How to start rallying

..edited by Russell Bulgin. 62pp. 12″ x 81/2. (Brands Hatch Publications Ltd, Brands Hatch Circuit, Fawkham, Dartford, Kent DA3 8NG. £3.00).

Beginners’ guides to active participation in motorsport seem to be all the rage at the moment. This, the sequel and cornpanion to BHP’s similar magazine-format volume on circuit racing, has been available “from all good newsagents” since the turn of the year.

All the credentials are right, because chapters are contributed by journalists from such close followers of rallying as Motoring News, as well as respected competitor and engineer Andy Dawson. They cover driving schools, tips on preparation and competition, navigating, marshalling and personal organisation — plus quick plugs for the Astra Nova Challenge, presumably in deference to to the publication’s sponsor, and the separate sport of rallycross.

The accent is on safety at all times, which is as it should be, although this does lead to some overlapping of themes, and therefore repetition. So much sound sense is written here that the text becomes rather dry in places, but every now and then the writers’ sense of fun comes shining through. No question: for just a few quid, this has to be the place to start for any budding rallyman. GT

Latest one-make title in the Shire Album series is No 228 on Aston Martin, by the AMOC archivist Alan Archer. With the help of 51 good pictures, it covers the story of these cars from 1919 to 1988, and is excellent value at £1.75. The publisher is Shire Publications Ltd of Princes Risborough is Buckinghamshire. WB