Home win in Ayrshire for Oli Hunter

Kames Motorsport Complex in Ayrshire might provide the shortest stages in the J1000 Ecosse Challenge but it is never short of drama, and the Albar Trophy Rally on 1st September was no exception. There were the usual incredibly tight margins, a roll from second place, and a stunning debut.

Following the torrential rain during the training session on the previous day, all eyes were on the skies, watching for the expected rain which thankfully never came.

Fastest out of the blocks on stage 1 were Kyle McBride & Jane Nicol, one second ahead of Oliver Hunter & Richard Crozier, who were one second ahead of Cameron Davidson & Ian McRae, who were one second ahead of Marcus McElwee & John Henderson, who were one second ahead of Owen Paterson & Calum McPherson, who were one second ahead of Jack Hall & Robin Nicolson, who were one second ahead of Justin Gunning & Stuart McBride. Yes, the J1000 championship redefines small margins.

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Delight for Oli Hunter at Kames

Round 7 (out of 8) of the 2018 Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge must go down as one of the most memorable and competitive events we have seen in the 7 year life of the Championship. The arena was Kames Motorsport Complex at Muirkirk, East Fife and the occasion was the 16 special stage Albar Kames Junior Rally with Support from ISS (Aberdeen) Ltd . On a day when the sun shone out of a blue September sky and no real incidents on the track, we witnessed an epic battle between some of the best young rally drivers in Scotland.

Joy, Despair and Drama at Kames

The second round of the 2018 Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge took place at Kames Motorsport Centre, Muirkirk on 22nd April 2018. 14 crews entered – including 2 rally first timers and 1 crew from the F1000 J1000 Championship. The day turned out to be one of Joy, Despair, and Drama with the weather adding to the situation. Joy for the 6 crews who came through the day relatively unscathed and Despair for the other 8 who experienced all sorts of problems. Drama came on the second last stage when hard charging Ollie Hunter/ Tom Hynd (Peugeot 107) ended up on their side.

Tindall takes victory at Kames and seals the Championship

The Albar Kames Junior Rally at Kames Motorsport Complex on 24th September 2017 was the setting for the penultimate round of the 2017 Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge. 11 Juniors started – including 2 first timers – and 11 cars finished. Okay there was the odd scrape and spin but the conditions were very variable. However, there were no great dramas in the Junior ranks.

Tindall wins but Mackay shines

Round 3 of the 2017 Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge was the EACC 5 Star Junior Stages at Kames Motorsport Complex, Muirkirk on 7th May 2017 – a very different challenge compared to rounds 1 and 2  for the young drivers with short, narrow and very technical stages. The sun belted down all day (leaving a few lobsters to suffer the next day), the competition was close , there were some mechanical dramas but no serious incidents. 9 Juniors started and 9 recorded finishes but 4 collected stage maximums for mechanical issues and a “wee off”.

One Aapiece for Tindall and Retson

Two days,  Two rallies, Two different seasons and Two different winners!!  That was the Kames Autumn Rally and the Albar Kames Trophy rally weekend on 24th / 25th September organised by East Ayrshire Car Club at the Kames Motorsport Complex, Muirkirk. 13 Junior 1000 crews made up the bulk of the entry on the Saturday and 14 on the Sunday.  Saturday was wet and windy for most of the day whilst Sunday was clear with sunshine for most of the day and then very heavy showers from 4pm on.  So the 2 rallies presented the young drivers with 2 sets of very different conditions.

Retson continues to shine in the sun

The second round of the 2016 Brick & Steel Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge took place at Kames Motorsport Complex in East Ayrshire on 8th May and took place under unusual and unexpected glorious sunshine. Temperatures soared to over 20 degrees compared to 6 degrees the day before. The ABR Travel Kames Junior rally was expertly hosted by East Ayrshire Car Club and a total of 13 Junior drivers crossed the start line AND THE FINISH LINE. OK – one or two tried very hard to nobble this statistic but failed.

Another win for Bennett

East Ayrshire Car Club was rewarded with a full entry for the Kames October Rally on 18th October. 13 Junior 1000 crews were joined by 17 “Senior” crews for what was to be an excellent day’s club rallying. The event was the seventh and penultimate round of the 2015 Brick & Steel Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge. Thick fog around the venue started the day but the sun soon came out and stayed for most of the day. But the overnight fog and early morning damp left the track quite challenging for the first couple of stages.

Storms and drama on penultimate round

The 2014 Brick & Steel Junior 1000 Championship paid its third visit to Kames Motorsport Complex in East Ayrshire on 19th October for the ABR Travel Services Junior Rally. This would be the penultimate round of the Championship and final year placings depended on good results. To say that the weather was challenging would be understating the conditions faced by the 14 to 17 year old competitors in their 1000cc cars. One minute the wind blew strongly, next it blew even stronger but with heavy rain downpours and occasionally it was just plain windy with the sun breaking out – but this was the minority situation.

A Kames scorcher to get the season started

The sun shone from the point people arrived at Kames Motorsport Complex in East Ayrshire to the point we all left on Sunday 20th April 2014. This would be the first event of the third season of the Brick & Steel Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge – Scotland’s only car rally Championship for budding 14 to 17 year old drivers. A total of 13 crews drew up to the start line of the first stage – 10 were returning from 2013 and 3 were complete newcomers. Kames may be a small venue but it is a real test of skill and nerve and more than one crew were to find that it “can bite”!!