Nathan Quinn is already making plans to 'get back on the horse' after a nasty accident in last weekend's Buladelah Rally in NSW.
The 2017 Australian Rally Champion was again driving a borrowed Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, this time in the opening round of the AMSAG rally series.
A number of niggling problems early in the event hampered Quinn's progress, but his event ended on the sixth stage when the Evo X left the road and hit a tree.
The head-on impact with some small trees was at a speed of only 50km/h, but with no time to brace himself, co-driver Ray Winwood-Smith suffered a broken sternum and L2 vertebrae.
The crashed caused the cancellation of the final two stages of the rally, while Winwood-Smith was transported to hospital.
"The conditions were slippery and the roads were hard to read, but I'm really not sure how we ended up in the trees," Quinn told RallySport Magazine.
"The back stepped out a bit and I corrected it, but it just didn't 'hook up' when I turned back in, and before we knew it it was all over.
"Ray had no chance to brace for the accident, which is why he was injured."
Quinn says it was probably the biggest crash of his career, but is only the second time he has seriously damaged a car in his 14 year career.
Nathan Quinn and Ray Winwood-Smith in action before their accident. Photo: Gravel Pics
Nevertheless the car suffered only minor damage. It hit the tree head-on and damaged the radiator and radiator support panel.
The car will be repaired in the next couple of weeks, ready for the Caves Classic Rally near Bathurst on September 5.
"The plan is to do the Caves Classic, as we still have some things we want to test on the car to get it sorted.
"We need to sort out the handling a bit more. On warm, dry roads the car handles well, but it struggled on the narrow and greasy roads on the weekend," he added.
If the Evo X comes through the Caves Classic Rally okay, Quinn then plans to use the car in the opening round of the Australian Rally Championship in Canberra on September 26 and 27.
"Originally we were going to use Richie Dalton's Fiesta, but after he crashed at Batemans Bay I'm not sure if the Activ RallySport guys will have the car repaired in time.
"If that's the case we'll likely drive the Evo X. Whether we do any more ARC rounds after that will pretty much depend on what's happening with COVID and the border restrictions," he said.
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