Quality and Variety The Themes For Summer Show

Reading, UK. January 20, 2009: With the third running of the VK-sponsored Rally Show at Chatsworth taking place on 6/7 June, spectators and competitors alike will find lots to be pleased about. As well as an enhanced programme of rally stars and cars, even greater interest will be generated by the programme of rally events taking place over the weekend.

To start with, the 2009 Show programme features a Nations Cup competition, in which teams of three cars from any of the European nations will compete against one another on both days of the Show. Only the times of the fastest two cars in each team will count and the total time of those will decide the outcome. There are currently teams planned from Ireland, Britain and Germany, with hopefully more to come.

Another innovation is that, at the end of each day, there will be a run-off event for the ten fastest cars competing on the stages that day. Rather in the fashion of F1 qualifying, the ten cars will run the stages and the two slowest will be eliminated; the remaining eight will go again, with the two slowest again eliminated until there are just two cars left to do final runs and decide the winner. On the Sunday, the victor's prize will be the C.G.Neill Trophy, which in the past has always been awarded to the winner of the final event.

Rallying's history is always well represented at Chatsworth and the Show has its own History of Rallying demonstration, involving many ex-works rally cars. In addition, it has always had its own historic events, but this year those, too, have been expanded. As well as individual events on Saturday and Sunday catering for the Historic Rally Car Register's category 1, 2 and 3 cars - ranging from the 1950s right through to 1981 - the Show will host Round 4 of the Northern Historic Rally Championship on Sunday morning. The HRCR stops chronologically short of the more exotic Group 4 and Group B cars, but rally fans may rest assured that these will feature strongly in the demonstrations on both Saturday and Sunday.

The Rally Show now has a tradition of attracting rally cars not regularly competing in the UK. For instance, those who were at the 2008 show will never forget the spectacle and sound of Olaf Dobberkau's Porsche 993, which was the second fastest competing car at the show (after Steve Perez's Ford Focus WRC). The Rally Show this year will feature an event for GT and Sports Cars, split into three period categories - 1960 to 1974, 1975 to 1986 and 1980 onwards - and is likely to attract show stoppers similar to the Porsche and its Aston Martin rivals.

The ever-popular "All Comers" Event on the first day of the Show has been split into two events, the first event for cars up to 2000cc and the second for cars over 2000cc.

As well as having plenty to look at on the stages, the number of rally cars on display in and around the paddock will be larger this year. This is possible by virtue of the paddock being moved much closer to Chatsworth House on the eastern edge of the stages, giving more room for everything from static displays and trade stands to catering and the fun fair.