Shannons Adelaide Rally, 8-10 November 2024

Story and photos by Vince Johnson

The last month of spring in the South Australian state capital saw road racing in full swing.
Over three days the Shannons Adelaide Rally brought together entrants in road-registered touring and sports cars in the surrounding hills, alongside competitors in dedicated rally vehicles for almost 150 kilometres (93mi) of special stages on closed roads to die for.

Parc ferme this year was at the Wayville Showgrounds on the southern edge of the parklands that surround the city centre. The untimed tour groups led the way each day, with a speed limit of 100kph (62mph), over the same stages that rally crews would take against the clock. The Spirit Tour entrants were also untimed but with a 120kph (74mph) limit and helmets to be worn. Spectators were treated to the sight and sound of classics mixed with newer models, together with the latest exotic and luxury releases from dealerships and single marque groups. Locals in neighboring towns turned the lunch stops into community occasions and, together with visitors, took the opportunity to see cars and crews up close.

There were three timed categories. In TSD (time-speed-distance) crews had to match a time set by the Clerk of Course, incurring penalties for being early or late. Helmets were required and a maximum of 120kph, with average speeds set at 70kph (43mph) or less, though on these tight hilly roads this left little room for error. The Challenge category had Modern and Classic (pre-1986) sections, a speed limit of 130kph (80mph) and some allowance for modifications/turbochargers and full roll-cages. Competition entrants were limited to 200kph (124mph) and like the Challenge cars competed in Classic and Modern sections.

Italian & French vehicles were represented in both the tour and competitive groups. Mike Lowe and Kerry Chevis have long been regular Classic Competition contenders, this year in their 1964 Fiat Abarth Berlina Corsa 1000. The sign on the car’s rear window said it all: ‘It’s not how big your car is, it’s how big your life is”. Also back again in Challenge was the 2005 Citroën C4 VTS of William Dodson and Jason DeInnocentis. The two Italians in TSD, the 1977 Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV of Damien Mills and Christine Huxtable and the 2003 Ferrari 360 Spider of Lauro Martire and Jeremy Monkhouse, had to compete with the well-driven 2013 Renault Megane RB8 of Chris Oldaker and David Greaves.

Friday’s stages in the northern and eastern hills had crews being careful on cold tyres during occasional morning showers. The skies cleared later with dry roads for the remainder of the event. The rally’s longest stage, 19km (12mi) of Cherryville, was run again in the afternoon. Saturday’s Chain of Ponds stage was also run a second time, its reverse direction keeping navigators alert.

Following Saturday’s stages, the cars assembled alongside the cafes and restaurants in the city centre’s Gouger Street, where it was party time for crews and the public. There was standing room only when the hood of the Ferrari Daytona went up, with many of those peering into the 4 litre V12 perhaps expecting to see plastic shrouds everywhere.
“Maybe I should take the air-box lid off,” the owner suggested, “so they can see what a real engine looks like”.

On Sunday the cars headed first to the Mount Lofty summit then south through the hills, regrouping at Strathalbyn for lunch adjacent to the Soldiers’ Memorial Garden. Last year this was a huge success with the locals and on the nearby oval and riverside lawns there were car displays and community group events. After lunch the town stage crossed the St Andrew’s Bridge over the Angas River and was run twice. Crews then had three more stages on the way back to the city to decide final placings.

Back in Adelaide, the podium had been set up in the parklands on East Terrace opposite the Stag Hotel. This brought back memories for those who had been in this very place from 1985-95, when Senna, Prost, Schumacher, Mansell and all chased glory in the Australian F1 Grand Prix.

When the times had been tallied, Alex Rullo and Steve Glenney in their 2022 Hyundai i20N Rally 2 took outright honours, the Adelaide Tourist Trophy and the Modern Competition win, from Alex’s father Peter and navigator James Marquet in a similar car. The Classic Competition and Heritage Trophy (Handicap) win went to Thomas Dermody and John Doble (1978 Ford RS 2500) while Ben & Brendan Mann (2002 Subaru STi) claimed the top step in the Challenge category. Among the Regularity (TSD) competitors Chris Oldaker & David Greaves were the most consistent in their Renault Megane RB8.

Full results at https://rallyresults.au/adelaiderally/2024/

With thanks to Mike Lowe and Steve Floreani

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