"We are returning to the jewel that lies in the Irish Sea off the coasts of Lancashire, Galloway, Northern Ireland and North Wales. It's the perfect location for the Three Legs of Mann Rally," said the rally organizer. However, rain and wind made for a somewhat less idyllic atmosphere.
Teams from every conceivable corner of Europe came to the Isles of Man to take part in the rally. Some of them already had several years of experience and knew their way around, such as Charles Colton, the 2010 winner, who led the field at the start of the race. However, there were also some newcomers with their sporty cars this year.
A Jaguar XJ-S V12 stood out during the rally. Not only because of its size, it attracted attention time and again. A Nissan Stanza was prepared for the competition by Simon Mellings and driven by Richard Isherwood, and many other interesting cars were on the start list.
A total of 56 teams took on the challenge with their moving treasures and started with two skill tests. After a ride over West Baldwin and Injebreck, the teams continued to Barregarrow, where the first stage finally ended. In the afternoon, the teams received instructions in the style of a jogularity. Some teams really struggled with this.
The last regularity in daylight led via Baldrine and Conrhenny Plantation to Creg-ny-Baa. Some teams got lost on this part of the route, which cost them a lot of penalty points. When the race continued at dusk, the wind and rain made for difficult conditions.
In the dark, the road through the industrial area turned out to be a big challenge, and the rain and wind didn't make navigation any easier. Some of the teams that performed excellently in the first section struggled with this stage.
After this long day, the participants were allowed a few hours' rest before continuing with the third part on Sunday morning. This stage led to the TT Grandstands, where two final tests were carried out.
With a lead of 1 minute 58 seconds, John Abel and Mark Appleton won the rally in their Ford Escort RS2000. Second place went to Geoff Hall and Martyn Taylor in a Morris Mini Cooper S.
David Morgan and Richard Crozier secured third place by just four seconds, driving a 1968 Volvo 123GT.
