Australia downplays rainfall fears

Date published : 08 Jul 2011 - 07:34:25

Rally Australia clerk of the course Michelle Gatton is confident the route for the first ever Coffs Harbour-based World Rally Championship event will be in good condition despite heavy recent rainfall.The September 8-11 event, which switched from its long-time base in Perth to Northern Rivers on the east coast in 2009 and now heads south in New South Wales to Coffs Harbour, returns to the WRC calendar after a season away in 2010.The event will comprise 28 stages and 228 competitive miles on various types of road."The roads selected vary widely in character and surface, from fast-flowing gravelled shire roads to narrower forestry tracks many would remember from years gone by," said Gatton."The Coffs Coast region has had unusually high rainfall this year and in general I am extremely pleased by the condition of the roads following these adverse conditions. "Crews will contest six gravel stages to the west of Coffs Harbour on Friday, eight to the south on Saturday and six to the north on Sunday."This format has allowed us to move to a central service option for all three days of competition, a format which most competitors and teams favour."The central service park will be based at the Coffs Harbour Airport.Crews will kick-start the event with two passes on the Coffs Harbour Super Special Stage on Thursday night, with subsequent visits on Friday and Saturday nights. Rally Australia will finish on Sunday afternoon with a televised powerstage in the woods north of Woolgoolga.