday morning.

Norman had been involved in the organisation of hillclimbs since he joined the DUMC&LCC in college in the 1950s.
During the motorsport insurance crisis which stopped all closed road events in the 1980s Norman was instrumental in reviving hillclimbing by banding together competitors to guarantee entries, introducing new sponsors such as Dunlop and Frank Keane and working to improve safety standards and thus limit the increase in costs. Without his work encouraging,cajoling and supporting organisers, clubs and competitors it is unlikely that hillclimbing as we now know it in the South would have survived.

As a competitor, Norman made his first appearances at Cruagh in roadgoing Saab Turbo’s and Ford Escorts in the more relaxed days of the late 70s before entering Production Saloon Capri’s and Golf GTi’s which he also raced successfully in Mondello. Post insurance crisis he partnered the late Cyril Lynch in a Delta T80 FF2000. The photo shows Norman in one of his last appearances in an MG TC in Bagenalstown in the late 90′s.
Forced to retire from competition through illness, Norman continued to serve on RIAC Committees and enjoyed supervising the restoration of the 1933 MG Magna which he had owned for more than 60 years.

Funeral arrangements are as follows:

Norman will be at home from 5pm to 8pm on Thursday (March 6). You are welcome to join the family. Funeral Service on Friday (March 7) at 12 noon in St Patrick’s Church, Powerscourt, Enniskerry. Private cremation will take place the following day. Family flowers only, please. Donations, if desired, to Parkinson’s Association of Ireland, Carmichael House, North Brunswick Street, Dublin 7, 1800 359359, Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Temple Road, Blackrock, Co Dublin, 01 2073800 or to Irish Cancer Society Night Nurses, 43/45 Northumberland Road, Dublin 4, 1850 606060.
Condolences may be sent to Norman’s daughter and devoted carer, Judy.

Thank you to Brendan Mc Coy for sending us the details.

2014, Uncategorized

Mary Mullins RIP

Its with great regret that the Irish Hillclimb family learned of the passing of Mary Mullins, mother of former Hillclimb Champion Sylvie Mullins.

For those wishing to pay their respects she will be reposing at her son Patsy’s home in Ballyvaughan tomorrow Tuesday the 18th from 5 to 8pm. Parking available in the church car park. Funeral Mass will take place on Wednesday at 11am.
May she rest in peace.

The Naylor Engineering Irish Hillclimb and Sprint Championship Website

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