The 2023 Rally WA Calendar has been recently announced. Again as with 2022, the calendar is a little late getting out. This has been due to organisers waiting to confirm their events and also the Australian Rally Championship (ARC) calendar. The Forest Rally is WA’s ARC round and has a bearing on the whole season.
Starting the season
For us the racing season will start on the 4th of March with a Twilight Khanacross The next day we’re running a Test & Tune event (5th of March). The khanacross is an entry level event suitable for drivers from as young as 12 years old. The Test & Tune day is more advanced and is aimed at those wanting to get some testing and tuition for the season ahead.
Winvale Park – Rally Sprint
In 2022 the event ran as a rally sprint starting the state championship season. In the 2023 Rally WA calendar Winvale will use a similar format and run on the 2nd of April. Winvale Park is private property located in Copley about 15km from Bakers Hill. Entry for this event is only open to full rally cars meeting the required safety and technical standards. Winvale will be round one of the WA state rally championship and Clubman Cup.
2023 Make Smoking History Forest Rally
Round 2 of the state championship will slot into the 2023 Rally WA calendar from the 19th – 21st of May. The Forest Rally is a round of the ARC which attracts teams from the Eastern States as well as plenty of local entries. The largest rally of the year runs for 2.5 days and covers around 220km of competition.
Opening night is run around the Bunbury Autocross track with the proper stages based around Nannup. in 2022 a field of 60 cars entered the rally, numbers not seen since the early 00’s.
Khanacross
To make sure there’s plenty of opportunity for grass roots events, we’ve got a khanacross on the 4th of June. These types of events are where many start their journey into championship rallying. At this level, the car, gear and license requirements are basic helping to keep costs down.
Donnybrook – home of the apple festival
A very wet and muddy Grimwade Stages rally greeted competitors in 2022. For the 2023 Rally WA Calendar the event has been set for the 1st of July. In principle the event is likely to follow a similar format to previous years, however a slightly earlier date may help with the weather. Grimwade uses forestry roads around Balingup with the service park based in Donnybrook.
More Grass Roots
Moving along to early August we have another weekend of Khanacross and Test & Tune. Many competitors opt to enter both events and make a weekend out of their Motorsport. This time the test and tune will run on Saturday the 5th of August and the Khanacross on Sunday the 6th.
Fast roads – Karri Rally
In 2022, the Karri Rally was the king of speed for the year. Run out of Manjimup, the Karri rally uses a service park in the town centre and a spectator stage at the nearby Motocross track. On the 2023 Rally WA calendar, the event is set for the 12th of August.
Chidlow – Close to Perth
The 2023 Rally WA calendar moves into mid spring for the fifth round of the championship. The Safari rally is a long running event that uses some of the old Rally Australia roads around the back of Mundaring Weir. In 2023 it will run on the 30th of September. As with previous years the Chidlow Tavern will host HQ and the event presentation. The adjacent village green will be used for the service park.
Coal mining finale
Showing that the weather is hard to pick, 2022 saw a cold and wet day for the Experts Cup. Ironically the event had been moved to a later date to get out of the wet weather! The finale to the state championship and clubman cup will again run around the coal mining town of Collie. The popular rally is on the 2023 Rally WA calendar for the 28th of October.
Season closer
Just as we started the season, we will also finish it. The last gravel events for the year will be a Twilight Khanacross on the 4th of November and a Test & Tune day on the 5th.
2023 Gravel Events calendar
4th March – Twilight Khanacross
5th March – Test & Tune/Driver Development
2nd of April – WA Rally Championship Round 1 – Winvale Park Sprint
19th – 21st of May – WA Rally Championship Round 2 – Forest Rally
4th of June – Khanacross
1st of July – WA Rally Championship Round 3 – Grimwade Stages Rally
5th of August – Test & Tune/Driver Development
6th of August – Khanacross
12th of August – WA Rally Championship Round 4 – Karri Rally
30th of September – WA Rally Championship Round 5 – Safari Rally
28th of October – WA Rally Championship Round 6 – Experts Cup Rally
4th November – Twilight Khanacross
5th November – Test & Tune/Driver Development
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