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<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="044785a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>Mini Road Runner Rallying</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mini Road Runner Rallying"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>News</B>   |   <A HREF="id18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Calendar"><U>Calendar</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Road Runners"><U>The Road Runners</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Mini"><U>The Mini</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Results"><U>Results</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Gallery"><U>Gallery</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sponsorship"><U>Sponsorship</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U>Links</U></A></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="045d2b03.jpg"> <div> <IMG SRC="06f8cd20.jpg" border=0 width="140" height="210" ALT="Copyright Chris Smith 2007" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Driver - Nev Astbury</B></div> <div> <IMG SRC="0708cd20.jpg" border=0 width="140" height="210" ALT="Copyright Chris Smith 2007" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Co-driver - Andy Creer</B></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>News</B></div> <div> <B>News</B><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Calendar"><U><B>Calendar</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Road Runners"><U><B>The Road Runners</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Mini"><U><B>The Mini</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Results"><U><B>Results</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Gallery"><U><B>Gallery</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sponsorship"><U><B>Sponsorship</B></U></A><B>   |   </B><A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div>  <script type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script>  </div> <bR> <div> <B>24/09/08</B></div> <bR> <div> Sunday 5th October will once again see Mini Road Runner Rallying out on the stages at the Keith A Wood Memorial Stages at Three Sisters Circuit near Wigan.</div> <div> Once again Andy Elliot will be in the co-drivers seat guiding Nev Astbury around the tight stages.</div> <div> After the roughness of Weeton the smooth tarmac of Three Sisters should suit the nimble little mini on its new suspension settings and both Nev and Andy are hoping for a good days rallying.</div> <bR> <div> <B>08/06/08</B></div> <bR> <div> Weeton Camp was the setting for the latest outing for Mini Road Runner Rallying on the Weeton Stages Rally. On what was the hotest day of the year so far Nev and Andy Elliot took the mini out for it's first outing on the renowned car breaking event. Seeded at 66 it was also the first time for Nev driving on the new suspension, with it's different geometry and ride height.</div> <bR> <div> Thoughout the day Nev drove faultlessly slowly climbing up the leader board and the crew (just about) managed to keep their cool in the heat. Despite brake failure on the final stage causing a 'new underpants' moment the crew finished in a very impressive 47th overall and 8th in class continuing with the mini's 100% finishing rate.</div> <bR> <div> <B>01/06/08</B></div> <bR> <div> Mini Road Runner take to the stages again on Sunday 8th June at Weeton Army Barracks in Blackpool South Shore Motor Clubs Weeton Stages rally. The mini now has fully adjustable suspension and is sitting considerably lower now with vastly improved handling. Due to prior commitments Andy Creer is unavailable to co-drive on this event so Andy Elliot will be taking over the left hand seat and keeping Nev on the straight and narrow. Andy Elliot has previously co-driven for Steve Noble in his Subaru Impreza and Wayne McArdle in his Sierra Cosworth so is looking forward to his first outing in a classic British rallying icon.</div> <bR> <div> <B>27/11/07</B></div> <bR> <div> The Mini Road Runner Rallying website is currently being updated so some pages may not be complete for the next day or two so please bear with us.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>20/11/07</B></div> <bR> <div> With a new rear subframe fitted to the mini, the updated Anglesey Circuit was the destination for Mini Road Runner Rallying's latest adventure -  the two day Glyn Memorial Trophy Rally. The team arrived at the circuit to strong winds and heavy rain - new conditions after the good weather at Trawsfynydd and New Brighton. A quick look at the stages revealed some very long runs which were not going to suit the mini but the surface and new track layout was very impressive looking.</div> <bR> <div> Saturday was run almost entirely in the rain and the team did well to limit themselves to a couple of trips to the grass and many cars spent the day off roading. After the final stage run in the dark, which resembled driving in the snow, Nev and Andy had moved up to 65th Overall and 10th in class.</div> <bR> <div> After a night of heavier rain and stronger winds, Sunday dawned a lot brighter with softer wind and no rain. With the cars having be re-seeded the team now found themselves with cars behind them for the first time - another new experience. On the second stage the crew had a slight off and an altercation with the wrong side of a rumble strip resulting with a front nearside puncture and a stage maximum and a loss of 9 minutes and dropping to the back of the field. With not having any spare 165 tyres the team were forced to use 145's on the back which resulted in a lack of rear end grip so the rest of the day was spent very sideways with huge smiles on the faces on Nev and Andy. Despite this the crew managed to finish the event 59th Overall and 9th in class. Three events and three finishes - not a bad record.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>09/09/07</B></div> <bR> <div> Mini Road Runner made their debut appearance on their home event, the Printmatters Promenade Stages run by Wallasey Motor Club, on Saturday 8th September. The pressure was on Nev and Andy to perform well with them having been Deputy Stage Commander and Chief Marshal respectively for a number of years. </div> <bR> <div> Having another (although larger engined) Mini, crewed by Lee Hartley and Mark Shepherd, in front of them inspired the boys throughout the day. As the day went on day the mini developed a grinding noise from the rear that seemed to get worse and some play was found in the radius arms but it was decided that this wasn't the cause. After stage 7 it was discovered that the front off side bottom arm bushes were destroyed so that was replaced quickly by the service crew. The battle with Lee and Mark went right up to the final stage with them taking four seconds out of the by now badly handling mini therefore beating the team by 3 seconds. Investigations by the service crew after the final stage discovered the rear subframe had failed causing the noise and the loss of handling. </div> <bR> <div> Overall it was a very successful event and 52nd overall and 11th in class was a great result for this notorious car breaking event.</div> <bR> <div> Big thanks to our service crew of Keith and Drew for all their hard work on the day.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>13/08/07</B></div> <bR> <div> Saturday 11th August saw Mini Road Runner Rallying's stage rally debut in the mini at the Trawsfynydd Motorsports Complex, in the DPS Ranges Stages run by North Wales Car Club. The car performed faultlessly all day with a loose sump guard bolt being the only item that needed any attention during service. Despite saying they were only out for a shakedown of the new car prior to the Promenade Stages, the team improved their times throughout the event as they got to grips with the handling of the car out on the stages. Finishing 31st overall and 5th in class with mo mechanical dramas was a great result  for the team after the problems they have suffered during the build of the car. Nev and Andy would like to thank their service crew of Mike, Tim and Andy for their work throughout the day and also to Mark Skillicorn and Karl Hughes for their advice and good humour during the day.</div> <bR> <div> The teams next event is their home event - the Printmatters Promenade Stages in New Brighton.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div>   <font size="-1"><sup>©</sup></font> Copyright 2006 - 2008 Mini Road Runner Rallying. All rights reserved.   </div> </td> </tr></table></body>