THE great classic stages of the South West will reverberate to the staccato exhaust note of turbocharged cars being driven unsparingly this weekend's Carling Rally of The Lakes, round three of the Tarmac Rally Championship.
Bertie Fisher has won The Lakes five times in a row, not surprisingly, the Ulsterman declares it his, favourite rally.
Fisher did not compete last year, and Frank Meagher scored victory over Liam O'Callaghan. Meagher is out of rallying, the championship winner unable to raise the huge budget necessary to run a full Group A car, such as his Ford Escort RS Cosworth, in the championship series.
Fisher, in his Subaru Impreza, was pushed hard in Galway by James Cullen in an Escort Cosworth, and a repeat battle is expected tomorrow and Sunday.
O'Callaghan is desperate for a win, which will be mighty difficult against the likes of Fisher and Cullen. O'Callaghan has been testing his Toyota Celica GT4 after finishing third on the AA Circuit of Ireland, and is confident of being more competitive on his "home" stages.
Tomorrow's stages include Knockacullig and Gortnagane, finishing with a "spectator stage" in the grounds of Drishane Castle, Millstreet. Sunday's stages include Molls Gap, Ballaghbeama, Caragh Lake and a new stage at Dunloe.
The Bridgestone Formula Opel Championship starts at Mondello on Sunday, the entry including Michael Edgar, Jason Pollock, Adrian Pollock, Vivion Daly, Mark O Connor, Derek Cunneely, Gary O'Brien, Noel Dunne, David Collier and Ken Grandon.
Derek Hayes (18), of Dungannon, won the opening Ford of Ireland Formula Ford Championship race on Easter Monday. There are 24 Formula Ford drivers entered, and Mark McKenna, Chris Paul, Jeff Wright, Alan Ring, are just some to watch. Also listed is a non championship Formula Vee race and a race for historics.
The saloons promise lots of action. Gordon Kellett leads the Dunlop Touring Car Championship after two races, but will have to pull out all the stops against reigning champion Michael Cullen, Michael and Barry Barrable, Joe Foley, Shaun Magill in identical Opel Astras, Jonathan Fildes in a Peugeot 309, Brian Ward and Michael Leonard in Honda Civics.
Twenty four drivers are entered for the opening round of the Dunlop Fiat Uno Cup, and having won a non championship opener, Dave Kerrigan is fired up to win the series, having won the Ritmo Championship last year. The Ritmo races will also be doing their thing, dicing door to door in round two of their championship.
Racing starts at 1.30, the first race for Formula Fords, followed by Fiat, Uno, Bridgestone Formula Opel races, followed by races for touring cars, Formula Ford (Star of Tomorrow), Fiat Ritmo, Formula Ford (Ford of Ireland) and Formula Vee.
Joey Dunlop set a new lap record of 103.23 mph for the 5.5 mile Tandragee Circuit last year. Dunlop races tomorrow in the 38th Tandragee 100 road races, along with other Ulster road racers Derek Young, Alan Irwin, Bob Jackson.
Simon Cotter, David Coates, Mark Norton, Robin Mooney and Graeme Vigors are the leading MCUI Southern Centre riders competing in Sunday's North Dublin MCC Motocross at Priestown farm, Kilbride, Co Meath.
Sunday's Enduro at Kilworth, Co Cork, is round three of the championship. Ulsterman Adrian Lappin and Dubliner Staney Callaghan lead on 35 points each.
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