Donegal Rally: What it is and why it matters to the community

The Joule International Donegal Rally returns this year from June 16-18, as drivers from all over Europe come to Ireland’s northernmost country to claim points in the Tarmac Championship.

While the 2017 World Rallycross Championship is gearing up for Sweden in July, a different rally competition is happening much sooner: the Donegal Rally.

The Donegal Rally is a annual road race held on the storied streets and beautiful country lanes in County Donegal. It’s an event that helps one understand everything about the world of Irish rallying, as well as the wider rally enthusiast culture.

There are three events at the Rally; the International Rally, the Historic Rally and the Junior Rally. It’s tempting to wax poetic and call them the rallies of Present, Past and Future. The International Rally is the main event, and the one I’ll be covering for the most part.

It’s called an International Rally for a reason, with entrants from Scotland, Wales, the US and England. Past winners have been German and French, and up to 20 of the crews have been international.

The Donegal Rally is particularly popular with enthusiasts because of the level of talent it attracts. Colin McRae, Sebastien Loeb and Ari Vatanen have competed in past years. But by and large, the drivers and navigators are Irish, and many are local.

Look at last year’s winner Manus Kelly as an example. He lives about 20 minutes from the start line. The roads he’ll be racing his rented Subaru Impreza 7 on are the same ones he’s been driving on since he got his license. Oh, and he also owns two local businesses, one called Uptown Cafe and the other a tailoring shop.

Kelly is an example of a group that makes up the biggest percentage of Irish sportsmen and women: the semi-professional. The two biggest spectator sports, hurling and Gaelic football, are amateur. While some players are paid in sponsorships, the vast majority are playing while working their own part-time jobs.

The spirit of the semi-pro is more alive here than in any country I’ve seen.

The community

When I first arrived in Letterkenny, the biggest city in Donegal, one of the first things I was told about was the Rally. I moved in two months after the 2016 edition. The race had its supporters and detractors, and I became familiar with both sides very quickly.

One of my neighbors is an casual racing fan, but he loves the rally. Watching rallycross on TV doesn’t interest him. But being up close, smelling the burning rubber and the exhaust is his kind of party. It was actually one of the first things I ever talked to him about.

I’ve talked to other enthusiasts in the area, and they all see the rally as the highlight of the year. It’s when their sport, the best one in the world to them, comes here, Donegal. The 13th county by population, sandwiched between Northern Ireland and the Atlantic Ocean, gets to have to host a rally. It really means something to them.

There are some detractors, but they don’t seem to protest. They know that if they don’t like it they can leave for the weekend. The biggest complaint is that some roads in town get closed for the race. But that also happens during the many charity foot races that take place throughout the year, so it isn’t a massive surprise. More of a minor inconvenience.

While not everybody loves the rally, nobody can argue what it does for the community.

“The town gets absolutely packed,” a local businessman told me a couple of weeks ago. His bed-and-breakfast was already completely booked for race week.

According to press officer and rally photographer Kevin Glendinning, the rally creates about €25 million for the local economy, easily the busiest weekend the town gets all year. It’s pretty much Letterkenny’s Super Bowl.

Every economic boost helps. Ireland was hit hard by the recession, and the recovery wasn’t easy. Tourism is a massive part of the Irish economy, bringing in about eight billion euro a year. Donegal especially has seen an increase in tourism money in the last several years thanks to programs designed to bring people to this underrated expanse.

Nature of the race

The International Rally takes place over 22 stages all over the county. It takes place in the narrow streets of towns and out into the wide open yet equally narrow roads of the countryside.

It’s been described by five-time winner Andrew Nesbitt as “one of the toughest rallies.” He cited the unusual nature of the grips and some of the legendary turns as challenges. Indeed, it seems like Irish roads were designed with rallying in mind. The turns are sharp, the inclines and declines are steep and the margin of error is miniscule. Many of the rural roads were not made to have two cars, and they can’t be widened on account of the ancient walls or protected bogs on either side. A common joke is that speed limits aren’t recommendations, they’re dares.

The variable weather provides an extra challenge. On any given day it might start out cloudy, become sunny and then start raining buckets, all before noon.

I was hoping that this would have a summer fair feel, like going to a NASCAR race. Instead, the weather forecast is predicting rain and clouds. It’s not unexpected, considering the fact that, well, this is Ireland. But like I said, the extra demands on the drivers should make up for the drizzle.

So if you’re interested in keeping up with this display of the best Irish rallying has to offer, stay tuned. We’ll have daily updates here on FanSided. And below are some links that have more information so you can keep up with the action.

Helpful links

Official website: https://donegalrally.ie

Watch the rally: facebook.com/onthepacenote 

Kevin’s website: www.kgrallypics.com Kelvin has pictures of several rallies all around the country, including this one

My Twitter: @jasperhutson  I’ll be trying to live update each day.