Please stay tuned for updates.
2 Championships, 1 Year!!
No way did i think i would be in this position when i started my championship campagnes at the start of 2009. I was hoping to gain alot of experience any any results that came would be a bonus and what a great bonus it was to come out of my first full season driving as both Munster and Killarney Junior autocross champion. It would be an under statement to say it was a tough year and the pace was really tough to keep up with but thankfully everything came through for me in the end. The Killarney championship saw me take maximum scores on every round but in Munster things were alot different as it was a ding dong battle all year between myself and David Beamish just a handfull of points seperated us when all the scores were added up. My favourite event of 2009 was the KDMC Autocross weekend, 2 days of flat out action and im really looking forward to this event in 2010 aswell. The car never missed a beat all year and i managed to finish every round eventhough Birr saw us have a bit of drame but that was purely my own fault. Thanks to Jerry & Mark for looking after the car all year for me and a big thanks to all my sponsors, friends and everyone who helped me throughout the year. The Munster Autocross prizegiving is being held on the 30th January at the Roundabout Tavern, Mallow, Co-Cork. For tickets contact info@munsterautocross.com . Im uncertain as to what ill do in the coming season yet but more than likely ill try to defend both championships in what will be my last year eligible for the juniors. We plan to carry out some changes on the car during the rest in season such as strenghten it and fit a new gearbox and lsd to make things a little easier. ill update anyway with more detail later. Anyway thanks to everyone who helped out and heres to an even better 2010! ,
Denis
Denis
Update 29-12-2009
Firstly i would like to apologise for not updating alot recently, since my last update ive competed in 2 more events 1 in Offaly and the other in Cork. We headed for Nenagh/Offaly for the Birr MC Autocross and i was really confident of a good result. Billy McCarthy was to double drive my car for the day also. The track was short but really fast which ment alot of speed had to be carried through the few corners. My first run was a bit slow just getting used to things again. On my second run i settled down alot and set a respectable enough time just .1 of a sec. slower than David Beamish who led the juniors. I went out all guns blazing on the final run to try and secure the win and much needed points. I was carrying some serious speed through the corners but on my last lap i overcooked it a bit over the jump landed wrong and hit a big stone which sheared the hub so i had to make do with 2nd.
On the 26th December we headed to Ladysbridge, Co-Cork for the CMC Autocross. The track was short but very technical and slippy which would keep you on your toes!. I started poorly setting a time of 2.12.00 i bettered this time by setting a time of 2.05.02 on my second run. I really pushed hard on my final run setting a time of 2.01.00 which i was thrilled with. I finished 2nd in the juniors to David Beamish and 3rd in Class 1. There was due to be another event held in Campbells pit by MCC but it looks like this will not go ahead. As for the championship i havent seen the final points yet but it looks like ive taken 2nd to David Beamish. The prizegiving is to be held in Mallow on the 30th January contact info@munsterautocross.com for tickets and info.
The season so far...
Just 3 rounds remain in the Jerry Murphy Tyres Munster Autocross championship and 1 round remains in the Killarney Autocross Championship and nothing is decided yet which is a sign of how close the competition is. In Munster myself and David Beamish were well matched all year and we both go into the 8th round with 3 wins and 3 second places each in the Junior section. The Killarney championship has been much different though as ive had a clean sweap so far taking 4 wins out of 4 rounds although i still have to get a good result on the last round to take the junior win. In Munster the pressure is on big time as i need to get either 1st or 2nd place results on the remaining 3 rounds to have a chance of victory but dropped scores could make it very interesting when taken into account. I can safely say that i did not think i would be this competitive in my first full season of driving and hopefully i can stay on this form for the remaining rounds. For the next month however the Championship is on a break as the next round isnt until the 18th October in Killarney which will see the Killarney championship finished for 2009. The car needs a nice bit of work before then though as the steering, arms, all the bushings and much more need seeing to since the rough treatment at the Killarney autocross weekend. Anyway thats all the news i have for now, please continue to visit for more updates,
denis
denis
Autocross Weekend Photos
Few more photos of the Killarney Autocross Weekend:
Drivers briefing
Drivers briefing
(Thanks to RallyFocus, JCronin & Pabloautocross for photos.)
Killarney Autocross Weekend 2009
Since my last post the Killarney autocross weekend is now over and done with and i can definatly say i enjoyed every minute of the weekend. It all started off Saturday evening at 5pm with 3 timed runs and a practice lap. I set fastest junior time on the first run saturday and bettered this time on every run to take the Saturday junior win by 4 secs from David Beamish with Colin Nelligan 3rd. The only drama i had sarurday was a front arm bushing loosening and with just a few threads left on the bolt it was spotted and disaster was avoided. Sunday started bright and early and a faster, longer track was used with did not suit my high gearing what so ever. I was 2nd fastest Junior on the 1st run beaten by 3secs. A spin and the car jumping out of gear twice on the 2nd run only saw me better my first time by a few tenths of a second and while trying too hard to make up time towards the end of run 2 a heavy landing broke the carburetur brakets and he car lost power. Quick repairs before run 3 saw the problem fixed thankfully and i knew i needed to take 10secs over the 2km track to take the junior win so i gave it a fair go but in the end the margin was just too big although i took 7 of those 10 seconds back on the last run it wasnt enough. I was still delighted to finish 2nd and get some more useful points in the bag. David Beamish won the Juniors on day 2 with me 2nd and Colin Nelligan 20 secs further back in 3rd. Next up is the Killarney Autocross in October and alot of work is needed done before that. InCar footage from day 1 to follow. Finally well done to COC Pat Russell and his team for a great weekends craic i really enjoyed it. ,
denis
(photos © ontherack.net & rallyfocus)
