In the mid-2000s, Juha Kangas and Julia Rabbett were a formidable combination in the Australian Rally Championship (ARC). Driving a Group N Mitsubishi Evo (and later, a Subaru Impreza) for Les Walkden Rallying, the pair was regularly at the head of the field against the Group A cars of Possum Bourne and Neal Bates. The duo twice won the Australian Championship round in Tasmania.
Rabbett (now Julia Barkley) is again back in the ARC in 2014, this time co-driving for Tony Sullens in a Citroen DS3 for the Citroen Australia team. RallySport Mag recently caught up with Julia to find out how things have changed in the last 10 years.
How does it feel to be back competing in the Australian Rally Championship again?
I have actually been back in the championship since 2012. That year I competed with Tony Sullens in a Subaru and last year with Gerald Schofield in a Mitsubishi Evo 9.
But it is nice to be back in a top level team. I am a competitive person and being able to fight for a win is a great feeling.
You had quite a long layoff from competing, what are the major differences you have noticed in Australian rallying?
I haven’t really had that much of a lay off from rallying. Even though I stopped competing at the top, so I could have my two children, I did keep competing in the odd rally here and there. Tony and I won Targa Tasmania in 2007. I had to keep my hand in, until the children were old enough for me to return to rallying full time, so I didn’t lose my skill or my nerve.
The major difference in the ARC is, of course, to change from 4WD to 2WD, but other than that I don’t think it has changed that much.
From 2003 to 2005 you sat beside the Finnish driver, Juha Kangas, in the ARC. How did this partnership come about?
Les Walkden wanted to bring a European driver over to compete in the ARC, which ended up being Juha. I had been co-driving for Michael Guest in 2002, who Les was running that year. Les was impressed by me and thought I was the ideal person to sit next to Juha. I thought it sounded like an exciting project, so of course I said ‘’yes”.
Do you still keep in contact with Juha, and is he still rallying?
I haven’t really kept in close contact with him, but I have spoken to him a few times over the years. He has three children now and is busy working his farm, so he hasn’t done any rallying since 2005. He does miss it and misses all the friends he made here. He still does drive days with Audi, but that’s it.
In your return to the top level of rallying in Australia this year, not only are you competing with a new team, but you are also both learning a new car. How difficult has this made your return to the sport?
I have been competing with Tony on and off since 2000, so we know each other well and work well together. I actually used to co-drive for Ron Cremen (team manager) in the Middle East Championship back in the late 90s. And our 2IC is my husband. So I have a lot of familiar faces around me.
We are all learning the new car together and are extremely pleased with it. We have had a few teething problems, but that’s to be expected as we learn and develop as a team.
What is it that drew you back to co-driving?
I find it hard to think of life without rallying. It is an addictive sport and when I think that I have been doing this for 23 years I can’t believe it. Who would have thought that a little hobby could become so much?
Female competitors are still few and far between in rallying. Do you think the governing bodies should be doing more to encourage more women to compete?
Female competitors are few and far between in all forms of motorsport, but there’s probably more female competitors in rallying than any other discipline. I don’t think the governing bodies are discouraging women from competing. I think it comes down to the old stereotypes that girls are given dolls to play with and boys are given cars.
Final thoughts ....
I do worry about the drop in competitor numbers for the ARC, but in general there will always be people that want to drive cars fast through the bush, and as long as it is affordable they will compete in rallies.
FLASHBACK: Fast Finn joins Walkden for Australian Rally Championship
Photos courtesy Michael Vettas
SUBSCRIBE BELOW TO READ THE FULL STORY
