Contracts manager Hefin swaps heavy plant for a rally car in Wales GB National success27th Nov 2014
A Jones Bros contracts manager raced to victory at the recent Wales Rally GB National.
Hefin Lloyd-Davies and his navigator Mark Lewis won the B1 Class, and finished a magnificent 32nd place overall in the highly competitive rally series.
Hefin’s Vauxhall Corsa, which is sponsored by Jones Bros, Huws Gray, Ifor Williams Trailers, Harry Hockley Motorsport and Bowyer Engines, was seeded first in the B1 class, for cars up to 1400 cc.
The Wales Rally GB National runs alongside the main Wales Rally GB, giving non-professional crews an opportunity to test their skills against some of the world’s top rally drivers. The programme included all of the classic Welsh forest stages used by the WRC crews, as well as two fan-friendly RallyFest stages at Chirk Castle and Kinmel Park.
Despite a few setbacks over the intense three-day race series, Hefin and Mark saw off the competition to win their class by 3 minutes 42 seconds.
Hefin said: “We have not done any events all year, our last race being the 2013 rally, where we finished second in class. We were seeded first in our class this time, so the pressure was on.
“We prepared well, with a rebuilt engine and new suspension, and also benefitted from a fantastic mobile workshop and living quarters from Ifor Williams Trailers, which really helped over the weekend.”
“The rally set off from Deeside on Friday and went into mid-Wales, where we struggled with gear selection problems throughout the day.
“Despite a puncture, we got through the day and made some adjustments for Saturday’s rallying, at our home stages in the Clocaenog forest.
“Aside from another puncture, the day went well until two miles into the first stage, where we lost second gear completely. This meant we had to finish the day with just first and then third gear, which wasn’t the best way to drive the car.
“As we changed our gearbox ready for Sunday, we realised that we were leading our class, so our aim was to make sure that we got the car home in one piece.
“Fortunately, the final day’s stages went well and we managed to get the car back to the finish in Llandudno on Sunday afternoon, winning our Class? B1 class and also beating all the cars in the higher 1600cc class as well.
“Mark and I were very happy to get through the three days without a scrape and win the class, especially after not competing this year.
“I have to thank Mark for his assistance, as well all of our sponsors and the service team for all their help before and during the event.”
Hefin is now hoping to enter the 2015 British Trial & Rally Drivers Association Championship. He is currently managing a number of Jones Bros projects in North Wales, including the £6m Holyhead Truck Stop development.
Founded in the 1950s and employing almost 300 people, Jones Bros has grown rapidly in the last decade. It is currently working on contracts including the construction of waste management facilities, highways, flood and marine defence and renewable energy projects around the UK.