| Western
Australia's Darren Windus will be
out to make plenty of noise at the
Quit Forest Rally, the second round
of the NEC Australian Rally Championship,
outside Busselton on 27-29 April.
Part of the Pirtek Rally Team, Windus
and fellow West Australian Jon Mortimer
will take to the forests in the
all-new Super 2000 version of the
Ford Fiesta.
The Pirtek Rally Team, which also
includes Michael Guest / Mark Stacey,
is the first Ford team in the world
to campaign the all-wheel-drive
version of the Fiesta in competition.
The car had its debut at the Coates
Rally Queensland at the start of
April. Windus and Mortimer finished
the second leg in fifth place overall.
The two-litre Focus is non-turbo
and has a distinct engine note as
compared to the regular turbo-charged
entries.
"You can hear us coming that is
for sure," said Windus.
"But that's just where the excitement
begins. This car is one of the most
awesome things I have ever driven.
The big winners are the spectators
who will see a very spectacular
Ford in competition.
"The Pirtek Rally Team have put
in an enormous effort to get the
Fiesta into competition. In just
18 weeks they designed and built
two cars from the ground up.
"We still have a long way to go
and to be honest the Quit Forest
Rally won't show the full potential
of the car. However, we still need
to stretch the legs of the Fiesta
and we won't be too far off the
pace.
"Being a WA team in our home event
does bring plenty of attention.
We want to take full advantage of
that and get all the fans behind
us over the weekend of the rally.
"
It's important that we get through
the event so that we can improve
the car. I'm sure that by the second
half of the year we will be making
more than just noise in the forest."
Windus and Mortimer joined the fully
professional Pirtek Rally Team after
many years as privateers. For Mortimer
it's without doubt the most exciting
time of his career.
"We are usually surrounded by plenty
of friends, family and supporters
at the Quit Forest Rally, but this
year they'll see us as part of a
much larger show," said Mortimer.
"That has us very excited, but we
are aware that being part of a professional
team does bring extra responsibilities.
In saying that, we are now in a
situation where we can truly concentrate
on what we need to do in the event
and let others worry about anything
else.
"There are a number of people in
the team who we have worked with
in the past and they are also enjoying
the opportunity of working with
such a high-profiled team." Windus
and Mortimer will join the rest
of the Pirtek Rally Team for a pre-event
test on Tuesday 24 April outside
Busselton before heading into competition
that weekend.
Michael
Guest is fully aware that his role
is not just as a driver. He must
continue to supply information to
the rally engineers on all aspects
of the Fiesta.
"When you are developing a car like
this you must fully understand what
is required to improve the package,"
said Guest.
"We have the technical group of
the Pirtek Rally Team, but we also
have engine experts from Mountune,
Sadev on the transmissions, Drummond
Motor Sport on the suspension and
Michelin for tyres. All areas have
to work cohesively to get this car
to the front.
"I have to say the commitment by
all these groups, plus a range of
other suppliers has been outstanding.
They all understand the challenge,
but are fully aware that we can
achieve a great deal with the Fiesta.
"Importantly we are not too far
off, but our competition is not
waiting for us to catch-up, they
are working just as hard to maintain
their position at the front."
The Pirtek Rally Team will fully
evaluate the changes on a full day
test near Busselton on Tuesday 24
April.
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