No, this is Tredegar House not the Rally Office...see below for the rally office?

Live from Llandovery - Rally HQ

The next group of Selectifs lies in the upper Towy Valley. This vast acreage of woodland is situated in possibly the most picturesque corner of Britain, yet alone Wales and encloses one of the largest expanses of water in the UK, Llyn Brianne Reservoir. Llyn Brianne is a man made lake and boasted at one time, the highest rock filled dam in the World - dam, being the wall! The road surfaces here vary in condition and structure but most of the old sandy soils have been replaced by the Forestry Commission revealing good quality road ways. "I remember in 1975 watching the RAC Rally pass through these woods. The Roar of the Ford Escorts, the Purrr of the Fiat 131 Arbarth and the sheer Rasp of the Lancia Stratos still fill my ears today", Kenny reminisced. "Many entrants on today's rallies - generally speaking - only know of these things by reading retro books, or looking at the pictures. They were fantastic days and I am glad I was born in to the true rallying era, never to be forgotten!" The route on this years event concludes one Selectif by actually crossing the Llyn Brianne dam wall. Dalarwen is a five mile selectif with fast sweeping bends and large drops - so bring your snorkel!

After a run across the Abergwessyn the route descends back on to the Epynt Ranges for another bash before heading due south and towards the end of the rally at Newport. Before the recce crew arrive at this New City there are still many venues to plot! Glasfynydd, possibly Kenny's favourite Selectif on the rally, nestles in the Brecon Beacons National Park like a 'Zit' on the land scape! However, this is no 'Zit'! In 2007 one crew decided to film the Selectif with their in-car Camcorder and were faring very well until the last corner of the test when they rolled the car! This footage is still on U-Tube today and well worth a look - if only to show you budding competitors that this event is no mean feat! Lady and Fat come to mind.

Some say that our intrepid Sir Steve loves his meat very lean indeed...the girl he was dating was so thin that she had to dance around in the shower to get wet! It is also said that he can peel an Orange in his pocket with sunglasses on, in a blizzard while balancing on a tightrope while reciting 'Wind in the Willows! Now there's Novel!

From the Brecon Beacons and on to Rhondda where Tyle forest beats a retreat right on top of the mountain above Treorchy down in the Valley's. Max Boyce once sang Hymns and Arias here at the local Rugby Club - Rugger to the English of course boyo! They were good days too - when you used to work from 5am in the morning til 4am the following morning - kip in a cardboard box middle of road - Kwik Save of course, and then have meagre breakfast - if you were lucky - at the local cafe underneath the Abercwmtwrch flyover before getting whipped around the ear by mam and sent back down pit! Ahhh good 'ol day's they were! Ahem...sorry, I digress...back to the present and...well can't help this retro thinking mun!

So on to Newport and the final fling around Treochy House - never ever, ever, been used on a full blown rally ever, ever, ever, before. Home of Captain Morgan the famous pirate - no he doesn't live there now Steve!!! Set in a beautiful 90 acre park, Tredegar House is one of the best examples of a 17th century Charles II mansion in Britain. The earliest surviving part of the building dates back to the early 1500’s.

Note: Admiral Sir Henry Morgan (Hari Morgan in Welsh), (ca. 1635 – August 25, 1688) was a Welsh privateer, who made a name in the Caribbean as a leader of privateers. He was one of the most notorious and successful privateers from Wales, and one of the most dangerous pirates that lurked in the Spanish Main.

So that completes this recce and the rally for now at any rate. We hope you have enjoyed this experience with us and learned a little as to where, and how the rally will develop over the coming months. It is now time for Kenny & Sir Steve to hang up their driving boots for a short while and have a well earned rest. However, I know full well that Kenny will be slogging in the office while Sir Steve will be building someones house. So there is one last thing I have to say before I bade farewell to you all...If you see a Black VW Passat passing your house...you may well be on route!


Good bye for now, and see you soon on the next recce later this summer!


Gud Bye readers!

The Chief Blogger.

The Rally Office some where in deepest Wales!