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Sydney's North Shore Sporting Car Club (NSSCC) will stage the Kumho Tyres Rally of the Bay on Saturday 29 June, with nine special stages covering 136 competitive kilometres across NSW's most revered rally stages in a revised, compact format around the coastal resort town of Batemans Bay.
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According to rally manager Colin Fletcher, the new 2013 format aims to attract more local attention to the event at the ceremonial start in Clyde Street, out on the stages and at the podium presentation at the Bay Waters Resort.
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"We have worked hard to bring the rally to the people of Batemans Bay with a ceremonial start in Clyde Street on Saturday morning while organising the stages to maximise the most efficient use of daylight despite being just a week after the shortest day of the year," said Col Fletcher
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"This year's start time and format has been revised which will result in more stages being run in daylight, and that makes it easier for spectators and crews " he said.
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"The Kumho Rally of the Bay had great local support in 2012 and this year we will provide even more spectator opportunities," he added.
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The Kumho Rally of the Bay will welcome some of the most exciting and spectacular rally cars and drivers to what is a mecca for Australian rallying.
The Rally of the Bay continues a tradition for NSSCC, which ran a round of the State Championship in the region for many years through the 1970s and until the early 2000s.
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Run on arguably the best roads in all of New South Wales, the event follows the successful formula championed by Col Fletcher who brought the event back to Batemans Bay in 2011.
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Fletcher and the team have revised the format and structure for the 2012 Bay Stages again re-uniting rallying with the local south coast community by bringing the event and the promotional activities into town.
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As well as being the fourth round of the NSW Rally Championship, the Kumho Tyres Rally of the Bay is also a round of the NSW Clubman Rally Championship and the Shannons Insurance ACT Regional Rally Series.
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In addition the rally is part of a new three round series for classic rally cars, The Webstor East Coast Classic Rally Challenge, which will attract some of the most exciting retro cars from the Golden era of rallying.
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The organisers are also staging an introductory rally as part of the overall event which will give novice drivers and crews the chance to sample some of the best rally roads in the country without over stretching their resources or ability.
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Rally Manager Colin Fletcher, one of the most experienced rally organisers in Australia along with Ian Bigg and Howard Grove have structured the rally to ensure both competitors and spectators enjoy a memorable experience.
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"The Batemans Bay area has long been held in high regard for its rally roads and as a fantastic base for the sport of rallying and it is great to be able to continue the tradition of top level rallying at the Bay," said Colin Fletcher.
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"The Bay area is renowned for its medium to fast hardwood forest roads that offer an unending challenge of re-entry corners and end of ridge bends that just flow from one corner to the next.
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"We are thrilled to have the support of many great organisations including Kumho Tyres through its motorsport dealer Fsport, the NSW Government through Sport and Recreations Community support project, 2EC and Power FM through the East Coast radio network, The Bay Waters Resort MRT Performance and numerous motels in the Bay area," Colin Fletcher said.
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"Local promotion is being handled by the East Coast Radio Network through Radio 2EC and Power FM while the Bay Post is our local print media partner," he added.
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The rally will kick off with a ceremonial start on Saturday morning at 10.00am with the northern end of Clyde Street coming alive with the colour and spectacle of the occasion beside the river, giving locals the opportunity to see the competitors and their array of rally cars up close.
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After driving over the start ramp competitors will face 136 kilometres of competitive running over nine challenging stages over some of the most flowing and truly enjoyable roads in Australia.
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The first car is due to finish the rally around 7:00pm giving drivers and spectators plenty of action as the sun sets and into the evening
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"Spectators will have plenty of chances to view all the action, with a number of viewing points across the rally with live commentary and up to date results and rally news," said Col Fletcher.
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The service park will be located at Corrigans Beach Reserve in Batemans Bay allowing spectators to watch the crews fettling the rally machines at service breaks during the day.
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Organisers are expecting more than 70 teams for the Kumho Rally of the Bay across all of the classes and categories with a wide variety of cars ranging from the Classics to the latest four wheel drive turbos.
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In 2012 the Kumho Rally of the Bay brought close to half a million dollars into the Batemans Bay district with drivers from across Eastern Australia and 2013 promises to be the same.
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