Pete Gibson's Blue Streak Targa

Well I’ve never won the Blue Streak targa before! And… I’m not sure I’m ever going to!

Yesterday I was navigating for King Dodds on the blue streak, always one of the best events around. We were supposed to be using a 106 but it had a couple of last minute issues, so the trusty MX5 it was.

New start location in Haltwhistle with some new tests, all good although toilets were tricky!

Then some long, fast tests over bumpy terrain on the Plenmeller estate, who needs a sump guard!! Voyage of discovery but got all the code boards and seemed to go to plan. That loop was then repeated, and halfway through the event results were really tight between ourselves, Phil Hodgeson (MX5), the Savages (ignis), Alex Willian (3 series). The event being lead by a fiat panda 100HP (PJ?)

At lunch the only damage to report was a broken centre section, I attempted repairs with “limited resources” you might say. Thanks to everyone for lending us the tools and bits to mend. It didn’t hold to the finish.

In the afternoon the competition heated up on the more familiar tests around Longtown & Gretna.

Alex Willan had an off on the water splash test on the exact same corner where we went off in 2024. The Panda suffered a mechanical failure which left ourselves and the other Mazda fighting for the lead. Until the Millhill test where we both got wrong tests, right infront of the WDMC club marshals!!

It was a short test but cost us around 60 secs, it was my fault and it was hard to hide the disappointment. All this left the savages leading, as we went into the final loop. Doddsy drove the doors off the MX5 and we worked hard to claw back the defecit, a 10s cone penalty on watersplash coming at the wrong time. Back to the ill fated Millhill test, and there was 1 sec in it for the lead. This time we got it right, we were flying….. right until the very end…. And then we missed the stop astride!!!

Heartbreak, and 2nd place by 6 secs followed.

We didn’t really deserve the win, too many mistakes, and the Savages never put a foot wrong all day so fair play to the boys. Thanks to all organisers and Marshals for a challenging days competition. Please leave Millhill out next year!!

We ended the day pushing the mildly accident damaged / overheating Ford Puma of Paul Hughes / Stu Wilson out of a Shell petrol in Longtown, then headed home not quite sure how we’d let victory slip through our fingers….

Bodged exhaust repair