The Rally of Canberra is an automobile rally event which was held in and around Canberra, Australian Capital Territory first held in 1988. The event is currently a round of the Australian Rally Championship (ARC); it has been part of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) in the past.
Contents
History
The modern Rally of Canberra began in 1988, but the attraction of forest roads through steep terrain so close to a city has been attracting rallying to the Canberra for years. Previously the Castrol International Rally was held in much the same area utilising some of the same stage roads. Run throughout much of the 1970s the rally attracted international teams and drivers from the World Cup and World Championship teams. The last of the old style event was held in 1980 although the rally continued into 1981 on a smaller scale.
The new rally was created as an ARC round in 1988, quickly becoming a popular event amongst crews and spectators. The initial event was won by that year's national champion, Queenslander Murray Coote aboard a Mazda 323 GTX. The event rapidly grew in stature, becoming second only to the similarly aged Rally Australia in prestige amongst Australian events.
The event become part of the APRC in 1999, returning international rallying to the Canberra region, attracting entries from teams in New Zealand, and most of the Asian rallying nations. Changing regulations in the ARC, in particular its emphasis on local classes, first the PRC (Production Rally Class) and later Group N+, as typified by the Neal Bates Motorsport constructed turbo 4WD Toyota Corolla Sportivo saw the event dropped from the ARC calendar as several of its competitors were not eligible to compete under the APRC regulations which consisted of the World Rally Car and Group N classes.
In more recent times the APRC has become a Group N only championship like many other regional and national championships. ARC regulations since 2006 though have instead of a single two-day rally instead have two single day rallies over the course of weekend, giving the opportunity for cars that retire on the Saturday of an event to rejoin on the Sunday. This format has seen the ARC competitors return to Canberra racing with the APRC cars but essentially the rally is now two completely different events, run simultaneously over the same stages, the International Rally of Canberra for APRC competitors and the National Rally of Canberra for ARC competitors. Group N teams can compete in both events if they nominate for both.
The nature of this combination has given rise to a rivalry between APRC and ARC competitors as to who can complete the event in the shortest time. In 2008 for the first time an ARC competitor, Simon Evans completed the rally in a faster time than any of the APRC competitors, although strangely Evans did not win the ARC round after only placing third place at the end of Saturdays rally, thus collecting fewer points than his team mate Neal Bates who won Saturday and was second to Evans on Sunday.
Mineshaft
One of the biggest attractions of the Rally of Canberra, and the Castrol International before it, is the special stage called 'The Mineshaft'. The name originates from a section of the stage which plunges very sharply downwards towards a water crossing. It is a drop sharp enough that even the most cautious competitor will get airborne over the lip of the drop. Over the years the section has been regraded, softening the plunge but it is still a favourite for spectators, who grade the drivers going over the drop with scorecards, a tradition dating back to the Castrol International which has been attributed to an infamous troupe of Bathurst-based rally officials and competitors known as the Killer Mullet Rally Team.
Controversially, the Mineshaft stage was dropped from the 2008 event for safety reasons.
Winners
Winners of previous editions of the Rally of Canberra were: