Local team grab rally title back

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December 2012

echo net daily (http://echonetdaily.echo.net.au/rally-title-back/)

The northern rivers can now boast ownership of two Australian Tarmac Rally Championship titles. Local rally co-driver Pete Burrey from Billinudgel and driver Clint Arentz, formerly from Casino and now based in MacKay, have combined to drive their Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X home in the fourth and final round of the 2012 Australian Tarmac Rally Championship and to be crowned series winners of both the showroom and the modern outright categories.

The four events in the series, the Baw Baw Sprint, Snowy River Sprint, Great Tarmac Rally and the Lake Mountain Sprint were all run throughout Victoria with Arentz and Burrey putting the Winston Group Evo on the podium in all four of them.

Through the championship, each event varied in makeup and weather conditions. Baw Baw was a rough uphill course, very wet with 30 per cent incline, the biggest in Australia. The Snowy River event was very quick and tough on tyres and the Great Tarmac Rally had snow and the Lake Mountain alpine tarmac surface started to melt in the heat and was very slippery.

Clint and Pete are also currently at the halfway mark of the Australian Targa Championship after competing in the modern category in Targa Adelaide and Targa High Country earlier this year. ‘We are currently sitting third outright in that championship with two Nissan GTR 35s in front,’ says Pete. ‘The Evo is competing well against the higher-horsepower cars. It is well prepared, very nimble and the team is up to the challenge.’ The final rounds will be contested next year with the Wrest Point Targa in February and Targa Tasmania in April.

The team is looking for sponsorship to continue next year’s assault on Australian Rally, so if you would like to get on board with a winning car for great exposure give Pete a call on 0414 845 221 and follow them on www.winstonracing.com.au. The outright Australian Tarmac Rally Championship standings saw Arentz/Burrey in first, Traverso/Kulhanek second, Hendy/Sibley third, Keith and Alex Morling fourth and first in Classic, and a tie between Samantha Stevens/Bernie Webb and Paul Dowie/Nicole Bryan for fifth.

The Australian Tarmac Rally Championship promises to be bigger, faster and better in 2013, with all rounds as multi-stage events and providing great value for money, enjoyable social atmosphere and events, and brilliant new stages. Entries are now open for round one, the Mt Baw Baw Sprint, on March 2 – 3. The new-format Lake Mountain Sprint is
scheduled for May 24 – 25, with the Great Tarmac Rally on October 26 – 27, and the Snowy River Sprint on November 23 – 24.