25 crews took part in the shakedown in order to better prepare for the start of Rally Talsi on May 17. The Estonian crew of Plangi/ Sarapuu, who will have the second start number, was fastest and the only one setting a time of 1 minute and 55 seconds, beating Lithuanians Švedas/ Sakalauskas, who have the first start number, by 0,66 seconds. This allows to predict an intense battle for the overall win up to the very last stage. One thing to keep in mind is that the crew of Jānis Vorobjovs/ Andris Mālnieks, third start number, did not take part in the shakedown.

“We did most of the recce today and I have to say that the Rally Talsi stages have turned out fantastic, they are great roads for racing! We had a good time in the shakedown, but the real battle begins tomorrow and our main goal is to reach the finish, which is something I haven’t done yet in Rally Talsi. Vorobjovs, who didn’t take part in the shakedown, is likely to be very fast, but we are not going to let him get the first place without a fight – I’ll do my best to drive as fast as possible.” said Siim Plangi, winner of the shakedown.

The local crew from Talsi, Elviss Hermanis/ Gatis Veilands, who will begin the first day 12th on the road, had a great shakedown stage, to the delight of local fans – 3rd best time, just 1,22 seconds behind Plangi/ Sarapuu.

Kuwait rally champion Salah Bin Eidan also drove his first kilometres on Talsi stages today. Here’s what he had to say afterwards: “The stages are great, they are fast and, for me, very difficult to make pacenotes. Overall, the day was good, we learned a lot. Shakedown was also very useful, as we were able to better understand what setups will be needed for the race tomorrow.”

Latvian formula driver Haralds Šlēgelmilhs is also preparing for the second rally in his career, and even though there were some mistakes in the beginning, including a brief trip off the track, he managed to get the 10th fastest time in shakedown. We’d also like to remind you that the crew of Haralds Šlēgelmilhs and Artūrs Pumpurs together with the charity fund RH3 Fonds are taking part in Rally Talsi to raise the awareness and help with the donations for the rehabilitation of children with cancer. You can aid them in this cause by calling +371 90006387, which will lead to a donation of EUR 1,42 for each call.

Two crews from the R2 class took part in the shakedown, both from Finland, and the stage was won by Lahti/ Korhonen. Meanwhile, Lithuanians Rackaitis/ Drulia were the fastest in 2WD class.

You can find the shakedown results on the official website of Latvian rally championship – www.autorally.lv.

We would also like to remind you that Rally Talsi, the fourth rally of the Latvian championship and the second rally of the Lithuanian championship, will take place in Talsi from 17th to 18th of May. The opening ceremony will be held by the Talsi town hall at 12:30 PM with the Youngtimer and Historic cars, while the ceremonial start will be at 14:00 with the first rally car coming in at 14:30. First stage of the day will begin at 15:45 and Saturday will have six stages with the total distance of 32,64 km. The second day of the rally, May 18th, will begin at 10:00 with the stage SS7 DELFI. Sunday will consist of five stages with a total distance of 74,97 km, concluding with the awards ceremony by the Talsi town hall at 17:30.

Jānis Unbedahts, RA EVENTS. Photo: Aigars Tīdmanis, go4speed.lv