Ashleigh Morris

After competing in the Motorsport News Circuit Rally Championship 2016/17, I was keen to return to the championship for the new season. I’d competed in Class A the previous season in a hired Fiat Punto, finishing 2nd in class. Now for 2017/18 I had my own car, a Ford Fiesta R200.

Unfortunately we had to miss the first round of the championship at Oulton Park so Cadwell Park in November was the first time out in the new car for me and my co-driver, Jamie Mactavish. I got the Fiesta in October and had done only one test so this event was a steep learning curve for me as I got used to the new car and sequential gearbox. We finished 8th in class which wasn’t where we hoped to be but it was good to get out and learn the new car.

Knockhill was a new addition to the MSN Championship for 2017/18 and it was great to head up to Scotland for my home rally, with the track just a short drive from where I grew up. The stages were a really good mix of the circuit and the tight twisty rally stage up the hill which suited the Fiesta well and we were delighted to finish second in class and 21st overall.

Round 4 took place at Brands Hatch. The track conditions were tricky and we hit a barrier on the first stage which affected my confidence but were pleased to finish the event in difficult conditions.

We headed to Snetterton for Round 5. Conditions were much better than the previous round and we were able to experiment with different tyres throughout the day, however after the temperature dropped later in the day we had a couple of big spins due to being on the wrong tyres.

Phil Kenny stepped into the co-driver’s seat for the Lee Holland Stages at Anglesey in March, as Jamie was away competing in the Safari Rally. The start of the day was challenging , with snow on the ground but the circuit was surprisingly grippy and the snow cleared quickly. The event went really well for us and I was delighted to achieve my first class win.

We returned to Cadwell Park for the penultimate round of the season. It was a mixed day for us with some damage to the car and the car aquaplaning badly at times in challenging conditions but the times had definitely improved from the previous visit to the circuit and the conditions allowed us to experiment with different tyres and settings.

Due to the cancellation of the Donington round in March due to bad snow, we returned to Anglesey for the final round of the championship. Conditions were very different from the previous visit, with sun instead of snow! The stages were fast and seemed to suit the car well. We had two quite big moments which lost us a lot of time but for the rest of the event times were much closer to where we want to be and we were pleased to finish 3rd in class in the event.

I finished the Championship 2nd in Class B and 12th overall, with Jamie securing the class win in the co-driver’s championship. I was really pleased with this for the first year in the car and am aiming for more class results next year following more time in the car.

Now the championship has finished for the year, I’m hoping to get more seat time over the summer, compete in a few more events, attend Rally Day at Castle Combe in September and then take part in the MSN Championship again from November.