The pair, who are currently running second in the Championship (pending results being made final) have once again proved that consistency pays off after finishing a credible fourth outright in the Copyworld Walky 100 held at Robertstown last weekend, keeping them in Championship contention and trailing current leaders Russell Marker and Karien Heimsohn by only 13.5 points.
“For a rally that was almost over before it began we are very happy to finish and lock away a few more Championship points” explains a relieved Hall. “We had put a brand new engine in the car between Rally South Australia and Robertstown however, as we had parts arrive in late from the USA only the week of the event there were a few stressful days leading up to the rally. To test us further we fired the Subaru WRX up on the morning of the event only to find it spewing out smoke”.
Thankfully following some expert advice from Sean Day, Hall decided to start the event but take the first group of stages with caution, keeping a close eye on oil pressure with a potential for turbo failure and engine damage.“We lost time on the first few stages by taking it so easy, however finally it seemed our planets were aligning and the smoke which was causing so much anxiety prior to the start vanished by the third stage” continued Hall.
It was after the first service Hall and Mclean’s event really began and the pair started battling with the front runners trading fastest stage times throughout the rest of the event.
Back in the hot seat regular Queensland based Co driver Mclean explained that it wasn’t just the new found reliability within the car which had brought the pair a solid result. “Now that we are able to get out on the gravel and not worry about the gremlins under the bonnet it’s been nice to focus on our individual roles in the car. Fortunately Mitchell is one of those gifted few drivers that can keep their cool under pressure and I think the last few stages of Robertstown were amongst the most enjoyable we have done together and so with that in mind all signs are pointing to a battle down to the wire at the final round next month”.
With what will undoubtedly be an exciting finale at the Kuitpo Forest Rally (SARC 4) on September 19th Hall can assure spectators one thing and that is that although they will be pushing hard for a last shot at the Championship win for 2010, the show must go on and no sideways action will be spared.
“For the first time in my rally career the car is ready weeks before the event, we could do Kuitpo next weekend! Following a series of problems, including power loss at Robertstown, all of the issues are resolved and the car has never been better. Kuitpo is my home territory and my favourite event and so I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do” concluded Hall.
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