During the golden ago of rallying in the early 1980's, Waterford City and County would come a live at Easter time, when the most famous event in the Irish Motorsport calendar, the Circuit of Ireland would roll in to town. Crowds of enthusiastic rally fans would line the stages to get a glimpse of drivers like Coleman, Brookes, McRae and MacHale. Now three decades later the Carrick on Suir Motor club are about to bring rallying back to Co. Waterford.

On Sunday October 31st, the Carrick Motor Club will hold the inaugural running of the Halloween Historic Stages Rally. Cars and stars from a bygone age will return to the Co. Waterford countryside as the Carrick on Suir Motor Club introduce a new event to the Irish Motorsport calendar.

The Halloween Historic Stages Rally is the realization of a dream for club member Donagh O'Sullivan. Donagh, who lives just outside the Village of Faugheen, Co.Tipperary and is a Carrick Motor Club member for over twenty five years, takes the helm as clerk of the course. It’s Donagh’s ambition which was the driving force to organise and run an Historic Tarmac Rally of this type for the first time. Now with almost twelve months of preparation work gone in to the organising of the event we are only weeks away from the rally.

The rally will be based in the club's home town of Carrick on Suir, with the Carraig Hotel as headquarters. Eight special stages covering 130 Kms all of which are located in Co. Waterford and are steeped in Circuit of Ireland history from the 1980's. Classes for the event include Historic, Post Historic, Classic and Modified Classic ensuring plenty of sideways action.

Over the last year the event committee (Donagh O'Sullivan, Eamonn Murphy, Connie Delaney, and Barry Duggan) have canvassed support from similar events in Ireland and cross channel. To date the response has been enthusiastic. The rally base in Carrick on Suir and it's prominence to ferry ports in Dublin, Rosslare and Cork, plus the new motorway network from Belfast amount to the perfect location for both Irish, UK and European competitors and spectators.

The committee has also used available networks to entice three former greats of the sport to take part in the event. Billy Coleman, Russell Brookes and Jimmy McRae will take the start line on Sunday morning October 31st and the clocks will be turned back to a bygone era. These drivers all ex Irish and UK rally champions are synonymous with the glorious years of Irish Tarmac Rallying. It's a testament to the commitment of Carrick on Suir Motor Club that they are able to attract these competitors to compete on the same event. The three drivers named are just the tip of the iceberg as many more former greats have expressed an interest and as we get closer to the event news on these entries will be made available. On the event weekend the competitors will carry out there recce of the stages during Saturday the 30th, then that evening there will be a ceremonial start in the main street in Carrick on Suir, culminating with a parade of the cars and interviews with the crews.

On the Saturday night after the ceremonial start, there will be a "Rally Forum". The Rally forum will take place in the Carraig Hotel headquarters and be hosted by Graham Robson. The Forum will give the opportunity to spectators to see the star being interview in an informal setting and will also give rally fans the opportunity to ask questions to their rallying heroes. 

Halloween will be different this year as the Carrick on Suir Motor Club introduces a new event to the Irish Rally Calendar. The Halloween Historic Stages Rally will turn back the clock to the 1970’s and 80’s when the Circuit of Ireland rolled in to town.

• Three Ex British and Irish Tarmac Champions ALREADY SIGNED UP.

• Rally Base: Carrick on Suir, Co.Tipperary.

• 80 Miles/130 Kms Covering 8 Special Stages.

• Old Circuit of Ireland Special Stages located in Co. Waterford.

• Classes Include: Historic, Post Historic, Classics and Modified Classics.

• TV Coverage.

• Early Entry Incentive Package.

• Centralized Scrutiny and Service.

• Special Hotel and Ferry Rates Available.

Russell Brookes, Billy Coleman, Jimmy McRae to compete again in Ireland on the Carrick-on-Suir Motor Club, Halloween Historic Stages Rally 2010. Dream on, dream on. No, it’s not a dream, it’s a fact. It’s the best ever historic entry to a ‘new to the calendar’ tarmac historic rally event.

There are those among us who have a dream or a vision. They see a need or an opening for an event that may be worth running. So they throw out a feeler to elicit a response or reaction, and so it transpired for Donagh O’Sullivan (Clerk of the Course). When the glorious years of rallying are epitomised in the cars of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s running an event for them may be regarded by some as regression but by others as a tribute to the rallying historic past.

So Donagh’s dream, as a result of hard work, research and team building has now come to fruition. The event a first for the club will be known as The Halloween Historic Stages Rally 2010 promoted by the Carrick-on-Suir Motor Club.

Members of the event organising team have canvassed support at similar rallies in Ireland and cross channel. To date the response received has been very enthusiastic. It’s prominence to the Rosslare ferry port, plus the Motorway network from Belfast are added attractions with the special stage locations in the Co. Waterford.

The highways and byways of Co. Waterford are no strangers to motorsport over the years. Some of the first events promoted by the Carrick-0n-Suir Motor Club since its inception in 1958 have taken place in Co. Waterford, hillclimbs, test trials, stages rallies, navigation rallies and the enduring all day navigation events that predated the current stages rallies. These events consisted of navigation, regularity and test trials over routes that often exceeded 150 miles. Not too many around now to recall them.

The committee have also used all the available networks to entice some former greats of rallying to the Carrick-on-Suir Halloween Historic Stages Rally 2010 namely Billy Coleman, Jimmy McRae and Russell Brookes.

These names are synonymous with the glorious years of Irish Tarmac Rallies. Each of these competitors is the stuff of legends even beyond these shores. It’s a testament to the commitment of the team behind the Carrick-on-Suir Halloween Historic Stages Rally 2010 that they were able to attract these competitors to compete on the same event.

This is the reality of the dream and as yet the hard work is really only starting. An event and entry of this stature doesn’t come cheap. Whilst they are semi retired, these are still professional sportsmen and the cost of staging such an event will never be reasonable, the sponsorship potential is enormous.

There will be further press releases from the Carrick-on-Suir Halloween Historic Stages Rally 2010 as the events nears. It will certainly bring out the competitors who will now have the opportunity to share the entry list with such superstars. Those who don’t compete but are among the most knowledgeable spectators on the ditches who have read and listened to the stories of the antics and abilities are also in for a treat.