For the second time of asking this year, preparations for Daniel and Co-Driver Arthur Kierans on their approach to the 1st round of the British Rally Championship (BRC) has all been completed and the duo are pumped up and raring to get tackling the massive challenge that is the BRC. The unusual weather that Ireland and the UK have been experiencing in recent weeks, led the organisers of the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales no other option but to cancel the event due to hard packed ice and snow making the stages impassable.
Therefore one month later than scheduled, all the crews are again in the final stages of preparation for the forthcoming 1st round of the BRC, the Pirelli RBF International Rally, based in Carlisle on the 4th/5th of May. After this unusual late start to the championship all of the competing crews found themselves ready to mount their attack on the championship, with months of hard work completed behind the scenes but nowhere to rally.
As a result, most of the competing crews have taken advantage of the extra preparation time, by competing in a smaller local or national event in an effort to be more competitive for the new beginning to the championship. Daniel was no different in this case and managed to secure 0 car duties in the Willie Loughman Carrick on Suir Forest Rally on the 14th of April to shake down the newly prepared car and get some valuable stage miles under his belt. The event was a valuable experience to Daniel and his crew as they incurred some minor problems that may have been enough to retire them from their first event in the UK. He was also able to develop his technique for driving the car on the gravel roads, as well as making some vital set up changes to the car itself. As a result this leaves himself and his crew in an even stronger position now approaching the opening round of the BRC. Daniel received more good news during this period, as Ravenol Motoroil, High Performance Lubricants Ireland/UK, have decided to support the young up and coming driver with some vital sponsorship that will help with his endeavours this year.
All goals remain the same for the entire crew and they are hopeful of securing a good haul of points while also trying hard to impress the Pirelli Star Driver Shootout judges, to gain a coveted nomination for the competition held at the end of the year.
Daniel will let you all know how the event goes with a post event press release so keep an eye on his website www.danielmckenna.net next week. Also keep an eye on Daniel’s Facebook and Twitter pages over the rally weekend, as he will be updating them as much as possible during the event.
