Castletown teenager Jack Ryan finished third in overall Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge standings as season draws to a close
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Caithness driver Jack Ryan did just enough to secure third place overall in the Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge at the final event of the 2022 season.
The Castletown teenager was something of a question mark heading down to Anglesey as his Volkswagen Up required a new gearbox, but he came through the challenges facing him with flying colours.
Sam Pattison and Kalum Graffin had already secured the top two spots in the overall standings.
That meant all eyes in Anglesey were on the race for third, heaping the pressure on Ryan.
His co-driver Robin Nicolson was also in contention to top the co-drivers leaderboard to add to the tension.
Either racer’s nerves would not have been helped by a heavy landing in the first stage that damaged the Volkswagen’s sumpguard.
Although that issue was not terminal, they soon faced more potential setbacks in the form of a blown exhaust – helpfully welded by Max Speed’s team in service – and a huge spin in the dark and rain towards the end of the first day.
Still, the pair remained in contention for a podium by the time the second day of racing, and the last of the season, rolled around.
Despite the odd grassy moment, Ryan and Nicolson prevailed to finish third overall in the race, and second of the Scottish crews.
That meant in Ryan’s first year in the rally, he was on the podium five times out of a possible seven spanning the length of the country, from Thurso to Wales.
Those crucial points saw Ryan secure third place in the championship points, and also handed Nicolson the navigator’s title.
It was a close-run battle, with Oliver Phillips making a late push for Ryan’s spot with his first event win of the season and finishing just two points behind the Caithness youngster.
Ahead of the stage, Ryan may have expected his biggest challenger to be Rian Walker.
Walker thrives in the wet, so his eyes would have lit up when the heavens opened in the latter part of day one.
However, the rain did not reappear until the final stage on day two, and a fourth place finish in the race saw him slip below Phillips in the season-end standings.
Walker’s co-driver Stuart McBride had been bidding for the navigator’s title, but although only one point behind Nicolson going in he lost ground at Anglesey, still ending up second.
There was also the small matter of the Tunnocks Trophy competition to take care of, pitting Team Scotland against Team England.
Having taken the first round at Knockhill, the Scottish crews did it again in Wales, overcoming their English counterparts to celebrate victory.
