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It's that time of the year again! The Adelaide Rally returned to the twisting roads of the Adelaide Hills last weekend, featuring a wide variety of hundreds of cars. This year at Hillside Auto, we had the pleasure of covering the event as media; experiencing the feature stages throughout the Adelaide Rally. Through this article, we hope to bring you along for the ride, and to experience second-hand the incredible event that was the 2023 Adelaide Rally.
Day One - Stafford Hillclimb Spectator Stage
Day One - Stafford Hillclimb Spectator Stage
Day one met competitors and spectators alike with a perfect, sunny and clear day. Rolling out of Parc Ferme at the Adelaide Showgrounds to signal the initiation of the event, over 300 cars were set to tackle a mighty eleven stages, the eighth of which being the renowned Stafford Hillclimb Spectator Stage. Taking place on the notorious Fox Creek Road, the Stafford Hillclimb consists of a steep ascent, winding corkscrew sections and series of challenging turns. This combination resulted in spectacular action, especially at our station on the hairpin. Firstly, the tour cars rolled through at ample pace, led by the Zagame Automotive group. The mesmerising machines twisted up the climb; their exhaust notes echoing through the valley and beyond. After the spirited Tour Categories filtered through the valley, the purpose-built rally racers lunged at the climb, consisting of Mitsubishi Evo's, Subaru WRX's, classic Porsche's, and some more nontypical builds such as a Volkswagen Beetle and Citroen rally car. While short, the Stafford Hillclimb is always one of our favourite's, and is a great stage to catch some action on the first day. Other stages on the opening day included Beaumont, Eagle on The Hill, Cleland, Cherryville and Norton Summit among multiple others.
Day Two - Bridgewater Lunch Stop and Wairoa Spectator Stage
Day Two - Bridgewater Lunch Stop and Wairoa Spectator Stage
Like the first day, beautiful weather welcomed visitors into the Adelaide Hills region where they could get up close and personal to the field of competitors at the Bridgewater Lunch Stop. One by one, colourful supercars arrived on the Bridgewater Oval, attracting crowds in their hundreds. The Bridgewater Lunch Stop is one of the best opportunities during the Rally to see the cars in all their glory, while meeting some of the entrants and enjoying the picturesque environment. After a brief time for participants to refill both their stomachs and cars, engines roared into life and the field began to filter onto the afternoon's stages. The most significant of those being the Wairoa Spectator Stage. Nestled in the magnificent valley between Aldgate and Stirling, the Wairoa stage is named after a historic manor located on the stage route, and is always one of the crowd favourites. Starting just under the Aldgate trainline bridge and over a small jump, Wairoa is a stunning example of the roads the Adelaide Hills has to offer. Spectators lined the hillside, as cars tackled a tight chicane before opening the throttle in the stretch to the finish. After day two of the Adelaide Rally, there was only four seconds between Oscar Matthews in the Evo 6 and Matthew Selley in the Evo 8 - displaying the dominance of the Mitsubishi platform!
Day Three - Strathalbyn Town Stage
Day Three - Strathalbyn Town Stage
In a new event, the field of rally cars made their way to the country town of Strathalbyn, for a spectacle that drew crowds in their masses. Over 3000 people lined the streets of Strathalbyn as the main street morphed into a grid of supercars, with markets, charity events and other attractions also present. This new addition to the Rally schedule proved the popularity of the event, highlighting the strong economic benefits that follows the field of cars. Following the river in the centre of Strathalbyn, the town stage twisted through narrow chicanes and crested over historic bridges. While viewing the stage, one thing that we noticed was the amount of individuals who had not experienced such an event before, and were amazed with the calibre of entertainment. That's one thing that we love about motorsport; you don't have to have a deep understanding of cars to be thrilled by the performance. The Strathalbyn Town Stage is the perfect addition to the Rally, and was a great opportunity for families and the community to experience the exhibition of South Australian motoring.
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