A Huge Thank You To You All

To our amazing officials and staff, Repco Rally Australia has been run and won – won twice in fact – (first by Sébastien Loeb, then by Mikko Hirvonen!) and it was an outstanding success.

It was certainly not without its challenges but these challenges were addressed successfully through the outstanding work done by all of you – our volunteer officials, our staff, our contractors – and also through the unprecedented co-operation and support of government agencies, both state and local.

We know that the hours you worked were extraordinary, in very trying conditions and, in some cases, quite stressful and distressing situations, but you all shone through! We have already started receiving a deluge of compliments on the way those involved in the organisation conducted themselves.

One example is the Ford Team Manager, John Millington, who has asked me to pass on to you all that the Ford team (including the drivers and co-drivers) commented that for the whole event “we had not one single error” by officials.

We know there are many aspects that need to be improved. This was our first attempt at recruiting and registering officials via the internet and it was not without its problems. This was also our first event in a new location. We had officials who had not worked together before and we had unprecedented issues in dealing with a very small but vocal anti-rally group. We will learn from it and from the other feedback we have already received.

As part of that feedback process, every registered official will be receiving a Debrief Form which will give you a structured opportunity to tell us your suggestions for improving the way you are integrated into the event organisation (registration, training, placement etc) as well as your comments on other aspects of the rally. These Debrief Forms are critical to ensure we eliminate any problems that arose this year due to our new location and with so many new team members.

You will also be receiving a research form on behalf of Events New South Wales to determine the economic impact of the event on the region. We want you to respond to this and record every dollar you have spent in relation to the rally – at the event itself, in your training and planning, and after the event, especially if you (or your friends) stayed on for a holiday. All money spent in NSW is counted!

Most importantly, as Chairman of the Organising Committee, I wish to express my sincere appreciation and congratulations to you all. Your performances well exceeded our expectations and you should all be very proud.

Michelle Gatton, your Clerk of Course, will be thanking you separately but I do want to make a special mention of Michelle’s role and congratulate her on her performance at her first WRC event. Michelle is only one of three lady Clerks of Course in the history of the WRC and I also believe she is the youngest-ever WRC Clerk of Course. With the support of her two Deputies, Errol Bailey and Peter Macneall, a very experienced group of Assistant Clerks of Course and all the members of the Sporting Council, Stage Commanders and Team Leaders, the sporting operations of the event went extremely well – and will, no doubt, improve the second time around!

I also want to pay tribute to our hard-working (though small) group of staff and contractors under the leadership of General Manager, Gary Upson, and also the staff of CAMS who came to support us.

It was a great honour to be the Chairman of the Organising Committee and to work with such a dedicated and committed team. Thank you again – your performance was superb.

With kindest regards
Garry Connelly
Chairman, Organising Committee
Repco Rally Australia 2009