Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship front runners Dave Weston Junior/Ieuan Thomas and Swift Sport Cup newcomer Tom Clark/Aggie Foster took time out of their busy pre rally schedule to attend a Dulux Trade store promotion ahead of this month’s Rally Isle of Man.

The crews and their cars attended one of the Dulux Trade outlets, City Plumbing Supplies in Douglas, to promote the opening of their new showroom. A fine sunny afternoon meant the staff and customers had a chance to see the cars close up before the start of the rally and Jayne Reid, the store manager spent some time trying the drivers’ seats for size.

An added incentive for customers came in the form of a prize draw to win an exclusive Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship jacket, the winner drawn at random from customers who bought Dulux Trade products on the day.

The rally itself took place on Friday and Saturday and the crews had mixed fortunes. Weston, who scores Dulux Trade British Rally Teams Championship points for Ramsport,  suffered a puncture on the first day, plummeting to last place, but fought back to an excellent sixth, a mere tenth of a second from stealing fifth place. On only the second event in the championship for Clark, he drove a mature event but like many more experienced crews, was caught out in the dreadful weather, crashing out of the rally on Saturday.