The 2008 Otago Rally will get under way spectacularly on Friday, May 9,
2008 with a motorshow and the official rally start at Edgar Stadium, in
Dunedin.
Gore duo Andrew Graves and Kevin Laird captured the overall drivers and co-drivers titles respectively when the Laird Motorsport Southern Rally Series was decided at the Catlins Coast Rally recently.
The series is contested at the three major rallies in the southern region each year - the Rally Of Otago, Rally Of Southland and Catlins Coast Rally -by drivers and co-drivers who reside in the area.
Next year’s Rally of Otago will offer competitors real hardcore rallying, with over 270km of special stages, including a monster 51km stage in the Berwick pine plantation.
Organisers from the Otago Sports Car Club will introduce 80km of new roads for the 2008 event, including Kai Forest, Coal Gully Road, Moonlight and Ramrock.
The 2008 Otago Classic Rally should see an increase in the number of
high-profile European drivers heading down under for the southern
hemisphere’s premier classic rally.
Australian competitors are already showing a strong interest in contesting the 2008 Otago Rally, despite the event still being over eight months away.
The event, which in 2008 will run on May 10 and 11, is already well into the planning phase with a number of changes set to enhance the event even further.