THE
PIRELLI INTERNATIONAL RALLY STORY
Pirelli
International Rally has a long and distinguished
pedigree stretching back over a quarter of a century to 1974
when all the motor clubs in Cumbria got together, at the instigation
of Vic Horsley, Chairman of Furness Motor Club, to organise
one "big" event. The first rally called the Tour of
Cumbria, ran in 1975 and attracted massive 180 entries.
Pirelli
first arrived as sponsors in 1977; the car park of their
Carlisle factory being turned into a giant service area and,
with their enthusiastic support, the rally was accepted into
the Castrol/Autosport National Championship. This meant that
more and longer "Special Stages" were required so
the traditional Lake District area was abandoned in favour of
the giant Kielder Forest, Europe's largest man made forest complex.
In 1983
the rally became the first Mintex National Championship round
to run overnight. The challenge of running through Kielder by
moonlight, causing numerous retirements. In both 1989 and 1990,
the event was voted the best organised round of the series.
The reward for this consistently high standard came in 1992
when the rally was elevated to international status. Pirelli
International Rally became a round of the
Mobil 1 British Rally Championship, causing a stir when it carried
off the best rally award in it's first year at top level. Current
works Ford driver, and former world champion, Colin McRae, won
the inaugural international event. Current world champion Richard
Burns won the following year and in 1995 another former world
champion, Finland's Ari Vatanen, became the first foreign driver
to triumph.
The organisers
of the Pirelli International
Rally have always been innovative, in 1997
they organised the championships first "Double Header"
event and, in partnership with Pirelli
have pioneered the "Rally Show" concept, where
spectators can both see rally cars in action and also enjoy
a range of other spectacular displays and attractions. The move
to Gateshead gives the organising team yet another chance to
add a new dimension to the rally, working in partnership with
the local authority, the aim is to bring motorsport to an even
wider audience and add another chapter to Gateshead's impressive
history of international sporting events.