Despite a catalogue of misfortune throughout Rallye Vosges Grand-Est, Lampeter’s Meirion Evans bagged his first points in the ultra competitive Peugeot 208 Cup, taking seventh in the standings.
With the previously billed gravel event in Diois being replaced by the tarmac event in the Vosges region, Evans was keen to make his mark on the Cup leaderboard on stages resembling those he had competed on previously in the UK and Ireland. However, from the very first stage Evans and co-driver Jonathan Jackson would realise that the event would become a ‘character building’ one.
After catching a slower car on the opening stage, the door catch would break on their Peugeot 208 R2 ahead of the longest stage of the rally – the 28km Pays d’Ormont test which was last used on the World Rally Championship event in France in 2014. With the door refusing to stay closed, Evans would have to hold the door closed for the entire stage, driving and changing gear with one hand and losing more than two minutes to their nearest rival – ending all hope of fighting at the top.
With the brakes fading mid way through the repeat run of the long 28km stage and the Melvyn Evans Motorsport backed crew being slowed down for a second incident on the penultimate stage of the day, the pair would arrive back to Parc Ferme in Gerardmer well inside the top ten but frustrated at the days events.
The second leg of the event would dawn in stark contrast to the end of leg 1 – regular thunderstorms made way for bright sunshine and, with a new day and more challenging stages ahead of them, the pair would relish the opportunities ahead. However, lightening would strike twice; catching a car on the opening test, dropping time to their nearest rival in their quest to move up the leaderboard. The second stage of the day would be cancelled following an incident involving another competitor, with an incorrect nominal time robbing the 22 year old of vital time to his nearest rival.
With two stages to go, Evans and Jackson lay in seventh overall after a problematic 10 stages. Remarkably, the run of misfortune wasn’t to end there – an impact with a rock on the racing line resulted in an immediate puncture and the duo having to stop and change the offending wheel, dropping nearly three minutes. Despite an incredible run of frustrating events over the course of the rally, Evans was relieved to reach the finish on the side of Gerardmer Lake seventh in the points, recording his first points of the season in such a competitive series;
“This event has to be the most frustrating of my career to date. The only mistake I made myself all weekend was a spin and that was partly because I was worried the door was going to open! The pace felt good but there was always something there to hold us back. The weather made the first day challenging but considering the issues we faced we knew we could be around the top 6 or 7 if we had a clear run but it never happened. With the puncture on the penultimate stage, then some strange noises coming from the car on the last stage, we admitted defeat and got it home! All things considered, 7th is a good result but It would have been nice to have had the chance to show what we could do properly – hopefully our luck will change on the next round.”
Next on the 208 R2 Cup Calendar is Rallye du Rouergue in Rodez in July. Similarly to Vosges, the event is similar in character to events Evans and Jackson have successfully competed on previously.
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