Tour Of Cheshire
The organising team were delighted, and relieved, by the immediate response to our entries opening, on January 3rd, and well before the HRCR Open Day the entry list was full - with a healthy reserves list. It is great to see the level of interest in the non-plot Clubmans event reintroduced for 2025 after a rest of nearly 20 years. For those on the reserve list 'hold your nerve' don't withdraw your entry, as in previous years all those on the reserves list have been given the opportunity to run. Indeed, I cannot recall a year when a full entry started on the day.
A request to all our competitors and marshals, please complete your 'signing-on' as soon as possible this will be a great help to us and will save you a last-minute panic.
Scrutineering, and navigation paperwork collection, on the Friday evening (February 28th), as for 2024 is at Reaseheath College, Nantwich. As in previous years due to other activities at the College they are not allowing any trailer parking / unloading at the College. We are working to secure a nearby venue for trailers.
The final instructions will contain new additional details, including the arrangements for scrutineering, so we request crews read these carefully as soon as they are issued. These are there to help make everyone's life a bit easier.
There will be a new calibration route this year, so don't just go the ones we have used previously!
Our route is mostly through Cheshire, but there will be brief excursions into neighbouring Shropshire and Staffordshire. The maps being used are OS 117, 118, 126 & 127 so make sure you have the latest edition. As there is only a limited use of OS 126 & 127 to save competitors the cost of acquiring those maps we will provide relevant extracts to all crews on the Inter-Club event.
The 2025 Tour of Cheshire will once again be visiting the Oulton Park Rally Stage and Cheshire Showground for several of the day's special tests. All tests, of which there will be at least 10, are on non-car damaging surfaces to encourage competitors to bring out those older cars and compete for the special pre-60 awards.
Our time schedule allows time to enjoy the usual style of rest halts for coffee, lunch and tea. There will also be time to have a natter with fellow competitors. At the end of a good day's motorsport there will be the customary Cheshire Cheese for the finishers as well as the pre-awards supper at our new start and finish venue, Crewe Vagrants Sports Club, Newcastle Road, Nantwich.
Graham Raeburn, of Rally Navigation Training Services one of our event sponsors, will be running a pre-event training session on Friday 28 February for those new to regularity rallying, and not familiar with regularity navigation plotting or those who might need a refresher course - see regulations document for details.
We recognise the event will have a carbon footprint and seek to reduce this as much as is possible. To enable our Club to obtain Sustainability Accreditation with Motorsport UK we will be asking everybody involved with the event for some details to help us build a detailed picture of the event's carbon footprint - please help with this process it will help to ensure motorsport events can continue.
Mike Harrison (Clerk of the Course) January 17th 2025