St. John’s, Newfoundland - Targa Newfoundland roared to a start with the wave of the flag at the ceremonial start this morning at St. John’s City Hall.

 

Drivers and co-drivers from across Canada, the United States, and as far away as Germany are competing on 18 teams this year. They include competitors from four states - Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, and New Jersey – and five provinces - British Columbia, Ontario, New Brunswick, PEI, and across Newfoundland and Labrador.  

 

Over the next six days, teams will race from eastern to north central Newfoundland and back again covering about 2000 km (1240 miles) including about 500 km of stages closed to public traffic. The rally starts along the Atlantic shore with teams challenging the twisty roads through the communities of Witless Bay and Bay Bulls. 

 

Witless Bay is the site of the Prologue, a non-scored leg that allows teams to get used to the rally course and hone their navigating skills. The first scored stage at speed occurs in Bay Bulls.

 

“We’re excited to be back in the Southern Shore area for the first time in over 20 years,” says Robert Giannou, founder of Targa Newfoundland. “These beautiful communities were part of the inaugural rally back in 2002.”  

 

Targa Newfoundland, the only internationally recognized targa rally in North America, runs until Sept. 19 in communities across eastern and north central Newfoundland. 

 

2024

 

Witless Bay (Prologue, non-scored), Bay Bulls 

 

Cape Shore, St. Bride’s, Cape St. Mary’s, Long Harbour, Gander  

 

Glenwood, Bobby’s Cove, Pleasantview, Point Leamington, Leading Tickles, Glovers Harbour, Appleton 

 

Eastport, Happy Adventure, Salvage, Burnside, Port Blandford 

 

Weybridge, Hickman’s Harbour, Lower Lance Cove and Petley 

 

Conception Harbour, Colliers, Marysvale, Turks Gut, Georgetown, Brigus 

 

Be a smart spectator. Think Safety.  

Stand at least 15 metres from the road.  

Never stand on the outside of a turn. 

Choose high ground.

Never stand behind red tape. 

Always stand, do not sit down to watch, AND Tell others how to stay safe. 

 

During the week-long rally, Targa will be collecting food bank donations for the 

Community Food Sharing Association at evening car shows at Hickman Chevrolet dealerships in St. John’s (Sept. 14), Gander (Sept. 15 and 16) and Clarenville (Sept. 17 and 18) as well as lunch stops in other communities throughout the week. People attending are encouraged to bring non-perishable food donations.  

 

85 Kenmount Road 

Saturday, Sept. 14 

6:30-8:30 p.m. 

 

201 Airport Boulevard  

Sunday, Sept. 15 and Monday, Sept. 16 

6:30-8:30 p.m. 

 

16 Shoal Harbour Drive  

Tuesday, Sept. 17 and Wednesday, Sept. 18 6:30-8:30 p.m.  

 

Owned and operated by Newfoundland International Motorsports Limited, Targa Newfoundland is one of only three internationally recognized Targa motorsports events in the world.

 

Since 2002, Targa Newfoundland, the ultimate tarmac rally in North America, has attracted professional and amateur racers from around the world. This year’s event runs Sept. 12-19, 2024. Competitors will cover over 2000 km (about 1240 miles) across the island of Newfoundland including about two dozen towns and outports.  

 

 

2024

 

2024

This past weekend, the Eastern Canadian Rally Championship (ECRC) presented the seventh of nine 2024 season rounds, as part of the Rallye Défi Petite Nation, in the Outaouais region of Quebec. The event, which was holding its 32nd edition, started under rainy skies on Saturday morning before seeing the dirt and gravel roads slowly dry up, with the sun making its appearance towards the end of the day to celebrate the success of Ontarians Jonathan Drake and Ian Lantz, who were victorious by a handful of seconds ahead of Quebeckers Sébastien Clark and Patrick Lévesque. In 2 wheel-drive, Nicolas Laverdière was triumphant, marking the first series victory for co-driver Nicolas Fouteret, of France.

 

This 2024 edition of the Rallye Défi experienced plenty of changes on the leaderboard and the registered ECRC competitors were often the instigators. Fourth overall in the Black Bear Rally last month, Jonathan Drake and Ian Lantz were this time rewarded for their consistency.  At the wheel of their Subaru Impreza, they were able to evade all of the race’s challenges, while under constant pressure from three Quebec teams, also driving Subarus, who finished less than a minute behind. 

 

Sébastien Clark and Patrick Lévesque finished in second place, just 3.9 seconds back, in the closest margin seen between first and second spots this season in ECRC. The podium was rounded out by young 16-year-old prodigy Vincent Lalande. Overall winner of the Rallye Vallée de Beauce last May, Lalande was this time co-driven by Amélie Bélanger. They finished 18.3 seconds behind Drake/Lantz.

 

Another previous overall winner earlier this season, (at the Shannonville Rally Stages), Olivier David and Leah Brisset, finished in 4th, 49 seconds from top spot. In keeping with the theme of season winners, fifth place went to Ontarians Trevor Pougnet and Ryan Rouleau, who were first overall at the Black Bear Rally. In the end, the top five teams in the ECRC standings were separated by just one minute and twenty-three seconds.  Pougnet/Rouleau were also winners of the Production 4 wheel-drive class. 

 

Gabriel Monette and Alexandre St-Arnaud (also in a Subaru) finished sixth overall, despite experiencing ignition issues towards the end of the rally, ahead of 2 wheel-drive winners Nicolas Laverdière and Nicolas Fouteret in a Ford Fiesta. This team beat their closest competitors in class by over 7 minutes and finished first in Production 2WD.  For Nicolas Laverdière, this was his second victory in 2024 while Nicolas Fouteret earned his first win with Laverdière after not completing his first Canadian rally last May with Vincent Trudel. The 28-year-old Frenchman recorded his first victory as a co-driver since Rallye Charlemagne (France) in 2022. This is also the first time a duo from Canada/France has won in the ECRC since the creation of the championship. 

 

Frédéric Gagné/Alexandre Bessette (Mitsubishi Lancer), Andrew Benson/Brandon Pace (Subaru Impreza) and William Pardiac/Manuel Arsenault (Subaru Impreza) completed the ECRC overall top 10. Nephew of 10-time Canadian champion Antoine L’Estage, Charles L’Estage, co-driven by Simon Levac in a Ford Focus, finished second in 2WD in his inaugural outing at the Rallye Défi. Jonathan Desgroseilliers/Audrey Godin (BMW 128i) finished in third. Twenty-five of the 29 ECRC teams completed the event. 

 

The Rallye Défi Petite Nation continues this Sunday, September 8th, with stages uniquely for the teams registered in the North American Rally Cup and the Canadian Rally Championship. 

 

The Eastern Canadian Rally Championship (ECRC) is comprised of nine rounds this season, spread out between Ontario and Quebec. The next event will take place on November 2nd and 3rd as part of the Rallye de Charlevoix, in La Malbaie.

 

For more information, please visit the website www.ecrc-crec.ca

 

Targa Newfoundland has a safety record second to none and goes to great lengths to keep everyone involved with the rally safe. Safety is our top priority. Targa Newfoundland has been running for over 20 years, and we take pride in our enviable safety record, one of the best in our sport. There have been no major incidents in the last three events. The 2024 rally runs September 12-19.

 

“Targa has worked hard to achieve an extremely low incident record,” said Targa Newfoundland President Joe Dowden. “We do everything possible to minimize risk. We provide training for the teams, marshals and volunteers, carefully select and inspect the stages, and keep communities well informed. We want everyone involved, including competitors, marshals, volunteers and spectators to have a safe and fun event.” 

 

Targa organizers choose the stages carefully and drive them multiple times in advance to identify any potential issues and then include those in the route book. Speeds are limited for each division and the technical advisor inspects each car to ensure they are safe to compete. The racing only happens on the closed sections of road. Competitors adhere to posted limits for the transit sections. Spectator areas of the closed stages are taped off to keep people at a safe distance and rally officials drive the course ahead of the racing to ensure they do. Targa will have medical personnel on site to respond should anything happen.

 

All competitors, drivers and co-drivers, must wear approved helmets. Fire resistant racing suits are required in Targa 1 and 2 and recommended for other divisions. Roll bars are required for open cars in all divisions and recommended for all cars in Targa 1. Vehicles in Targa 2, the fastest division, must have a roll cage. All vehicles must be equipped with a fire extinguisher(s) and safety triangles.

 

The specially created Course Familiarization Program (CFP) prepares drivers and co-drivers before the rally begins. The Targa Driving Skills Review and Practice Session on Day One is mandatory for all teams new to the event. Returning teams are welcome but do not have to attend. Our course is designed for this event to teach each team member their roles and interrelation with each other, hone their teamwork, test their skills, and help them become comfortable in their car.

 

Day Two is the Stage Review and First Responders and Competitors Meeting, which is mandatory for all teams. During this full-day session, all teams come together to understand the course and the communities they will visit. Each stage is explained in detail, with a focus on their roles and duties as a first responder team that arrives at the scene of an incident. They will also be introduced to the event officials, who will brief the participants on start and finish protocols, good sportsmanship, and the Targa behaviour expectations.

Since 2002, Targa Newfoundland has attracted professional and amateur racers from around the world.  Owned and operated by Newfoundland International Motorsports Limited, Targa Newfoundland is one of only three internationally recognized Targa motorsports events in the world and the only tarmac rally in North America. This year’s event runs Sept. 12-19, 2024.  Visit the Targa Newfoundland website for more information about the event including the stages.