Motorsport: Adnitt raring for top finish

Northland driver Carl Adnitt is one of the local hopes in the 2012 edition of Rally of the North tomorrow but while hoping for a top finish he says it's a tough rally to win.

"We'll be just trying to do our best to finish and while we hope to finish in the top five - maybe even a top three - it's a tough rally to do well in," he said.

"A lot of cars never finish what is always a pretty long day and there's a lot of extra question marks for me this year," Adnitt said.

It's been a hectic week for Adnitt as he prepares his Series 7 Subaru Impreza for the rally. He will drive with a stand-in co-driver, Ben Hubands, and he has yet to get a chance to road test his rebuilt car.

"There's a few unknowns, but everything's ready now and we'll find out how good things have come together for us after the first couple of stages."

He is hoping for a change in fortune for the Subaru drivers who have been dominated by the Mitsubishi Evos in the national rally series this year.

Adnitt has not taken full part in the Rally Xtreme series this year, instead concentrating on getting his fledgling business CA Motorcycles up and running.

He is one of half a dozen Northland Car Club members who will have a crack at the last major rally of the year and the decider in the Rally Xtreme Series. Stewart Taylor is the top seed for the rally with Geof Argyle and Graham Featherstone leading the series overall but the overall length of the rally makes the Rally of the North a real cliff hanger that tests both car and driver.

Based in Paihia, the event covers four stages in the morning to the south-west before returning to the host city for a lunch-time service.

A further four stages to the North of Paihia rounds out the afternoon before the cars return to Paihia after more than 10 hours on the road and 180km of special stages.

Another driver whose main aim is to finish the race is Kerikeri's Neil Simpson. In contrast to Adnitt, Simpson is no spring chicken and will drive his Toyota Corolla in his first ever rally.

Simpson joined the Northland Car Club a couple of years ago after years of following the sport. After completing several club hill climbs, he has chosen to make the step up to a full day rally for the first time.

"Doing a hill climb only gives you a few short runs, in a rally it's all day so there is heaps more seat time.

"Even when you aren't doing special stages, there is making sure you turn up on time and navigation," Simpson said.

The Kerikeri driver won't be the only one battling some pre-event nerves when the event gets under way early tomorrow morning with 63 entries confirmed this year.