So when and why was this event started? It all began back in 2005, when a few people travelled together in a loosely knit bunch of minis on the run down to Salou in Spain for the IMM 2005. The run down to Spain was fine in its way, but the convoying was a nightmare. Short very high speed dashes followed by numerous pit stops and late arrivals were not to the taste of some of the runners.

The long and short of it was that on day three, and intrepid bunch of minis – three cars actually – went the “wrong way”, which paradoxically turned out to be the right way, as it resulted in a fantastic run through and across the Pyrenees at a spirited pace, and with few stops. It was in this small group that Daz and Jeff first met. 

It was an unlikely friendship; Daz thought Jeff was a boring old duffer who was far too straight laced, and Jeff thought Daz was a young thug. However, over the next few days, a friendship was formed and they began to realise that they had quite a bit in common. For instance, Jeff found that Daz had a somewhat softer side to him, and Daz found that Jeff liked a bit of fun, and could drive a mini quite well (for an old ‘un!) As a result, they travelled back in a smaller convoy and spent a day in Paris, and cemented a friendship that has stood the test of time and a lot of long distance events ever since. 

Jeff discovered that Daz liked speed, and as Jeff went on the BH2N run to Nurburgring in 2005, Jeff suggested organising another run which would be more family friendly, and would take place in the school holidays. Thus the Silver Ring Rally was born. Why the "Silver Ring Rally"? Well at first Daz and Jeff fancied the idea of a Monte Carlo rally type event, with entrants starting from all over the place, and navigating via SILVERstone to the NurburRING. In the end, this proved impossible to organise, would have beeen far too complex, and would have had potential safety issues, so the concept was altered to its present format.

As well as this being the birth of the Silver Ring Rally, it was also the birth of the Minidirectory. It wasn’t called anything back at the beginning, and typically, it was the forum members who came up with suggestions before eventually the MiniDirectory was chosen for the name of the new forum. 

Daz and Jeff’s qualities are equals and opposites; Jeff is old and thinks things through carefully, preferring to plan things down to the smallest detail. Daz is young and comes up with ideas and novel solutions, and is more prepared to “go with the flow”, a thing which Jeff is quite frustrated by sometimes! Jeff and Daz have a bit of rivalry as far as driving minis fast is concerned. When Jeff was somewhat younger, he rallied minis for several years, picking up some trophies, and writing off two minis along the way! But now, it has to be said that he has probably lost the edge he had when he was younger, whereas Daz still has the fire in his belly, and will take those corners at speeds Jeff will not. Ah well, such is the way of age and maturity (and writing off two minis has added an element of common sense and caution!) Of course, sometimes Jeff throws caution to the wind, and Santa Pod in 2006 was just one of those occasions when trying to beat Daz up the strip seemed like a good idea. Jeff even went to the extremes of removing the front carpet (some thought to save weight, which caused amusement when he stored it in the boot). Actually, Jeff's idea was to give the maximum throttle movement! Anyway, after two runs, all of which Daz won, Jeff admitted defeat, and so did his gearbox! The only small victory was in beating Daz off the line once with faster reaction time, not too bad for an old un! For the rest of the year, Jeff had to nurse his gearbox around events. It was whining really badly for the rest of the year. Another valuable lesson was learned there! 

The two of them have enjoyed several European events and runs since the first run to Spain, travelling to France and to the North of Germany. Another trip is planned in October 2007 to Ghent in Belgium, and of course, they have been to several UK events as well.

SRR 06 went extremely well, and several key links with ferry companies and race circuits were set up. The 2006 event went so well that a 2007 event was planned, which would be even better than the 2006 event, and as a result, the event included three race circuits in the six day period, with Spa Francorchamps being added to Silverstone and the Nurburgring. The 2007 event included an entry from Minimag, and a four page report duly appeared in the magazine, courtesy of “Boyband” Jeff Ruggles, who had a hugely enjoyable time on the event.

Daz and Jeff had planned that the 07 event would be the last, but there was such an overwhelming cry from the previous runners, that they agreed to run another event in 2008.Who knows what other race circuits might be added to the three already planned?

So if you like the idea of this event, then you will be surprised at how reasonably priced this awesome event is. A car with two occupants will cost around £135 per head, which includes ferry, race circuits laps, Hotels, camp site fees, run plaques and a T shirt. The camp site is great, and the camp fires in the evenings are a huge success, as is the beer trailer and Barbeque. All you have to pay for is fuel and food on top of the entry fees. 

In 2008, it is probable that a 50 car limit will have to be placed on the event, so if you are thinking about the event, you had best keep an eye on the SRR website (www.silverringrally.co.uk) and Minidirectory forum (www.minidirectory.co.uk).

Booking opens at Bingley Hall Jan 2008, come and find the SRR Stand we will have 2007 DVD playing on large screen and most importantly the kettle on for a brew!

Jeff and Daz

Silver Ring Rally Core Organizers