Preparations are well underway for the 2019 Galway International Rally which takes place on the weekend of 9th and 10th of February.

This year’s event is on a “come-back year”, after taking a sabbatical in 2018. The Clerk of the Course, Gary Leonard is no stranger to rally organising, having acted in this capacity on three previous occasions and will bring his great experience to the running of the event.

Following lengthy consultations with competitors, championship organisers and others, it became clear that a one day, competitor friendly rally would be the ideal format to firmly re-establish the event on the MI and ITRC calendars. Therefore, for 2019 the stages will all take place on Sunday the 10th of February and focus on value for money for competitors, also offering a cost-effective start to the 2019 Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. The club would like to acknowledge the assistance and advice provided by Motorsport Ireland and the TROA in our new running format.

Once again the rally headquarters will be the Clayton Hotel, Ballybrit, Galway City. The Clayton has been a huge supporter of the rally and are reminding competitors that limited numbers of rooms are still available. The rally route consists of 10 stages, offering some of the best available roads in the county. They also provide excellent viewing access for spectators and we are sure spectators will turn out in great numbers to the opening tarmac rally of the year.

The entry fee for the rally is set at €875 this is all inclusive with no additional levies. This coupled with a clubman friendly route, minimal road mileage and a centralised service area are sure to entice many competitors out for some fun and good competition on the Galway stages.