Raising Money in Second Gear
Text and Photos: Reinis Babrovskis
A charity event raising the funds for Cancer Research UK was organised by Megan McKee on October 11. The event was held at the Alltrak Rallysport venue just outside Craigavon, where more than 25 people teamed up to raise more than £1200 whilst having fun behind the wheel of rally cars.
It is amazing how cars can unite people; within minutes of arriving at the Alltrak Rallysport grounds and without knowing each other, everybody started introducing themselves and talked to each other about their cars, the upcoming event and just seemed to have a good time. After the short chit chat, it was time to gather up for the welcome and safety briefing from the friendly bunch of people at the Alltrak.
Even with the entertaining speech of the host, it was obvious everybody's eyes were drawn to the back of the pit-lane, as everybody was keen to see what cars they were about to drive. The Rally experience day consisted of 8 stages where we would be doing them in the 1.2 Vauxhall Nova and 2 stages in a 310bhp 4WD Subaru Impreza WRX STI. All cars at Alltrak are fully prepared to a rally spec and equipped with bucket seats, harnesses, roll cage and fire extinguishers, since safety of the participants plays the key role of the Alltrak experience.
With the speech done it was time to gear up and get to meet the instructors of the day! Whilst the helmets are provided, many of the drivers came equipped with their own racing overalls and helmets, showing they mean the business.
Each team consisted from 4-5 team members and was allocated an instructor for the day.
Once the second briefing was complete it was GO GO GO!
And if you think we were not being pushed you are wrong. Each instructor made sure that not only we enjoyed having a chance to be behind a rally car, but our limits and skills were pushed to the limits as each lap was timed and recorded.
After the first loop of 4 stages we stopped for a small break that gave everybody the chance to talk about their experience so far, get a cuppa or some food from the stalls that were present on the day. The smiles on everybody faces was a proof of how successful the event was.
During the lunch break I also had a chance to get a glance at some of the cars in the car park.
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| Megan arrived in her stunning Subaru Impreza (that she didn't take out on the track) |
A car that caught my eye more than others was the all new Peugeot 208 GTI. Stunning design, and performance make it a real desirable sports hatchback.
It was time to get back out again, and whilst some of us were still battling out with the Novas, many had started the experience that we were all so patiently waiting for the whole day - the thrill to drive the 310whp rally spec Subaru Impreza.
Megan made sure there was entertainment for the younger generation on the day as well - including a bouncy castle. Kane Castle is a speedy service and can deliver a Bouncy Castle anywhere in NI in matter of minutes, if you don't believe me check this out
With the sun going down everybody had finally finished their 10 stages including the passenger run, and it was time to announce the winners of the day.
Just missing out on the podium we had Megan (well done). In third place and showing the sister how it's done - Shannon McKee.
Runner up - Aaron Gallown!
And the winner of the day with amazing and most importantly consistent times was Stephen Potter - Congratulations!
Also a huge thanks to the team at Alltrak Rally Experience Centre - with the friendliest instructors and great rally hands on experience it is a phenomenal place to spend your weekend.
Roll on 2016!
Roll on 2016!
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