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Benny Kennedy's First Rally
Sunday 25th March was D-Day for the newly crowned 2006 Rallyconnection Scholarship winner, Benny Kennedy.
Clear skies and sunshine greeted the crews as they crossed the start ramp in Michelstown to begin the assault on the forests.
The first stage was Kilworth and Benny drove very well, getting to grips with the rough conditions. Stage 2 was Goatenbridge where he got the first of his many punctures halfway through the stage but drove to the end. Stage 3 was Kilcoran where he suffered the same plight as numerous other crews as he struck a rock and punctured again, this time not as lucky having to stop to change wheels thus loosing 6 minutes. Stage 4 was the famous Caumbaun where he pulled out all the stops and set a really impressive pace.
After service the loop was repeated and on stage 5 he beat his earlier time by 12 seconds, which was really encouraging. On stage 6 he was having a real cut and on catching the car in front he punctured again and dropped 13 seconds. On stage 7 he punctured again but this time the flat took him just off the road and into a drain where he was to remain for 15 minutes wrecking any chance of a good class result. T he final stage was uneventful and he finally got home in 35th place and 10th in class 3.
Great credit is due to Benny as many more experienced crews crashed out or suffered mechanical failure. He showed great composure and excellent car control as was reported by several spectators on the day.