Youngtimer cars are a historic car class, consisting of vehicles manufactured in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. These cars play a significant role in the history of the automobile, a time when cars became available to everyone, while still maintaining their exclusivity and style.

Youngtimer Rally Talsi will be a regularity rally, taking place on closed roads and split into three stages, between four to seven kilometres long, each of which the competitors will tackle twice. Each stage will have to be done at a particular speed, and arriving at a checkpoint early or late will result in time penalties. The more precisely a crew drives, the less penalty seconds they will accumulate during the race, thus increasing their chances for victory. There will be two checkpoints in each stage – one at the finish and the other hidden somewhere in the stage, making the drivers adhere to the required speed throughout the whole stage. On the first run through the stages, the competitor time will be compared to the average speed given for the particular stage, while on the second run each crew will have to try and drive at the exact same pace as they did on the first loop.

“Since our last visit in Talsi, we have gotten a year older and made a significant step forward in the form of Youngtimer Rally Championship. This championship will consist of eight rounds, the first of which takes place in Talsi. The championship winners will also receive some great prizes, so I hope that it serves as an added motivation for new members to join the Youngtimer movement.

The first round will see 25 crews tackle the stages – 21 representing Latvia, 3 from Estonia and 1 from Lithuania. We will see a return from the last year’s three most precise crews as well. Valdo Urb / Kristi Matiisen, the winners of last year, will take part in a 1976 SAAB 96. The second and third place crews of Elmārs Tikums / Arnis Modris (1987 Opel Ascona) and Olafs Ceplevičs / Jānis Karašnieks (1972 SAAB 99) will surely do their best to be even better this year and get to the top spot of the podium.

We will also see a 1971 MG B GT, driven by the 2014 Lithuanian rally champion in 2WD class Karolis Raišys, the legendary 1985 Audi Coupe Quattro, while the oldest car taking part will be a 1968 Triumph GT6. Also tackling the stages – a 1983 Porsche 944, a rally prepared 1970 Moskvich 408, a 1979 Opel Manta and multiple SAAB and VAZ manufactured vehicles, which are very popular among the members of the Latvian Club of Antique Cars!” Youngtimer movement representative Valts Ceplevičs gives a short introduction in the world of historic cars.

“I am glad that last year’s experiment was successful and that this will be the second year when the Youngtimer cars will tackle the stages before the rally cars. Technically, these cars are more than a quarter of a century old, but remembering how the 1976 SAAB 96 jumped in the city stage last year – the glory days of these cars definitely have not passed yet!” RA EVENTS director Raimonds Strokšs has fond memories of Youngtimer cars from last year.

Youngtimer Rally Talsi entry list:

Rally Talsi would not be possible without the support of our partners. We would like to thank the rally city of Talsi, companion Latvijas Dzelzceļš, sponsors Neste Oil and Talce / SC Grupa, as well as the official car from Nissan Norde. A large thank you also goes out to our supporters – Canon, Krauzers, LaKalme, Latauto.lv, Ramirent, Rudus and SweCon. Media support is possible thanks to Delfi, Talsu Vēstis, Star FM, Top Gear Latvija, Go4Speed, Kurzemes Radio and Ātruma Cilts. Support from our rally friends at Dardedze Hologrāfija, ecoRent, FN Serviss and Torley was also important, as is the support from the Latvian Automobile Federation. Jānis Unbedahts, RA EVENTS. Photo: ©PONY&SMITH