All Terrain Stage Race Day
With the overall Scrappy Races Rally positions dependant on the outcome of this stage, the teams were sent off in the reverse order that they finished the build, at intervals of 10 minutes.
First off were the Chainsaw Clan, who lumbered up to the barrel rescue point in no time at all. The frailty of their pontoon was immediately obvious as Ken wobbled one way, then the other, as he was pushed out on to the loch by Michael and Ronnie. But he kept his cool, and his balance, grabbing the barrel with ease before being pulled back to shore. At least the first part of the course had gone smoothly for the Clan and they thundered off into the forest.
Next up were the Rally Dragons. Dave had drawn the short straw and was the team’s barrel rescuer. Their barrel raft looked even more precarious than the Clan's barrel pontoon, and Dave struggled to paddle it out. But he too managed to get their barrel without getting wet and the team headed off to the forest knowing that they were still in with a chance of moving up the leader board.
Third away from the start were Maximus, who knew they'd been overtaken by the Bulls in the rally overall. But with the gap at just 16 minutes, they knew a swift run would put pressure on the Bulls. Their rooftop boat looked the most seaworthy of all the teams' barrel rescue devices, and so it proved. It took them just a couple of minutes to recover their barrel and they headed off to the forest knowing that they'd probably clawed back some time.
The Bulls' captain Rob struggled to manoeuvre their craft, and by the time he rescued their barrel, Maximus had recovered about three minutes. With the gap closing between the two, it looked like it was all going to come down to the final part of the course - the off-road section.
Off-roading
The Clan had reached the off-road section, but just getting their lorry off the track and into the forest was proving tricky. After some hard work at the wheel from Ronnie, the 7.5-tonne lorry entered the forest. But they struggled to get enough traction to drive themselves forwards, and despite several attempts the lorry got stuck. With wheels spinning in the soft forest soil, the Clan’s challenge had come to an end.
Next up were the Rally Dragons. They too struggled to get through the forest, but with such a light vehicle Dave and Steve were able to help by shoving the Capri over bumps and tree stumps when it got grounded. They managed to get the car close enough to the steep bank to deploy their winch.
Tension rose as the ropes were laid out - a breakage could result in a winch rope whipping around dangerously. Finally they were ready to go. Nikki's initial attempts to move the car were faltering - controlling the power onto the rear axle and the winch drums was proving tricky and little jumps forward were followed by the engine stalling.
But captain Nikki wasn’t going to give up. Having mastered her clutch control she got the Capri moving and in one long bound the car leapt up the bank like a salmon. Everyone was open-mouthed as the Capri slithered over the top of the bank and came to a rest on the road again. Then it was a quick dash to the finish. The Rally Dragons were the first team to successfully complete the stage. It was now up to the chasing teams to match their efforts.
Hot on their heels came Maximus. Dennis' nifty driving meant they made short work of the drive to the bank. It was all down to whether their winch would work. With all the cables in place, Paul and Will fired up the winch engine and let out the clutch.
The winch worked superbly, powering the camper van sedately up the bank and onto the road. Maximus sprinted to the finish line, beating the Rally Dragons' time and putting real pressure on the Staffordshire Bulls. They would need a trouble-free run if they were to hang on to their lead.
But there was no sign of the Bulls on the course. Tragic luck had befallen them. A stone had flicked up into the air intake of the pick-up's engine. They'd removed the air filter to improve air flow to the engine, so the stone passed straight through to the cylinders where it had jammed a valve, shattering the engine's cam and bringing them to a grinding halt. Their race had come to an abrupt, shattering end, leaving Maximus as the stage winners and overall Scrappy Races Rally 2006 champions.
Winners of the All Terrain stage - Maximus
All Terrain Stage results
07:28:19 Maximus
08:04:41 Rally Dragons
09:04:41 Chainsaw Clan
09:04:41 Staffordshire Bulls
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