After months of behind the scenes preparations and over 300 grueling
competitive stage kilometers, the Kickastra Rally Team completed a
hat trick of WRC rally finishes by driving over the finish ramp of
the Neste Oil Rally Finland 2009.
The team’s entry and successful completion was based on months of
planning on both sides of the Atlantic and invaluable support from
sponsors Ravensden. On the European side, German-based brother
Jonathan spearheaded operations in associated with German Opel
experts Rallyeteam Autoscharf lead by Tobias Scharf and Finnish team
friend and local organizer Jouni Kunnas. Also invaluable were the
team’s family and friends who were present at the finish.
The team already had Wales Rally GB 2006 and 2007 finishes under
their belt, and were the first and still only all-Barbadian team to
complete a WRC event. Many of the lessons learnt from these rallies
paid off. Stringent preparation by Rallyeteam Autoscharf of Lauter,
Germany along with an excellent suspension setup selection resulted
in an almost flawless performance of the teams Opel Astra OPC. The
only technical problem being a cracked engine mount after a heavy
landing on the first special stage at Killeri. This was changed in
record time by Rallyeteam Autoscharf at the 1st service the
following morning.
The rally stages were by far the most challenging yet faced by the
team given their high speed, quantity of blind crests and of course
the many jumps. With the main aim of finishing the rally, gaining
experience and improving pace-noting, the team took a cautious
approach and were not expecting to challenge for overall group
position.
Reflecting on the achievement of completing one of the most famous
rallies in the world, Adrian noted “…it was an incredible
experience that we will remember for a long, long time. The stages
were simply phenomenal and tremendously exciting!”
The team finished 8th in group N3 and 52nd overall out of 61
finishers and 90 starters.
Kickastra Rally Team
