Roger Albert Clark Rally 2023
Discussion
flatlandsman said:
I would disagree with that, a Stratos is only not a fragile car when the might of Abarth and Lancia are building and servicing them.
This car is very rare and if original and therefore very rare, parts and spares are highly likely to be fabricated, therefore perhaps stronger, or weaker than original parts. Combine all that and you into areas of the unknown on such a tough event.
Nobody really makes parts for a Stratos so the team were relying on their own nous to keep the thing in the rally, that they did it with such aplomb is a huge compliment to the team running the car, forgive the lack of recall.
It is a lot easier with an Escort, lots of people build them, to newer spec, there is decades of experience, I doubt anyone in that event has ANY experience of running a Stratos on a forest rally, they are either still in Italy or no longer with us
Anything can be manufactured to whatever standard you require, Historic motorsport companies thrive on doing just that. All you need is the money to commission the work. The Stratos is just a car, put it together properly with suitable components and it will do just as well as anything else built properly.This car is very rare and if original and therefore very rare, parts and spares are highly likely to be fabricated, therefore perhaps stronger, or weaker than original parts. Combine all that and you into areas of the unknown on such a tough event.
Nobody really makes parts for a Stratos so the team were relying on their own nous to keep the thing in the rally, that they did it with such aplomb is a huge compliment to the team running the car, forgive the lack of recall.
It is a lot easier with an Escort, lots of people build them, to newer spec, there is decades of experience, I doubt anyone in that event has ANY experience of running a Stratos on a forest rally, they are either still in Italy or no longer with us
sjabrown said:
I am absolutely knackered now. What an event to do, and by far the biggest sporting challenge I've faced. More variety of cars would be good (says me who was co-driving in an escort...). Finished 8th, even after 10 minutes in a Kershope ditch! At times I was absolutely loving it, at other times absolutely hating it. Definite type 2 fun.
Well done - what a great experience and a very decent result!Again 520 I have to disagree, I would imagine that Lancia did a heck of a lot of their own work back then, work that might not ever be known about now. Building and trying to run such a rare and unique car is a very difficult task on an event like this. Agreed, anything CAN be made, but the best way to make sure it works is to sell it to countless others and run it which is why every damn car on the event is an Escort as the vast majority of parts are very well proven and tested and the rules do not allow you move too far away from what was run years ago within reasons, there is an entire industry backing you and several large build companies running numerous cars on most events including this.
No-one else runs a Stratos in this spec, so Steve, Seb and the team are doing it all alone, they only tested once to my knowledge before the event and packed in on the last damn stage,
I find that very sad and unlucky, look at the Celica, a can that dominated the Safari for years yet never seems to last o this event! there is a reason why everyone uses Escorts and it is not just down to the basics
No-one else runs a Stratos in this spec, so Steve, Seb and the team are doing it all alone, they only tested once to my knowledge before the event and packed in on the last damn stage,
I find that very sad and unlucky, look at the Celica, a can that dominated the Safari for years yet never seems to last o this event! there is a reason why everyone uses Escorts and it is not just down to the basics
flatlandsman said:
Again 520 I have to disagree, I would imagine that Lancia did a heck of a lot of their own work back then, work that might not ever be known about now. Building and trying to run such a rare and unique car is a very difficult task on an event like this. Agreed, anything CAN be made, but the best way to make sure it works is to sell it to countless others and run it which is why every damn car on the event is an Escort as the vast majority of parts are very well proven and tested and the rules do not allow you move too far away from what was run years ago within reasons, there is an entire industry backing you and several large build companies running numerous cars on most events including this.
No-one else runs a Stratos in this spec, so Steve, Seb and the team are doing it all alone, they only tested once to my knowledge before the event and packed in on the last damn stage,
I find that very sad and unlucky, look at the Celica, a can that dominated the Safari for years yet never seems to last o this event! there is a reason why everyone uses Escorts and it is not just down to the basics
I've spent my life working with this kind of kit including genuine one off's rarer than a Stratos, it takes more money and thought to do a low volume project and make it reliable and high enough performance, but it's just basic engineering. The limitations are based within the original design but you can improve on that with modern materials and techniques. You are fighting a numbers game though, as in this case there is only one car in the event of this type, it will stand out when it fails, but there are loads of other cars like the well proven Escort that are failing too, they just don't stand out because of the number that finish. Even if you do things perfectly, at the end of the day it's a mechanical device getting a pasting, so it's always got the potential for a failure.No-one else runs a Stratos in this spec, so Steve, Seb and the team are doing it all alone, they only tested once to my knowledge before the event and packed in on the last damn stage,
I find that very sad and unlucky, look at the Celica, a can that dominated the Safari for years yet never seems to last o this event! there is a reason why everyone uses Escorts and it is not just down to the basics
I don't under estimate the challenge, it's hard to get it right, but with cars like the Stratos there are other people running them you should be able to collaborate with if doing it on your own is too much. But taking on this kind of car is hard, which makes it so rewarding when you put it together and put in a great showing like Steve has, it was fabulous to watch and despite the late mechanical failure, they were still winners and should look back on their efforts with pride, a job well done that thousands of people enjoyed immensely.
I think the only thing is that the vast majority of them rallying are not real, they are replicas or kits.
This makes it harder and easier to run them I presume, most will be road based bits. I think Steve's car is a sort of triggers broom real one, I doubt much of it is left other than the core of the shell, and I have seen chats with Seb when they talk about having to fab a heck of a lot for the car, it looked very well put together in service and is a real credit to the crew and the people behind it.
OK having a read, the car was based on a ratty hillclimb car Steve found for sale, (probably still cost a bomb) he has a stradale aswell lol! That car was converted to rally use has been rolled, and in 18 burned up, this year was first time out after that, it is original which is staggering really. But Dansport have somehow got it early to the end!
That is the case for most cars here, they a e all running old regs with newish cars.
This makes it harder and easier to run them I presume, most will be road based bits. I think Steve's car is a sort of triggers broom real one, I doubt much of it is left other than the core of the shell, and I have seen chats with Seb when they talk about having to fab a heck of a lot for the car, it looked very well put together in service and is a real credit to the crew and the people behind it.
OK having a read, the car was based on a ratty hillclimb car Steve found for sale, (probably still cost a bomb) he has a stradale aswell lol! That car was converted to rally use has been rolled, and in 18 burned up, this year was first time out after that, it is original which is staggering really. But Dansport have somehow got it early to the end!
That is the case for most cars here, they a e all running old regs with newish cars.
Edited by flatlandsman on Wednesday 29th November 19:40
sjabrown said:
I am absolutely knackered now. What an event to do, and by far the biggest sporting challenge I've faced. More variety of cars would be good (says me who was co-driving in an escort...). Finished 8th, even after 10 minutes in a Kershope ditch! At times I was absolutely loving it, at other times absolutely hating it. Definite type 2 fun.
Ah,you had a good battle with my cousin Viv then!ettore said:
Well I applaud them for it - what a wonderful spectacle it was, particularly driven with such aplomb.
I love a Mk2 Escort, but more Manta's, Lotus Sunbeams, Fiat 131's, TR7V8's, 911's, Celica's et al would add to the colour of what was a wonderful event. I'm more of a circuit racing chap but I always liked rallying back in the day and this has really reawakened my enthusiasm - have been looking at 'scorts and 6R4's all week!
There's a 6R4 running in the Donington rally this weekend.I love a Mk2 Escort, but more Manta's, Lotus Sunbeams, Fiat 131's, TR7V8's, 911's, Celica's et al would add to the colour of what was a wonderful event. I'm more of a circuit racing chap but I always liked rallying back in the day and this has really reawakened my enthusiasm - have been looking at 'scorts and 6R4's all week!
ettore said:
sjabrown said:
I am absolutely knackered now. What an event to do, and by far the biggest sporting challenge I've faced. More variety of cars would be good (says me who was co-driving in an escort...). Finished 8th, even after 10 minutes in a Kershope ditch! At times I was absolutely loving it, at other times absolutely hating it. Definite type 2 fun.
Well done - what a great experience and a very decent result!Side comment, not that serious anecdote follows on the absolutely knackered bit. I thought I knew what knackered was, 5 day Lombard, including 2x 36 hour loops with stages non stop through the night. 3 x 20 mile stages in Kielder one after the other on the final night then starting on the Yorkshire stages, that was the worst. Yep thought I knew what knackered was. Then a new baby daughter was born. Never been so knackered.
Well done there.
sjabrown said:
I am absolutely knackered now. What an event to do, and by far the biggest sporting challenge I've faced. More variety of cars would be good (says me who was co-driving in an escort...). Finished 8th, even after 10 minutes in a Kershope ditch! At times I was absolutely loving it, at other times absolutely hating it. Definite type 2 fun.
Only time you dropped out of top 20 
and that was only two places.https://results.djames.org.uk/results/competitor.p...
EVO575 said:
sjabrown said:
I am absolutely knackered now. What an event to do, and by far the biggest sporting challenge I've faced. More variety of cars would be good (says me who was co-driving in an escort...). Finished 8th, even after 10 minutes in a Kershope ditch! At times I was absolutely loving it, at other times absolutely hating it. Definite type 2 fun.
Ah,you had a good battle with my cousin Viv then!
Oliver Solberg on board Sweet Lamb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivSDJKOmvPA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHlwSVRM_04
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivSDJKOmvPA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHlwSVRM_04
Edited by classicfred on Wednesday 13th December 06:03
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