A SERIES of catastrophic mechanical disasters hit Broadwell driver Martin Walby on his quest for a finish at the Wyedean Rally.
Early on the morning of the race, the clutch fell out of his Ford Escort RS, leaving Martin and his co-driver Kevin Haven struggling. The pair were determined not to give up and lined up a team of volunteers to give the car a push start over the line!
Paul and Rob Drew gave them a tow to the service area for a new cable and they were able to continue into the afternoon.
As the day drew on, the alternator started to fail and they were left literally in the dark.
Martin said: "It was a challenging day for sure! When we started the final stage it was about 6pm and pitch dark. We realised the alternator had failed and we couldn't turn the lights on, so we had to drive around the stage in the dark, at speeds of up to 70 or 80 miles an hour.
"Anything to get to the finish line," Martin said. "Because the track was covered in snow, you could see it in the dark."
They struggled along towards the finish line, but just 500 yards away from the end, the oil pipe broke and the car came to a halt.
"I am gutted and we had our problems, but it's been a great day. It was very slippery but our Hankook Tyres worked well. It was the right call to run the event and I would like to thank the Drews for their sportsmanship in towing me to the service."
The pair started in 176th place overall and managed to jump to 68th at the end of the day.
Martin said they planned to strip the engine down to see the damage done when the oil stopped flowing, and will hopefully be back in action in time for the next round of the Welsh Clubman's Championship in May.