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Passenger ride: Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car. Image by Syd Wall.

Passenger ride: Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car
Graeme straps into the latest Skoda Fabia rally car and keeps his mouth shut...

   



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I've been here before. Strapped into a seat so tight that I can barely move my limbs; sat so low that my view of the dashboard makes me feel three years old again; and sat looking out of a helmet at a blank timing card for the Goodwood rally stage.

The Festival of Speed (FOS) is a special event, one that gathers attention and admiration from every corner of the petrolhead globe. Manufacturers construct vast stands -often bigger than the firms' dealerships - on the lawn of Lord March's house and company heads travel the world to watch the motors climb his drive and enjoy the old-English hospitality the event hopes to offer.

But while the hillclimb is the most famous element of the weekend, tucked away at the top of the estate is one of the event's best kept secrets. The rally stage. It's a trek to get there, positioned high on a hill, and one that many just don't have the energy or time to make. But to miss the action here is to only see half of the FOS. Open garages with unhindered access, works and privateer rally cars and crowds of famous and not so recognisable helmsmen mingle with the public.

But I'm here to get closer to the action than most. Which is why I'm now sitting in the passenger seat of a rally car. I say passenger seat, but normally this space is occupied by an experienced co-driver, a man whose job it is to ensure the main man knows what's around the next corner. I don't even know what way the first corner turns, so I'll be sitting here quietly, trying my hardest not to accidentally press any buttons or put him off.

But then Juho Hänninen, who made his rally debut nine years ago, and first competed in the World Rally Championship in 2006, is calm enough for the both of us. His laid back conversation as we line up for the start suggests there's little I could do to really put him off. And with the harness so tight I doubt I can reach anything I shouldn't anyway.

We're first up for the afternoon's attack so there's little time for light conversation as the Skoda Fabia S2000 makes its way to the line. Which is fine, as even at walking pace the little Fabia is incredibly noisy. The engine screams no matter what revolutions it's running, and the meshing of the gearbox infiltrates the cabin.

Up until this point the car has been fairly vocal, but nothing prepares me for our moments on the line watching the timer countdown to our start time. As the numbers fall, Juho checks I'm ready, and realising I have little choice but to reply with an tentative affirmative I meekly offer him a thumbs up. The noise inside the stripped out cabin rises sharply.

With the 2.0-litre four-cylinder naturally aspirated unit singing at over 7,000rpm Hänninen drops the clutch. There's a moment of calm clarity, the proceedings seemingly running in a slow motion replay as the noise drops and the car merely slews to the right in a gentle motion. The transmission taking over proceedings, the tyres soon find some grip and the storm arrives - the Fabia lunging ferociously forward as I slide back into the bucket.

We're off, heading deep into the forest for the FOS rally stage at a pace that seems more apt for a wide open tarmac circuit. I already know that the time to beat is around three minutes, but competitive though I am I realise I'll be playing no part in making that happen. It's all down to the S2000 and Hänninen's feet and fingers.

The first right-hander comes and goes, seemingly without drama and for a moment I relax. But then we're still building up speed, and by the time the second corner arrives I realise that my seating position doesn't actually offer much of an insight into where Juho is placing the car. And despite being on a surface (clay lined soil) that has the Finn proclaiming it still feels wet underneath the wheels (despite what is very obviously a dry surface), place it he does. In fact, he puts the car in an intended position with precision, more so than many drivers manage on our crowded motorway network.

As someone still mastering heel and toe, it's humbling to look at Juho's feet, watching him transfer pressure across the box with agility and speed. It's all in coordination with his hands as well, which aren't just working the suede-rimmed steering wheel but the handbrake as well.

In fact, littered with tight hairpins, the Goodwood rally stage demands gratuitous use of the 'bar' and Hänninen is steering the car with this almost as much as the wheel. My head and neck can certainly feel the pressure, the sideways forces exerted are more than anything experienced on the road and only surpassed by the brakes.

Jumping down the gears with the sequential shifter and pressing the massive discs hard, Juho wipes speed from the Skoda's pace at a surprising rate - especially when you remind yourself of the surface underneath. The acceleration away at the exit of each bend, often while still pointing sideways, is equally mind-bending. And it's not long before we're on the long straight, heading for what, even from my less than optimised vantage point, appears to be a sizeable jump. We're well into fourth gear now, speeds surely approaching three figures when we hit it. Everything suddenly feels more relaxed, the debris rattling off the underside no more, and the forces against my neck abating. Just as quickly we land, slightly off-square to the road, and Juho has already added the correction needed as we nudge into another gear.

Only a handful of hairpins later the darkness of the forest parts, the sun momentarily blinding me as my eyes adjust for the brightness. The track opens out, lined with hay bales rather than tree trunks, and it's obvious we're nearing the finish line. Still accelerating hard Hänninen fires the car over the line. As we roll slowly towards the exit I hand the timing card, now creased from my grip, to the official. He scribbles down a time, and Juho looks over to me with a look of genuine excitement and inquisition before asking what the time was. I can hardly believe I've deciphered the biro marks correctly, but there in plain black ink is a figure of 2:45.25. That's fifteen seconds faster than this morning's best, and despite this being little more than a spectator demonstration Juho is clearly delighted with the time. We shake hands in thanks, Juho seemingly happy with my performance as his passenger and me in awe of the skills of both driver and car. Makes me wonder just how quick we would have been had I not kept my mouth shut.

Graeme Lambert. Photography by Syd Wall. - 10 Jul 2012



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2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.



2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 

2012 Skoda Fabia S2000 rally car in action. Image by Syd Wall.
 






 

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