DESSIE NUTT

DESSIE NUTT

Britsh historic rally champbn

How good has 2004 been?

A perfect season. The car has been perfect. Geraldine McBride has read me over 500 pages of notes and we haven’t had a wrong one yet. It’s not a bad record!

What led to the car rebuild for 2004? It had done probably in excess of 150 events. It was a good friend, but it was tired. We took it over to Francis Tuthill’s intending to change the wiring. But we went right down to a sand-blasted shell and just built everything backup from new. It transformed the car.

Who have been your big rivals? We had a great battle with Francis and Geoff Stewart on the Robin Hood and won by less than lOsec, so it was a tough start to the season. Francis was giving us a hard time on the Welsh Rally, but he had a big spin at the end of a stage and it taught him some manners, I think!

What are your plans for 2005? More of the same. For 2005 I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than defend the title. It’s going to get more difficult, and Patrick Watts is going to be a big threat.

What’s the appeal of historic rallying? I think it’s lovely that people like us can do a historic championship like this and be competitive. There is no development work to do and the car is not worth significantly less than it was at the start of the season. That’s a real bonus and that’s what makes it affordable. Everyone helps everybody else and the atmosphere is great. And 10 miles of Tarmac is better than a night with any girl! I Dec 2004 I Motorsport I 105 I