Two times Australian Rally Champion Co-Driver, Mark Nelson, is set to make a return to co-driving after a 23 year break.
Two-time Australian Rally Champion, Mark Nelson, is returning to rallying.His first official event will the Lightforce Rally of the Heartland scheduled to between June 2 and 4 in the Burra region of South Australia.
“The plan was always to return to rallying in some format, once the kids got near the end of school, and we are nearly at that point now,” said an excited Nelson.
“Rallying is one of those sports that is not easily shaken, and for the last three years, I have eased back into the fray as CRO for some of our high profile National events. Stuart (Bowes) and I have been talking about this for a few years too. Now it’s time to get down and dirty.”
The car Mark will be competing in has already had a reasonable amount of publicity. It’s Stuart Bowes’ immaculate 1975 Mercedes Benz 450 SLC.
“This thing is truly a work of art. Stuart and the builder, Garry Kirk, have put a lot of time and money into this car as it represents the classic era of rallying, and the fact this type of car was the only Mercedes ever to win a round of the World Rally Championship.
“The momentum of classic rallying in Australia is accelerating at a rapid rate. I am pretty sure that soon there will be an Australian Classic Rally Championship that can stand up on its own, and I would love to be the first winner of this series.”
Mark and Stuart acted as Zero A for the recent RAA Southern Rally. This was the first opportunity the crew got in the car onto a gravel road and gave them the opportunity to work together.
“I am really looking forward to getting back into a competitive car, and to see how we go against some other past champions of the sport. Most notably, the event boasts past Australian Rally Champions Simon Evans, Sue Evans and Barry Lowe,” Nelson said.
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