Albourne’s Gemma Wheeler will make her comeback to the rally stages next weekend (7th February) when she competes in the Wyedean Forest Stages rally. Gemma has been out of action since last April’s Somerset Stages where she finished 62nd overall.
For 2009 Gemma hopes to contest the Rally First championship which comprises seven forest rallies across England and Wales. The championship is designed to be a cost-effective route to rallying and is only open to two wheel drive production cars with engines of up to 1400cc.
“I’m aiming to do as best as I possibly can and to get a respectable championship result at the end of the year to give me something concrete to build on for the 2010 season,” said Gemma.
“I contested the Wyedean rally in 2007 and managed to battle through the treacherous snowy conditions to get a finish, I’m hoping that conditions will not be as bad this year.”
Gemma will be co-driven by Will Rogers on the event and will use a Peugeot 106 for the first time having used a Nissan Micra in 2006 and 2007 and a Ford Focus in 2008.
“I’ve not driven the car before, it’ll be a steep learning curve but I’m confident that I’ll be competitive.”
The rally starts on Saturday morning from Chepstow with most of the event mileage on the gravel tracks of the Forest of Dean.
By Songasport
