Tarmac rallying is back! Entries are open for the four-day endurance Tarmac West rally that will be held in Perth and surrounds from 12 to 15 September. New in 2024 is a Time Speed Distance, or TSD, category which anyone can enter in a standard car and helmet; all that is need is a Australian Auto-Sport Alliance (AASA) General Speed License.
Rally drivers will race the clock along 251 kilometres of closed roads that include the traditional long flowing stages where they can really open up their machines and find their rhythm.
Thursday 12 September will begin with a Ceremonial Start in the heart of Perth’s CBD before heading to the competitive stages in Whiteman Park and Ellenbrook. Friday 13 September, competitors will race the clock east of the city, around Parkerville and Kalamunda including the famous Zig Zag stage before returning to Forrest Place to park up for a Show and Shine.
Saturday 14 September will be the long-awaited return of the marathon stages in Toodyay, Maryville Downs and Bullsbrook where competitors will tackle a total of close to 120 competitive kilometres. Sunday 15 September is a favourite for spectators. The action is closer to the city with the fast and technical stages in the Malaga Industrial area in the morning and then the City of Perth stages around Riverside Drive in the afternoon. Langley Park will again host WA’s biggest display of motoring with the Celebration of Motorsport and Hot Rod Street Machines alongside Shannons Classics on the Swan.
Tarmac Events WA Director Ross Tapper said the response to return of the four-day format has been well received by competitors. “We’re really happy to be back to our original format, and so are the competitors, and we encourage interstate competitors to enter to test their skills against WA’s best,” Mr Tapper said.
“We are very fortunate in WA to have a strong and supportive rally community, so much so that long term competitor Will White has offered to assist interstate competitors to find support crew. AASA has been tremendous in its support of our events, and I think it’s because they can see the experience of the team and have seen us run 13 safe and successful events for the past year.”
Modern or Classic cars can enter three categories in Tarmac West; T200 has a maximum speed of 200km/h, T165 limits speed to 165km/h and T130 that has a speed limit of 130km/h. There are also categories for Rookies and a 2Day Rallye for those who only want to commit to competing on the weekend.
Last held in this format in 2021, the endurance tarmac rally, now known as Tarmac West, was put on hold while Motorsport Australia investigated fatal incidents at other tarmac rallies in the Eastern States. WA competitors rejected the changes of Motorsport Australia’s regulations that require both driver and co-driver to be assessed to get expensive international licences which enforce speed restrictions for their first 10 events, regardless of motorsport experience.
For the past three years, a series of short and fast Rallysprint events have instead been held in WA. Last year, Tarmac Events Pty Ltd was formed, and successfully ran Tarmac West under the sanctioning body, Australian Auto-Sport Alliance (AASA). The safe and successful running of 15 Tarmac Events rallies has enabled the return of the traditional long form Tarmac West.
For spectators, Tarmac West is completely free with dedicated spectator points to safely watch all the exciting action. To be kept up to date with Tarmac West events, please visit www.tarmacevents.com.au
