Eathan McColgan all geared up for next month’s John Mulholland Motors Ulster Rally
TEENAGE navigator Eathan McColgan admits he will have to pinch himself when he and driver Gerard McHugh cruise into Strabane town centre in their Talbot Sunbeam at the 2017 John Mulholland Motors Ulster Rally next month.
A regroup event in the town has been added to the schedule for this year’s event after it was successfully hosted in the Derry City and Strabane District Council area for the first time last year.
At just 16 years of age, McColgan will be the youngest entrant and one of the few local competitors at the rally when it returns on Friday 18th and Saturday 19th August 2017 and for the Strabane native it will represent the icing on the cake of his dream debut rallying season.
After already navigating at the Lark in the Park in Derry’s St Columb’s Park and the Donegal and Sligo Rallies earlier this summer, the youngster is now comfortable at this level but he expects weaving around the roads he grew up on will be a surreal experience.
“It’s a really a home rally for me and it’s going to be a strange experience to come into Strabane town centre in my rally gear and see so many familiar faces watching me,” he said.
“The Ulster Rally was always an event that stood out for me on the calendar, I remember going to it when it was in Enniskillen.
“Last year I was one of the marshals in Newtownstewart which was a great opportunity at the time to get an up close look at what it involves.
“To actually get a seat and compete at this year’s race is something I’ve dreamt of for a long time.”
The Ulster Rally will see him paired with Gerard McHugh after they achieved a class win in the Park Rally back in April – just weeks after Eathan had turned 16 and was old enough to navigate.
“We finished 33rd overall in St Columb’s Park and first in our category which was a massive confidence boost that I could make an impact at this level,” he recalled.
“It was funny but I only got nervous afterwards, the race itself flew by in a flash and I was more excited than nervous to be involved in something I had watched all my life.
“I would have always gone to the Donegal Rally as a youngster and the interest just grew from there, my uncle Gerard McColgan would have raced and we would have gone to support him.”
Since the Lark in the Park Eathan has navigated for Andrew McLoone in a Vauxhall Chevette in Donegal and Vance William’s Ford Escort in Sligo and he revealed knowing the individual cars is as important for navigation as studying the course itself.
“Preparation for a race begins months rather than weeks before,” he revealed. “I’ve been researching for the Ulster Rally since April, everything has to be on point.
“It’s more than just the timings on the course, you need to know the car inside out and where it should be at certain stages of the course to stay on time.
“Our first aim is always to finish the race but I would like to see us finishing in the top three in our class at the Ulster Rally, if we can do that I would say the event has been a success for us.”
The Ulster Rally will naturally attract motor racing fans from all over Ireland and beyond but Eathan urged local people, regardless of their knowledge of the sport, to come along to the event and sample what it has to offer.
“It’s great for the local community to have a high level event on their doorstep,” he added. “It’ll obviously attract the rally fans but I’d encourage people who have never been at a rally before to come along and see what it’s about.
“People might be too busy to get out to stage but if they are in shopping in Derry and Strabane they should call over to the main base at Ebrington or the regroup event in Strabane town centre and see what it’s all about.”
The John Mulholland Motors Ulster Rally is part of the Prestone MSA British Rally Championship, the Clonakilty Irish Tarmac Rally Championship and the FIA Celtic Rally Trophy.
The event is being hosted by Derry City and Strabane District Council and Northern Ireland Motor Club in conjunction with the Maiden City Motor Club. For more information on the rally visit www.ulsterrally.com.
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