In less than two weeks Rally Ireland 2009 will commence. Through 19 gruelling stages across seven counties in the northwest the world’s best rally drivers will battle it out in the first round of the World Rally Championship (WRC ). In their midst will be Kilkenny and Carlow rally drivers.
Kilkenny man Martin Comerford and his partner Carlow’s Ken Treacy will drive their class N1 Volkswagen Polo. Ken became the first registered competitor for the Rally Ireland 2009 and the Old Leighlin man was part of a 16 person syndicate, which won more than 18 million Euros in August. Ken, who was a marshal on the Rally Ireland in 2006 and 2007, and has been rallying for over ten years said "I have been honoured to be involved with Rally Ireland for the past two years and a chance to see to the best drivers in the World Rally Championship here in Ireland is something I never thought I would see. Now to have the chance to race against them is more than I could have ever dreamed of and I am just so excited about taking part next month." Also driving in the rally on January 29 will be Carlow man Stephen Murphy and his co-driver Michael Morrissey in their Subaru Impreza and Slieverue man Ray Breen and his co driver Martin Brady who will be driving their WRC Ford Focus.
Rally Ireland 2009 will take place from January 29 to February 1 with 19 stages taking place through seven counties in the north west; Cavan, Leitrim, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Sligo, Donegal and Roscommon. The sport’s governing body, the FIA, has bestowed Ireland with the honour of marking the start of the 2009 WRC season. It is the first time in almost 30 years that the beginning of the World Rally Championship (WRC ) has been held outside of Monte Carlo, the traditional starting point for each WRC season.
In 2007 Rally Ireland attracted 250,000 spectators, generated €48 million in economic benefit to the region and was viewed in more than 180 countries by in excess of 62 million fans. Rally Ireland was given international acclaim by the WRC which declared the event as the second best round of the World Rally Championship in 2007. For more information on Rally Ireland 2009 log onto www.rallyireland.org
Caption : Ken Treacy and his co driver Martin Comerford will be competing against the world’s leading rally drivers on January 29.
