Regs and entry form for the Carlow Car Club Sprint weekend are available for download.

Round 5 and 6 of the Connaught Competition Engines Hillclimb and Sprint championship.

After the epic battle between the main title contenders in Sylvie Mullins back yard in Ballyvaughan just 4 short weeks ago it was Simon McKinley’s turn to welcome all comers to Dublin. Situated in the rolling countryside of North County Dublin the Naul venue proved a challenge to most competitors and a bit too much for some! Saturday started off dry and the action started in the early afternoon. It was first blood to Simon McKinley in the Lant after run 1 with a time of 38.6 1with Sylvie Mullins getting acquainted to the new venue in his Judd engined Gould on 39.71. Paul O’Connell was behind Mullins having finally cured the Electrical problems that had plagued his start to the season on 40.91. Joe Courtney continued to show great pace keeping the bigger cars honest on 41.15 followed by John Byrne in the Jedi on 43.55. As the runs progressed the picture stayed the same as the times fell but the order remained the same. By the final 4th run it was McKinley who emerged victorious with a 37.29 second run as set on his 2nd run. Mullins struggled to tame the 600 bhp Gould on the narrow course and finished on 38.71 with O’Connell having lost the use of 3rd gear earlier in the day on 39.57. Joe Courtney in the OMS Hornet finished on a 40.80. John Byrne in the Jedi found that the force was not worth him for once as an unplanned trip to the scenery on run 4 took him out of the running. He ended up 5th overall on 41.68. Brendan Keane returned to competitive action in his Swallow and put in a solid time of 42.01. Rory Stephens in the fire breathing radical endured some mechanical woes early in the day but coaxed the turbo radical to a time of 42.44. Neil Anderson in the bright green Ward sports libre was hard on Stephens’ heels on 42.78. Dermot Nolan had another double driver this weekend in the Connaught Engined Reynard in the shape of Russell “JR” Stanworth. Nolan had the beating of Russell with a time of 43.83 with Stanworth outside the top 10 in 12th on 44.32. Rounding out the top 10 was Galway’s Eanna Carroll in his Turbo Civic who was again fastest tin top on a time of 43.99.

Class one was missing Ray Cunningham this weekend and was won by Elaine O Reilly in her mini beating fellow lady Trish Daly by a mere 0.54 of a second. Class 2 was won by Declan Cundelan in his yellow Mark2 Escort. Class 3a spoils went to Ian Quinn in the MiniBusa despite gear change cable problems. Class 3b was won by Rory Stephens ahead of Neill Anderson. Fastest in the popular historic class4 on scratch was the evergreen John Farrell making a welcome return in the sideways Escort MK1. Class 5 was won by Eugene French in the Formula Vee ahead of returning Ger O’Connor. Class 6 spoils went to Joe Courtney, and class 7 went to Simon McKinley. Class 8 for smaller engined rally cars was won by Hillclimb debutant David Donoghue in his Citroen C2 while class 9 spoils went to Patrick Donoghue in the Peugeot 205 GTI.

On the dawning of a new day on Sunday again we were blessed with dry weather if a little cold due to the brisk wind. Again Simon McKinley was quick out of the traps with a time of 37.25 just under his fastest time on Saturday. He would fail to improve on this as the day progressed after breaking a gear on run 3. Mullins put in a banker run of 38.78 but was looking for a better return on his interest when he ran into trouble shortly afterwards with a sticking throttle cable. After fitting a replacement cable he completed run 4 with a time of 38.30 just over a second behind McKinley. Paul O’Connell continued his testing regime and despite gear change troubles put in a time of 39.28 before deciding to call it a day and return home to the workshop. Joe Courtney again was highest placed Motorcycle engined car on 39.84 edging closer all the time to the bigger cars. Rory Stephens improved on Sunday in the turbo Radical to 41.72 and 5th overall. Neill Anderson in the Ward was close behind on 42.20 while Brendan Keane recovered his confidence from a spin at the final corner on Run 1 to finish 7th overall on 42.58. Russell Stanworth shook of the rust after his long layoff and gave Dermot Nolan a good battle for double drive honours. Still Nolan came out on top 8th overall on 42.71 with Stanworth on 42.85 in what must be the hardest worked single seater in Irish Hillclimbing. Rounding out the top ten again was Eanna Carroll in the 420 bhp Turbo Civic, again fastest tin top and getting more confidence in the new radial tyres he is running.

In the Class 1 battle Elaine O Reilly again came out ahead of Trish Daly although by a slightly bigger margin. Aidan Courtney had the advantage over Senan O’Connor in the Cinquecento battle. Here is hoping Aidan’s upcoming Leaving Cert Exams go as well as the Fiat. Class 2 was won again by Declan Cundelan in the Mark 2 Escort. Despite having no class opposition Declan targeted Denis Hogan’s BMW M3 as likely opposition and just pipped him on the timesheet. Class3a was won again by Ian Quinn in the MiniBusa having repaired his gear change cable he buzzed his way to a time of 44.84. The well supported Class 3b was won by Rory Stephens again ahead of Neill Anderson in the Ward. Fastest class 4 competitor was John Farrell again followed closely by Bernard Foley. Class 5 spoils went to Ger O’Connor in the formula Vee who is hoping to be out for the remaining rounds of the season. Class 6 honours went to Joe Courtney who was followed by the evergreen rapid John Mahon in the DJ. Class 7 was won by Simon McKinley in the Lant ahead of Sylvie Mullins.

A special mention to the Historic competitors who made up a sizable number of the field. It was great to see such a wide array of competitive machines and competitors attending the oldest form of motorsport in the country.

The next event will be the Carlow Car club weekend on the Whit weekend so keep your eyes open for entries for this ever popular event.
With McKinley reputed to be returning to France on the weekend to showcase Irish Hillclimbing will it mean Sylvie Mullins will be able to make up ground in the title race and force the Dubliner into a fight to the last round in Donegal? It promises to be a fascinating conclusion the season.

Article by: Paul O’Connell
Photos: Billy @ Caoradubha.com

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Rounds 5 and 6 of the Connaught Competition Engines National Hillclimb and Sprint Championship will be hosted by the Motor Enthusiasts Club in Naul, Co. Dublin on the weekend of May 12th and 13th.

The four week gap since the last round in Clare has given competitors a good opportunity to look over their cars and freshen them up for the coming weekend. Some more than others, with Dermot Nolan scrambling to sort out his gearbox after it broke twice in Clare and Paul O Connell hopefully after getting to the bottom of his electrical gremlins.

Simon McKinley, the winner of the last two rounds in Clare, will be on home ground this weekend. Surely he is the man to beat, but he won’t have it all his own way with Sylvie Mullins in the Gould hoping to get back on top after his bad luck in Clare. Paul O’Connell could also be in with a chance if he can get his Pilbeam sorted out. As ever, John C. Byrne in his Jedi will also be mixing it up with the bigger machines and many more people will be waiting to pounce should anyone at the top slip up.

With the two days to be held in Naul, the speed and times should be quick. With two hard days hillclimbing ahead, who will come out on top? We’ll have to wait and see!

With the first round of the 2012 Connaught Competition Engines Irish Hillclimb and Sprint Championship kicking off in Wexford and big interest being shown this year, the season looked good for a close fight and it has not disappointed so far!

On the first Saturday in Wexford, some people were still shaking the dust of their cars. As the competition started it was clear that Simon McKinley, in his Lant, was not going to have it all his own way. Sylvie Mullins in his Gould was bringing the fight to him and Sunday would be no different with Mullins coming out on top both days. After the first 2 rounds in Wexford, leading the pack was Sylvie Mullins, 2nd was Simon McKinley, 3rd was a hard charging John Byrne in his Jedi, 4th was the returning Paul O Connell in his Pilbeam, 5th was Joe Courtney in his OMS, 6th was Rory Stephens in his turbo Radical tied with Neil Anderson in his lovely Ward. 8th was the one and only John Mahon in his DJ, 9th was Eanna Carroll in his turbo Civic, 10th was Dermot Nolan in his Reynard.

Round 3 and 4 were a joint effort between Clare Motorclub running the famous Corkscrew hill on Saturday and Galway Motorclub running the infamous Ballyallaban on Sunday, both in Mullins’ back yard. But Mullins was to hit trouble early with a broken gearbox on Saturday, leaving McKinley to take the win. McKinley was to repeat his win again on Sunday. The top ten and class results after Round 4 are: Simon McKinley in his Lant taking the lead with Sylvie Mullins a close 2nd and Paul O Connell moving up into 3rd, 4th is John Byrne in his Jedi, 5th is Joe Courtney after a good run in Round 3, 6th is Rory Stevens 7th is John Mahon 8th is Eanna Carroll showing already to be one of the quickest saloon 9th is Neil Anderson in his Ward with Dermot Nolan in 10th.

Class1 sponsored by the Daly Family:
Leading the way is Elaine O Reilly in her Mini
2nd is Trish Daly in her Mini
3rd is Neill Bradbury

Class 2 sponsored by the Galway Motor Club:
Declan Cundelan is all on his own at the minute but will give anybody a good run for their money that comes into the class.

Class 3a sponsored by Quinn Motorsport:
1st is Ian Quinn in his Mini Busa with 4 wins from 4
2nd  is John Whitley starting his championship on round 3 and 4

Class 3b sponsored by Donegal Motor Club:
1st is Rory Stephens in his Radical
2nd is Eanna Carroll in his Turbo Civic
3rd is Denis Hogan in his BMW.

Class 4 sponsored by The Motor Enthusiasts Club:
1st is Barry Smith in his MK1 escort
2nd is Mick O Shea
3rd is Bernard Foley

Class 5 sponsored by The Wexford Motor Club:
Tied for the top at the minute are Cillian Connole and Enda Kennedy
3rd is Eugene French.

Class 6 sponsored by Carnew Tyre Centre:
1st is John C Byrne in his Jedi
2nd is John Mahon
3rd is Deirdre Delaney

Class 7 sponsored by Crecora Mills:
1st is Simon McKinley in his Lant
2nd is Sylvie Mullins in his Gould GR37
3rd is the returning Paul O Connell who is still trying to sort out his Pilbeam.

Class 8 sponsored by Carlow Car Club:
1st is Shay Delaney
2nd is Patrick Haughey
3rd is Georgie Bell.

Article by: Brendan Harpur

Regs are available for the 2012 MEC Speed Weekend.

Sylvie Mullins on the Corkscrew

Once again the crowds and cars descended on Ballyvaughan for the 3rd and 4th round of the Connaught Competition Engine Hillclimb and Sprint Championship for two of the most famous hills in Ireland.

Saturday morning saw blue skies over the corkscrew Hillclimb the main point of conversation in the paddock was about who might be able to beat Sylvie Mullins in his Gould GR37. It was clear that Mullins was going to have a fight on his hands with Simon McKinley in the Lant quickest out of the box on run 1 after Mullins made a mistake, with Joe “The Greek” Courtney, a close third in his OMS hornet. Run 2 saw a big upset when Mullins’ gearbox let go, which would see him side lined for the remainder of the day, leaving McKinley as the man to catch.

McKinley takes victory both days in the Burren

As the cars lined up for the last blast, times were getting quicker and quicker but Simon McKinley was a clear winner. A brilliant drive on the last run saw Joe Courtney in his OMS hornet finish in second and Paul O’Connell in third in his Pilbeam, just edging out Mullins despite having electrical problems all day. Sylvie Mullins finished in fourth position with his first and only time of the day. In 5th position was Carnew man John C Byrne in his Jedi and Rory “Granddad” Stephens brought his Radical home in 6th place. Despite a troubled day, Dermot Nolan finished in 7th in his Reynard, followed in a close 8th was John Mahon in his DJ, with the championship sponsor Phil Price in 9th who was double driving Dermot Nolan’s Reynard. Derek Daly in his Formula Renault finished in 10th position.

O'Connell's Pilbeam suffered from electrical troubles

Class winners on Saturday were Ray Cunningham in his lighting quick Mini in Class 1, Declan Cundelan in his MKII Escort took Class 2, Class 3a went to Ian Quinn in his Mini Busa. The winner of Class 3b was Rory Stephens, Class 4 went to Frank Nutall in his Graham 1955, Class 5 went to Wexford man Enda Kennedy, Class 6 was taken by Joe Courtney, Class 7 was handed to Sylvie Mullins, Class 8 was won by John O Sullivan in his Citroen C2, Class 9 was taken by Ger Hodgins in his lovely Opel Manta and Class 10 went to Tommy Flanagan in his MKII Escort.

Sunday morning brought the blue sky out again for the 2.2 mile Ballyallaban Hillclimb. With Mullins back in action thanks to help from Simon McKinley’s vast collection of spares, it promised to be an interesting day.

It was Sylvie Mullins who set quickest time on run 1 from Simon McKinley, with Paul O Connell a distant 3rd. But Mullins’ lead was short lived as Simon got his head down and went quickest on run 2 by nearly 2 seconds from Sylvie with Paul still suffering from his electrical gremlins in 3rd.

Denis Hogan in the M3 on Ballyallaban

On the last run Sylvie could not manage to get the better of Simon. Mullins, who finished second, could just not get the power down on the bumpy road. Paul O Connell bagged third place with his only time of the day. This left him scratching his head on what he had to do to get his Pilbeam running right. Fourth position went to Adrian McCallion in his Suzuki Normandale, 5th went to Rory Stephens and 6th went to John C. Byrne in his Jedi. 7th place went to Denis Hogan Jnr in his pristine BMW M3 which is nice to see him back on the pace after his layoff, 8th went to Ray Cunningham in his Mini, 9th went to Dean Laffey in his Reynard SF 81. But the drive of the day had to go to 10th placed man, Eanna Carroll, who broke a CV joint in his Civic Turbo and was kindly given a run in Hogan’s BMW M3. He went on to make full use of its power, even if Denis had his eyes closed every time he saw his car roar off the start line!
But the bad luck story of the weekend had to go to Dermot Nolan and Phil Price with Dermot breaking 2nd gear in his gearbox on Saturday Phil Price had to go one better by breaking 4th gear in Dermot’s gearbox on Sunday.

Declan Cundelan gets his Escort sideways on the Corkscrew

Class winners on Sunday: Class 1 was Ray Cunningham in his Mini, Class 2 went to Kieran Curran in his Corsa, Class 3a went to Ian Quinn in his Mini Busa, Class 3b went to Rory Stephens, Class 4 went to Barry Smith in his MK1 Escort, Class 5 went to Enda Kennedy, Class 6 went to Adrian McCallion, Class 7 was Sylvie Mullins again, Class 8 went to John O Sullivan in his C2, Class 9 went to Ger Hodgins before the engine in his Manta cried enough and Class 10 went to Tommy Flanagan.

The next round the Connaught Competition Championship heads to McKinley’s territory where Mullins will be hoping to get back on top and Paul hoping to have left his electric gremlins at home.

Article by: Brendan Harpur P.R.O.
Photos by: Caora Dubha

Sylvie Mullins on the Corkscrew 2011. Photo by Denis Hogan - denishogan.ie

The Hillclimb circus will converge on Ballyvaughan in Clare for the 3rd and 4th round of the Connaught Competition Engines Hillclimb and Sprint championship on two of the most famous hills in the country.

Saturday will test all competitors on the Corkscrew hill which consists of challenging hairpins and fast sweeping bends. Local man Slyvie Mullins is the man to beat as he attempts to make it three from three on the Corkscrew, having taken victory for the past two years.

Sunday sees a move just over the road to the most challenging and longest Hillclimb of the year on Ballyallaban. Simon McKinley, who holds the hill record, will face stiff competition from local man Mullins and the returning three time champion Paul O’Connell looking to get back on form after his lacklustre weekend in Wexford and the hard charging John Byrne in his Jedi.

After Mullins’ double win in Wexford he will be looking to make it 4 in a row, can anyone stop him? Only time will tell. With class battles looking very strong this year, Dermot Nolan will be hoping he will have a better run on Ballyallaban after his big off last year in the Reynard. And after a bad run in Wexford Brendan Harpur will hope 4 wheels are quicker than 3 when crossing the finishing line.

Article by: Brendan Harpur

Entry Details

Contact details for the Event Seretary for the Clare & Galway Hillclimb have been changed.

Please contact Joan on 086 8902057 for Entries and all other information about the event.

All entries should be mailed to:

Joan Vaughan
Galway Motor Club
Ballyvaughan
Co.Clare

The Clare & Galway Hillclimb Weekend takes place on April 14th/15th 2012. Regulations and Entry Form are now available for download. Saturday’s hill will be the Corkscrew and Sunday’s hill will be Ballyallaban, both hills are located near Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare.

Contact details for the Event Seretary for the Clare & Galway Hillclimb have been changed.

Please contact Joan on 086 8902057 for Entries and all other information about the event.

All entries should be mailed to:

Joan Vaughan
Galway Motor Club
Ballyvaughan
Co.Clare

Top Three in Wexford (L-R): Simon McKinley (2), Sylvie Mullins (1), Paul O Connell (3) Photo: Patrick Doyle sidewayshot.com

Once again Hillclimb competitors from all over the country gathered in Wexford at a new venue in Ballyhouge for the 1st and 2nd rounds of the Connaught Competition Engines Hillclimb and Sprint Championship.

Saturday morning in Ballyhogue brought a dry, cold start when competitors were taking cars off their trailers, some for the first time wondering whether they would start or even move! With John Mahon only fitting new drive shafts the night before the hill that would test the top speed of all the machines in attendance.

The talk of the paddock was who would come out on top, with the returning Paul O Connell in his Pilbeam or Sylvie Mullins in his Gould Gr37, both ready to push reigning champion Simon McKinley all the way. The hard charging John Byrne was also ready to put the bigger machinery to shame.

Indeed, as the practice run ended and cars were queuing for Run 1, the talk around the paddock had turned to a new topic; how many plug leads could be pulled off Mullins car before he would notice!

Brendan Harpur in his Delta hit trouble early when he was left with 3 wheels on his wagon and a badly slipping clutch, but John Byrne was on hand quickly to sort the problem.

With Sylvie leading after Run 1, he went even quicker on Run 2 with Simon McKinley hitting gearbox trouble and Paul having electric trouble and John Byrne breaking a drive shaft.

On the 4th and final run of the day and Paul’s Pilbeam already in the trailer, John Byrne and Joe Courtney put manners on the big machinery with John finishing 3rd and Joe 4th shoving Paul to 5th, but no one could catch Sylvie with Simon finishing 2nd.

With class battles strong throughout the field on Saturday, Sunday was gearing up to be a great event. Sunday morning had a change to an old favourite hill in Barntown that had a spilt paddock with single seaters at the bottoms and salons at the top.

Paul O Connell hit trouble early when his car would not fire up but the hero of the weekend John Byrne swooped in to fix the wiring problem. At this stage, John’s free pint count is raising fast.

As the start dew near Simon McKinley was trying to sort out how he was going to beat Sylvie and with Paul trying to figure out where he was losing so much time.

Sylvie set the pace on Run 1 from Simon and then Paul. When the times came in John Byrne was roaming around the paddock with a snips looking to cut the wires he fixed in the morning to slow Paul down.

Run 2 saw troubles when, Killian Connole went off and was taken to hospital for precautionary a check-up. After the restart, Rory “Granddad” Stephens, the oldest swinger in town broke down bringing the red flag out again.
By the end of Run 2, it was Simon McKinley who was ahead by a nose from Sylvie.

On the last run of the weekend everyone wondered if Simon could do it, but it wasn’t to be and Sylvie pulled it back to take the win.

Again the class battles were fierce. The Hillclimb & Sprint circus moves to Ballyvaughan in 2 weeks to see if Mullins can be stopped on his local hills.

Article by: Brendan Harpur P.R.O.