1969 “Fit” Cork 20 Rally

1969 National Rally Championship – Round 2

This report by Frank O’Donoghue, is reproduced from ‘Motor and Sport’ Magazine, November 1969, from Malcolm Totten’s collection.

Victory in the Munster MC and Car Club’s ‘Cork 20’ Rally, sponsored by Fit Kilkenny Remoulds, went to the Galway pair Mick Barry and Dan Cavanagh who led the second crew Noel Smith and Ricky Foott by 59 secs. In Third Place, only one sec. behind, came John Bridges and Brendan Doyle.

Clerk of the Course for the event for his third successive year Dick O’Brien used most of sheet 22 and the Eastern part of sheet 21 for the 270 mile route. The real meat of the rally however lay in the 19 sections on forestry and public roads which totalled some 93 miles and the linking road sections had no real bearing on the results.

Of the fully subscribed entry of 50 only 5 crews non-started and the entry included almost the complete Irish rally circus. Notable absentees however were Tom Burke and Demmy Fitzgerald whose “Team Goldstripe” Escorts had not yet recovered from their Thomond woes.

Last year’s winner, Rosemary Smith, was unable to compete so No.1 went to current champion Noel Smith and Ricky Foott (Cooper S) who were followed in succession by John O’Gorman Noel Davin (Escort TC), Charlie Gunn, making one of his comparitively rare rally appearances, navigated by Paul Phelan (Escort TC), and Paddy Fay/Frank O’Donoghue (Renauit Gordini).

Midlanders Mick Dolan/Jim O’Brien (Escort t/c) were followed by the Galway pair, Eamonn Cotter/Mick Silk (Cooper S), John Bridges/Brendan Doyle (Cooper S), Mick Barry/Dan Cavanagh (Escort t/c), Dave and George Yeates (Cooper S) and Paddy O’Callaghan/Harry McAvoy (BMW), to make up the top ten.

Robert Maharry/Kenny Johnston (Cooper S) were at No.11 while the “Clever Kids” John and Dick Keating (Escort GT) were seeded No.16. Dan O’Suilleabhain dashed over from London to join his brother Padraig (Anglia GT) at No. 19. Nobby Reilly/Phil Erskine (Imp) were dropped to No. 24 while Melanie Fitzgerald-Smith/Mike Liston (Imp GT) had to be content with No. 36.

Competitors received the complete route at check-in and could plot the 70 odd map references in the comfort of the club house at Vernon Mount before setting out for the Cork City centre ramp start at 9.00 p.m. A fourteen mile main road run-out brought crews to SS1, the Kearney’s Cross forest near Watergrasshill, which saw the retirement of Dolan’O’Brien with clutch trouble but not before they had set the fastest time, also O’Gorman/Davin with loss of fan and water pump bearings and Reid/O’Sullivan (Cooper S) who were fortunate to escape serious damage when a wheel split.

Turning east through two more forests brought the rally through Clonmult to SS4 at Mount Uniacke. The junction left here where the stage emerged from the forest and continued on to a tarred public road caused much trouble and Fay/O’Donoghue “let it fall” here deranging their lights, Cotter/Silke charged a wall and retired and the Opel Kadett of Greer/Bruton also left the road ending it’s rally.

Kevin Twomey/Brian Mattsson (Cortina GT) retired when they broke their engine mountings, as did Finbarr Buckley/Sam Hawkins when the condenser failed in their Anglia GT. The route now ran across the Blackwater to SS5 near Clashmore where O’Callaghan/McAvoy became bogged down after they pulled off the stage to repair their distributor, thus recording a slow stage time and losing seven road minutes as well. Also in trouble here were Sean O’Sullivan/N. O’Sullivan whose ex-Peter Cullen Anglia TC was damaged by fire.

SS6, the estate at Villierstown, where fire struck once again, this time burning out completely Heuston’s Stiletto. Novice Award winners Cahill Conlon/Dave Buckley who were motoring their 997 Mini very tidily and sensibly had a puncture here. So to Cappoquin and a one hour halt for soup and sandwiches; so far no clear picture had appeared though Barry/Cavanagh had set fastest time on three of the six stages.

Retirements here included Niall McCarthy/Paul Desmond (Cooper S), collapsed suspension; John Daly/Rory Conway who had “a look off “; J. Keogh/B. Fagan (Cortina GT); John Regan/Tony Walsh (Imp) retired after alternator failure left them without lights, although they had completed the two previous stages with the aid of a flash light! Both Declan Swanton/Paddy McCarthy (Morris 1000) and Sean Kelleher/Andy Brosnan (1071 Cooper), went over their maximum lateness and were excluded.

Margaret Goosen/Mary Donneally (Hornet) for some reason found themselves in Tallow (the wrong side of the estuary) thus incurring heavy time penalties.

The 2 a.m. restart found crews attempting the closed road stage at Crow Hill just outside the town. The timing here went haywire and the stage was scrubbed but this was little consolation to Reilly/Erskine who retired with collapsed suspension. The Circuit of Ireland stage at Clogmeen, smoothed a bit by road works but still unsurfaced, saw Barry/Cavanagh off the road for a time and Gunn/Phelan drove most of this stage on the rim after they sustained a puncture.

SS9 (Knocknaboul) found Maharry/Johnston beginning to make a short-lived recovery after they had been plagued with a leaking carburettor all night, and Melanie Fitzgerald-Smith, who had problems with her fan belt, left the road for a time; into the bargain she lost Mike Liston who had gone for assistance! Smith, Bridges, Gunn, Barry and Fay were now really mixing with Barry who held a slight edge. At Cullenagh, SS12, Barry laid down a thick black trail of rubber to get the better of Gunn by one second, but Powderley/McElroy retired with run bearings after a brief appearance in the leaderboard.

Ballyhoura Forest, with its two water splashes (reduced to a trickle by a long dry spell), found Barry really getting down to the motoring business, taking 39 secs. from Gunn over the 14.3 miles stage. Here, however, other crews were in temporary trouble. Maharry/Johnston losing their lights and the Kilroy/Mrs Bridges Cooper S losing brake fluid.

Gunn took his revenge at Corran Mountain but when the rally crossed the road into Seefin Forest Barry fought back to set the last of his seven fastest times of the night. Here the O’Suilleabhain Anglia, in spite of being without shocks, set fifth fastest time. As SS16 was cancelled, competitors went straight on the Knockannig where Bridges took the honours. The stage at Daly’s Cross was also scrubbed owing to a timing fault and no one suffered any troubles there.

Only the final, tarred, twisty, car-width stage at Glashaboy remained and here Smith suddenly woke up to weave the Cooper S through in fine style, while Barry was content to share fourth fastest with Fay.

An easy run took the rally back to Cork where breakfast was taken at the Victoria Hotel and results were announced at 11.15 a.m. The top crews found the variety of stages to their liking but the event took a heavy toll on motor cars when it is realised that in effect only 90 odd miles were competitive,

MUNSTER “CORK 20” RALLY 1969

OVERALL RESULTS

1. M.E.Barry/D.Cavanagh (Escort t/c) 645.1;
2. N.T.Smith/R.H.Foot (1275 Cooper S) 651.0;
3. J.H.Bridges/B.P.Doyle (1275 Cooper S) 651.1;
4. C.A.Gunn/P.Phelan (Escort t/c) 656.8;
5. J.Keating/R.Keating (Escort G.T.) 674.0;
6. P.Fays/F.P.O’Donoghue (Renault Gordini) 677.6;
7. P.O’Suileabhain/D.O’Suileabhain (Anglia GT) 682.4;
8. G.Ford/P.Doyle (Escort t/c) 682.9;
9. W.O’Brien/D.Flanagan (Anglia G.T.) 762.0;
10. P.O’Callaghan/H.McAvoy (BMW 2002) 797.6.

SPECIAL AWARDS

• Ford Cup: M.E.Barry.
• Austin Cup: J.H.Bridges.
• Morris Cup: N.T.Smith.
• Dunlop Cup: M.E.Barry.
• Conway Cup: D.Cavanagh
• Fit Remoulds Trophy (best cumulative performance on stages): M.E.Barry
• Lades Award: Miss M.Fitrgerald Smith (Imp G.T.)
• Novice Award: C.Conlon/D.Buckley (997 Mini)