RALLY aces Dave Bennett and Alistair McNeil revved back to form in the Malcolm Wilson Rally in the Lake District.

They piloted their 1400 cc Corsa car to sixth overall and first in the 1.4L class leaving Bennett to declare: “It was a great result and far better than expected especially as we were punching well above our weight running in the 1.4L class, which is a class above the usual RF1.4 class.”

It was the duo’s first experience of the Lake District and they opted for a cautious approach to the opening loop of stages in Hobcarton, Combe and Wythop forests, where big drops and lots of fast downhill sections were the order of the day.

In the first run through Greystoke forest, Bennett discovered a more fluent rhythm to lead the class by a full minute.

There was a hairy episode in Grizedale North, where a drop off the road was diced with before a recovery enabled the pair to post another superb time.

Stage 7 was another run through Greystoke in the reverse direction, but shortened to a little over two miles making for an incident-free run home apart from the alternator/power steering belt snapping about two miles after leaving the stage.

However, they made the finish ramp in good time for a creditable finish.

Next for the Bennett/McNeil axis is the Somerset stages on April 25 in the Rally First Championship.