Tag: Billy Coleman

Remembering Billy Coleman being Crowned British Rally Champion 50 years ago back in 1974

It’s hard to think that Millstreet Rally Legend Billy Coleman was crowned British Rally Champion back in 1974,it is therefore fitting to just remind ourselves 50 years later of what a great achievement that was in what was a Premier Rally Championship in Europe at the time.

Billy was Irelands Top Rally Driver back in the 70`s and 80`s and amongst his best achievements was as already mentioned winning The British Rally Championship in 1974 in his Ford Escort Mark 1.

Billy also scored victory on The Circuit of Ireland 3 times in 1975,1976,and 1984 as well as finishing 4th overall in the 1985 World Championship Rally Tour De Corse which was one of the toughest challenges back in the day.

Billy was also crowned Irish Tarmac Champion in 1984 and finished 3rd in The European Rally Championship in 1979 and has won many Irish Rallies over the years including the likes Cork 20,Donegal and Killarney Rally of the Lakes Events.

Billy is still up there as one of the greats and from that great achievement back in 1974 50 years later we salute one of the finest Irish Drivers to grace the Rally Stages both here at Home and Worldwide.

 

Record Attendance for The Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages 2022 held on Sunday July 3rd

Millstreet Vintage Club and Event Organiser Donie Lucey would like to thank Everyone that took part in the Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited Run on Sunday last, the 3rd Running of the Event was the biggest to date with an astounding 110 Cars attending the Event, proceedings got underway from the Wallis Arms Hotel just after 12 Noon from where the Cars made there way through some Classic Circuit of Ireland Stages like Gortnagane which was then followed by a Pitstop at O’Brien’s Shop Glenflesk, after this Break the Run headed on to Ballyvourney to tackle the Mullaghanish Stage before proceeding on to drive the Mushera Stage before heading back to Millstreet for the Finish, participants enjoyed some great Scenery on the Cork/Kerry Border on Stages all used on the Circuit of Ireland in years gone by, favourable Weather conditions made for a most beautiful drive on some stunning Roads.
Donie Lucey and Millstreet Vintage Club wish to Thank Everyone for making the Trip to Millstreet both from Near and Far and a big thanks must go out to the Marshals/Bike Marshals and An Garda Siochana who kept the Event flowing so smoothly, also thanks to all the people helping out at Event Sign On,Documentation etc, to the Media and Phographers who covered the Event both on the day and in the lead up,also thanks to to the Wallis Arms Hotel Millstreet for the Venue and Catering and to O’Briens Shop in Glenflesk for looking after us so well at the Event Pitstop and to anybody else who helped out in anyway thanks very much,without the help and support the Event would not have been the success that it was,Millstreet Vintage Club hope everybody enjoyed the Run and look forward to seeing you all again very soon.

Pictures and Video from the Event can be accessed on the Millstreet Vintage Club Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/esatclear.ie/

Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited happening Today Sunday July 3rd in Millstreet

Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited happening Today Sunday July 3rd why not come out and see some Cool Cars and Cheer them on as they Pass by, or check them out from 11am onwards at The Wallis Arms Hotel.

 

With just a few days left now to The Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited 2022 we are getting close to what promises to be a great Event and the Weather looks and hopefully will behave for next Sunday as well, COC Donie Lucey has organised and laid on 3 great Stages in a Compact Route of 50 miles Starting and Finishing In Millstreet Town,Sign on is at the Wallis Arms Hotel Millstreet Eircode (P51 D25 W) from 10.30am with Take Off at 12 Noon,Cars will Tackle Gortnagane,then will go for a Pitstop in Glenflesk before tackling Mullaghanish and then on to the Mushera Stage before heading back to Millstreet for the Finish,Each Participant will receive a Traditional Bumper Plate to mark the Running of the Event,All Rally Cars, Vintage and Classic Cars are very Welcome to take part so if your interested why not Contact Donie Lucey on 086 8545873.

Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited happening on next Sunday July 3rd

With just a few days left now to The Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited 2022 we are getting close to what promises to be a great Event and the Weather looks and hopefully will behave for next Sunday as well, COC Donie Lucey has organised and laid on 3 great Stages in a Compact Route of 50 miles Starting and Finishing In Millstreet Town,Sign on is at the Wallis Arms Hotel Millstreet Eircode (P51 D25 W) from 10.30am with Take Off at 12 Noon,Cars will Tackle Gortnagane,then will go for a Pitstop in Glenflesk before tackling Mullaghanish and then on to the Mushera Stage before heading back to Millstreet for the Finish,Each Participant will receive a Traditional Bumper Plate to mark the Running of the Event,All Rally Cars, Vintage and Classic Cars are very Welcome to take part so if your interested why not Contact Donie Lucey on 086 8545873.

Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited happening on Sunday July 3rd

Keep Sunday July 3rd Free in the Diary for the Millstreet Vintage Club Circuit of Ireland Stages Revisited2022,Donie Lucey has organised 3 great Stages in a Compact Route of 50 miles Starting and Finishing In Millstreet Town,Sign on is at the Wallis Arms Hotel Millstreet Eircode (P51 D25 W) from 10.30am with Take Off at 12 Noon,Cars will Tackle Gortnagane,then will go for a Pitstop in Glenflesk before tackling Mullaghanish and then on to the Mushera Stage before heading back to Millstreet for the Finish,Each Participant will receive a Traditional Bumper Plate to mark the Running of the Event,for Further Details Contact Donie Lucey on 086 8545873. 

Rare RTE Film featuring Billy Coleman and some Familiar Local People from Millstreet at the 1976 Circuit of Ireland Rally

RTE did a one off insight into the Sport of Rallying back in 1976 and sent Reporter Liam Nolan along to follow the 1976 Circuit of Ireland Rally and in particular to follow the exploits of Millstreet Man Billy Coleman the 1975 Circuit Winner,the Footage here is of particular interest to the locals around here in Millstreet as a lot of familiar Faces are featured in this rare and most interesting documentary.

This Rare Footage is Courtesy of Pat Sullivan Carrignavar,Enjoy.

Shell Donegal International Rally 1985

Highlights of the Shell Donegal International Rally 1985, which was won by Billy Coleman and Ronan Morgan in a Porsche 911 SC RS in dramatic circumstances. Before the last stage they were nine seconds down, but they stormed through to win by one second from Austin McHale, to take the honours. [f]

[read more …] “Shell Donegal International Rally 1985”

Cork 20 1986 – Won by Billy Coleman

End of Day reports from the 1986 Jury’s Cork “20” International Rally which was won by Billy Coleman & Ronan Morgan. [i+4]

[read more …] “Cork 20 1986 – Won by Billy Coleman”

Billy Coleman Takes Part in Circuit De Ja Vu Event in Killarney

 

Billy Coleman the three times Circuit of Ireland Rally winner was reunited with a Rothmans 911 during Circuit Deja Vu in Killarney over the Easter Weekend, the Porsche 911 he drove is now owned and beautifully restored by John Mulholland, a County Antrim motor trader, the Porsche was a genuine Porsche 911 similar to the car that Billy drove for the Rothmans Team in the 1985 season.
Billy’s first Circuit win was in 1975 in an Escort RS1600. He repeated the win a year later in an RS1800 but it was another eight years before Billy, this time at the wheel of an Opel Manta 400 and with Ronan Morgan as his co-driver sprayed the champagne again at the finish of the five-day marathon, for the Circuit De Ja Vu Run last Sunday Ronan was back in the hot seat again to accompany Billy.

The Circuit De ja Vu is the brainchild of both Alan Tyndall of RPM Motorsport and Beatty Crawford who was a former Circuit of Ireland winning Co-Driver back in 1971,the Event was established to Celebrate the Glory Years of Rallying in the 70s and 80s and this Event without doubt captured that with some great Cars and Drivers from the that Period coming from near and far to be part of the Celebration,this was the second year that the Event was Ran and like last years Event which was also based in Killarney it was an outstanding Success.

Billy Coleman was not the only Millstreet Native to take part in the Circuit De Je Vu over the weekend,Conor Falvey had French Champion Bernard Beguin behind the wheel of his beautiful Porsche for the Run while his Brother Todd Falvey had Saeed Al-Hajri who is a former winner of the 1989 Cork 20 driving his Car which was also a Porsche along the Route as well, both Al-Hajri and Beguin are former Rothmans Teamates to Coleman so it was fitting that they all got together along with another former Rothmans driver from the same Era Jimmy McRae who was driving a Vauxhall Chevette,Former World Champion Stig Blomqvist was another famous driver to do the Run in an Audi Quattro while Donagh Kelly and Denis Biggerstaff each wheeled out a Metro 6R4 for the day,the other Millstreet Drivers that completed the Course included Kevin Hickey with co-driver Matthew Twomey in there beautifully turned out Replica of Billy Colemans 1979 Circuit of Ireland Ford Escort,and Ballydalys Denis Moynihan also completed the Course in his immaculate Mark 1 Escort, the Run which was based at the Malton Hotel departed at 10 am on Easter Sunday to tackle some famous Rally Stages along the way such as Molls Gap, Healy Pass, Cods Head, Ardgroom, and Killmackillogue and finished back in the Malton Hotel at around 4.30pm,the Event was a great Success and was enjoyed by both Competitors and Spectators who turned out in quite large numbers.

Below are the Local Crews who took part along with some Famous Stars as well and in Order they are

Kevin Hickey/ Matthew Twomey Motorcraft Mark 2Ecort

Denis Moynihan Escort Mark 1

Bernard Beguin/Conor Falvey Posrche 911

Billy Coleman/Ronan Morgan Porsche 911

Saeed Al-Hajri /Todd Falvey Porsche 911

 

The boy from Millstreet who became the King of Rally

Billy, John, and Paddy Coleman

In the history of rallying in Ireland, one name stands out above all others for the respect in which he is held and the ability he demonstrated behind the wheel of the cars — predominantly Fords — that he drove.

That person is the remarkable Billy Coleman, the man from Millstreet in County Cork who even today, long after he hung up his driving gloves, remains the stuff of legend … read the full article from today’s Irish Examiner

[read more …] “The boy from Millstreet who became the King of Rally”

Team Ireland Rally Legends | Billy Coleman

Team Ireland Rally Car International Ambassador and Irish American businessman, a renowned rally enthusiast John Campion and his wife Suzanne Campion, hosted a panel discussion with Irish Rally Car legends at his private rally car shop, including Craig Breen, Paul Nagle, and our own Billy Coleman. Watch the video below:

[read more …] “Team Ireland Rally Legends | Billy Coleman”

Billy Coleman Model Rally Car Display at Millstreet Museum Coordinated by Seán Buckley on Saturday, 5th October 2013

We thank Seán Buckley of Ennis, Co. Clare and formerly of Kilcorney (son of Catherine and the late Seán Buckley who was synonymous with Kilcorney Feis) for this excellent poster and for offering to coordinate this fascinating Exhibition at Millstreet Museum to coincide with the upcoming prestigious Cork 20 Motor Rally in Millstreet. Click on the poster to enlarge. (S.R.)
We thank Seán Buckley of Ennis, Co. Clare and formerly of Kilcorney (son of Catherine and the late Seán Buckley who was synonymous with Kilcorney Feis) for this excellent poster and for offering to coordinate this fascinating Exhibition at Millstreet Museum to coincide with the upcoming prestigious Cork 20 Motor Rally in Millstreet. Click on the poster to enlarge. (S.R.)

Billy Coleman Attends Unveiling of Cork 20 in Millstreet

1Cork 20 Unveiled in Millstreet 2013 -800 2Cork 20 Unveiled in Millstreet 2013 -800

Renowned Motor Rallying Champion, Billy Coleman joined the enthusiastic attendance on Wednesday night outside the Wallis Arms Hotel for the official unveiling of the Cork 20 prestigious event which will be centred in Millstreet in October 2013.
Renowned Motor Rallying Champion, Billy Coleman joined the enthusiastic attendance on Wednesday night outside the Wallis Arms Hotel for the official unveiling of the Cork 20 prestigious event which will be centred in Millstreet in October 2013.   Lots more pictures of the uplifting event will follow later.     (S.R.)

Billy Coleman-Millstreet Rallying Legend

BILLY AND DADCame across some Photos of Millstreet Rally Legend Billy Coleman recently and thought it would be nice to share some of them here.

Billy was Irelands Top Rally Driver back in the 70`s and 80`s and amongst his best achievements was winning The British Rally Championship in 1974, Billy also scored victory on The Circuit of Ireland 3 times in 1975,1976,and 1984 as well as finishing 4th overall in the 1985 World Championship Rally Tour De Corse.

Billy was also Irish Tarmac Champion in 1984 and finished 3rd in The European Rally Championship in 1979 and has won many Irish Rallies over the years including the Cork 20 and Killarney Rally of the Lakes, so lets look back at some memorable Photographic moments throughout his illustrious career.billy 75 welsh [read more …] “Billy Coleman-Millstreet Rallying Legend”

The Millstreet Maestro

“Coleman Is The Name Rallying Is The Game“. Cork Man Billy Coleman Rally Driver / Farmer. The Millstreet Maestro is a 30 min documentary film on Billy Coleman aka The Millstreet Maestro who is recognised as Ireland’s greatest ever rally driver. The show was produced for RTE as part of their Townlands strand and aired in 2003.

There’s a short interview with the late mother Peg, his brother John and lots of familiar local faces.

update 2013-01-13: This is an old article, but the documentary which you can see above has only recently become available on youTube, so enjoy.
[read more …] “The Millstreet Maestro”

Billy Coleman Competing on the 1985 Tour of Corsica Rally


Millstreets Billy Coleman gave one of his best ever performances at World Rally Championship level on the 1985 Cosica Rally and went on to finish a fine 4th overall on what was a very tough event, we take a look back at a great video which was made at the time following the adventures of Billy and his Team on this famous event.

1985 Tour of Corsica – Focus on Billy Coleman

1985 Tour of Corsica-Focus on Billy Coleman from LTV2MILLSTREET on Vimeo.

Billy Coleman in-car Porsche 911 footage

For those going to the Killarney Rally of the Lakes which will be in Millstreet this Saturday (May 1st), here’s a couple of Billy Coleman videos of in-car footage from the 1986 Circuit of Ireland rally, and also one of Colin McRae on Molls Gap to get you in the mood:

[read more …] “Billy Coleman in-car Porsche 911 footage”

Billy Coleman – Tarmac Titan DVD

Billy Coleman was Irelands most successful rally driver ever. He first came to province in 1969 in rather tatty self-prepared green Mark I Escort (TIU 250) on the Circuit of Ireland when he took special stage time off the works Escort of Rodger Clark which was almost unheard of at the time. Billy was born in 1948 in Millstreet. From an early age he developed an interest in motor cars, confessing for the bug when he sat up on his fathers knee to drive the car when he was five years old. His father owned a garage in Milstreet and was the Ford Main Dealer which helped nurture Billy’s interest in cars.

Billy is famous in rallying circles all over Ireland for his exploits in the 70s and 80s, in Ireland, Britain, and even as far away as Poland, Corsica and Monte Carlo.

A DVD on Billy’s exploits in the Irish Tarmac Championship is available to buy from Murray Motorsport amongst others.

Also added below are loads photos of the cars that he drove.

There is also a great website with loads of info all about  Billy’s racing career.
[read more …] “Billy Coleman – Tarmac Titan DVD”