The pair pushed hard all day in the SRTC Impreza WRX STi, but were unable to match the speed of Jari Ketomaa, David Higgins and Jussi Valimaki, who shared the podium positions.

“We did as best we could today, but we didn’t quite have the right setup for this event”, said Dean at the end of a demanding Chinese rally season. “After the problems of yesterday, the target for today was to make it to the finish line, and we’ve done that. However it’s been a good season and we’ve had plenty of positives to take out of it.”

“We started off with a stumble; there was the DNF in Nanjing, and then I was quarantined in Beijing. But since then we’ve come away with some solid results, and the win in Longyou was a great reward for the team. All the guys in Subaru Rally Team China have worked really hard this year to develop the car, and they can be really proud of their efforts and the results we’ve achived this year”.

Dean and Chris now fly back to Australia for a short but well-earned Christmas break with their families, the 2010 season beginning at the end of January with the second round of the Australian Tarmac Championship, Targa Wrest Point.

Rally Shaowu – Unofficial Results

Jari Ketomaa, Subaru Impreza WRX STi
David Higgins, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +1:09.2
Jussi Valimaki, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +1:23.8
Dean Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, +3:45.7
Han Han, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +4:58.7

Photos courtesy of www.plopcrew.net and www.fasc.org.cn.

It’s the second time the CRC field has travelled to Shaowu, situated in the Fujian Province, approximately 400kms inland from China’s eastern coast and almost half-way between Shanghai and Subaru Rally Team China’s base in Shenzen.

“We’ve struggled today”, said Dean who started the event as first car on the road. “We had a diff issue during the middle loop of stages, and the boys did an incredible job to change the gearbox without running over time. We’re still struggling to find a good feeling in the car. But that said, we’re still running so there’s always the chance to improve tomorrow”.

Meanwhile the other international competitors have had their own problems. Juha Salo was fighting Jari Ketomma for the lead during the early stages, but crashed out of the event on stage 4 while in second place. And Jussi Valimaki was lucky just to make it to the start line. The Finn crashed his Mitsubishi into a rock wall during pre-event testing, the impact breaking the ribs of co-driver Marko Sallinen.

At the head of the field Jari Ketomaa continues to lead, Salo’s retirement elevating David Higgins into second place, Valimaki into third, with Dean fourth and well ahead of the first Chinese driver Cao Dong Liu.

Rally Shaowu – Leg 1 Unofficial Results

Jari Ketomaa, Subaru Impreza WRX STi
David Higgins, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +43.2
Jussi Valimaki, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +1:21.0
Dean Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, +2:07.7
Cao Dong Liu, Mitsubishi EVO 9, +2:55.1

Photos courtesy of www.plopcrew.net and www.fasc.org.cn.

Mt Buller is the first round of the 2010 Australian Tarmac Championship, and third place was great way for Herridge to start the series.

“We’re really pleased with the result and the way the car performed over the weekend”, Herridge commented at the end of the final timed stage. “Among the top six place getters there are some real exotic cars. So to claim a podium is a real tribute to both the team and Subaru Impreza WRX STi”.

The event was won by Jason White in a Lamborghini Gallardo, while second place was taken by Steve Jones in a Nissan Skyline GTR R.

“At various points of the weekend we managed to better the times of both Jason and Steve. The car performed really well all weekend, and this result is a great start to the Tarmac Championship. We’ve come away with a good points haul, and it gives us a lot of confidence leading into next months Targa Wrest Point event”.

Mt Buller saw more than 100 crews tackle ten passes of the tricky 16km mountain road, with the teams best nine runs deciding the overall places. And this result means Herridge has now claimed two Mt Buller podiums from two starts, on his Mt Buller debut in 2006 Dean also finished third, that time behind Jim Richards and Tony Quinn when he piloted a Subaru Australia Impreza WRX Sti.

“It is a great feeling to come back after a couple of years and still produce a result like this. Mount Buller is a very unique event and with the road surface constantly changing depending on the weather, you have to make sure that you are concentrating for every corner of every run”.

With Mt Buller completed, Dean’s attentions now turn to the final round of the Chinese Rally Championship in Shaowu, contested on gravel roads 600km south-west of Shanghai and beginning on December 18.

(Check out the photo gallery for photos of Mt Buller and other events)

Results – Mt Buller Sprint 2009

1. White/White, 2009 Lamborghini Gallardo, 1:17:09.1
2. Jones/Searcy, 2008 Nissan Skyline GTR R, 1:17:26.9
3. Herridge/Murphy, 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STi, 1:18:54.2
4. Vandersee/Allen, 2009 Skelta G-Force, 1:19:06.4
5. Hendy/Willson, 2005 Daytona Coupe, 1:19:09.0
6. Ford/Ford, 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z0, 1:19:13.4

Australian Tarmac Championship Points Table

1. White, 250
2. Jones, 230
3. Herridge, 220
4. Vandersee, 210
5. Hendy, 200

With the new championship encompassing Targa Tasmania and Targa Wrest Point, the decision to contest the title was an easy one. “We’re already planning to run at ‘Wrest Point’ and ‘Targa Tas’ in 2010″, said Dean. “So it makes a lot of sense to add Mt Buller to the calendar and give ourselves a chance of taking the overall title”.

The Tarmac Championship, which has been recently created, takes in the Mt Buller Sprint, Targa Wrest Point in January, the Lake Mountain Sprint in March, and culminates with Targa Tasmania at the end of April.

“Mt Buller was actually the first tarmac event I ever contested. That was back in ’06 with Subaru Australia, and we managed to grab third behind Jim Richards and Tony Quinn. So we’ve got some experience there. I’m really excited to return to Mt Buller. The competition is tough in all the Targa events, and it’s not going to be easy to win. That said, we’re going to give it our best shot, and give ourselves the best possible chance to win the championship”.

The Mt Buller Sprint begins on Friday 4th of December, with the final run over the 16km, 130+ corner, stage completing on Sunday 6th.

2010 Australian Tarmac Championship

Round 1: Mt. Buller Sprint – December 4 to 6 , 2009
Round 2: Targa Wrest Point – January 30 & 31, 2010
Round 3: Lake Mountain Sprint – March 20 & 21, 2010
Round 4: Targa Tasmania – April 27 to May 2, 2010

Targa West 2009 photos courtesy of Chris Parker.

“I’m very pleased with the way the weekend turned out”, said Dean after the podium ceremony. “It’s the biggest event on the Chinese rally calendar. So to finish second outright and first for the CRC after three and a half hours of rallying, it’s a very satisfying feeling. It was a bit unfortunate for David (Higgins) to be excluded in the way he was, but these things sometimes happen in rallying. It’s been a bit of a tough year for our team, so this is a great reward for all our team and the effort they put into every event”.

The series international event, the CRC regulars were joined by a strong field of Asia-Pacific Rally Championship contenders. Not only was Dean first of the CRC cars, he was second overall with former team mate Cody Crocker cruising home for his sixth victory of the APRC season.

“There were just two stages used today, and during the first pass of the roads were dry and in good condition. But it started raining during the second pass and with all the loose gravel having been swept from roads, they became very slick and difficult. Then later in the afternoon, on the big mountain stage, the middle section was very foggy. With 50-odd hairpins, you need to be pretty accurate on that stage. So the lack of visibility was a real problem”.

As was the case in 2008, the Longyou event extracted a heavy toll of retirements.First to go was Juha Salo who retired on stage 2, then Jari Ketomaa punctured and lost time on stage three. Both Jussi Valimaki and APRC driver Hiroshi Yanagisawa stopped on stage four, Valimaki with electrical problems and Yanagisawa with a damaged oil cooler.

Next to go was Gaurav Gill, who struck engine problems on stage five, while his team mate Katsu Taguchi pulled out on stage nine with a bent lower control arm. Alister McRae’s Proton S2000 had finished leg 1 in fourth, but suffered mechanical problems on SS13, Emma Gilmore hit a rock on stage 11, the impact braking her hand, while Dean’s team mate Li Wei crashed out on stage 13 while leading Chinese crews.

The Chinese series now has a months break before the season-ending Rally Shaowu, which commences in the 18th of December.

China Rally – Final Results (Unofficial)

1. Cody Crocker/Ben Atkinson (AUS) Subaru Impreza 3:40.47,6
2. Dean Herridge/Chris Murphy (AUS) Subaru Impreza +4.32,8
3. Jari Ketomaa/Miika Teiskonen (FIN) Subaru Impreza +6.56,6
4. Rifat Sungkar/Scott Beckwith (RI/AUS) Mitsubishi Lancer +13.55,7
5. Yuya Sumiyama/Naoki Kase (J) Mitsubishi Lancer +17.17,9
6. Emma Gilmour/Claire Mole (NZ/GB) Subaru Impreza +17.58,0
7. Xu Jun/Liu Sheng (RC) Mitsubishi Lancer +21.46,3
8. Han Han/Sun Qiang (RC) Subaru Impreza +23.11,3
9. Fan Fan/Fang Junwei (RC) Mitsubishi Lancer +33.51,5
10. Shi Chunlei/Pan Hongyou (RC) Mitsubishi Lancer +43.14,4

Photos courtesy of Brian Young – www.apsm.tv

“We struggled this afternoon”, Dean commented after a long day of competition. “It rained during the week, but it’s been dry today. As the roads dried out, it got rougher and very difficult. The three stages we used today are pretty narrow twisty stages. They were slippery this morning, but as the fields has passed over them each time, there have been lots of rocks exposed or pulled onto the roads”.

“We really struggled on that last loop; our tyres just didn’t seem to work well. But we’ve had a pretty good day overall”.

Like 2008, Rally China has taken a heavy toll on the entire field, with Katsu Taguchi (who was involved in a great battle with Dean all day), Hiroshi Yanagisawa, Gaurav Gill and Brian Green all retired from the APRC field. While CRC entrants Juha Salo, Jari Ketomaa, Tony Green and Jussi Valimaki all ran into problems.

“We’ve got two really tough stages to run three times tomorrow. But we’re in a good position, it’s the biggest rally event in China, my team mate Li Wei leads the Chinese drivers, and the team are happy with our performance”.

Rally China concludes tomorrow with two tough stages run three times each, including the famous San Menyuan mountain stage.

Rally China 2009, Leg 1 Results (Unofficial)

1 C.Crocker 2:04:40.7
2 D.Higgins +1:25.0
3 D.Herridge +2:05.2
4 A.McRae +3:01.3
5 E.Gilmour +5:12.4
6 J.Ketomaa +5:15.6
7 R.Sungkar +7:28.2
8 Li Wei +8:53.8
9 Wei Hongjie +9:28.1
10 J.Valimaki +10:51.5

Even though the competition is tougher, Herridge is full of confidence leading into the event he won last year. “I’ve got really fond memories of Longyou”, Dean said before leaving for China. “In ’07 we led the event, had some problems, but then came back to win five of the six stages on Sunday. And then to win it last year; that’s probably one of my top-five moments. To be there and help Subaru Rally Team China achieve their first CRC round win was fantastic. The excitement of the team was incredible, and then to top it off with a podium in the APRC section of the event…”

But while Longyou has provided Herridge with success in the past, some of the best production rally drivers in the world will also be vying for victory. “It’s going to be a quality field this year. We’ll have Cody Crocker and Emma Gilmore for Motor Image, MRF with Taguchi and Gill, Cusco with their EVO Xs, the new Super 2000 Proton. And that’s just the APRC teams! We’ve also got a really strong field in the CRC at the moment with Juha Salo, Jussi Valimaki and it looks like Jari Ketomaa is coming across to run in the Prodrive team. So three really quick Finnish guys. And then you have David Higgins who’s ‘owned’ the Chinese championship for the last two and half years, and Tony Green has a ride with a new team for this event. There’s a dozen quality drivers and teams who are all going to be fighting for the win. So anywhere near a podium or a win would be great for us”.

“We’re desperate to have a good rally. We haven’t had a great year, so we really want to finish the year on a high note at these next two events. We’ve got some different things to try. Normally (at this time of the year) there wouldn’t be too much to talk about development-wise. But we’re going over earlier for this one. We’ll hopefully get a day or so for testing, and the guys have got a really good list of things we’ll try and improve on the car”.

“Longyou has always been a good event for me. We think we’ll make some good gains with the changes we’ve got planned, the conditions will suit our tyres a little more, so I’m pretty excited about the event”.

To hear the full interview with Dean, just click the ‘Play’ button. Rally China starts next weekend, with a ceremonial start on Friday the 13th, and stages run on the 14th and 15th. And keep checking www.deanherridge.com for news and results from Longyou during the event.

The third round of the Chinese Rally Championship, just six short stages were scheduled for leg 2, meaning there was little oppoertunity for Dean to move up the leader board after all the crews completed the morning stages without incident. “We controlled our pace this afternoon to make sure we made it to the finish line. With the stages so short, once the first few were run there was little chance for us to catch Jussi (Valimaki)”, Dean commented at the podium presentation.

“There was rain on the final stage, which made things interesting on the concrete roads! But we got through without a problem and the car was very good today”.

“Now we’re looking forward to Rally Shaowu. We had a good run there last year until we broke the suspension on the last day. But it’s a rally that we have some experience at, and Chris and I, and all the SRTC team, will be targeting a good result”.

Sunday saw no change to the top-5 positions, meaning David Higgins took victory, just ahead of his brother Mark, with Jussi Valimaki in third.

The Chinese Rally Championship now moves back to gravel, with the next round, Rally Showau, beginning on the 18th of September.

Rally Fogang – Final Results (Unofficial)

1. David Higgins, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9
2. Mark Higgins, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, +35.3
3. Jussi Valimaki, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, +1:12.6
4. Dean Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, +1:54.3
5. Lui Cao Dong, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, 2:39.8

Situated in Guangdong Province, in the south-east of China, Fogang is approximately 200km north of Subaru Rally Team’s base in Shenzen. A slightly different style of rally, Fogang presented the crews with a combination of gravel and cement roads.

“We’ve had a reasonably good day today”, Dean commented after Saturday’s eight stages. “The stages have been quite tricky. They’re fairly narrow and there was a fair amount of dirt and rubbish pulled onto the corners after the first run of stages. We had to be quite careful during the afternoon loop (of stages).”

“We struggled a little bit in the morning loop, but during service we made some changes to the car, and it worked really well in the afternoon. We narrowed the gap to the top three, and although we lost 3rd gear on the second-last stage, the car was much better. The boys will replace the gearbox tonight, and see what we can do tomorrow to make up some more time”.

One aspect of Fogang that caught out a few crews was the intense heat. Nial McShea, driving for the FCACA team in place of Kiwi regular Tony Green, had been running second early in the day. But as the temperatures inside the cars climbed, the Irish driver struggled to cope in the difficult physical conditions. He was forced to retire at the end of stage six, he and his dehydrated co-driver taken to hospital as a precaution. The heat is also thought to have effected Red River driver Xu, who crashed out of the event during the afternoon stages.

At the top of the time sheets, it’s been a battle between English brothers David and Mark Higgins, with David claiming day 1 honours for the South East Automotive 10000 team, Mark and former WRC co-driver Nicky Grist in second place, and Finn Jussi Valimaki in the final podium position.

Rally Fogang wraps up on Sunday, with the crews contesting a further six stages before the podium presentation at the International Garden Spa Hotel.

Rally Fogang – Day 1 Results (Unofficial)

1. David Higgins, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9
2. Mark Higgins, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, +1:03.7
3. Jussi Valimaki, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, +1:18.6
4. Dean Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, +1:37.8
5. Lui Cao Dong, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, 2:09.2
6. Han Han, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, +2:32.1

With the gaps between the top five increasing during the morning stages, Dean and Chris concentrated on preserving the Maximum Motorsport Subaru over the final stages to claim third second place behind Steven Jones and Tony Quinn.

(Aug 24 Update: During post-event scruinteering, an exhaust irregularity was found on the Nissan GTR 35 of Tony Quinn (car #90). As a consequence car #90 was excluded from the final results, elevating Dean to second place, and the Alister McRae/Bill Hayes Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X into the final podium place.)

“It’s pretty pleasing to be able to claim a podium at the first attempt”, Dean commented at the finish line. “The rain on Saturday made conditions quite tricky, but the car and the team have been fantastic. We’ve run the car at Targa Tasmania and Targa Wrest Point this year, and it’s great to be able to compete in front of our home crowd and come up with such a good result”.

While Jones and Quinn maintained station at the head of the field, Alister McRae managed to sneak past both Dylan Thomas and Peter Major to claim fourth third place. Of the other Maximum Motorsport teams, Rob Herridge moved up another two positions during Sunday’s stages to take ninth eighth place, while Graham Iddles took 20th 19th place.

And with the Quit Targa West rally completed, Dean and Chris now head directly to China for next weekends Rally Fogang in the Guangdong province. Rally Fogang is the third round of the Chinese series, and Dean will be keen continue his good form in the SRTC Subaru.

Quit Targa West – Final Results, Modern Competition

1. Steven Jones, Nissan GTR 35, 1:47:14.0
2. Dean Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, +2:29.0
3. Alister McRae, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 RS, +4:05.0
4. Dylan Thomas, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 RS, +4:39.0
8. Rob Herridge, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, +6:31.0
19. Graham Iddles, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, +15:59.0
25. Paul Carrucan, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti RA, +18:25.0
42. David Iddles, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti , +27:50.0

Photos courtesy of Peter Evans.