Subaru announced the decision to pull out of the WRC this morning, following yesterday’s news of the suspension of Suzuki’s year-old world championship programme.

Hembery, the man who committed Pirelli to a £10 million investment as the control tyre supplier to the WRC, is still confident the series will be strengthened for future seasons.

“What’s happening now is a re-shaping of the WRC,” he said. “We’ve got the new technical regulations coming for 2010 and I’m enormously excited about that season. Yes, 2009 will be a tough year - it’s going to be a tough year worldwide. It’s going to be a transitional season for the WRC. But I’m very excited about the future.”

“We’ve got manufacturers ready to commit cars to the new formula. Manufacturers like FIAT, Volkswagen and Peugeot will, I’m sure, have cars, and Citroen and Ford are going to build cars.”

“It’s not like we’re taking a step into the dark here, we’re stepping into an exciting period where the cars are ready to go in a much more cost-effective championship.”

Hembery believes the WRC still offers the best return on investment in motorsport and says that return will improve as the FIA’s latest raft of cost-cutting is implemented.

“A WRC programme is going to cost a tenth of what it would cost a manufacturer to go to Formula One,” said Hembery. “There’s no doubting the value of a WRC programme in these cost-conscious times. And, with the new global promoter deal coming, this is just the right time to get into WRC.”

“I’m not just trying to talk this thing up, there’s no doubt the loss of Subaru is sad for the sport, but we have to look ahead. There are enough doom and gloom merchants around who will be ready to stick the knife into WRC, but they don’t see the sport from the inside like we do.”

“We have to be pragmatic about next season and use it to build the platform to launch the sport into 2010. Believe me, the WRC is going in the right direction with the right manufacturers involved and the right people behind it.”

Although disappointed with the announcements, General Manager of Repco Rally Australia Gary Upson sees an amazing opportunity for young up and coming talented drivers to demonstrate their skills on the world stage.

“To lose Subaru and Suzuki from the World Rally Championship as a result of the current global financial crisis is disappointing for both our event and the motor sport community as a whole however, we do hope that these are temporary measures and that we will see both teams back in
the WRC as soon as possible,” said Upson.

“However through this situation there now presents an even more attractive opportunity for our local and international up and coming drivers to place well in a round of the World Rally Championship and truly compete for the top spots against the best rally drivers in the world, an
opportunity that we hope they will embrace.”

Repco Rally Australia is currently working on ways to attract local and overseas privateer teams to enter the event.

“We really hope to see a lot of young talent out there next year and will be sure to do all that we can as organisers to make our event as cost effective as possible for these competitors to compete,” concluded Upson.

Repco Rally Australia will run from 3-6 September 2009 and will be Round 10 of the FIA World Rally Championship as well as a round of the FIA Production World Rally Championship.

At resident meetings recently held in Murwillumbah and Kyogle, Chairman of the Organising Committee, Garry Connelly, outlined the concept and operation behind the planned event.

Connelly confirmed the initial purpose of these first meetings was to update residents who live along the proposed route.

“As these residents are more likely to be effected due to the fact they reside on the proposed route, we felt it appropriate and courteous to consult with them first before we go to the community at large”, said Connelly.

Organisers received some criticism for not previously revealing the full rally route, but Connelly advised, “as the route is still provisional we did not wish to release it and have the community think that this was the confirmed route. Much consultation is still to be undertaken before the route is finalised. It might well be that we will need to have discussions with residents on other roads if additions to the route are necessary”.

Connelly committed to further consultation with the community, with all residents on the proposed route being visited by a member of the rally team to have a one-on-one discussion about the event, their concerns and how they may be personally affected by the event. Further public meetings are planned for February next year.

Public opinion from residents who attended these meetings indicated overwhelming support for the event. Concerns raised by some residents are currently being investigated and addressed by the Organisers.

The role would commence as a part time one, building to full time for the period prior to and during the event. Previous experience in motor sport would be advantageous.

The Media Manager will be required to liaise with the media, design a media strategy for the event, manage the event public relations and generate publicity for the rally and its stakeholders.

A separate appointment of Media Centre Manager will be made for the period immediately prior to and during the rally.  This latter role will entail management of the Media Centre infrastructure and media accreditation.

Expressions of interest should be forwarded to: info@rallyaustralia.com.au

The draft environment policy statement can be downloaded as a PDF.

Residents local to the area of the rally in northern New South Wales have embraced the event with 120 people completing the expressions of interest; almost 65% of the NSW tally.

Interest from Queensland residents is only slightly behind that of NSW and 44 Western Australia officials are keen to travel across the country for the 20th running of Rally Australia.

Expressions of interest have been received from residents in every state in Australia and also from New Zealand.

Many of the Queensland registrations are from accredited CAMS officials who currently officiate at Rally Queensland, the local round of the Australian Rally Championship and in 2009, a round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship. A significant number of these officials have “teams” of other officials working with them, and members of those teams are urged to also register as soon as possible.

The organisers of 2009 Repco Rally Australia would like to thank everyone who has registered an expression of interest to date. We are currently sorting through the information you supplied and will be in contact with you shortly.

Our new management team has been appointed and our permanent office opened last week in Murwillumbah. One of the first jobs of the team will be to design a regular newsletter to officials in order to keep you informed, particularly in relation to the commencement of training sessions.

One of the great enduring traditions of Rally Australia’s rich history in Western Australia was the membership of an exclusive club, a club of drivers who had competed in each edition of the World Rally Championship Round since its debut in 1988. With the move to the East coast of Australia two drivers remain the exclusive domain, Ryan Lahiff caught up the stalwarts to gauge their chances of continuing the tradition.

When Rally Australia’s future in Western Australia drew to a close in 2006, the debut event run in 1988, it marked the end of a rich eighteen year history in the WRC. And with it closed a chapter on Australian motorsport which had put rallying in this country on the map and with it had produced one of the finest events the World Rally Championship had ever witnessed, full of innovation, drama and a plethora of memorable moments.

For local drivers the event may have been the domain of names like McRae, Makinen, Sainz, Gronholm and more recently Loeb but it had been their chance to mix it on a level playing field with the sports greats. And in the process the event had provided a canvas of memories, both good and bad, which would stay with competitors for ever more.

Down the field, amongst the hardest working local privateers, a tradition of competing at each and every edition of the event was worn as a badge of honour. Early on the ‘club’ quickly dropped to a list of five. Possum Bourne, Jackie Dines, Ed Ordynski, Bob Whyatt and Tolley Challis.

The tragic death of Possum struck the group hard; each had battled each other over the years, not only in Perth but at local and international events throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Then Dines and Ordynski dropped out in the mid-2000’s. This left just 2.

“Technically I retired from driving at the last Rally Australia (2006),” begins South Australian Bob Whyatt.

“I’m in a slightly different position to Bon in that I haven’t retired, although some have said I probably should have a long time ago!” laughed Tolley Challis.

Each Whyatt and Challis has an amazing track record, not just in entering Rally Australia, but in over coming the trials and tribulations of competing at the sports highest level on one of the most demanding events to have featured on the World Rally Championship calendar.

But at the start, way back in 1988, neither driver would have been quite aware of the path they were each about to head down and the amazing memories they would have of those early days almost twenty years later.

“Back in 1987 I was the deputy clerk of course for a local event, the Wirrina Rally Sprint, in South Australia,” explained Whyatt. “At that time I was trying to attract a few of the West Australian drivers to come across and compete and we were fortunate that a guy by the name of Rob Herridge showed interest. I was speaking to Rob during the event and he mentioned to me that the car I was driving as a zero course car, a Subaru RX Turbo, would be eligible under the international regs for this new event that was getting up and running in Perth with the view to be a Round of the World Rally Championship.”

Meanwhile Challis, who as a Perth local has long had a history competing in the State Championship as well as on an international stage, admits that he raced straight down to the local Suzuki dealership when he originally learnt of Rally Australia’s debut running in ‘88.

“I remember I bought a Swift GTi, straight off the floor, and we built nothing much more than a pretty standard roll cage, put some harnesses on the factory seats and put on some mudflaps. It was back in the day when you could take a very standard car and drive straight over the ramp at a WRC event!” Challis chuckled at the memory.

Never in outright contention neither driver ever entered the event to challenge the established names at the top of the entry list, but that was never the inspiration for taking to the demanding gravel roads outside of Perth.

“I’m a competitor, always have been, in rallying and in other sports,” explained Whyatt. “Rally Australia was always a challenge I really enjoyed. It was always an incredibly tough event just to finish, so it was certainly never a disgrace for any driver to finish last because they always would have outlast an awful lot of much better drivers.”

Challis agreed, particularly with the challenge of just making it to the finish although for the local the lure of the event was as important as winning the State title. “My aim was always to win the State title, and while Rally Australia was a separate event to that, we always put just as much effort into securing a strong result in those early years,” he said.

“It was such a big event that I know everyone, ourselves included, always put a huge amount of effort into the preparation to ensure that we were in the best position to get a good result,” added Tolley.

For Whyatt, a self-admitted perennial back marker, the objective each year was to halve his start number. “It was always a personal objective to get to the finish line in a position half the number that we started with. As a competitor though I always looked at five or six guys to challenge and I always looked forward to those battles across the three days of the event.”

Asked for a personal highlight, somewhat tongue in cheek Whyatt replied with: “In ‘89 I was the first person to cross the start ramp! Ok it was reverse field order over the ramp, but I still maintain I was the first over the start ramp at Australia’s Round of the World Rally Championship.”

Challis too looked back fondly at the good times. “We had a farm that a lot of locals used for pre-event testing throughout the year, but it was always very busy prior to Rally Australia. I always used to brag to people that Subaru and Mitsubishi had spent time at my farm!”

“I think one of the great things about the event though was the camaraderie between the locals and the international teams and drivers. Because of the testing that went on out at the farm I remember the rally office would ask us to help out a quite a few of the internationals who hadn’t been to Australia before,” continued Tolley.

“One year, back in the very early ‘90’s I received a call from the office to see if we’d assist some Finn with the funny name of Tommi Makinen. Sure I said, without even thinking, who would have known at that stage he’d go on to become one of the most successful rally drivers of all time!” he added.

The event though was marred with tragedy, a moment both drivers brought up without prompting, when midway through the 1993 edition of the event Possum Bourne crashed heavily resulting in the untimely death of his co-driver and long time friend Roger Freeth.

“I remember it like it was yesterday, it was a diabolical time for everyone at the event,” expressed Challis.

“I think everyone was affected by that incident,” added Whyatt. “It was a terrible moment for the event and something that we will all remember for many years to come.”

In the end though both Challis and Whyatt reflected on the huge task of competing at Rally Australia year after year and the huge personal reward of completing the final stage.

Tolley, who during the early 90’s was also competing in Malaysia, explained the huge effort his team often went to get his Mitsubishi Galant VR4 ready in time. “For a couple of those years we’d be competing in Malaysia the weekend before Rally Australia. So during the very early hours of Monday morning, straight after we’d finished the event, the guys would be pulling the car apart from squeeze it into the cargo hold to get it back to Perth to be ready.”

“That effort that went into just one week always made competing at Rally Australia immensely fulfilling, to push the limit so far and get through it,” added Challis.

“I think for me the great thing about competing at Rally Australia for almost twenty years was to play against the top boys. In other sports you don’t get that opportunity, you certainly can’t front up to a tennis or golf tournament as a relative amateur and expect to compete against the stars. But in rallying you can do that, to compare yourself and see where the differences lie,” explained Whyatt.

So the big question though is will either continue their membership in this exclusive club next October? Or will the move to the East coast usher in an opportunity for a new breed of drivers to take their place?

“You wouldn’t believe how many people have asked me that question since the event was confirmed for NSW,” laughed Whyatt. “Even though I’ve announced my retirement I think I can maybe make the exception to do one more. I’ll have to look at a few options next year but the chances are fairly reasonable.”

“I think the continuation of Rally Australia will definitely be a boost for rallying as a whole, only problem is it’s now a long way from my home town,” added Challis. “I’d definitely like to keep the tradition going!”

The 20^th staging of Repco Rally Australia, the first instance on the East coast of Australia, will take place next year between 3^rd - 6^th September.

Upson, 41, is well known in World Championship circles having managed the New Zealand event from 1998 until 2005, during which time the event won the prestigious Rally of the Year Award.  He is currently Brand Manager for Land Rover New Zealand.

“I am really excited at the prospect of helping to bring the spectacle and thrill of the WRC to the East Coast of Australia for the first time. Northern NSW and particularly the Tweed/Kyogle region is a fantastic area to truly showcase the beauty of Australia to the world via this event.  I am looking forward to working with our sponsors Repco, Events NSW and the team of almost 2000 CAMS officials and staff who will make this a great motor sport event,” said Upson.

Gary, his wife Nicola and two children will take up residence on the Tweed Coast within the next few weeks. A new Repco Rally Australia office will be established in Murwillumbah early in November.

We realise there are many who want to assist in the organisation of this FIA World Rally Championship event but who are unable to attend for various reasons.

Accordingly we will conduct the following
1. An additional briefing in Brisbane for those officials working at the Bathurst 1000
2. A specific briefing in both Murwillumbah and Kyogle for local officials in those areas
3. If possible, a briefing in Sydney

We will also consider the production of an information DVD for those who live in remote areas.

Please keep monitoring the situation by going to our website www.rallyaustralia.com

Thanks for your interest

Kind regards
Garry Connelly
Chairman, Organising Committee

Time: 1900 hrs (7.00pm)

Venue: Christ Church, Community Precinct, 9 Chippendall St, Milton

Purpose: To provide general information on Repco Rally Australia 2009 and to seek expressions of interest from officials in filling various roles at the event.

Registration: In order to ensure the venue suitability, please register by sending an email to: qld@cams.com.au with the subject heading “Register for RRA Meeting”.  

Meeting Location Map - Download 200kb PDF.

You may also wish to register as an event official at the same time by going to: 
http://rallyaustralia.com/officials/expression-of-interest-form/

For your information, the various areas of sporting responsibility are listed below:

Results and scoring
Field Results Service
Field Media
Commentary
Rally Radio
Service Park
Remote Service Park
Refuels
Regroups and Parcs Ferme
Controls (part of Stage Team)
Spectator Points
Spectator Marshals
Mobile Security
Road Closures
Communications
ISC-T Liaison (Technology)
SOS 5 Km
SOS Tracking HQ
Reconnaissance (Tuesday and Wednesday prior to event) 
Courtesy Cars
HQ Reception
Officials Recruitment, Data Base, HR and Uniforms
Officials Training
Compliance, OH&S, Risk Management
Course Cars – preparation and servicing
Course Car Crews
Scrutineering
Tyre Marking team
Route Coordination, Road Book and Checking
Competitor Relations Officer
Aviation and Helicopter coordination
Fire and Rescue
Medical/First Intervention Vehicles
Spectator First Aid Posts
Service Park Hospital
Signage Teams
Eye in The Sky
Media Centre (Reception and Assistance)
Media Supervision and Assistance (Field)
Command Centre
VIP Liaison (Foreign ASNs, information for VIPs etc)
Minute Secretary for Sporting Committee
Minute Secretary for Organising Committee
Assistant to the Secretary of the Stewards