Anglesey Circuit hosted the inaugural Trac Môn Targa Rally on the 21st October. Organised by the Caernarfon & Anglesey Motor Club – drivers and navigators had to tackle 20 miles of competitive rally tests.

We started the day at 5am with the MkII Golf GTi loaded on the back of the trailer ready for the two and a half hour drive up from Mid Wales to Anglesey. The deadline for signing on was 10am and the drivers briefing followed soon after so we left ourselves plenty of time. The first piece of drama happened in the queue for scrutineering when the rotor arm from the distributor failed which left us with a car which would not even start! The day was almost over before it had even begin, but luck was on our side and we managed to source a replacement part with just enough time to spare.

The weather forecast looked set to be changeable with a strong chance of rain – tyre selection would be crucial.

We started the morning session on our softer compound selection which would suit the wet weather we were anticipating to receive. Unfortunately it stayed dry and we struggled for grip all morning. Our luck changed in the early afternoon session as the heavens opening we found ourselves on the correct tyre with others in the field now struggling for grip.

Tests 5 – 10 proved to carry a lot of success and we managed to climb up the leader board with more than half the day completed.

The rain stopped during the lunch beak so we took the opportunity to change our tyres to the dry option. As the majority of rallying was happening in the final tests – the rally could be won and lost on the home stretch. The car felt fast so we knew we were in with a chance of a solid result if we managed to cross the finish line – overheating was posing to be huge potential problem but with luck still on our side there were to be no more mechanical gremlins.

We made it to the finish and reflected on a fantastic day of motor sport which was only made possible by all the organisers, marshals and competitors. Anglesey Circuit proved to be the perfect facility to host a single venue Targa rally.

The wait for the final results seemed to take forever as we eagerly anticipated a good result in a strong field… We came 1st in the Semi-Expert class and placed 5th Overall out of 50 cars which entered.

We cannot wait for next year’s Trac Môn Targa Rally.

James Wolstenholme and Ryan Swain, Car 15 – Volkswagen Golf GTi, 5th Overall

Thanks to Ben Forrester (www.facebook.com/BF.430) & Neil Lambert (www.lambosport.co.uk) for all of the images. make sure you check out their pages for more examples and for details on how to purchase yourself a copy!