Marshals

Tuesday 17th November 2009
Thank You For All That You Do!

The dust is settling, or more appropriately, the water is draining away from the 2009 running of the Roger Albert Clark Rally and once again you have 'done the event proud'.
 
The weather, in parts, was pretty bad this year and yet you all stood to your tasks and provided the competitors and spectators with a service second to none. The good humour for which the event is recognised was in abundance not only in face to face encounters but also in the stage set up. 
 
There was the phantom junction 18 of Langdale, the garden chair balancing marshal on the end of Oiliver's Mount, the PC marshal at TC10B who had trouble counting (sorry Martin), grass cutting through Shepherdshield, the very welcome bacon butties provided for us 'off the cuff' at Holehouse Hill (thank you Dave),  the vertical taping of the poles along the river in Ae (I would like to know how you managed to secure the tape thirty feet off the ground?) plus the many other tasty goodies thrust through our passenger door window as well as hundreds of ever smiling faces. Even the good natured verbal abuse was of a better quality this year.
 
The most impressive aspect was the total lack of complaint from all those affected by the delay on Saturday night. I know some of you had a stressful trip from Keilder to Scotland that night/early morning. Thank you for not only staying postive but ensuring you were on post for the Sunday stages.
 
Thank you to those involved with the movements on Hopehouse, Archy's Rigg and Samuel's Cragg. I knew the time for the re-location of crews was tight but the movements were achieved in a shorter time than I had expected, excellent.

There was upwards of 1000 marshals on the event and every one I saw was either grinning or smiling in anticipation of what was to come.
 
The well worn saying of 'there is no I in team' completely describes the marshaling force associated with the Roger Albert Clark Rally and by marshaling force I include everyone who worked on and therefore supported the event.
 
Joy and I did our best to say thank you, either with a shout, a double blip on the horn or with a wave as we passed through the stages but from the Organisers, a sincere thank you for your hard work over the past four days. Without you friendly assistance it would be impossible to run this event.

We very much hope that you will be with us for next years event and register early to get the stages you want to assist on.
Please keep checking the event website for details.
 
See you in 2010.
 

Monday 8th November 2009
Thank You For Volunteering

This year the Roger Albert Clark Rally will run with 27 stages across 14 venues and throughout these stages there are a possible 307 locations where radio marshals can be placed. Of those I already have 282 covered which is a fantastic 92% coverage.
 
During the rally we will have a complete Positive Tracking system utilising 73 checking points over the 27 stages, so if a problem arises on stage we will be able to track the incident to a matter of yards.
 
Over the 27 stages, 818 marshals have pre-registered to attend the event but I know, from experience that the true number of marshals out on the event will probably be a figure between 25% to 30% higher than this and volunteers to attend the event are still contacting us.

Given that demand for spectator passes is currently double the early take up of last year, we are in for a spectacular few days and I thank you all in advance for all you do to make this event happen.  Remember, we couldn't do it without you.  Have fun and stay safe!

Tuesday 6th October 2009
The Excitement builds - Register now to help

The event is getting ever closer and with just over five weeks to go the anticipation and excitement continues to build.

With 52 entries to date you will agree that the there is a high level of excitement in the ranks of the competitors also.  Everyone who has registered to assist on the event should have received today, by email, information regarding your allocated locations and duties in addition to receiving other supporting documentation.

If you have registered as a group through a nominated person, then please check with your group leader. 

If you have registered and have not received the above information, please contact either Joy or myself as soon as possible.

It is hoped that by issuing the above details now, those who are travelling with the event will be able to find suitable accommodation without any difficulty.

As stated previously it is our responsibility to ensure that each stage is staffed to the required safety levels, therefore if you are no longer able to assist on the event but have registered, please let us know so that we can cover the shortfall. 

Pre knowledge of non-attendance is important as trying to overcome a shortfall of man-power on the day is very, very, difficult.

There are still places for marshals so there is still time for you to register and help out on the event.

Don’t delay – register today.

Tuesday 4th August 2009
Preparations Continue - Register Now!

Interest in this year’s Roger Albert Clark Rally continues to grow, as Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club members will know from the bulletins they will have been sent and as can be seen on the website and in the motoring press.

With 36 entries to date and more promised, the 2009 event has the promise of being a classic.

The diversity of machinery already on the entry list is evocative of the classic battles during the 70’s. The hairs on the back of any rally purist neck will be standing on end in November hearing the bark of an Escort, the howl of the Stratos and the growl of the TR8 as the vie for supremacy through the forests.

So what is happening behind the scenes?

The organising team are hard at work on the build up to the Rally. Some are busy finalising the details with regard to the various venues to be used on the event in addition to working on the time schedules, amongst a myriad of other things. Other team members are busy ensuring that the safety infrastructure is in place such as medical, rescue and recovery. Yet more are totally engaged in the administration of the Roger Albert Rally Club and still more are hard at work making sure that the controls at non-competitive locations are fully staffed.

A further part of the team, Joy and I, are busy working through the pile of marshals registrations trying to ensure that everyone is placed on the stages they have requested and each stage is staffed to the required levels.

The Stage Commanders are also busy visiting their stages and planning what manpower and equipment resources they will need in order to run each stage safely.

Registrations to marshal on this year’s RAC are steadily pouring in but there are still gaps to fill and duties to allocate.

Don’t delay – register today.

Wednesday 10th June 2009
Roger Albert Clark Rally 2009 - It's Definitely Happening!

As you no doubt have seen in the press and on this website the Roger Albert Clark Rally 2009 will happen – I know you, the faithful, never doubted it.

The Organising Team are busy putting together the various aspects of the event and once again Joy Hewson and I have the task of not only planning the safety radio scheme but also assisting with the staffing of the event in conjunction with the various Stage Commanders and the Organising Team.

As in previous years we will be asking volunteers to pre-register your intention to assist on the event in order to ensure that the rally once again benefits from an exceptional marshalling force.

It is important to pre-register even if you have made arrangements with Stage Commanders or other event officials. By pre-registering Joy and I can put together a day by day event wide marshalling plan which will make sure that each stage is marshalled to a level which will allow it to be run competitively and safely.

The pre-registration form is now available on the website, see link below:

Marshals Registration Form available here as a PDF file

You will need the Adobe Acrobat reader to view and print PDF documents
which can be downloaded for free here.  

Completed Registration Forms should be sent by email to:

joyhewson@googlemail.com  

or by post to:

Joy Hewson
Roger Albert Clark Rally 2009,
2 Sidings Court
Brough
East Yorkshire
 HU15 1ES

The route is also posted on the website so please peruse the route in order to request which stage/location you wish to marshal on or at. As usual we will make every effort to accommodate your requests but, as they say, book early to avoid disappointment.

If you are a visitor to the event forum you will have seen that competitors are queuing up to register their entry despite the financial climate. Some of the promised entries include such exotica as Lancia Fulvia, Vovlo P1800, Ford Falcon, Renault 5 Gordini, Renault Alpine, Chevette HSR, and Ascona 400 amongst others.

Meanwhile the Escort Mk II frenzy continues to grow and I am sure we will be in for a treat in November. Maybe we will have WRC stars pitting their skills against the established Escort magicians, let’s hope so.

This year there is an innovation with the creation of the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club Ltd. – (The Club). This is a chance for you to become more of a part of the rally and receive club benefits. Please visit the website for details. Joy's and my own membership applications are already in the post. (Please see link below)

All in all this could be a classic year, be part of it, register now.

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