RS Challenge revs up for rally rookies

Take a slightly tired but tried and true Subaru Impreza RS – or take 12 of them, in fact. Prepare the cars for amateur rallying and invite novice crews to enter them in a one-make series aimed at nurturing a new generation of rally drivers and co-drivers.

That's the plan, according to Buckby Subaru, the Tasmanian dealer that has stepped up to be the naming rights sponsor for the series. Named the RS Challenge, the one-make rally series kicks off this weekend at the Nicholas Stages Rally in Mathinna, northern Tasmania. The sponsor says that "the new series is an exciting new addition" to the Tasmanian Rally Championship calendar.

Buckby is offering a 'ready to race' car for under $20,000 and competitors will have access to 'easily accessible and affordable' parts.

To date Buckby Subaru has built six of the 12 cars "from scratch", and Steve Glenney, the bloke who revived the concept (Subaru Australia once supported an RS Challenge in the ARC) says that up to 90 per cent of the new series' competitors have never entered a gravel rally before. Glenney is a well known personality in Australian rallying, and will be competing (as a co-driver) in the series himself, alongside Trevor Macleod.

Buckby has a high profile in Tasmanian motorsport, having previously backed motoring.com.au Editor-in-Chief Mike Sinclair at Targa Tasmania in a Renault Megane RS. Also supporting the series are Dunlop Motorsport Race Tyres and Motul Oils.

Running over four events, the series will move from Nicholas Stages on April 1 to the Hellyer Rally on May 20, followed by the Mountain Stages on July 7-8 and concluding at Southport on September 9.