Tom Cave will travel just a few miles down the coast from his hometown of Aberdovey this weekend to the more southerly seaside resort of Aberystwyth for Sunday’s (September 8) inaugural running of the Get Connected Rali Bae Ceredigion.
The event is the first ever stage rally to be held on closed public roads in Wales and therefore, as Tom and his co-driver Dale Bowen from Hirwaun are seeded at number one, they will make history by being the first to compete on a rally of this kind in their home country.
The event features a route that passes through stunning scenery in the Cambrian Mountains, over roads that have a reputation for their driving appeal and demanding nature.
“From what I’ve heard, the stages are very technical, so it’s going to be interesting to see what the roads are like at competitive speed,” said Tom. “Being so local, I really wanted to take part in the event and support the organising team, who I know have worked extremely hard to make it happen.”
Tom and Dale will contest the event’s 44 competitive miles in a similar Hyundai i20 R5 to the one they have been successfully campaigning in the British Rally Championship this year.
Tom’s car will – as it has been all season – be supplied by leading rally preparation specialists PCRS, whose professionalism and performance has seen the team become a highly respected operation within the sport.
“There’s a few crews in R5 and WRC cars this weekend, so there should be a good battle between us and, with this being the first running of the rally, it’s going to level the playing field. There’s a real buzz about the event, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
The rally is based at Aberystwyth University, which hosts the event HQ, start, finish and service area. Tom will lead the 120-car field over the start line outside the National Library of Wales at 9.30am and, after contesting a loop of four stages in the morning, will return to the campus for the lunchtime service halt.
Then, following a re-run of the morning’s quartet of stages, crews will return to the National Library for the finish from 3.30pm.
Tom’s is supported by: Trailhead Fine Foods and its Get Jerky snack brand, Cambrian Training, Michelin Motorsport, Ponsse UK, Go Fetch Ltd, Intervino, Atech Racing, Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing and Shukers Hyundai, who are based in the rally’s host town of Aberystwyth.
