Germaines of Baltinglass GSMC Mini Stages Rally 2013
Press Release 2
6 October 2013
Second on the road will be the Limerick man, Ed O’Callaghan, also in an Escort RS. O’Callaghan has been a front runner in the ‘Modifieds’ in recent times, and has taken category honours on a number of events, including the Clare Rally last month. He will be guided by Peter Scott. Completing the Escort trio at the head of the field will be Chris Armstrong, who, at just 21 years of age, has made a huge impression on the Irish rallying scene this year. He was in the hunt for Modified victory on the Galway International Rally in February, before going off the road on the final stage. He then took an outright win on the Midland Rally the following month, and was the top Modified finisher on the ALMC Rally in July.
Further Wicklow interest among the top seeds is provided by Ashford’s Lloyd Hutchinson, who finished sixth overall on the GSMC Rally in 2012 in his indecently rapid Austin Mini. Two late entries have been placed by Ford Escort pilots, Pat Donegan from Kells, and George Condell from Carlow. Donegan was third on the Midland Rally this year in his 2.4 Duratec engined machine, while Condell won the Laois Heartlands event in a Toyota Starlet, and is a regular top ten finisher in Baltinglass. They are seeded at 102 and 103, but will run nearer the head of the field.
An intriguing entry, seeded just outside the top ten, comes from Italian driver, Fabrizio Fellone, who runs a Take-Away in Baltinglass. He regularly commutes to his home country to take part in rallies and slaloms, where he drives a Renault Clio R3, but this will be his first event in Ireland. He has obtained an Irish competition license especially to take part in the GSMC Rally, and has hired a Mitsubishi Lancer from Derek Jobb Motorsport for the occasion. Local man, William Ashton, will be calling the pace notes for Fallone over the Baltinglass stages. Fallone recently finished third in the Group A category on the Slalom Citta’ di Santopadre, a round of the Italian Slalom Championship.
The Germaines of Baltinglass Mini Stages Rally 2013 will also see the outcome of LoughranSigns.com Midlands East Rally Championship decided, with two crews, Philip McDonald and Seamus Curran (Class 2 Honda Civic EK4) and Alan and David Gibbons (Class 9 Honda Civic EG6) currently tied at the top of the standings. Points in the Midlands East Championship are allocated on Class positions, therefore, if both crews were to win their respective classes in Baltinglass, the awarding of the title would have to be decided on a tie-break.
Germaines of Baltinglass GSMC Mini Stages Rally 2013
Top Ten Seeds
No. Driver/Navigator (Car)
1 Trevor Culbert/Ray Fitzpatrick (Ford Escort RS)
2 Ed O'Callaghan/Raymond Scott (Ford Escort RS)
3 Chris Armstrong/Tommy Clinton (Ford Escort RS)
4 Stephen McCann/Lisa O'Dowd (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo)
5 Mike Quinn/Tony Healy (Ford Escort)
6 Shay Power/Paul Collins (Ford Escort)
7 Lloyd Hutchinson/Willie Fitzpatrick (Austin Mini)
8 Eddie Power/Mark Wiley (Toyota Corolla)
9 Graham Scallan/Tom Scallan (Subaru Impreza N14)
10 Ian Gunning/Fred Holmes (Ford Escort)
Press Release 2
6 October 2013
CULBERT HEADS BALTINGLASS RALLY LINE-UP
The Garda Siochana Motor Club has attracted an entry of one hundred crews for its 2013 Mini Stages Rally, which will take place on Sunday next, October 13th, in the Baltinglass area of Co. Wicklow. The Germaine’s Hotel sponsored event will start just after 11am, when the first of three loops of the Keadeen and Three Bridges stages gets underway, and the number one seed on the road will be Trevor Culbert from nearby Kiltegan, who will be partnered by regular co-driver, Ray Fitzpatrick, in his Ford Escort RS. Culbert finished third on this event in 2011, and won the Laois Heartlands Rally last year. He has been a regular entrant on the GSMC Rally since the event was established in 2002, and it would be fitting if he were to add a Baltinglass victory to his CV. Second on the road will be the Limerick man, Ed O’Callaghan, also in an Escort RS. O’Callaghan has been a front runner in the ‘Modifieds’ in recent times, and has taken category honours on a number of events, including the Clare Rally last month. He will be guided by Peter Scott. Completing the Escort trio at the head of the field will be Chris Armstrong, who, at just 21 years of age, has made a huge impression on the Irish rallying scene this year. He was in the hunt for Modified victory on the Galway International Rally in February, before going off the road on the final stage. He then took an outright win on the Midland Rally the following month, and was the top Modified finisher on the ALMC Rally in July.
Further Wicklow interest among the top seeds is provided by Ashford’s Lloyd Hutchinson, who finished sixth overall on the GSMC Rally in 2012 in his indecently rapid Austin Mini. Two late entries have been placed by Ford Escort pilots, Pat Donegan from Kells, and George Condell from Carlow. Donegan was third on the Midland Rally this year in his 2.4 Duratec engined machine, while Condell won the Laois Heartlands event in a Toyota Starlet, and is a regular top ten finisher in Baltinglass. They are seeded at 102 and 103, but will run nearer the head of the field.
An intriguing entry, seeded just outside the top ten, comes from Italian driver, Fabrizio Fellone, who runs a Take-Away in Baltinglass. He regularly commutes to his home country to take part in rallies and slaloms, where he drives a Renault Clio R3, but this will be his first event in Ireland. He has obtained an Irish competition license especially to take part in the GSMC Rally, and has hired a Mitsubishi Lancer from Derek Jobb Motorsport for the occasion. Local man, William Ashton, will be calling the pace notes for Fallone over the Baltinglass stages. Fallone recently finished third in the Group A category on the Slalom Citta’ di Santopadre, a round of the Italian Slalom Championship.
The Germaines of Baltinglass Mini Stages Rally 2013 will also see the outcome of LoughranSigns.com Midlands East Rally Championship decided, with two crews, Philip McDonald and Seamus Curran (Class 2 Honda Civic EK4) and Alan and David Gibbons (Class 9 Honda Civic EG6) currently tied at the top of the standings. Points in the Midlands East Championship are allocated on Class positions, therefore, if both crews were to win their respective classes in Baltinglass, the awarding of the title would have to be decided on a tie-break.
Germaines of Baltinglass GSMC Mini Stages Rally 2013
Top Ten Seeds
No. Driver/Navigator (Car)
1 Trevor Culbert/Ray Fitzpatrick (Ford Escort RS)
2 Ed O'Callaghan/Raymond Scott (Ford Escort RS)
3 Chris Armstrong/Tommy Clinton (Ford Escort RS)
4 Stephen McCann/Lisa O'Dowd (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo)
5 Mike Quinn/Tony Healy (Ford Escort)
6 Shay Power/Paul Collins (Ford Escort)
7 Lloyd Hutchinson/Willie Fitzpatrick (Austin Mini)
8 Eddie Power/Mark Wiley (Toyota Corolla)
9 Graham Scallan/Tom Scallan (Subaru Impreza N14)
10 Ian Gunning/Fred Holmes (Ford Escort)
so good excuse to spend the day with the parents. 
