Mini Rally Challenge

The Gareth Hall Memorial Rally was the fourth event for the North Wales based crew of Ryan and John Evans in the Mini Rally Challenge (MRC) and their second on tarmac in their R50.

This was a local event for the Bala and District Motor Club crew, the event being held by the club on the Ranges Motorsport Centre, Trawsfynydd.

The event comprised of 12 stages run in three loops of 4 stages between servicing and the stages were on fast, bumpy, narrow roads with blind crests and the odd jump, plenty to catch out the unwary.

On the first loop, the crew experienced a knocking sound on the back end, a legacy from a side impact on their last event, but pushed on to set good times despite overshooting the junction at the triangle where they dropped a few seconds and having a small moment on the downhill jump towards the forest end where the landing was sideways.

Back at service, Cs Motorsport developments resolved the knocking before the second loop of stages, the crew holding the lead with 15 seconds advantage over father and son team Sammie and Paul Green.

The tyres section of this event is on tarmac and loose gravel and always catches people out, the crew dropping 10 seconds after being beached on tyres whilst late breaking for the uphill square left just before the exit of this section of stage 5.

Despite this, a hard push recovered some lost time, and the crew retained their lead.

On stage 6, the crew settled into a rhythm and the order of the day was to push, but keep it neat and not to make any further mistakes.

Ryan’s favourite sections of the stages were the downhill back-to-back hairpins by the service area and the fast downhill approach to the forest end, a technical and committed part of the stages.

The crew took the win in the R50 category with a 15 second advantage over the Greens, the two crews being separated by only a second a stage throughout the day and revelled in the banter after each stage.

The crew switch to gravel for the Trackrod Rally in September with the opening stage being a 12 mile run in the dark through Dalby, something very different and which the crew are looking forward to.

Minirallychallenge.co.uk

Rally Report: Pendragon Stages
Jody & Aaron Bevington
ACRE Motorsport

Stages 1-4

Pendragon Stages started quite well for us, got through scrutineering with no issues (unlike the Plains Rally where the cutoff cable snapped) on the Saturday and started the rally on Sunday morning, the stages though on our 2nd tarmac rally felt good but were definitely challenging, only millimetres from the grass either side with lots of elevation changes and tight corners, as this is the 5th rally for the both of us it was difficult with pace notes but we were getting the hang of it, with good times comparing with fellow minis and close competitors.

Stage 5

Unfortunately, on stage 5 our rally would end as pulling out of the way of a faster mini we attempted to get going again but the gearbox broke with a dramatic bang!

A bit of a difficult one to process as it wasn’t driver error, but we’ve got to take the good from the bad and say that the tough mini finished four rallies before an event ending mechanical issue.

But at least we got to see some great rallying action waiting to be recovered!

Minirallychallenge.co.uk

Calling all aspiring young Rally Drivers and Navigators.
The application window opens next week to apply for this fantastic prize and opportunity for under 27 year olds.

https://2300club.org/john-easson-award/

Winning this prize would cover a lot of the costs for the 2027 MINI Rally Challenge.

We already have several motorsportukacademy members competing - come and join them!

Minirallychallenge.co.uk

We’ve been working on something…..

If you have competed in 2026, or you are a supporter/team member, or you might have registered for 2027 - join us for a great evening as we celebrate the season and enjoy a few surprises.
Booking details below.

Minirallychallenge.co.uk

Come and see the MINIs at this brand new rally - The Hills Ford stages.

Two days of tarmac rallying starting on the Saturday afternoon at Weston Park, an iconic RAC rally venue.

Minirallychallenge.co.uk
hillsfordstages

Trackrod Rally update! - we are now up to 25 entries for next months event as we welcome two new crews gearing up for 2027!!

The unseeded entry list - https://www.rallies.info/webentry/2026/trackrodmini/entries?type=u

You can experience Dalby in the dark with Jacob Neal & Russell Thompson from a couple of years ago via the link in the comments !

Minirallychallenge.co.uk

John Barker / Andrew Side — Gareth Hall Memorial Rally

Round 7 of the Mini Rally Challenge and we headed to the Minafon Garage / Gareth Hall Memorial Rally at the Trawsfynydd Ranges in Wales, taking on the short, technical tarmac stages. For Andrew, the aim was simple: valuable championship points. For John, it was a case of getting back in the car just a week after finishing Pendragon Stages with Gareth Humphrey.

Getting There… Eventually
After what felt like an eternity travelling from Yorkshire in John's camper, we arrived at the venue to find the rally hadn't even started and we already had our first challenge. About a quarter of a mile out, the camper decided one of the hills was asking too much — with a gradient resembling a SpaceX launch ramp, there was nothing for it but a “mother ship separation,” taking the rally car off the trailer.

Andrew drove the Mini into the venue under its own power, only to discover hurdle number two: rolling into the paddock felt like being back at Greystoke, bangs and clunks coming from everywhere. A quick look from the CS Motorsport crew found the culprit — a blown strut, oil everywhere, and the Mini looking like it had already had enough of rallying before we'd even competed. With the sun disappearing behind the mountains, the CS Motorsport boys launched an emergency repair and somehow worked their magic to get the car ready.

We hadn't even rallied in anger and we'd already had enough excitement for one day. The evening wound down with one of John's infamous curries at Barker Towers, Andrew generously upgraded to the penthouse suite — five-star accommodation, it definitely was.

Rally Day
Morning arrived with John once again on Catering Manager duty, dishing out breakfast butties, while Andrew took a proper look at the stage layout — his first visit to Trawsfynydd, whereas John had competed there the year before and came away with a respectable podium. The stages were only around two miles long but not to be underestimated: hairpins, blind crests, tricky cambers and technical sections aplenty to keep both driver and navigator busy.

Loop One
Four stages, starting with a run out of service through what looked suspiciously like a go-kart track made entirely of tyres, before heading out onto the hilly roads, turning at one end and coming back through the tyre-lined section into service. The triple hairpin caught out a few crews, but John made good use of the handbrake to keep the Mini pointing roughly the right way. The only real drama came at the flying finish, where Andrew forgot to call a kink in the road and we came clattering through the tyre wall — no damage done, so we dusted ourselves off, pretended it was the plan all along, and carried on. A quick 35-minute service had the CS Motorsport boys ready to send us out again.

Loop Two — Smiles for the Miles
Four more stages, not overly concerned with chasing times — the objective was to reach the finish, build confidence, and explore our own limits. Then came SS7: a great spectator spot where the road ran into a square right followed by a square left. John nailed it, pulled the handbrake and produced an absolute belter of a flick, cheers and camera flashes from the crowd following us through. For the rest of the stage, all Andrew could hear was John reliving the moment, feeling like Princess Diana with all the attention. At that point, it was pretty clear we weren't setting the fastest times of the day — but we were certainly getting our smiles for the miles.

Job Done
With stages this short and technical, the priority was always keeping the car between the trees, reaching the finish, and building confidence — and that's exactly what we did. After the dramas of getting to the venue, the blown strut, the tyre-wall incident and John's brief flirtation with rallying stardom on SS7, we got the Mini safely home. Another rally finished, more valuable championship points banked for Andrew's campaign, and plenty of laughs along the way. Not the quickest day out, but definitely one of the most entertaining.

On to the next one

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Sorry for the lack of posting - brilliant day yesterday at Mathewsons Live.

We actually opened the stand early this morning to take care of a few crews!

Still got some great deals going - but if you want to take advantage of the Kielder WT offer, get in soon as only 3 of the free lights remaining!