Championship Runner Up Spot Sealed

As with any event the preparation started well before the recce. This was done through the usual in depth process of event research and stage research to ensure that all logistics were covered, but also so that there was a base set of notes to work from during the recce. The process takes a bit of time and after multiple phone calls back and forth between Shaun and Richard they were ready for what lay ahead of them, with notes they were confident gave them a good head start ahead of recce. 

After not too long it was time to head to the event and as ever it was a 5 hours jaunt for Shaun from the South West to Richard's house in Maidstone, Kent. For once the journey wasn't riddled with traffic problems and the traffic was actually moving at a reasonable pace past stone henge.....Unbelievable we know! Due to a good run up the spirits were high and once reunited it was time to hop into the recce car and cross the channel to get the event underway. Normally Shaun and Richard are asked to pull into security at the channel tunnel and then they get asked various questions or the car gets swabbed etc etc...funnily enough Richard says this only happens when Shaun is in the car (he must look dodgy!). This crossing was no different and after a quick car swab they were on their way and onto the train for a run through the notes using the videos from the organisers for reference. Little to no alterations were made and everything really was plain sailing so far. The fact that everything was running so smoothly is a testament to not only the trusted process between the crew members, but also the logistical planning put in place from Shaun prior to the event. 

Once they landed in Calais it was a quick drive to Kortrijk where they found their hotel, dropped bags off and heading into the city center to have a look at the rally village so to speak as this event is simply one big party from Friday night all the way to early hours Monday morning. Within the center they were able to see some of the service area and some of the cars that had already began to set up but most importantly the party tent which certainly created a buzz for everyone around. This was a sign of things to come for the event due to the support given by all the locals and it simply was amazing to see. Although there was a huge buzz it was time for some dinner at Ribs n Beer which was outstanding and although it is personal opinion their all you can eat ribs with Beer and Chocolate glaze cannot be recommended more, so if you get chance go and check them out! Recce day and Rally Day 1 on the mind it was time to head back to the hotel and get some much needed rest ahead of a busy Saturday.

Rested and up early Richard and Shaun headed to what can only be named the "party tent" to sign on for the recce and collect their roadbook. As ever the organisation from the Belgians was seamless and this was a super stress-free process which allowed them to be in and out within a matter of minutes. With roadbook in hand it was time to make a quick trip to the trailer park to meet the EDSL Sport boys to drop off our gear and give them any paperwork required for scrutineering. A brief catch up and then off to the stages Richard and Shaun went. 

Recce was slightly different to other events due to one stage (Lavano) not being able to be recce'd until 12pm and even then only for 2 hours as they needed to ensure everything was set up for Saturday nights 1 and only stage (Lavano 1). With this in mind they headed off to what would be the first full loop of stages on the Sunday. This loop included 2 longer stages and 2 shorter ones. The loop of stages for recce went extremely well and there was a maximum of 5 changes to notes made across the whole loop of stages. This truly does show just how solid the preparation is before and event between the 2 of them (Rich and Shaun). The majority of alterations or adaptations were in fact made to the road book between stages instead of the notes and this was only to make sure that some junctions were unique and were unable to be missed during the road sections on rally days. So with one pass of 4 stages completed and the mood high it was time to head back to the rally tent and complete admin checks to finish off the signing on process ahead of getting started later that evening. Once again this was absolutely seamless and it is a huge credit to the organisers in Belgium as they really do have a great system for this. 

Admin checks completed and also scrutineering completed by the EDSL boys. A little over an hour left until Lavano could be recce'd so Richard, Shaun and his dad (Pete, who came along to support Shaun but also experience Belgium rallying for the first time and on his birthday!) headed back out for another pass of the longer 2 stages of the loop (Zwevegem and Bellegem). This pass confirmed everything from earlier on and gave them the confidence that the notes were ready to go for these 2. Once this was completed, geographically they were close to Lavano and with 30 mins to go until recce could begin here they lined up ready for their passes of this stage. Yes they really have done a lot all before 12pm, which goes to show just how busy of an event it is! 

12pm came and into the stage they went, along with many many other rally crews out on their recce. This stage was the one that required the most amount of changes to the notes and that was simply due to the fact that the central part of the stage which went through a cement works was nothing like previous years. Due to this the boys were tasked with adapting their notes and writing some fresh ones for this section. 45 mins of recce around Lavano later and 2 passes were complete and they were happy with they had in front of them so it was time to finish off the final pass of the final 2 stages. 

By roughly 3 pm they were done and ready for the evening ahead so it was now time to have a quick tidy up of the notes and have a brief couple hours "down" time whilst getting everything in the car and ready for later on. Whilst Richard and Shaun were awaiting to start the event Pete went off with another UK crews supporter to go and spectate the stage in the evening. Time passed and everything was ready to go, so were Richard and Shaun so without further a do it was time to head to the first control of the rally. TC 0A completed and off to SS1 of the rally (Lavano 1). Team and car feeling good and with one goal in mind (seal 2nd in the championship) the rally was underway. Upon arrival to the stage the amount of spectators was simply mind blowing....we are told that there was over 8000 spectators on this one stage alone!!! Anyway without further a do they lined up on the start line and awaited their countdown from the marshal. 10......5, 4, 3 oh wait stop! The marshal held them due to another car coming on the stage as it was just at a merge point due to the stage having splits and merges (similar to a UK single venue rally for this stage). Thinking they were going to get a 10 second warning again the car was taken out of stage mode, but suddenly the marshal signaled 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 GO so they had no choice but to set off with the car in road mode and swap it on the fly. Luckily it was a 100m straight off the start so Richard switched stage mode on and they rocketed through the slippy concrete dust filled night stage. Lap 1 complete and pushing hard into Lap 2 but sadly a corner caught the boys out as the grip level suddenly changed which saw them ride a gravel bank and rip off the front right corner of the bumper. Hardly any time lost (roughly 5 seconds) and into lap 3 they went and by now there was plenty of cars in the stage so there were lights moving around all over the place......the atmosphere was electric. Safely through the stage and laying 18th overall even after a run in with the gravel bank was not a bad start at all. A brief service was had after the stage which is where they set about making an impressive temporary repair to the bumper, before the car had to head off to Parc Ferme for the night. 

Day 1 complete and what a busy one it was so it was time to head back to the hotel, liaise with Pete and get some well needed rest before another full on day on Sunday. Day 2 arrives and it is another early start due to Parc Ferme being 20 minutes from the hotel and the start time being close to 8am. Breakfast in the hotel and the crew were fueled up ready for the day. Arriving at the car it was clear to see that we weren't the only ones to suffer some minor damage on the previous nights stage as there were a few cars showing war wounds. Spirits high and a long day ahead they got in the car and headed back to service for a quick check over before the first loop of 4 stages on what can only be described as some of the most slippy stages the boys have come across. Off to SS 2 (Zwevegem) they go and the target of the championship still in mind. 

Zwevegem is a stage that had plenty to catch you out if you weren't on the ball so they opted not to push on this one and that was a wise choice. Multiple corners were like ice and the car went silent but they were through unscathed. A solid top 15 stage time was put in and they had moved up to 16th overall. Bellegem next and this one was a closed road stage but with splits and merges, so with the experience of being held on the line from the previous night they held the car in stage mode just incase. No hold up this time round and a good push in this one as this stage had the widest of the roads across the whole event and was highly enjoyable. No issues again and despite another couple slippy corners they held onto their position and all was looking good for the championship so far. The next 2 stages were super short and super slippy. Short but 100% were able to ruin your rally. Albeke first and this one felt as if it simply didn't flow for whatever reason, but with the whole stage being incredibly narrow in places and there being next to no grip despite the 4 wheel drive system they were through once again with no issues. Now they had managed to jump up another place and were closing in on the first place position for the FIRC on the rally but this didn't last long as Richard Pex fought back on the next one. Marke was the final stage of the loop and this was by far the one with the least amount of grip. Once again it was short but packed a punch and the final 3 corners were catching many a crew out. 

Loop 1 of Sunday done and back to service they went with heads held high. The pace at this event was insane and the level of competition was outstanding so even though 15th overall may not seem like top level pace it really was a case of a huge improvement across the year all coming together nicely. The next loop included Lavano once again but with a slight variation for the end section. For this loop we stayed on the same compound tyres as the first loop due to a consistent feel and with 5 stages for this one it was key to retain a piece of confidence. Off to the stages they went and much like before the first 2 stages were slippy however the dry weather and multitude of cars had began to form a semi-dry line at times. These 2 were always going to be the 2 that dried out the best, but the next 3 after a brief re-group were destined to resemble a skating rink....

A brief social in re-group and off for another skid around the spectator filled Lavano stage they went. Much like the previous evening this stage was rammed with spectators as far as the eye could see. It is simple to see why this was the case as not only was there ample amounts of space for them, but due to the nature of the splits and merges amongst a super slippy stage there was constant action and a flow of cars. A clean run through the stage and even an over take in front of everyone at the grand stand saw both Richard and Shaun in high spirits. The grip may have been low but due to the extra room to throw a car around it simply made the stage even more enjoyable. Heading off to the next 2 stages there was a slight hint of drizzle but it didn't really come to much. The rain made no difference to the stages as these were still extremely slippy and despite being super short they were still capable of catching someone out. A steady run through once again with what seemed like no flow but consistent times of 15th fastest saw them break into the top 15 overall. 

Time for another brief service before the final loop of 4 stages. The beauty of the day so far was that the car didn't require anything other than fuel, which meant that the time in service was relaxed and just how it should be. By now it was mid afternoon and the final loop was going to go into darkness so the spot lamps were put back onto the car and off they went into the final loop of stages which was a repeat of the first loop of the day. As ever the first 2 stages were longer and although the forecast showed a small chance of rain alongside the temperature dropping the grip levels actually increased. This was to the amazement of both Richard and Shaun who had chosen a "safe" tyre choice. Sadly the tyre choice made did hamper their performance slightly but nothing drastic and although they had lost a couple seconds they were still on track to secure 2nd in the championship. Heading into the final 2 stages the day light had gone and the spot lamps were on. The dynamics in the car and throughout the stages simply change when it is dark and we all know Shaun cut his teeth on road rallying in the dark so this added to the buzz of the event. Although the lamps were sadly aiming a tad low for the fast stuff on the stages the team didn't lose too much time and they were able to get through the final stages safely. A near on faultless event from the team and a great way to round out the championship. This is certainly an event that they'll be aiming to return to in the future. 

A clean run throughout the event allowed the team to secure 14th Overall, 9th in their class and most importantly 2nd in the FIRC Championship which means they are the 2025 runners up on their debut campaign. The results across the year to make this happen would simply not be possible without the continued support and efforts of all the EDSL Sport team. We know that Shaun would like to extend his thanks to Richard for once again having him in the car for the season and we cannot wait to see what calendar they string together for the 2026 season in the TCS Micropumps backed Citroen C3 Rally2. 

In terms of competing that's it for Shaun for the 2025 season as although he will be at the South Downs Stages he is managing the logistics for the team and giving up his seat to allow Henry to take it for the event. Henry is a team member that puts a lot of work in during the run up to the events so as a thank you he will be able to experience what the car and events are like for himself. More on all of this to come soon. Until then though, we look forward to developing the 2026 calendar of events.