Builth Wells based Jason Pritchard, the newly re-crowned MSA R2 British Rally Champion, was the class of the field on his recent outing to France for the Rallye Le Touquet, where the 21 year old ran inside the top three in his class for most of the rally. British Rally Elite member Jason and co-driver Andrew Edwards were contesting the event in an effort to clinch the British Citroen Racing Trophy but as well as facing their season long rival Martin McCormack the pair would also be going up against some of the best drivers that France had to offer as the Rallye Le Touquet was the final round of the 2009 French National Championship. With no less than 12 Citroen C2R2’s in the field of over 140 cars the Welsh pairing were hoping for a good showing.

Three stages on Friday night gave the crews a taste of things to come and the FCS Laser Mail, Competition Car Insurance and North Road Garage backed pair excelled in the dark conditions, returning to Le Touquet in 17th position overall and leading the R2 class by almost 10 seconds!

Overnight rain saw the crews all opt for wet weather tyres on Saturday but with Pritchard running on an old compound tyre for the first loop he struggled for grip and gradually fell down the leaderboard, returning to mid day service fourth in class. Minor setup changes and new rubber for the afternoon loop helped initially with a set of quick times moving Jason back up to second before a spin once more saw Pritchard end the day in third.

Sunday morning was a disaster as Jason slid off the road half way through the opening stage, flattening a hedge and coming to a halt in a front garden! Although the little Citroen was completely undamaged the marshals refused to allow the spectators to help pull the car back onto the road and the Welshmen’s strong run was at an end!

“I’m so disappointed as I feel like I’ve let the whole team down! We proved that we could run at the front of the field this weekend but this was only the second time we’ve driven this car on BF Goodrich tyres as we normally use the Pirelli control Tyres in the UK and I just lacked confidence in the wet.

The crash was all the more frustrating as we found out that a Subaru had crashed there before us but because it was four wheel drive it was able to reverse out and carry on! The house owner also told us that a chicane is normally placed on the approach and as we were recovering the car the organisers were building a chicane for the second run!

I would like to be the first to congratulate Marty and Phil on a great season and well done on winning the title! We now need to take stock of what’s happened and decide on our plans for next season.”

Jason will contest the forthcoming Rallye Antibes which is the final round of the FIA European Rally Championship as he considers his options for 2010.

A short video clip is available on our videos page.

Rising Welsh rally talent Jason Pritchard successfully defended his Class R2 crown when the 21 year old Builth Wells resident won his class at the wheel of his Competition Car Insurance, FSC Laser mail and North Road Garage backed Citroen C2R2 Max on last weekends Pickering based International Rally of Yorkshire.

Although the final class position for Pritchard and co-driver Andrew Edwards indicates an easy event for the pair they suffered a number of dramas throughout the day, including loosing their brakes completely, something that you really do not want to happen on this high speed rally – Jason averaged just over 60 miles an hour through the stages, despite the brake problems slowing him for three long tests!

“Today really did not go our way. Our main target this weekend was to impress the judges enough to receive a Pirelli Star Driver Nomination but we failed in that objective. We did, however, successfully defend our Class R2 title, which is a tribute to the boys in service. When I need something done they just get on with it!”

Jason has now stood on the class podium for the past 11 championship scoring rallies in a row and will be aiming to make it a full dozen when he heads to France this weekend. Pritchard and Edwards will contest the final round of the Citroen Racing Trophy, the Rallye Le Touquet, which begins on Friday afternoon.

A short video clip is available on our videos page.

British Rally Elite member Jason Pritchard shone on his first ever event outside of the United Kingdom when the 21 year old and co-driver Andrew Edwards set the pace on last weekends Flanders Rally in Belgium. Builth Wells resident Jason was using the rally, officially known as Omloop van Vlaanderen, as a shakedown for his brand new Citroen C2R2 Max and despite ultimately retiring after running out of time, the reigning C2R2cup champion had run inside the top twenty all event long and was leading the class when he retired.

The rally began with a 15 kilometre stage in the dark of Friday night and, although the FCS Laser Mail, North Road Garage and Competition Car Insurance supported pair opted for a cautious start, they were very pleased to end the opening day second in class, and ahead of no less than nine other Citroen C2R2 pocket rockets.

Saturday morning saw the pairing continue their impressive run until a throttle problem cost them time on the seventh stage. Jason, who built this car himself, was able to replace the offending item between stages but then suffered complete power steering failure on the very next test. A union connecting the power steering to the fluid reservoir had broken, leaking fluid everywhere. Although the problem was quickly fixed the pair had to rely on local generosity for some cooking oil to see them through the next stage and back to service. It was only upon arrival in service that Jason and Andrew were informed that their road side repairs had exceed the time allowance and the talented youngsters were out of the event.

“I’m gutted and happy in equal measures. We had no chance to test the car before the event and so to be on the pace from the word go is very pleasing. The problems we had are minor but they did cost us a finish.

I have to say a very big thank you to Christoff Dejonghe, a local navigator who helped us out enormously with tips and hints during the recce. This was a fantastic experience and we were made to feel really welcome by everyone.”

Jason and Andrew will contest the gravel based International Rally of Yorkshire in a fortnights time. The Pickering based event is the final round of the 2009 MSA British Rally Championship and Jason is still in with a strong chance of clinching Class R2 honours.

Thanks to Juha Bos of www.rallyphoto.be for the two photos

British Rally Elite member Jason Pritchard proved once again why he is one of the future talents of British Rallying when he traded times with fellow Citroen C2R2 Max driver Martin McCormack over roads which Irishman McCormack travels every day!

Although a communication error ultimately ended 21 year old Pritchard’s strong run on last weekends Todd’s Leap Ulster Rally the reigning C2R2cup champion was more than happy to have been so close to his rivals pace on roads that Jason and co-driver Andrew Edwards had never seen before!

Builth Wells based Pritchard and his Aberystwyth co-driver Edwards faced a number of challenges throughout the weekend, beginning with a mammoth 12 hour recce of the stages the day before the event. Changeable weather on the opening day meant that tyre choice would be critical but despite being caught on the wrong tyres on occasion Jason did well to hold onto his championship rival, and even piped McCormack on some of the stages!

The strong run ended on the eleventh stage when a sequence of high speed bends saw the North Road Garage, Laser Mail and Competition Car Insurance backed Citroen C2R2 Max glance an earth bank, damaging the oil filter and causing immediate retirement.

“Gutted! I’ve never really enjoyed the best of runs in Ireland and so was pleased to be on the pace this weekend over roads which were completely new to me. The car was working ok, but the weather was so changeable that tyre choice was a lottery. Clipping the bank was unfortunate but that is what happens sometimes when you are pushing on.”

The final round of the 2009 Citroen Racing Trophy sees the crews cross the English Channel to France for the Touquet Rally, an event none of the championship contenders has ever tackled before. And with points and a half on offer it really will be a championship showdown!

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

Builth Wells resident Jason Pritchard and his Aberystwyth based co-driver Andrew Edwards survived a difficult Isle of Man International Rally to bring their FCS Laser Mail backed Citroen C2R2 Max home second in class and eighth overall last weekend.

Jason and Andrew struggled with an ill handling C2 on the opening day, with Jason reporting that the car was all over the place on the narrow island roads. Excessive use of the brakes, to try and keep the little pocket rocket under control saw 20 year old Jason struggle with brake fade on the longer stages. The handling problem was traced to a damaged suspension damper which was replaced at the end of day service.

Jason, a member of the British Rally Elite, began day two in eleventh position overall and immediately set about making up time to the class leader. However, with the onset of rain on the second loop of stages the Competition Car Insurance supported C2R2 struggled for grip, before the gearbox began to fail towards the end of the day. Jason had no option but to change his focus from challenging for class honours to nursing his North Road Garage backed Citroen to the finish.

“Well it has certainly been an eventful weekend. Once again we’ve proved that we have the pace but once the gearbox began playing up we had to back off and focus on championship points. Despite the rushed recce on Thursday I felt our notes were really good and so we head to Ulster hungry for a strong run!”

Jason and Andrew currently lie second in the C2R2cup, six points adrift of Irishman Martin McCormack with two rounds to go. The series heads across the Irish Sea next, to the Ulster Rally. But before then Jason has an extensive test planned as he seeks to unlock more pace from both himself and the car.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

Builth Wells resident Jason Pritchard took a break from his MSA British Rally Championship duties to support the Welsh Marches Mini Epynt Stages over the Epynt Military Ranges but for a last stage driveshaft failure the talented 20 year old would have finished on the podium!

MSA Rally Elite Member Jason was reunited with Martin Jones for the event and despite struggling to re-adapt to organisers notes Jason was on fine form, leading his class from the very first stage and setting top five overall times in his little Lasermail, Competition Car Insurance and North Road Garage backed Citroen C2R2 Max!

After seven high speed stages around the ranges Jason was within sight of the leaders and as the crews tackled that last stage Jason was on a mission. Coupled with problems for the leaders, by the half way mark through that last stage the little C2R2 was provisionally leading the rally, but then a broken driveshaft two miles from the finish ended his strong charge and Jason and Martin were forced to park up and retire the Citroen.

“What a brilliant and well run rally! Full credit to the organisers! The weather was great and it was fun having Martin back in the car, although it did take us a while to adjust to each other again. I was only using the event to gain some tarmac mileage in the C2R2 Max so when we broke the shaft it was probably a blessing in disguise, otherwise it might have broken on my next championship rally!”

“I’ll definitely be back for this rally again next year!”

Jason, the reigning C2R2cup champion, will resume his 2009 assault on the fourth round of the MSA British Rally Championship, the International Rally Isle of Man in July.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

Builth Wells based British Rally Elite member Jason Pritchard survived a holed radiator, intercom failure and a fifth gear spin to finish last weekends Jim Clark International Rally second in class as the season reaches the half way mark.

Jason, the reigning Citroen C2R2cup champion, has never had a clean run on the Scottish round of the MSA British Rally Championship and this year was no exception. A holed radiator before the start of the rally was hardly ideal and Jason, co-driven by fellow Welshman Andrew Edwards, tackled the opening loop cautiously. Six stages run around Duns, four of them in complete darkness, saw the Competition Cars Insurance assisted C2R2 Max trading times with reigning Irish champion Martin McCormack and by the end of the opening day the two young drivers were equal on times!

Saturday morning dawned and with it the battle raged on, the North Road Garage and FCS Lasermail backed Citroen of Pritchard and Edwards swapping times with their rivals all morning long. However intercom failure half way through one of the stages cost Jason time as he was forced to drive for a while with no notes. And then, in an effort to close the gap Jason experienced a heart in the mouth 100mph spin in fifth gear, fortunately without any damage! After 17 stages in changeable weather conditions the pair were happy to return to Kelso for the ceremonial finish in 17th position overall and second in Class R2.

“Putting a hole in the radiator wasn’t very clever, but thanks to the help of a number of people, especially the Everards and McCormacks, we were able to start the rally. Considering I had no opportunity to test before the rally and that I haven’t rallied on tarmac since last August I am very happy with the weekend as a whole.”

Fair play to Marty, he drove a brilliant rally, and it’s great to see that the two of us are so evenly matched for pace.

In an effort to gain more tarmac experience of his C2R2 Max on tarmac Jason will contest the Mini Epynt Rally this coming weekend before rejoining the MSA British Rally Championship for round four, the Isle of Man International Rally in July.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

Reigning Citroen C2R2cup champion Jason Pritchard survived an excursion into an infamous Kielder ditch to stage a storming drive to third in class in his Competition Car Insurance and North Road Garage backed Citroen C2R2 Max and in doing so picked up valuable points towards his 2009 campaign.

Builth Wells resident Jason and his Aberystwyth based co-driver Andrew Edwards had opted to tackle the second round of the 2009 MSA British Rally Championship with caution, as the Kielder forest complex is renowned for being unforgiving. Thus the pair were pleasantly surprised to complete the opening stage on Friday night with a seven second cushion over their rivals. However everything went wrong on the second stage of the day. About half way through the test the rear of the car stepped out of a rut and the nose was sucked into a deep Kielder ditch. Although there was remarkably little damage to the car it took a group of enthusiastic spectators nearly forty minutes to extract the little Citroen from its resting place. And then, to add insult to injury, the gear stick broke a couple of miles further on!

When you look at our times through the first stage and see that we were seven seconds quicker than anyone else in class, you do have to wonder what Saturday would have been like. But after that massive time loss in stage two Andrew and I agreed to just cruise to the finish and pick up valuable points.

“The actual incident is very puzzling because, even when you look back at the in car footage, there is no reason why we should have snapped around like that. It’s just one of those things, and I guess we can be lucky for ‘surviving’ a Kielder ditch! I’d like to say a massive thanks to everyone who helped pull us out of that ditch, it was a huge effort so cheers guys!”

The next rally for the talented Welsh pairing is the tarmac based Jim Clark International Rally. Based around the town of Duns, in southern Scotland, this high speed tarmac rally will see the debut of Jason’s brand new Citroen C2R2 Max, the car that he received as his prize for winning the 2008 championship.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

Pirelli International Rally Overall Results

Class R2/ C2R2cup

1. Martin McCormack/ Phil Clark 1:17:44.6
2. Mark Gamble/ Steve Link 1:21:37.6
3. Jason Pritchard/ Andrew Edwards 1:52:54.0

Overall positions after Round 2/6 (best five rounds to score)

1. Martin McCormack   38
2. Jason Pritchard    36
3. Mark Gamble        34
4. Andrew Hockridge   15

Builth Wells rallying talent Jason Pritchard put in a faultless display as he dialed in his new Citroen C2R2 Max and then promptly dominated last weekends Bulldog International Rally of North Wales, overhauling his nearest rival with two stages to go to take the class honours back in Bala.

Jason, who is joined by fellow Welshman Andrew Edwards in the North Road Garage and Competition Car Insurance assisted Citroen C2R2 Max this year, had only had one brief test prior to the rally and adopted a cautious approach to the morning. Once Jason was happy with his setup he pushed harder in the afternoon. With two stages to go Jason was ten seconds adrift of the top spot but a hard push through Gartheniog 2 saw the 20 year old British Rally Elite member overturn that deficit in just one stage!

“What a brilliant start to the season! To win my home rally on my debut with the new ‘Max’ kit is fantastic. It took a while for Andrew and me to settle into a rhythm this morning but once we connected it all worked really well.”

The conditions were really tricky, with sleet and rain pretty much all day, but everything came together perfectly!

Jason and Andrew will next be out on the Carlisle based Pirelli International Rally but before then Jason plans a massive sponsorship hunt as he looks to raise the funds to allow him to contest a selection of events abroad.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.

20 year old rallying ace Jason Pritchard became the youngest winner of the British C2R2cup when the Builth Wells resident dominated proceedings on last weekends Wales Rally GB, taking class honours and the accolade of first two wheel drive home as well.

Jason began the weekend as one of three drivers in with a chance at winning the C2R2cup, Britain’s most competitive one make championship. And after sub zero temperatures caused the opening stage of the rally to be cancelled Jason and co-driver George Gwynn knew that they would have to balance their pace with caution. A strong run in icy conditions the week before on the Grizedale Stages must have prepared Jason well as he was not only fastest in class, but was also the quickest two wheel drive through the stage! This trait continued for the rest of the day and the North Road Garage backed Citroen C2R2 returned to Swansea with a healthy lead in class, and one hand on the championship trophy.

Whilst Jason, who is a member of the British Rally Elite, now only needed to finish the rally to ensure championship victory he was well aware of the need to concentrate and opted to continue at the same pace. Despite loosing the intercom for two stages the FCS Laser Mail supported C2R2 navigated the icy stages with no dramas and returned to Cardiff for the ceremonial finish with a healthy cushion over their nearest class rival.

As well as winning the Citroen C2R2cup with no less than four victories and a total of five podium finishes Jason and George also won the Class R2 honours. In the rally, the final round of the 2008 World Rally Championship, the pair took a number of awards, winning both their class and taking two wheel drive honours, by almost two minutes, and receiving the prestigious Richard Burns Award.

Wow. I’m speechless. This was the 76th running of the rally, and I was Car 76 – some coincidence! Coming into this weekend both George and I knew that we had a big challenge ahead of us and I am so pleased that we have shown that we can rise to the fight. The road conditions were the trickiest that I have ever seen and we opted to take it cautiously. It’s a strategy that worked well and I am over the moon with the result.

“I need to say a massive thanks to my parents and my girlfriend, and to George who did a fantastic job this year. But most importantly I need to thank Quick Motorsport, North Road Garage and FCS Laser Mail for their support this year.”

As well as winning the C2R2cup, which includes an upgraded C2R2max kit, Jason has also won a place on the forthcoming Pirelli Star Driver Shootout. This takes place this coming Thursday and Friday, with the successful recipient winning a fully funded season of rallying in the British Rally Championship. Until the outcome of the shootout is known no plans for 2009 will be made, but the team is currently looking for the budget to contest a selection of events in Europe.

A short youtube video can be found on our videos page.