Donegal native, Eugene Ferry, led 130 cars away from Westport at the start of the Castlecourt Hotel Mayo Single Stage Rally on Sunday and maintained that position over the three Special Stages held around the Partry Mountains. The Escort MKII driver, with John Gallagher alongside, recorded the fastest time of the day in 9.06, not once, but on two occasions. While Ferry cruised to victory, a tremendous battle ensued for second and third place.
Cavan brothers Tom and Kevin McGovern were second after the first run in their Escort but Gordon Rogers and Philip McEntee (Escort) equalled their overall time on the second run after setting a blistering pace of 9.07 over the 10.4 mile tight and twisty route, once used in the Circuit of Ireland. But it was the McGoverns that finished runners-up and to add to Roger's disappointment, up came young Conor Curley and Philip Hone (Derry) with a 9.07 in an Escort to snatch third spot.
One of the pre-rally favourites, Mervyn Wedlock, recent winner of the Ardee Rally, had a terrible start to the event as the Cavan driver dropped seven minutes on the first run in his G4 Escort after missing a sharp right turn. Border Series runners-up Paul Gallagher and Karl Reid from Letterkenny had been lying third after the first run but were unfortunately forced to retire on Special Stage 2 when their Corolla's engine exploded at the end of a long straight.
The victor of the first tarmac rally of 2002, "I was lucky to get the break on the first stage, although mind you I thought I had relaxed just a little too much on the final stage. I am very pleased to have won, the car ran like clockwork. I thought the rally was very demanding, slippy, but good fun and the lads behind were never too far away," said Ferry, the victor of the first tarmac rally of 2002.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
