Serious Rallying

Success advertising it's called. Making the most of your victories, no matter how significant, by shouting about them very loudly. The formula Is simple: Get yourself a car that can
finish, driven by someone reliabllsh, turn up and win your class, then shout about It from the rooftops.
But with no serious opposition?
Read any copy Of· Autsport, or indeed a recent Mlnl world, and you'll soon catch on.
Unfortunately, or fortunately If you are that way  Incllned , there are only 4 Group.A Minis actually competlng in national rallies at the time of writing. Divide these between the two
National Rally Championships, the Mintex and the Mobll 1, and you will realise that it is often a case of Just turning up and flnishing, to taste those heady spoils of victory.
Other Class 5 runners, In the shape of Novas and Unos, are simply outclassed by Minis, so our man Trevor Godwln is only a teensy bit embarrassed when he mentions that he has won 4 domestic events this year in the Mintex, but slightly more upbeat. with some Justlflcatlon, about his flnlsh and 2nd In class on the finnish 1000 lakes, one of the toughest International Rally Championship rounds. Being a realist, Trevor wil be the first to admit that he doesn't have to drive like Colin McRae to ensure victory in this country. He knows that he must fit parts
that don't break, keep the car running and smile graciously as he picks up the trophy. Not that Trevor is any slouch, nor Is the preparation of his Group A contender anything but first
rate. With local expertise in abundance in his native Coventry, the spec has obvious influences from the Mini Spares Monte car, which was built nearby, and which gained such rave reviews in the press last year. But there are some interesting adaptions to be found on this car, much of it down to the cunning of this wily old campaigner. Trevor Godwin is a forty something who might unfairly be classed as one of the old school. Experience will conquer all eventually so we're told, and if nothing else, Trevor has learnt how to overcome his various failures, dramas and misdemeanors over the years, by a painful process of elimination. Can you think of anyone else who has welded two floor pans together, then slapped on an extra set of sills? Trevor has. Then there is the home made Chieftain Tank sump guard. Obviously in some deep and distant past, a large rock had dared to defile the Godwin sump, so from now on it would have to be protected. The Aerospace structure that he came with might not stop an 88mm shell, but it would be a close thing. No more rocky graves for Trevor.
As hinted earlier, the trick Is to find parts that won't break and, by that famous process of elimlnatlon and with a large chunk of the British motor Industry on his doorstep, Trevor has to 'beg , steal and borrow' a number of interesting, and hopefully bulletproof parts for his Mini. His £20 home made wiring loom represents about a £380 saving, while the sherpa (tank again?) oil cooler could have been tailor made for the Mini (maybe it was) and sits proudly alongside the other alien components under the bonnet. Mini Spares parts include the diff, drop gears, front tie bars, neg arms, and Koni adjustables. This is a similar set up to the Monte Car that impressed Bill Sollis so much in Mini World Magazine. 
Being the sly old fox that he Is, this year Trevor Invited a representative from his main sponsort Horlba to replace his regular co-driver David Wyer, and sit in with him durhig the Horiba
Disis Rally, reasoning that it wasn't the tousflest event on the calendar, so he could drum up some useful enthusiasm for next year's budget. Everything seemed to be going swimmingly, until a moment which must have advanced the Godwin learning curve a few more painful notches as he ploughed, suddenly and inexplicably, into a large concrete post.
His astonished co-driver must have been one of those resiliant types, or perhaps he thought it was all part of the entertainment, because the sponsorship seems to have survived that crunching encounter! (although in Trevor's usual style, I can imagine him giving serious thought to homolgating a James Bond style eiector seat for future use 'Can't have that kind of thing happening again, boys').
As I write this, the phone has rung and Trevor has started raving about his result in the Finnish 1000 lakes, which by an amazing exercise in time control, I did manage to mention earlier (Douglas Adams, eat your heart out).
With a non-existent budget, that even makes his bank manager stand back in amazement, Trevor has made it to the event, even though he was reduced to living in a tent. (I bet the McRaes don't have to contend with than. But it was all worth it, because they fiNISHED the flNNISH.
As I said earlier, ANY kind of finish in this event is amazing, but Trevor f'mished 42nd overall, and 2nd in class. A Scandinavian Skoda took Class 5, and Trevor's was the only Mini in
the event. Apparently, the crowd were BOWING every time the Mini passed by and the team were treated like royalty all week.
The flying finns Mini Club (great name!) looked after the team, and made all the hardship worthwhile. On one stage, the ruts were so deep after the 4 wheel drives had gone through, that the Mini became repeatedly stuck on a hill. The car was simply grounding out and Trevor had 4 attempts at it, each one being urged on by the cheering crowd. finally (a Norse god must have stepped in), the little blue Cooper somehow scrambled to the top of the hill and on to finish the stage.
Enthusiasm is infectious, and I soon found myself being dragged in to Trevor's next hairbrain scheme.
'What do you think about the Arctic Rally?', he asked.
'I think you're crazy' , I replied, realising he wasn't even listening.
'Yes, now that would be the ultimate, wouldn't it?', he said wistfully, as if I wasn't here.
Which of course, I wasn't.
And I won't be either. Perhaps I'U iust content myself with the RAC Rally for the time being.
Graham Austin.