BALLYLICKEY’S Daniel Cronin (VW Polo GTi R5), co-driven by Watergrasshill’s Padraig O’Donovan, took an 11.5 second victory in the recent Laois Rallysprint that took place on the grounds of Stradbally Hall.
Carlow’s David Condell and his Laois co-driver Liam Grant were second with Limerick’s PJ O’Connor/Denny Greaney (Mitsubishi EvoIX) 40.8 seconds further adrift in third.
On the first of the five timed runs over the four-kilometre gravel road Cronin took an 11.3 second lead over Condell. Limerick’s PJ O’Connor (Mitsubishi EvoIX) was 1.6 seconds further behind.
Cronin lost time on the second run when he had to reverse his VW Polo GTi R5 to negotiate a tight hairpin. That allowed Condell, who was quickest on the run, to cut the deficit to nine seconds. Removing the anti-roll bar to allow the car to turn in better Cronin and Condell had similar times through the third run. Cronin stretched his lead to 13.1 seconds on the penultimate run and while he made it difficult for himself on the final run when he overshot twice in the slippery conditions beneath the trees, he had enough of a cushion and won by 11.5 seconds. Condell and O’Connor completed the top three.
