Tough for some  Words and images by Peter Baker

Historic rallying is going through a sea-change. Gone are a lot of the older cars, replaced by a new generation of more affordable, and easier to live with, 'modern classics'. As with this weekend's Vintage & Classic Rally Register’s Winter Classic, expect more events in 2016 to be won by a Golf GTi or cars of that ilk. One can only feel sorry for the pedlars of trusty 1950s and 60s machinery, even the best driver/navigator combinations cannot realistically overcome the performance handicap, unless of course it’s a Porsche 911.

But I digress. The 2016 Winter Classic, held on Saturday 2 January and taking in some of the best back roads that the Salisbury Plain locality has to offer, was again the subject of heavy rain and flooding, highlighting the need for reliable electrics and efficient wiper motors. The rather complicated, and in some places mystifying, navigation gave many crews a hard day in the office, only 18 cars made the finish, which is not the ideal New Year present some hoped for. Never-the-less, if the innocent Morris Minor of David Burton and Helen Scott could make it into 14th place overall, it could not have been all bad.

Many familiar faces were gathered at the Railway Tavern in Hungerford, for the midday start, including Richard Prosser, with surely the most rallied Sunbeam Alpine in history, Peter Rushforth, along with his long-suffering driver Cliff England (Triumph 2000) and Peter Cox, this time out with Ian Orford in his Proton Satria.

Team Retro-Speed was well supported by Bernard Northmore, with daughter Caroline (Porsche 944), Mike Tanswell/Elinor Tutcher (Ford Escort Mexico) and Keith Jenkins/Tony Brooks. Sadly the Alfa Romeo of David Mustarde was a non-starter, as was the spectacular Alpine Renault of novices Andy and Liz Owler.

Bravest pair were Stuart and Darren Anderson who left in their open Bentley but disappeared before Section 4. They probably, and very wisely, found themselves a nice warm pub en route.

Meanwhile, the Rally continued through a series of ever-increasingly difficult regularities, the sixth and seventh, held in the dark, claiming the most victims. Back at the Railway Tavern, Chris Head and David Bardwell (Golf GTi ) were declared winners with total penalties of 189 points, around half of next placed Jonathan Amery/Worth Birkill in the green Reliant Scimitar. Keith Grant/Merv Brake (Volvo Amazon) made up the top three, Martin Neal and Richard Dix (Austin Healey Sprite) were fourth and Cliff England/Peter Rushforth (Triumph 2000) fifth. I felt sorry for Paul Davis and Clair Grove, who optimistically appeared out of the afternoon gloom in their Ford Escort Ghia, some half-hour after the Course Closing Car. For them, and more, it was perhaps just a mite too difficult.