Steve Bannister’s Trackrod Rally bid ended by gearbox failure, Pryce secures British Championship victory

Pryce, from Machynlleth, won the six-stage gravel rally in his Volkswagen Polo GTR5 and clinched his first national title in emphatic style, writes Keith McGhie.

The 29-year-old set fastest times on the first four stages to build a sizeable lead in the Filey-based event and, although main rival Keith Cronin won the final two tests, it only served to promote the Irishman from third to second - not enough to take the title race to the final round of the championship. It was Pryce’s fourth success of the season, while four-times champion Cronin’s similar four-wheel drive Polo has only savoured two and thus is now unable to catch the mid-Wales driver.

Three times former Trackrod Rally winner in the 1970s and early 1980s Steve Bannister, in his trademark Escort, rolled back the years to hound outgoing British Champion Matt Edwards’ Fiat 131 Abarth over the Dalby forest night stage on Friday and subsequent three tests in Cropton, Gale Rigg and Staindale.

Bannister was running a strong second, just 40 seconds behind Edwards, when his gearbox failed midway through Saturday’s longest stage - 13.2 miles on gravel in Langdale.

“Delighted at the way it was going but so disappointed now,” said Butterwick potato farmer Bannister, who has become the most successful competitor in the Trackrod Rally’s five decade history.

Pickering panel beater and fellow Escort campaigner David Brown was also frustrated by what might have been, having posted several impressive top 10 times after going off and getting stuck down a fire break and picking up a ‘maximum’ time on the Saturday’s opening stage in Cropton.

Near neighbour Steve Magson, already struggling with an arm injury, suffered suspension failure which brought the Pickering garage owner’s unusual rear-wheel drive Vauxhall Astra to a halt on the same 8.5 mile forest test.

Long standing friends Bannister, Magson and Brown had travelled to Kielder Forest in Northumberland to test themselves and their cars two days before the Trackrod rally started.Another of the area’s Escort drivers Adam Milner was also out of luck when the the Thornton Dale-based former motorcycle trials rider’s Mk1 Mexico blew its engine on the opening night run in the Dalby forest darkness.

The early 1980s Escort piloted by West Ayton driver Josh Carr and navigator Richard Wardle, from Pickering, savoured a hard earned class win in their local event, finishing 11th overall with top 10 times in both Cropton and Dalby forests.

Scarborough’s Carl Stuttard, having failed to get his Mk2 Escort ready for the 2021 Historic Cup section, made up for lost time with a fine run through the six often slippery stages and 56 competitive miles of the annual event and hardly a scratch on the car.