'Team Barbados: Locked & Loaded'
'Team Barbados: Locked & Loaded'
2013/03/19
Article by:Glenn Beckles
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http://www.facebook.com/pages/Red265-Rally-Media/146511772089293Rally Trinidad 2013 comes off on March 22nd to 24th and it's looking like it will be the best one yet. Barbados will be well represented, as teams speed and slide their way along the long flowing gravel stages, which are arguable the best prepared in the region. James Betts /Jason Costelloe , Dean Serrao, Neil Armstrong / Barry Ward and Harold Morley / Kreigg Yearwood will be flying the Bajan colours, and we had the opportunity to have a chat with them all before they headed for T&T.
James Betts is no stranger to competing in Trinidad. He’s a regular entrant in their gravel season and his warm up for this year’s edition of Rally Trinidad couldn’t have been any better. James won the Jack & Jill event on February 24th, with a clean sweep of all ten stages. With his eyes fully focused on this weekend’s rally here’s what James had to say: ” We are now building a new engine as the one in the car has done a good few miles and worked really well all the time I have been driving the car. I'm at one with this car and we hope to do really well with it this rally. I don't think I can win the rally but one thing is for sure I will be flat out. I will do as I did in Jamaica and stay close in case anyone makes mistakes. Anything can happen in a rally. ” James also shared his thoughts on his fellow countrymen’s chances. “Dean and Neil should do really well. Neil has a lot of pressure going into his first rally driving a WRC car and Dean also driving a new car for the first time should allow me to be close to him. Neil should be miles ahead with Jeffrey Panton.”
Dean Serrao is accustomed to stages of Trinidad as well. This year, however, he won’t be returning with his Subaru Impreza WRC S9. His weapon of choice will be the Ford Escort Cosworth WRC formerly campaigned by Trevor “Electric Micey” Manning. Just why this choice for the gravel season in Trinidad? Dean explained “Taking into consideration the price and performance of this car versus a standard group N car, then the choice is obviously the Cossie.”
There were also some other fringe benefits of his latest acquisition. “I love the way it sounds - engine sound, aggressive antilag and those gunshot-like gear changes from the spark-cut flat shift. Always was a spectator favorite as well.” Here comes the tricky part. New car, long, fast stages…just how much seat time has Dean had to prepare for Rally Trinidad? “A few minutes up and down a gravel road at Black Bess quarry is all I've been able to do! It's very different to the other cars I've driven so it'll take some kilometers to get used to it. A shipping problem prevented me from being able to contest the first event in Trinidad’s 2013 rally season so Rally Trinidad 2013 will have to be test/setup/ rally number 1 all at the same time - not ideal but I'll make it work.” Just what keeps dean returning to Trinidad to compete? “I've always loved rallying on gravel and have done well on a few local gravel events.
The T & T gravel championship takes place on some of the Caribbean's longest and best prepared gravel stages - some of which are 15+ km long. Put a wheel wrong there and it could be costly but at the same time they're some of the most enjoyable gravel stages accessible regionally.” So what can spectators hope to see from Dean, considering the fact that the Cossie has the acoustics taken care of? “I intend to be flat out from Stage 1. There's a huge performance difference between the other 3 World rally cars entered and the 1998 Cossie but I'm going to keep my foot flat as long as I dare and see where that takes me. Oh, and not catch afire again!”
Continuing with the theme of drivers with new cars, we come to Neil Armstrong. Back on the four-wheel drive side of things, Neil is ready to let loose his weapon of choice in T&T – the Suzuki SX4 WRC. After doing some testing in the UK, sights are now set on Rally Trinidad. Just how is Neil feeling going into the event? “I'm feeling good! Excited to get down there and have a look at the stages. The Suzuki SX4 WRC in a fantastic car and I am really looking forward to driving it on the gravel.” With that said, Rally Trinidad has been known as one of those rallies where the stages entice you with their smooth surfaces, long straights and sweeping corners but one wheel off the road, and it can be the end of the event for you. Neil laid out his plan for the event to us. “I think it is going to be a very tough rally and getting to the end is priority number one. Local knowledge of the road will play a big part, however, as long as our pace notes are on point our chances of a good result are good! The key to winning Rally Trinidad is finding a pace you can be comfortable with and sticking to it. There is no room for error, so clean, smooth driving is critical.” Where does Neil think his main competition will be coming from? “I think Panton will be the man to beat and will be favoured for the win. I am also sure Betts, John Powell and Dean will be VERY fast.”
Harold “Doc” Morley will be looking to take the fight to the Group N boys in his Subaru Impreza N10. After an accident curtailed his participation in the event last year, “Doc” will be looking to correct that and return to his modus operandi of being clean and consistent.
Rally Trinidad is shaping up to be one awesome event, and we can feel the excitement from this far away. Best of luck goes out to all members of Team Barbados, as well as all other participants. Stay tuned to Red265 Rally Media as we bring you updates on the action as it happens!
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