THE WEST MIDLANDS WILL HAVE A NEW MOTORSPORT EVENT THIS YEAR - THE "EXPRESS AND STAR" NIGHT NAVIGATION RALLY, ORGANISED BY WOLVERHAMPTON AND SOUTH STAFFORDSHIRE CAR CLUB AND SPONSORED BY THE "EXPRESS AND STAR."
Date fixed for the event is Saturday and Sunday, March 8-9. It is hoped to attract entries from car rally enthusiasts in all parts of the country and, for their convenience, starting points are scheduled at Liverpool, Lincoln, Oxford and Wolverhampton.
The rally will finish at Droitwich at about noon on the second day, competitor having started from the various start points the previous evening. Total distance to be covered will be between 400 and 450 miles.
Competitors from all starting, points will first have to drive over a 90 to 100-mile easy road section, bringing them to a focal point from which they will start on the more difficult part of the course through Herefordshire, Breconshire. Gloucestershire and the Cotswolds bringing them to the finish at Droitwich.
EVENING START
Depending on the distance of the chosen starting point from the beginning of the common route for all drivers, competitors will be setting off from be between 6 and 8 p.m. on March 8.
Explaining the plans of the organising club for whom this is a first rate venture, Mr. Alan J. Martin, vice-chairman and rally organiser, writes: " We Propose to run this rally on the principle of national rallies where there are fairly easy sections between short difficult ones.
"We shall be starting with an R.A.C. permit which will allow us to accept entries from members of any clubs signifying their willingness to join in the project. We hope to be able to improve on the status of the event in future years."
The organising club proposes, for the first year, to make awards on a single class basis with trophies and cash prizes for first, second and third competitors in the general classification, with first and second-class awards and team awards.
CASH PRIZES
Cash prizes for the driver and navigator of the winning car will amount to £35, while cash awards to the drivers and navigators of the cars placed second and third will total £25 and £15.
Each competitor gaining a first-class award will receive £5, and each driver gaining a second-class award will get £2 10s.
Cash awards for the winning team will amount to £4 and to the runner-up, £2.
There will also be the S. W. Fletcher Memorial Trophy for the best performance by a member of the organising club, whose navigator will receive the Ron Moore memorial trophy.
Further details of the, event, entry forms and regulations will be available shortly from Mr. A. J. Martin.