1977 CAMS AUSTRALIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP

THE EVENTS The 1977 CAMS Australian Rally Championship: 1 North Eastern Rally North East Club of Victoria Morrow/Shepheard 2 Rally of the West West Australia West Australia Car Club Dunkerton/Beaumont 3 Lutwyche Village Rally Queensland Sporting Car Club Stewart/Faulkner 4 Bega Valley Rally Australian Sporting Car Club Carr/Gocentas 5 Endrust Forest Rally South Australia Walkerville All Car Club Fury/Suffern

FINAL POINTS =1 George Fury Vic 21 =1 Monty Suffern Vic 21 =1 WA 21 =1 Jeff Beaumont Tas 21 3 Doug Stewart NSW 14 3 George Shepheard NSW 13 4 Dave Morrow NSW 13 4 Neil Faulkner NSW 12 5 Greg Carr ACT 11 5 Fred Gocentas ACT 11 6 Clive Slater WA 7 6 Brian Hope NSW 7 7 Bob Riley NSW 7 7

Manufacturers Award Motor Co Australia (Datsun)

Dual 1977 Australian Rally Champions: (top) George Fury/Monty Suffern (Datsun 710 SSS) (bottom) Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont (Datsun 260Z) – also drove two events in a Datsun 710 SSS

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SUMMARY

After a number of years of the Australian Rally Championship languishing in the doldrums as a second-rate series things really came to life in 1977.

Colin Bond, long time Driver, winning three Australian Rally Championships in four years, resigned from the team and joined Ford to race with in a determined bid to win touring car supremacy. Bond’s decision to go with Ford had other benefits. His rally expertise was immediately snapped up and, with Canberra’s Greg Carr, the Ford Escorts burst onto the national rally scene with sensational wins in three of the country’s major rallies. This almost became four wins when Carr, in the remarkable Escort RS 1800, was ‘’robbed’’ of a certain win in the when the car developed alternator problems late in the event and he was relegated to fifth place.

1977 saw five different winners in five rounds and the championship title was shared by two Datsun crews – George Fury/Monty Suffern and Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont – the former in a Datsun 710 and the latter in a Datsun 260Z for three rounds and a 710 for the remaining two rounds. The year produced first-class competition and a string of exciting events, and any one of the five who won a round could have won the series in the last event and it was hardly all that surprising that the championship ended in a tie.

The dramatic change in the status of the series came about as a result of changes to the regulations on vehicle eligibility. In past years highly restrictive regulations not only discouraged many leading private entrants but also some of the works cars entrants, although they competed with FIA requirements. For 1977 there were fewer eligibility requirements and as a result interest in the series ran higher than ever, with some 20 crews scoring championship points, and many others ran in more than one championship event.

All five events in the series were well run, and tough events, and a true test of cars and crews.

ROUND ONE: NORTH EASTERN RALLY - Victoria

Rally enthusiasts could hardly have dared hope for a better opening to the year’s series than the North Eastern Rally. A top-class field in the 60 car entry list, a well thought-out route with plenty of spectating opportunities and a top organisation. And to cap it off an exciting battle for the lead right up to the end of the last stage. The rally proved a triumph for the new Holden Dealer team Holden Gemini crewed by Dave Morrow and George Shepheard. The car proved to be much quicker than its predecessor in 1976. Morrow was the early leader and then always up near the front, finally holding off Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont (Datsun 260Z) by a single minute, with Geoff Portman/Ross Runnalls (Datsun 1600) third three minutes later.

Dave Morrow/George Shepheard in the Holden Gemini

In the first division Morrow, on 35 points, was able to grab a lead from Dunkerton on 38, George Fury/Monty Suffern (Datsun 710) on 39, equal with Bob Watson/Wayne Gregson (Datsun 120Y). Then followed Bob Waterhouse/Paul Patterson (Datsun 1600) and Danny Bignell (Datsun 240Z). Greg Carr/Fred Gocentas (Ford Escort RS 2000) was out of contention with a rear axle mislocated but they continued well down in the list. In the division Dean Rainsford/Adrian Mortimer (Saab EMS) suffered from electrical problems

Things really started to happen in the second division where Morrow held off challenges from Fury and Dunkerton before these two drivers ran into minor problems. Dean Rainsford retired with a blown alternator as did Bob Riley (Mitsubishi Galant), Waterhouse rolled and Bob Watson’s 120Y retired after the fuel tank was topped up with water at a service break. Positions at the end of the second division were: Morrow, Dunkerton, Portman, Watson and Fury.

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Doug Stewart/Brian Faulkner and the Mitsubishi Lancer

The last division was again close with Fury and Dunkerton trying to get on terms with Morrow but the former went out not far from the finish with rear end failure. Dunkerton finally caught Morrow only to lose time on a transport section and miss victory by one minute. Clive Slater (Toyota Corolla), who was steadily moving up the list, was forced to retire with a blown differential on the last stage and Peter Janson (Mitsubishi Lancer) rolled spectacularly just before the end.

Doug Stewart/Neil Faulkner (Mitsubishi Lancer) came in fourth, four minutes behind Portman, then came Murray Coote/Brian Marsden (Datsun 120Y) a further 13 minutes away fifth and sixth went to West Australians Frank Johnson and Ben Williams in the Mazda RX2 a further three minutes away.

Murray Coote/Brian Marsden in the Datsun 120Y

1 Dave Morrow George Shepheard Holden Gemini 59 pts 2 Ross Dunkerton Jeff Beaumont Datsun 260Z 60 3 Geoff Portman Ross Runnalls Datsun 1600 63 4 Doug Stewart Neil Faulkner Mitsubishi Lancer GSR 67 5 Murray Coote Brian Marsden Datsun 120Y 80 6 Frank Johnson Ben Williams Mazda RX2 83

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ROUND TWO: RALLY OF THE WEST – Western Australia

The Rally of the West, with its 35 starters, got under way with a number of special daylight stages as the field moved south away from Perth towards Mandurah, Bunbury and Busselton, with early short, sharp stages. One of these was the undoing of Greg Carr/Fred Gocentas (Ford Escort RS 2000) when Carr hit a partly-buried rock on a sandy track and smashed the car’s sump and front suspension. When the field reached the evening mealbreak on the first night George Fury/Monty Suffern (Datsun 710) held a narrow lead over Danny Bignell/Bob Bousefield (Datsun 240Z) and Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont) and Dave Morrow/George Shepheard (Holden Gemini).

The night run started from Busselton and thick dust and perfectly windless conditions were a problem for the crews and the placings then changed markedly, with first Fury and then Morrow losing time from off-road excursions, with Morrow having a puncture (indeed tyre problems generally), and Dunkerton also punctured.

With one stage to go for the night Fury, chasing Dunkerton, ran up a bank in the dusty conditions and was passed by Morrow, Stewart and Clive Slater/Andy van Kann (Toyota Corolla).At the end of the night at Manjimup, Bignell 10 led Dunkerton 11, well clear of Clive Slater 18, closely followed by Fury 30 and Doug Stewart/Rod Van der Straaten (Mitsubishi Lancer), also on 30. Bruce Hodgson/Chris Heaney (Ford Escort RS 2000) were on 31.

Cars in trouble on this division included Adrian Taylor/Syd Smith (Honda Civic) with a blown piston and David Jones/Ian Pearson (Mitsubishi Lancer) with unknown causes.

The second division’s rallying took the remaining 24 car field from the overnight stop at Manjimup via large loops back to Perth. Bignell miscued on an early stage, hitting a bank, lost a wheel and retired, while Dunkerton blew a tyre to lose time but he held on to the lead and was first on the road.

Dunkerton had a substantial lead over Slater as well as a dust-free run at the head of the field and this allowed him to drive to conserve his car, whilst Fury tried desperately to make up for his indiscretion of the first night but was unable to make any impression to overhaul the leader but he did catch Slater, relegating him to third. Morrow holed the Gemini’s radiator and soon retired with a cooked motor, while Bruce Hodgson/Chris Heaney rolled the Ford Escort RS 2000 in a big way when holding a top position. Stewart took a wrong turn and became bogged in loose sand as he tried to reverse and while Fury pushed him out but he lost considerable time.

George Fury/Monty Suffern slide around the Dean Mill in the Datsun 710

At the finish it was Dunkerton 12 points up on Fury, then Slater six points away in third, fourth to Dean Rainsford/Adrian Mortimer (Saab 99 EMS) 13 points in arrears of third, then Stewart 11 points away in fifth and in sixth was Brian Smallwood/Ian Thorpe (Mitsubishi Lancer) after another 13 points.

1 Ross Dunkerton Jeff Beaumont Datsun 260Z 40 pts 2 George Fury Monty Suffern Datsun 710 52 3 Clive Slater Andy van Kann Toyota Corolla Sprinter 58 4 Dean Rainsford Adrian Mortimer Saab 99 EMS 71 5 Doug Stewart Rod van der Straaten Mitsubishi Lancer GSR 82 6 Brian Smallwood Ian Thorpe Mitsubishi Lancer 95

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ROUND THREE: LUTWYCHE VILLAGE RALLY - Queensland

The Lutwyche Village Rally had normally been conducted in September but as the 1977 London to Sydney Rally was going to be run through Queensland at the same time the organisers arranged with CAMS to conduct it in May.

The event was run over three divisions consisting some 470 competitive kilometres with the longest stage being 104 kilometres. Special daylight stages were conducted Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning for spectators. The road conditions were general smooth with recent rain having settled most of the dust.

The Ford Motor Company’s Escort RS 2000, prepared under the watchful eye of , and crewed by Greg Carr and Fred Gocentas, drew plenty of attention, as did the Datsun 710 SSS of George Fury/Monty Suffern and the 2.2 litre Holden Gemini crewed by Dave Morrow and George Shepheard. Alongside them was the Mitsubishi Lancer of Doug Stewart/Neil Faulkner and Ross Dunkerton, with Jeff Beaumont in the Datsun 260Z.

The strong field and good rallying conditions indicated that a competitive event would follow but, within metres of the start of the first special stage the Holden Gemini of Dave Morrow/George Shepheard was in trouble and not long after that Ross Dunkerton began complaining of gearbox problems, and then the motor ran out of oil and seized.

Doug Stewart/Neil Faulkner in the Mitsubishi Lancer won the Warana Rally by a mile

At the first break Greg led the event with a loss of three points, one ahead of Bob Watson/Wayne Gregson (Datsun 120Y) and George Fury and a further point to Doug Stewart.

Watson then slid the 120Y into a ditch, bending the front suspension and putting him out of the event. Carr’s Escort crashed it’s sump onto a rocky outcrop and the resultant crack in the sump saw him retire on the spot. Dean Rainsford/Adrian Mortimer (Saab 99 EMS) also retired with gearbox problems and then Fury stopped midway through the long 104 kilometre stage for service attention and allowed Stewart into the lead. Adrian Taylor/Sid Smith (Honda Civic) retired with a blown head gasket.

Following a break at Nambour Stewart, Fury and David Jones/Ian Pearson (Mitsubishi Lancer) were fastest over several stages with Morrow next. Then the Gemini’s water pump failed and the car came to a permanent halt. Murray Coote/Brian Marsden (Datsun 120Y) then retired, Frank Johnson/Ben Williams rolled the Mazda RX2 out of the event and Ed Mulligan’s Datsun 1600 suffered electrical problems and he too retired. Clive Slater/Steve Halloran (Toyota Corolla), going quite strong, were overtaken by Bob Riley and Neil Swaysland.

Clive Slater and Steve Halloran in the much-travelled Toyota Corolla 81

Towards the end Stewart was a clear leader and sensibly eased off to the finish as the opposition crumbled around him. Bob Riley/Brian Hope (Mitsubishi Galant) was slowed with alternator problems but came home second 28 minutes behind Stewart, followed by Swaysland, Slater and Jones. With all the expected top competitors outed this allowed the next range of crews to earn top ten placings.

Bob Riley/Brian Hope in the Mitsubishi Galant 2 litre finished second

1 Doug Stewart Neil Faulkner Mitsubishi Lancer GSR 66 pts 2 Bob Riley Brian Hope Mitsubishi Galant 94 3 Neil Swaysland John Hall Datsun 1600 103 4 Clive Slater Steve Halloran Toyota Corolla Sprinter 106 =5 David Jones Ian Pearson Mitsubishi Lancer 121 =5 Ian Riedel Ross Moir Holden Torana Sunbird 121 =7 P.McLoughlin G.Clarke Datsun 1600 122 =7 L,Low P.Mahoney Holden Torana 122 =9 Henk Kabel Simon Kabel Mazda 323 123 =9 Dennis Brown Mike Ryan Datsun 1600 123

ROUND FOUR: BEGA VALLEY RALLY – New South Wales

With three rounds down and two to go the championship was wide open as the top crews gathered at Bega on the long weekend for the Bega Valley Rally. The usual strong field was there – George Fury/Monty Suffern (Datsun 710), Greg Carr/Fred Gocentas (Ford Escort RS 2000), Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont (Datsun 710), Bob Watson/Wayne Gregson (Datsun 120Y), Dave Morrow/George Shepheard (Holden Gemini), Doug Stewart/Neil Faulkner (Mitsubishi Lancer) and Dean Rainsford/Adrian Mortimer (Saab 99 EMS). Also present were the Datsun 1600s of Daryl Rowney/Robbie Wilson, Peter Gaudron/Graeme Pilgrim and Mark Hankinson/Doug Moule.

Greg Carr/Fred Gocentas shows winning form in the Ford Escort RS 2000 82

As usual the rally ran over two nights, the first night south over the Victorian border to Cann River and back through Bombala, and the second night north to Narooma.

David Balmain & Terry Hanrahan lift the wheel of their Mitsubishi Lancer

The early lead was shared between several crews but the position changed as Watson, Fury and Carr cracked on the pace. Morrow was the first to strike trouble, running off on a long sweeping left-hander where he stayed for some time. Rain earlier in the day had made some roads treacherously slippery and caused some stages to be cancelled. One to fall victim to the conditions was Roger Bonhomme whose Datsun 1600 slid into a tree, while Fury lost time after sliding off the road, also into a tree.

By Cann River Carr had established a narrow lead over Watson and they were followed by Dunkerton, trying to come to grips with the new 710. On a 90 kilometre stage on the way to Bombala saw Watson forge into the lead after being some three minutes quicker than the next driver. Carr had a narrow escape when a rear wheel came loose at high speed and he lost much time overcoming the problem. Fury spent more time off the road while Dunkerton struggled into Bombala with a holed radiator after hitting a tree but he struggled on after some repairs.

Carr’s problems compounded after Bombala when he too went off the road and had to get spectator help to get back on to it.

Back at Bega Watson 22 held a clear lead over Carr and Rowney on 29, followed by Riley 33, Gaudron also 33, Stewart 36, and Balmain 36. Fury was back in tenth place and Rainsford was out of contention after several punctures.

Bob Watson/Wayne Gregson had the Datsun 120Y in the lead at the halfway mark of the event.

The second night headed north and the drama started early when Dunkerton’s 710 motor let go in a big way at the end of the second daylight stage, and Ed Mulligan/Dan White (Datsun 1600) were outed with a blown clutch. Then Watson spent time up a wrong road for seven minutes and then shared the lead with Carr. Fury, who had a defective fuel pump on the first division which put him back, was working his way through the field and Riley, Rowney and Gauldron were in a close battle for third position. Riley then ran off the road on a left-hander and out of the event and shortly after Watson’s great drive came to an end when the rear suspension on the 120Y collapsed, although he was able to continue driving slowly. Then the ever-reliable Mitsubishi Lancer of David Jones/Ian Pearson broke its crankshaft.

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Carr was left as the clear winner, with Fury passing Rowney and this is how the rally finished, with only two minutes between second and fourth and a further two minutes to fifth.

Dunkerton, despite his second DNF in a row, still led the series from Stewart, Fury, Carr and Morrow. With the one round left any one of these drivers could take the series.

1 Greg Carr Fred Gocentas Ford Escort RS 2000 40 pts 2 George Fury Monty Suffern Datsun 710 45 3 Daryl Rowney Robbie Wilson Datsun 1600 53 4 Peter Gaudron Graeme Pilgrim Datsun 1600 55 5 Mark Hankinson Doug Moule Datsun 1600 61 6 David Balmain Terry Hanrahan Mitsubishi Lancer 65 =7 Bob Bird John White Mitsubishi Lancer 69 =7 Mark Hankinson Graham Moule Datsun 1600 69 9 T.Hazelton Dave Colless Datsun 1600 70 10 Garry Harrowfield Ross Runnalls Datsun 1600 76

ROUND FIVE: ENDRUST FOREST RALLY – South Australia

The organisers of the Endrust Forest Rally came up with the concept of conducting the event in three divisions run over a total competitive distance of 420 kilometres – Saturday afternoon and Sunday in the Crawford (pine) Forest, timed to the quarter minute and with live television coverage on both days, and the second division on Saturday night in the more traditional format along bush tracks east of Adelaide. An estimated 7000 spectators attended the Crawford Forest stages, creating traffic jams on parts of the roads from Adelaide.

The field consisted of the four crews who had a chance of winning the 1977 championship – George Fury/Monty Suffern (Datsun 710), Greg Carr/Fred Gocentas (Ford Escort S 2000), Ross Dunkerton/Jeff Beaumont (Datsun 710) and Doug Stewart/Neil Faulkner (Mitsubishi Lancer GSR). With a slim chance was Dave Morrow/George Shepheard (Holden Gemini). Other drivers included Japan’s Kenjiro Shinozuka (Mitsubishi Lancer), as the event was an international one held just before the Southern Cross Rally, and Colin Bond making a return for the year, in a Ford Escort RS 2000, Dean Rainsford (Saab 99 EMS) and Bob Riley (Mitsubishi Galant).

Sketch of the Ford Escorts on the front page of Racing Car News, Aug 1977

By the end of the first division in the Crawford Forest Fury had a narrow lead over Carr and Morrow, who were followed by Shinozuka, Riley, Dunkerton and Bond all just behind. Mulligan was out after rearranging the front end of his Datsun 1600 on a large rock thrown onto the track by an earlier competitor and Morrow had lost time after bogging in a sandy stretch.

The Saturday night division was basically non-competitive, with many ‘cleanable’ stages but it had a profound effect on the results. On the longest stage, 104 kilometres, over a variety of tracks, many crews were hampered by dust and missed vital instructions. Hardest hit was Carr in the leading vehicle, losing 10 minutes (and the rally!) and any chance of taking out the rally and the title. Rainsford’s jack collapsed when changing a wheel and Riley lost second gear but elected to continue. During the night Morrow spent some time fixing the Gemini’s water pump, while Stewart/Faulkner had Halda problems which completely failed, causing all sorts of navigation problems.

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Dave Morrow/George Shepheard in the Holden Gemini

Fury/Suffern started the short Sunday division with a handy lead, with Dunkerton the closest, followed by Morrow, then Riley, Carr and Bond. Despite Dunkerton’s best efforts he was unable to pull back the leading Datsun and for the first time the Australian title ended in an unbreakable tie between Fury/Suffern and Dunkerton/Beaumont. Morrow was a creditable third in the rally while Bond came fourth, less than a minute ahead of Carr. Riley hung on to be sixth.

1 George Fury Monty Suffern Datsun 710 34 pts 2 Ross Dunkerton Jeff Beaumont Datsun 710 40 3 Dave Morrow George Shepheard Holden Gemini 42 4 Colin Bond John Dawson-Damer Ford Escort RS 2000 46 5 Greg Carr Fred Gocentas Ford Escort RS 2000 47 6 Bob Riley Brian Hope Mitsubishi Galant 48 7 Kenjiro Shinozuka Garry Connelly Mitsubishi Lancer 51 8 Phil Pittaway Richard Knight Datsun 1600 57 9 Dean Rainsford Adrian Mortimer Saab 99 EMS 59 10 Clive Slater Steve Halloran Toyota Corolla 60

Colin Bond shows the spectators how it’s done near the end of the television stage

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