MOTORSPORT By Tony Brunskill

Last updated at 16:46, Friday, 20 June 2008

Thursby's Brett Mitton competed in the Weeton Stages Rally near Blackpool and was apparently like a dog with two tails as he got second over all in his very rapid and classic Ford Escort.

Fast Ford: Thursby's Brett Mitton in his Escort

An old army camp, this single venue event is always popular but can be a bit dodgy as the cars have to negotiate the internal, narrow roads with 90 degree corners at high speed but Brett kept the Escort on the black stuff to clinch his point-winning place.

Brett followed this up last weekend with an outing on the two-day Mercury Motorsport Stages Rally held at Crail in Fyfe when he was also on the podium with a well-deserved third

These two rallies left Brett lying first in the ANCC Tarmac Championship and second in the Scottish Tarmac Championship, so I gather he may be taking out extra insurance to cover all the pots he is stacking up on his sideboard!

In attempt to consolidate his position in the Scottish Championship Brett, who has teamed up with co-driver Derek Blyth from Penrith, will be competing in round four at the Ingleston Showground event near Edinburgh, again a tricky, single venue event, news of which I will bring you in due course.

Last weekend also highlighted the fact that despite its excellent safety record, there are occasional tragedies in rallying.

On the Donegal International Rally a spectator, 18 year-old Richard O'Donnell was killed when he was struck by the Fiesta of Elfyn Evans, son of former British Rally Champion, Gwyndaf Evans, after which the final stages of the rally were cancelled as a mark of respect.

Everyone in the sport will, I am sure, send sincerest condolences to Mr O'Donnell's family and friends and hats off to the rally organisers for immediately cancelling the Sunday stages of the rally and instigating a full investigating.

Rapidly rising local starts, Kriss Hall from Crackenthorpe was out in his Fiesta ST as was David Bogie from Dumfries in his glorious growling 6R4 in Donegal as well.

David retired on Stage 10 and Kriss also failed to finish but my 4 Square colleague, Amanda Cornforth, who was out in her rally prepared Ford Ka, said that both local drivers had been going extremely well until their retirements. The very fast and popular tarmac event attracted 50,000 spectators and it was sadly not the first time there was a tragic accident because in 2002 two rally marshals were killed when a car left the road and struck a crowd of spectators.

Meanwhile on the world stage the M-Sport of Cockermouth prepared and run BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Tam celebrated its record-breaking 100th consecutive points in the FIA World Rally Championship for the Focus RS World rally car when Mikko Hirvonenen and Jarmo Lehtinen won the eighth round of the 2008 series, the Rally of Turkey.

First published at 05:29, Friday, 20 June 2008
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk