The SACHS Rally Team of Steve Shepheard and John McCarthy have fallen just short of winning the opening round of the 2012 BOSCH Australian Rally Championship (ARC), the ECB Rally Calder stadium event in Victoria last weekend.
A broken drive shaft two kilometres from the end of the final stage dropped the team from a near certain event win to fourth place.
Friday’s heat one gave the team a third place, then Saturday’s rainy heat two saw Steve and John snatch a last stage win, pushing then to the overall event lead.
Sunday dawned warm and sunny for heat three and the final ‘power stage’ shoot-out for bonus points.
Needing a fourth place or better to secure the event win, the boys opened with a stage win, and were then second quickest on the next pass. Then disaster struck on the very last stage when the drive shaft broke. Steve and John limped to the finish to secure valuable championship points, and a fourth overall for the event.
“We were so close, but that’s how it goes,” Shepheard said. “We have all had it happen before, but the upside is we got a great haul of points for the series, and that’s our 100% focus. I think we will be within a few points of the championship lead, so we can’t wait for the next round in Western Australia”
“It was a great five-way battle up front in the 4WD class all weekend,” co-driver John McCarthy said.
“There was ourselves, Wilde, Box, Boaden and Charlie Drake all going hammer and tongs. I don’t think that’s going to change all year.”
Team principal, George Shepheard, added: “With the short sharp make up of the stadium event, from the very beginning we knew it would be won by making no mistakes with good pace, and we held that all the way through until 2km to go -but we made that mistake and paid the price,” he said.
Steven Shepheard was thrilled with the new stadium style event format.
”It was awesome, so different and so much fun. All the drivers and co-drivers were really enjoying it, and it’s just a pity the rain hurt us in terms of spectator numbers.
“And unlike those nancy boy NASCAR drivers in Daytona, we drive the Thunderdome in the wet … on gravel rally tyres!”.
The fight will be on again in four weeks time at round two of the BOSCH ARC, the Forest Rally in West Australia.
Photo: www.winstonstruye.com
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