Media Release
4 December 2013 – Immediate release
Entries Open As epay Silver Fern Rally Takes Shape
Entries are open and the venues for the overnight stops on the epay Silver Fern Rally have been announced as the 2014
version of the iconic event takes shape.
The event returns to the South Island of New Zealand next year where it will traverse some of the world's most beautiful
scenery after starting from Picton on Saturday 8 November 2014. That night competitors will stay in Blenheim before
crossing the island the following day to overnight in Westport on Sunday night.
Competitors will then head back across the island on Monday to spend the following evening in Christchurch. Timaru,
Dunedin and Invercargill are the destinations for the next three nights before the rally travels into the magnificent
southern lakes area with a Friday night stopover in Wanaka. The rally ends on Saturday 15 November in Queenstown.
With entries open following completion of Part 1 of the event regulations and the route taking shape organisers have
also confirmed that the rally will remain a blind event in 2014, in keeping with the philosophy to recreate the events
of old and how things used to be. "This has come about as a result of a questionnaire to past and present competitors
which showed they favoured no special stage notes for this event," say's Gary Smith, the Chairman of Directors of Silver
Fern Rally Management Ltd. "The competitors have spoken and we continue to respect their wishes and look forward to
another great event. While this result will not please everyone, we hope that along with increased detail of the stages
in the route books, and on route warnings, that the event will continue to grow with both local and international
competitors looking forward to driving a true marathon rally event in the way they were originally conceived."
The epay Silver Fern Rally 2014 consists of the New Zealand Silver Fern Historic Trophy for 2-wheel-drive cars that
comply with various historic criteria as listed in the event regulations and the New Zealand Silver Fern Challenge which
caters for 2-wheel-drive cars that comply with the Motorsport New Zealand Schedule A safety requirements. Within each of
those sections there are various classes.
The rally will cover 1250 kilometres of competitive Special Stages over eight days and organisers are promising some
new stages and new locations along with some roads that have been used previously but in differing configurations. The
epay Silver Fern Rally provides competitors with a fantastic rally experience amidst some awe inspiring scenery, .
The rally enjoys support from epay, Malcove, Kiwimaps and Brita Safety.
ENDS