Motor rallying is a sport Jamaicans from all walks life prepare for each year and after a sobering year for the sport locally, the JMMC announced the 2009 Petcom/Hilton Kingston International Stages Rally to be held on December 5-6.

Thirty-five entries have been received for the event which will run over 27 stages and will include terrains of scenic Rio Ho, Lydford, New Works, Bybrook, Wakefield and then onto the National Stadium in Kingston.

Rally Jamaica organiser Larry Henriques said despite the reduced entries, “competition will be fierce as there are four WRC Spec cars; six overseas entries from three different countries; a full JN8 class, along with a returning veteran Jamaican driver in a BMW”.

Forty-two cars took part last year, with Jamaicans Jeffrey “Fudgie” Panton and co-driver Michael Fennell Jnr winning the prestigious event.

Rallies as large as Rally Jamaica, Henriques said, are arguably one of the most costly to stage as they are normally held on public roads or property covering vast areas of land.

This, according to Henriques, “has always resulted in the organisers not being able to recoup expenses. Yet each year we are able to bring not less than $12 million in business to Kingston with the Hilton Kingston responsible for just over $4 million.”

He said unlike last year, the event will begin in New Kingston with Parc Expose on Friday, December 4. During this period, competitors and sponsors can showcase products and allow the public to view the different machines before the onslaught of the next two days.

On Saturday morning, the usually quiet hills of Lydford, Moneague and surrounding areas of St Ann will be awakened by the thunderous roar of the engines of competitors’ cars on their way to completing their first stage of Rally Jamaica.

The normally gruelling Reynolds stage will be replaced by another stage in the neighbouring community. This, Henriques said, should bring hope to many competitors that they would not be part of the usually large list of cars making an exit from the event due to the high mortality rate of previous years on the Reynolds stage.

Day Two will take drivers to the usual Bog Walk Orchards where the Trade Winds Citrus property, home of Tru-Juice, will be their playground for the day.

The National Stadium in Kingston is the final stop for an afternoon of stunning display of three special stages. The Stadium Gala, Henriques explained, “will be the venue where the various competitors attempt to gain or regain the lead in their respective classes”.