The weekend was going to plan for Kevin Eves when his Joule Donegal International Rally came to a shuddering halt in mid-June.
The Pettigo man led the national rally by 6.1 seconds after the first seven stages.
Knockalla, though, would prove to be his nemesis. Eves’ name was added to a famous and lengthy list of scalps claimed on the notorious Wilhare’s Corner.
It was unfortunate and yet fortunate for Eves all in one as he escaped with two broken bones when a concrete post pierced through the floor of the Corolla.
“I knew that my foot was sore at the time, the whole thing just kind of happened and I was like: ‘Look at this, Christ, get me out of here,” Eves remembers as he prepares to get back in the cockpit this weekend in the Ulster Rally.
“We just went off down the banking and the concrete D-rail came up through the floor. A lot of people mightn’t have realised what happened, it just looked like we slid off.
Eves broke two metatarsals and fractured another one, while he was left with a rather large wound on his foot.
He says: “I got away light enough, I suppose, considering a concrete post came up. I was in plaster up to about three weeks ago and had one of those moon boots on for another week.
“I thought I could go around that corner harder than I could. It’s a deceptive enough corner. We had been sitting a long time on the start line and the tyres were cold. We carried too much speed on middling-cold tyres and the post just got a hold of us!
“We knew it would be tough and we just got a wee bit over-excited!”
Eves was taken to Letterkenny University Hospital and the stage was cancelled. Those watching the live coverage on Donegal Daily were concerned before Eves’ father, Martin, contacted us with an update of his condition.
Kevin posted this picture on social media from his hospital ned
Eves and co-driver William Lynch had been preparing for Donegal all year. Wins in the Rally of the Lakes and the West Cork Rally had brought them into Donegal in good stead.
“We were doing well with two wins and a third,” Eves says.
“It couldn’t really have gone much better. Donegal was going to plan too for the short while that we were in it.
“We’ve only really started to get going this year too and we knew how hot the pace was. The game plan for us was to get the pace up and be competitive in Donegal. Anything we got early in the year was a bonus.
“We came into Donegal with good enough intentions. We knew the pace would be hard. Donegal always gets more out of everyone. We knew we had to get sharpened for it.”
Eves had the overnight lead after day one after a fine start to the three-day event but, ultimately, the pace would be his undoing.
Eves says: “It was mad. After a day’s rallying. there were only five or six seconds between five or six competitors.
“There was a big pace. One mistake could leave you going down four or five places. That’s much better than being out on your own in no man’s land.”
Eves is thankful to his sponsors – the likes of Accapple Construction, JM Joinery, Building Cost Control, Darren McNern Paving and EnviroGrind – for their support as he gets back to action this weekend. The two-day Ulster Rally, based in the Derry, Strabane area, gets him at the wheel again – and there are precious Championship points at stake.
“We just have to finish and hopefully score middling points,” Eves says.
“The Championship is so close so we need to get points on the board. I’m looking forward to it, we’re revved up and ready to go!”
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