HIGHWORTH'S Shelly Taunt and co-driver Julie Murphy were forced to retire from last week's Rallye Sunseeker after their Subaru Impreza suffered a gearbox failure, writes GARETH MOORHOUSE.
The pair had manoeuvred into 38th place overall before a mechanical fault on the sixth special stage of the second day brought a premature end to their challenge.
The result was a major disappointment for the pair, who were hoping to build on their 44th place finish at the Wyedean Rally a fortnight ago.
Only 50 out of 92 cars completed the rally, which was the first in the Pirelli MSA Gravel Championship season.
Staged over two days, Friday saw the competitors tackle two night stages through the walkways of Bournemouth's Lower Gardens.
Taunt began the Saturday leg of the rally in 51st place and was making light work of the deep ruts in the forest before a mechanical fault forced her to retire.
To keep up to date with all the latest rally news log onto the Swindon Advertiser website or visit www.shellytauntrallying.com.
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