The 2023 Riponian Stages Rally

Report and Images by David Gowshall

Sunday 12^th February 2023

Last Sunday was my first meaningful photographic outing of the new motorsport year, disregarding the previous week’s abortive trip to the Mablethorpe Sand Racing. I arrived too late and was beaten by the tide flooding the beach course. This time I headed north over the Humber Bridge to the Yorkshire forests of Gale Rigg, Cropton and Wass to catch up on some rally action.

For the second year running the Riponian Stages Rally hosted the opening round of the highly competitive Motorsport UK Fuchs Lubricants British Historic Rally Championship. 111 crews tackling six challenging stages on the gravel roads, totalling 43 miles. 

Unlike the 2022 event, which ran in very wintry conditions with heavy snow fall, particularly during the afternoon, this year’s event was held in unseasonably mild conditions, with the stages, although rough in places, dry and firm throughout.

I went along with my eldest daughter’s boyfriend Olly, who was experiencing forest rallying for the first time, hoping to join me in getting some shots of the action.

Taking images of fast-moving cars on a tree-lined track in overcast conditions is never easy, so from a photographic point of view it was disappointing not to see the sun out at any point during the day.  The blanket of high cloud created somewhat “flat” light to shoot in, which meant any shots taken tended to lack contrast and shadows.

Wass was to be our choice of stage for the day which would be run twice either side of lunch. We didn’t choose Wass because it meant we could have a lie in before setting off, being the last of the morning stages, but because Wass must be the most accessible rally stage in the country. Parking is on a wide tarmac road within the forest complex and part of the stage running just a stone’s throw from the A170 main road.

Leading the runners on a compact route that included a mid-day Service Halt at    Wombleton Airfield, were the two-wheel-drive cars of the Historic Rally Championship, a large proportion of which were Mark 1 and Mark 2 Escorts. 

As expected, it was a close contest with Roger Chilman and co-driver Patrick Walsh (#4) leading the historic field home in their RS 1800 Mark 2 Escort, by just 4 seconds from Tom Walster and Chis Ridge (#7) in their similar car.

Rounding off the top three, another 7 seconds back, was Adrian Hetherington and Ronan O’Neill (#8).

Pushing all three Escorts hard throughout the day was Nick Elliott and Dave Price in their impressive Fiat 131 Abarth (#5).

As well as the British Historic championship, the opening rounds were taking place for four other championships on the day.

Steve Black and James Aldridge (#115) led home the ANECCC (Association of North East and Cumbrian Car Clubs) runners and Gary Cooper and Jonathan Riley (#112) the ANWCC (Association of North Western Car Clubs) Forest crews.

Peter and Jodie Outram (#132) were rewarded for reliability, being the only finishers in the ANCC (Association of Northern Car Clubs) Stage Rally group, and the pairing of Dave Watkins and David Shepherd (#131) recorded a win in the Northern Historic Gravel championship.

The battle for the overall rally win proved to be relatively easy for the highly committed pairing of 20-year-old Elliot Payne and his co-driver Tom Woodburn (#101) in their Ford Fiesta Rally2 rocket ship. After a steady opening stage through the Gale Rigg test, they powered their way to victory by a very impressive 45 seconds ahead of a high class field.

The victory will provide a welcome confidence boost to the pairing who will be regular runners in the 2023 British Rally Championship this season, with their next planned outing being the Malcolm Wilson Rally in March in the Lake District, which will include stages in the infamous Grizedale Forest.

The runner-up spot in the Open Class was shared by Hugh Brunton/Drew Sturrock (#107), in their Skoda Fabia, who recorded an identical overall time to Alastair Ginley /Craig Thorley (#106), in their Fiesta Rally2 machine.

Coming from a farming background in a rural county like Lincolnshire I’m used to hearing complaints about it being “too dry” or “too cold” or similar comments about the weather. 

It’s only during the process of writing this article I’ve realised that photographers and farmers have a lot in common as it was “too overcast” or there was “not enough sun” on Sunday.

Like farming, photography is a challenge and mother nature is not always helpful. However, as photography became more difficult during the day, I had the opportunity to take on the role of a spectator and join the crowds who lined the 6.5-mile stage to appreciate the driving skills on show and be rewarded with some fast and spectacular action.

Hopefully the weather, and in particular the light, will be much better for my next planned visit to the Yorkshire forests in September for the Trackrod Rally, part of the British Rally Championship, when I look like I will be accompanied by Olly again, who thoroughly enjoyed his day and is now a confirmed rally fan.

You can see more of :DEEGEE: Motorsport Photography here.