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Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Otago Daily Times
Memorial rally returns to Southland roads in August
The Barry Robinson Memorial Wyndham Rally returns to the roads of the area on Saturday, August 2. The rally, named after the Mokoreta farmer who was a very successful rally driver, including finishing runner-up in the 1983 New Zealand Rally Championship, was established by the Eastern Southland Car Club in 2023. In addition to remembering Robinson, this year's event will also mark 50 years since the club held its first special stage rally, a Gore-based event in March 1975. There are slight changes to the route this year with an extra special stage increasing the length of high-speed competition to 137.15km. Many of the stages will be contested in a different sequence this year. As usual, the rally is based around the township of Wyndham, 45km east of Invercargill and 25km south of Gore. It will start at the MLT Three Rivers Hotel in Redan St, Wyndham at 9am on Saturday, August 2, with the first special stage at Tuturau over 21.15km. Wyndham Valley, over 17.49km, is the second stage before the 28.12km Waikawa Valley stage. Pine Bush, over 25.99km is next with a new stage, the 13.95km Graham Rd, next before the final 30.45km Fortification stage. "Having driven the route twice with clerk of the course Craig Jessop, as we did checks and alterations for the Rally Safe system, the new formation of stages drive really well and I am sure competitors will enjoy it," assistant course clerk Roger Laird said. "Craig has done a huge amount of work in creating the new route." The first car is expected to cross the finish line back at the MLT Three Rivers Hotel in Wyndham just before 3.30pm. During the day there will be three service parks — the first in Wyndham after stage one and two in Tokanui, about 44km from Wyndham, the first after stage three and then again after stage five. The event will be round four of the Mainland Rally Championship, round four of the H6 Cup Rally Series and the opening round of the 2025-26 Eastern Southland Car Club Rally Championship Cup. Sponsors this year include Traffic Management Services and Yuasa Batteries, with support from the Southland District Council, Gore District Council and the landowners on the rally route. The event prizegiving will take place in Gore at the MLT Croydon Lodge and the winning crew will be awarded the Barry Robinson Memorial Trophy. The leading Otago Sports Car Club driver in the event receives the Glen Shirlaw Memorial Trophy, while the best crew in class from the Central Otago Motorsport Club win the Barry Robinson Trophy. If no crew finishes, it will go to the top driver from the club. —APL
Otago Daily Times
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Halton Hart release debut single
Four of the Halton Hart eight are (from left) Taegan Evans, 10, Erica Byars, 10, Jaelyn Scully, 10, and Hazel Evans, 7. Photo: supplied The eight cousins and band members of Halton Hart, with ages ranging from 7 to 17, debuted their first single Grandad Mait last Friday. The girls' great-granddad loved traditional country such as Tex Morton, Slim Dusty, and Johnny Cash. He passed that love on to his granddaughter, Gore-based recording artist Kayla Mahon, a statement said yesterday. The band got its name from Halton St, in East Gore, home of Granddad Mait and Nana Horrell, Ms Mahon said. Halton Hart is comprised of Caitlyn, Marissa, and Erica Byars, Jaelyn and Meila Scully, Taegan and Hazel Evans, and Georgia Martin Ms Mahon, mother of Georgia Martin and an aunt to the rest, said she was carrying on the family tradition by teaching the young girls music. She said every week, she, her three sisters and their eight offspring got together for a three-hour session where the children continued to learn the guitar, mandolin, bass and banjo. The sessions can get pretty "crazy" she said, as only family can, but it was a great way for the girls to really hone their skills. "Since they could talk, I've got them into music," she said. "That's probably all they've really known is that you sing and you play and you have fun learning music together." The Gold Guitar Awards are massive on the group's calendar, she said and all of the girls, in different combinations, were entered in the competition. "It's always like a Christmas for us, mid-year Christmas," Ms Mahon said. She said the awards were a place where songwriters thrive and two of the girls will be performing their own original songs this year. Ms Mahon really encouraged the girls have their own lyrical content she said, as it was really important, particularly for the country genre, that they understand what they are singing. "That's a really huge thing when you're performing is being believable, and singing with emotion ... That's the secret to making an impact to the audience," she said. Halton Hart and the music video for Grandad Mait can be found on their Facebook page.
