Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear recorded a sensational victory at Saturday’s Rallynuts Stages Rally as the pairing stormed to an impressive four fastest times from six stages in their Ford Fiesta R5 in Mid Wales.
The pairing, fresh from a win at Rally North Wales just a fortnight ago, returned a scintillating performance, opening a whopping 15 second lead on the initial Myherin stage and were never headed, taking arguably their most important win to date. Last year’s Rallynuts winners Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh were their nearest challengers, taking second overall in their Ford Fiesta Rally2, whilst Dylan Davies and Mark Glennerster rounded out the podium in third behind the wheel of a Skoda Fabia R5. Forty-four miles of some of the finest stages in Wales were on offer to a bumper entry list of over 140 crews who headed for the Builth Wells based event. Six stages in the classic Myherin, Sweet Lamb/Hafren and Sarnau forests ensured a suitable challenge for the impressive line-up, with contenders from a wide range of championships including the MRF Tyres BTRDA Rally Series and Motorsport UK Pirelli Ravenol Welsh Rally Championship. Myherin was up first, with over 10 miles of fast, flowing forest and moorland gravel in store. Malcolm Wilson Rally winners and number one seeds, Stephen Petch and Michael Wilkinson were the first victims of the day after being dragged into a ditch on the opener, losing over 10 minutes in the process. They completed two more tests before calling it a day. But Hirst showed his hand early, setting a time 15 seconds faster than any other crew to leave his rivals trailing in his wake. Payne drew level with Ian Bainbridge and Tom Woodburn in their Skoda Fabia R5 but both crews were well aware that the margin to Hirst would be tough to close. On the Hafren Sweet Lamb test, Hirst extended his lead to 20 seconds and although Bainbridge set the benchmark in the third, it would only be by one second. Heading into the mid-point service, Bainbridge had crept into second spot ahead of Payne but was now 23 seconds adrift of the leaders. The repeat run of the opening stage saw Payne just two seconds behind Hirst as the clocks stopped. But Hirst added an extra second to his lead on the next test. Just the final four-mile Cwmysgawen stage remained, and Hirst continued to keep his cool. Perry Gardener and Jack Bowen showed signs of getting familiar with their Fiesta R5, taking an impressive equal stage win with Hirst but the last test also saw Bainbridge fall from the podium as an impact with a rock slowed his Skoda by well over a minute. Hirst’s victory gave him maximum BTRDA and Welsh championship points. “I still can’t believe our stage one time,” Hirst at the finish podium. “I`m not really sure why we were so fast, or indeed why the others were so steady. “We have been rallying for about five years and to take that time on the first stage of a BTRDA round and to come away with a win against such stiff competition is a lovely feeling, it’s so gratifying.” Gardener netted fourth whilst Russ Thompson and Steve Link hauled their Mitsubishi Evo IX to a superb fifth overall against the nimbler R5 machinery around them. Bainbridge held on to sixth whilst Tom Llewellin and Ross Whittock took seventh in their Mitsubishi Mirage R5. Richard Hill and Patrick Cooper were eighth in their Mitsubishi Evo whilst James Giddings and Aled Davies finished ninth in their similar machine. Charles Payne and Carl Williamson rounded out the top 10 in their Fiesta Rally2. The battle for the two-wheel-drive honours was also an impressive one as three-time British Rally Champion Matt Edwards went head to head with teammate Nick Elliott in a pair of FIAT 131 Abarths. It was nip and tuck during the morning loop, but Edwards and co-driver Hamish Campbell ironed out some braking issues to take 12th spot in the historic spec machine. Elliott and Peredur Davies netted 18th. Full results can be found at www.rallynutsrally.co.uk . Picture caption: Main: Mathew Hirst and Declan Dear storm to victory. Image credit: 569 Motorsport Media.
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People seeking to get away for a four-night, Easter break are being urged to act quickly to book a stylish cottage on a Mid Wales farm with panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.
Granary Cottage at Ty Gwyn Farm - www.tygwynfarm.co.uk – is less than three miles from the Victorian spa town of Llandrindod Wells and sits in a quiet courtyard surrounded by 130 acres of farmland. Available for £420 from Easter Monday for four nights, the cottage has two en suite bedrooms, a sun terrace, garden area, full central heating and free wi-fi. Dogs are welcome and safe kennels are available together with wonderful walking and dark skies for stargazing. Llandrindod Wells, with its feature 13-acre lake, has a selection of local food shops, supermarkets, a Victorian theatre, coffee shops, restaurants and garages. For those planning ahead for the Royal Welsh Show, which is set to return from July 18-21, a cancellation has created a rare opportunity to book the week at Granary Cottage for £650. The cottage is just seven miles from the showground. Ty Gwyn Farm also has The Straw Cottage, a romantic, off grid straw bale cottage in an idyllic spot on the farm. Guests wake up to the sound of birdsong, watch the stars at night, go to sleep to the sound of Holly Brook and breakfast outside with just meadow flowers and the hills for company. Contact Margot Porter at margot@tygwynfarm.co.uk or Tel: 01597 829298 for further details. Picture caption: Granary Cottage. Panoramic views from Ty Gwyn Farm. The Craft Gin Club, the biggest gin subscription service in the UK with more than 100,000 members, has selected In the Welsh Wind’s Signature Style Gin as its Gin of the Month for April.
The distillery was founded by couple Ellen Wakelam and Alex Jungmayr in January 2018 and has grown steadily ever since. Starting out in a refurbished cowshed, the distillery now occupies a site on the main West Wales coast road at Tanygroes near Cardigan, where it offers visitor experiences as well as producing award-winning spirits. Initially making gin for other brands and businesses, including a number of Welsh brands, the distillery launched In the Welsh Wind Signature Style gin during the COVID-19 pandemic in July 2020. Signature Style has gone on to win a number of awards and the distillery now has 16 employees. In early 2021, the Craft Gin Club approached the distillery to produce one of its 12 carefully selected, rare or exclusive craft gins for 2022. The distillery has been working on the project in secret ever since to ensure that when Craft Gin Clubbers received their box earlier in April, it was a complete surprise. Ellen said: “This has been an incredible project to work on – from distilling enough gin to send out to over 100,000 Craft Gin Clubbers, to working on the content for the magazine that is sent out in the monthly box. And, of course, keeping such an exciting opportunity secret has been hard too! “We’re delighted to be able to share what we’ve been doing. It’s also been amazing to see the feedback we’ve had from Craft Gin Club members about the gin. We’ve been blown away by how much people are enjoying the gin!” Alongside a full bottle of Craft Gin Club Edition Signature Style and the April 2022 edition of Ginned magazine, Craft Gin Clubbers have received a handpicked selection of treats bursting with flavours of the Welsh countryside in spring. These include garnish, a cocktail syrup for a ‘Gin Daffodil’ cocktail, tonic from Welsh producer Llanllyr and a variety of sweet and savoury snacks. Jon Hulme, Craft Gin Club co-founder and chief executive, said: "We’re incredibly excited to share this multi-award-winning gin from West Wales with our members! “In the Welsh Wind Signature Style Gin manages to be full of flavour yet exceptionally light and fresh, in a way that makes it perfect for this season. Along with juniper, its starring botanical is tea-soaked currants, which are aromatic and evocative of Welsh baking - delicious! “The gin’s subtly spiced flavours are also great for Easter, which we’ll be celebrating in style. Now, all we have to do is cross our fingers for plenty of chances to enjoy a G&T in the garden in between the April showers!" Picture caption: In the Welsh Wind founders Ellen Wakelam and Alex Jungmayr. In the Welsh Wind Signature Style Gin. The Silver Mountain Experience, a visitor attraction based just outside Aberystwyth, is getting ready for a ‘cracking’ new event launching this Easter.
From April 9-24, intrepid explorers can join in The Dragon Egg Hunt, searching for hidden dragon eggs across The Silver Mountain Experience to win a treat. As well as the excitement of hunt, visitors will be able to enjoy a variety of unique tours that explore the history of the site, both above and below ground. Families with young explorers will love the interactive tour, ‘A Dragon’s Tale’, a quest to find the friendly resident dragon Grotty. The Black Chasm also returns this Easter for those brave enough to delve deep into the murky and dark history of mining in Mid Wales. New surprises will be lurking in the darkness as, over the winter, The Black Chasm has been upgraded with even more thrilling frights and fun. Visitors can also take a journey into the history of the mine and get a glimpse into the gruelling world of mining back in Victorian times on the ‘A Miner’s Life’ guided tour. Alongside the guided tours, there are a variety of other attractions which are included with entry tickets. New for 2022 is a brand-new play area, perfect for letting kids run wild. There are lots of other activities to be enjoyed too, including den building in the wilds of Woo Hoo Woods, gem panning, water play areas and, new for 2022, the Kindling’s Treasure Trail. For those wanting to explore the site’s history further, the newly updated mining museum or the Miner’s Trail is packed full of fascinating facts and history about the site and Welsh mining. For something a little different, visitors can enjoy two thrilling escape room experiences at Ultimate Xscape. With only 60 minutes on the clock, they must try and escape from highly themed, immersive experiences. Think you’ve got what it takes to work out the identity of Jack The Ripper or maybe you feel like trying to steal the world’s biggest diamond in Diamond Heist? Head to www.ultimatexscape.co.uk to find out more and book a slot. The onsite café, The Miner’s Rest Café, will be serving a delicious range of snacks, cakes, lunches, hot drinks as well as tasty Easter treats. Visitors can also try their hand at one of the new Ultimate Xscape Tabletop Games while visiting the cafe. The café is open even if customers are not visiting any of the attractions. Freshly prepared afternoon teas must be pre-booked. Head to www.silvermountainexperience.co.uk to find out all the information you’ll need to plan a visit and to pre-book your tickets. Picture caption: The interactive tour, ‘A Dragon’s Tale’. Join The Dragon Egg Hunt this Easter. A unique Good Friday event will again take place on Talyllyn Railway in Mid Wales this year.
Called ‘Stations at Stations’, a special train will stop at each station along the line for readings and prayers telling the Good Friday story of the crucifixion. The event, which is supported by the churches and chapels in Tywyn and the surrounding area, started in 2009 and continued every year until the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. The railway is delighted that, with the relaxing of restrictions, this event may now take place again, starting provisionally at 4.30pm in the Narrow-Gauge Museum at Wharf Station. The Right Reverend Barry Morgan, former Archbishop of Wales and previously Bishop of Bangor, will lead the spiritual pilgrimage. The bishop is no stranger to the railway having been an enthusiastic participant in a driver experience in 2015, just before he retired as Archbishop of Wales. There will be an opportunity for donations to be made to the Diocese of Matabeleland in Africa, headed by Bishop Cleophas Lunga, who is himself a good friend of the railway. He is the proud owner of a wooden bishop’s crozier made by a local Tywyn craftsman from the wood of a tree near Brynglas Station. Jonathan Mann, Talyllyn Railway Society president, said: “This annual event is both unusual and special. The society is very proud of its connections with the church, with many members of the clergy being involved with the railway since Rev Wilbert Awdry’s early membership. “I would like to thank all of those involved in creating this very special event for the local community. Easter is a time of renewal and, with all the uncertainty in our lives at the moment, it is good to look forward with hope.” Bookings can be made by contacting the railway on 01654 710472 or via email at enquiries@talyllyn.co.uk. Dafydd Iwan performed hit Yma O Hyd
Friday 1 – Sunday 3 April 2022 saw the market town of Machynlleth sing along with special guest and performer Dafydd Iwan. He was joined by a host of poets, authors and speakers taking part in the literary festival named Amdani, Fachynlleth! Translated to Let’s Go! Machynlleth, the bilingual festival brought readers and writers together from across the UK to enjoy topics ranging from Rhys Mwyn’s psychogeography of Gwynedd, travel writer Tharik Hussain talking about his new book Minarets in the Mountains, and Rebecca Thomas talking about the link between identity and the landscape. Artist and painter Dan Llywelyn Hall unveiled a new portrait of Dafydd Iwan during the Saturday evening, before Dafydd performed a number of his hits including Yma O Hyd which has been on everyone’s lips since that incredible performance ahead of Wales’ football game last month. Events took place within the Wynnstay Hotel and the Senedd-dy, Glyndŵr Centre. Charles Dark, owner, The Wynnstay Hotel in Machynlleth who was instrumental in the festival’s creation said: “Thanks to everyone involved for making it such a big success. Thanks to sponsors Creating Media and Culture Colony, our local bookshops Pen’rallt and Literary Cat for their support and enthusiasm for the event, and our volunteers for bringing it all together! “Our desire with this festival isn’t to see it quadruple in size overnight, instead we aim to maintain this incredibly high quality of speakers who choose to attend our events. Following Dafydd Iwan’s incredible couple of weeks back on our screens, it was simply amazing to see him up on stage here at The Wynnstay effortlessly delivering those classic songs. This festival is all about uniting writers with readers, and to see them enjoying getting to know each other more during their talks, in the Cwtch bar socially afterwards and for fellow writers to be supporting each other, it was wonderful to see. “The very fact that you can watch an author or poet you admire on stage one minute, and the next you could be sipping a Welsh ale with them in the bar, that is what sets us apart and the aspect we plan on keeping with future events. We look forward to bringing you the next one in April 2023.” A sensational entry of more than 140 cars is set to tackle this weekend’s Rallynuts Stages Rally as the Builth Wells based forest event gets underway on Saturday (April 9).
Despite running just five months ago, the highly regarded rally returns to the calendar in its more traditional April date after the pandemic forced It to be held in November last year. A big effort from the Midland Manor Motor Club organising team has seen a swift turnaround to offer a bumper entry list of crews from across the UK a chance to contest 44 miles of competitive action, spread over six stages in the Myherin, Sweet Lamb/Hafren and Sarnau forests. With these tests having hosted drivers in the World Rally Championship in the past, the route is set to test even the most experienced of competitors. The entry list is bulging with impressive names and cars as they do battle to take overall and class honours. The event is a qualifying round of the MRF Tyres BTRDA Rally Series, Motorsport UK Pirelli Ravenol Welsh Rally Championship, West Wales Rally Spares HRCR Stage Masters, the Brian Dennis Motorsport / Bluefin & Marsh Welsh Historic Rally Championship and the IPS Rally Challenge. Fresh from victory at the recent Malcolm Wilson Rally, BTRDA leaders Stephen Petch and Michael Wilkinson will lead the field away in their Ford Fiesta Rally2. Last year's Rallynuts Stages winners Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh will undoubtedly be trying to take back-to-back victories in their similar machine. After recently announcing a British Rally Championship campaign in 2022, expect Payne to be on top form. Ian Bainbridge separates a Ford sandwich with his Skoda Fabia R5 and Will Atkins on the notes at number three seed. Second overall on the Wilson will give confidence as they head to Wales. Ludlow’s Perry Gardener and co-driver Jack Bowen have adapted quickly to their new Fiesta R5 and are fourth seed away, whilst fresh from a Rally North Wales win last month, Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear will be looking for a repeat result in their Fiesta. Hirst also scooped maximum points in the Welsh Rally Championship battle with Lampeter’s Dylan Davies taking second in his Skoda Fabia R5. Davies and co-driver Mark Glennerster re-join the fight this weekend, as does young ace Tom Llewellin and co-driver Ross Whittock in the unique Mitsubishi Mirage. The top twenty is littered with potential star performers and the race to be the first two-wheel-drive home is headed up by David Crossen and Aileen Kelly in their rapid Ford Escort MK2. Nick Elliott and Peredur Davies bring the noise with a FIAT 131 Abarth whilst reigning British Historic Rally champions Ben Friend and Cliff Simmons aim for a change in fortune after a tricky start to 2022. Fan favourite Marty McCormack and Barney Mitchell also make a welcome return in their Ford Escort MKII whilst Gunnar Karl Johannesson makes the long trip over from Iceland to tackle the event in his Mitsubishi Evo X alongside George Gwynn. Smaller-engine cars and the older historic category vehicles will lead the crews away from Builth Wells Showground on Saturday morning in a reverse seeded order, followed by the main field in a “fastest first” running order. The Royal Welsh Showground will host the pre-event formalities on Friday and then start and finish ceremonies from 8am and 4.25pm respectively. Crews will also return there during the day for mid-event service from around 11.30am Spectators are welcome to watch the action from three viewing areas during the day, with cars passing each location twice. The opening stage of the rally, Myherin, kicks off at 9am on Saturday with the second pass scheduled for 1.50pm. Entrance is cash only, available on the gate and is £10 per car. Hafren offers the famous, spectacular water splash viewing spot at Sweet Lamb and will see the first car at 9.55am, with the second stage at 2.40pm. Once again, entrance is cash only, available on the gate with a landowner charge of £10 per person. The Cwmysgawen test offers the chance to see the cars at 10.45am and again at 3.40pm, with entrance to the location cash only, available on the gate and is £10 per car. Tickets are not transferable between the three locations. Follow the event’s social media feeds for all the latest news, action, and updates throughout the weekend - www.facebook.com/RallynutsStagesRally and www.twitter.com/rallynutsstages Full spectator information and entry list can be found at www.rallynutsrally.co.uk Picture caption: Elliot Payne will be aiming for back-to-back Rallynuts wins. Image credit: Rallysport Media |
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