The rescheduled Kumho Rally of the Bay is set to go and organisers are expecting a bumper field for what will now be the final round of the 2013 NSW Rally Championship in Batemans Bay on 19 October.

The Kumho Rally of the Bay was originally set down for late June, but a significant East Coast low weather system brought huge rainfall to the Batemans Bay region and forced organisers the North Shore Sporting Car Club (NSSCC) to postpone the rally to Saturday 19th October.

With just under a month to run the rally has already attracted more than 61 entries with many more expected by close of entries on Monday 14 October.

According to Rally of the Bay manager, Colin Fletcher the new spring date has meant a lot of extra work but is set to attract a huge field and will be one of the highlights of the 2013 NSW Championship.

"The region's forestry roads are in great condition, the rally is ready to go and Batemans Bay is going to be a fantastic backdrop for the rally action," said Colin Fletcher.

"It is always a tough decision to postpone a rally but in this case not only was it absolutely necessary because of the weather but this cloud really has had a silver lining with better weather in prospect and a lot more entries.," he added.

The Kumho Rally of the Bay will comprise nine special stages covering 136 competitive kilometres across NSW's most revered rally stages in a compact format around Batemans Bay.

The format aims to attract more local attention to the event at the ceremonial start in Clyde Street, out on the stages and at the podium presentation at the Bay Waters Resort.

"We have worked hard to bring the rally to the people of Batemans Bay with a ceremonial start in the centre of town on Saturday morning, where visitors can get up close to the cars and crews, followed by two high-action spectator points within 15 kilometres of town," said Colin Fletcher.

"The October date for the rescheduled event will result in all the stages being run in daylight, and that makes it easier for spectators and crews " he said.

The Kumho Rally of the Bay will welcome some of the most exciting and spectacular rally cars and drivers to what is a mecca for Australian rallying.

The Rally of the Bay continues a tradition for NSSCC, which ran a round of the State Championship in the region for many years through the 1970s and until the early 2000s.

Run on arguably the best roads in all of New South Wales, the event follows the successful formula championed by Colin Fletcher who brought the event back to Batemans Bay in 2011.

As well as being the final round of the NSW Rally Championship, the Kumho Tyres Rally of the Bay is also a round of the NSW Clubman Rally Series and the Shannons Insurance ACT Regional Rally Series.

In addition the rally is the final round of the new three round series for classic rally cars, The Webstor East Coast Classic Rally Challenge, which will attract some of the most intertesting retro cars from the Golden era of rallying.

The organisers are also staging an introductory rally as part of the overall event which will give novice drivers and crews the chance to sample some of the best rally roads in the country without over stretching their resources or ability.

Rally Manager Colin Fletcher, one of the most experienced rally organisers in Australia along with Ian Bigg and Howard Grove have structured the rally to ensure both competitors and spectators enjoy a memorable experience.

"The Batemans Bay area has long been held in high regard for its rally roads and as a fantastic base for the sport of rallying and it is great to be able to continue the tradition of top level rallying at the Bay," said Colin Fletcher.

"The Bay area is renowned for its medium to fast hardwood forest roads that offer an unending challenge of re-entry corners and end of ridge bends that just flow from one corner to the next.

"We are thrilled to have the support of many great organisations including Kumho Tyres through its motorsport dealer Fsport, the NSW Government through its Sport and Recreation Community support project, 2EC and Power FM through the East Coast radio network, The Bay Waters Resort MRT Performance and numerous motels in the Bay area," Colin Fletcher said.

"Local promotion is being handled by the East Coast Radio Network through Radio 2EC and Power FM while the Bay Post is our local print media partner," he added.

The rally will kick off with a ceremonial start on Saturday morning 19 October at 10.00am with the northern end of Clyde Street coming alive with the colour and spectacle of the occasion beside the river, giving locals the opportunity to see the competitors and their array of rally cars up close.

After driving over the start ramp competitors will face 136 kilometres of competitive distance over nine challenging stages on some of the most flowing and truly enjoyable roads in Australia.

The first car is due to finish the rally around 7:00pm giving drivers and spectators plenty of action in broad daylight

"Spectators will have plenty of chances to view all the action, with a number of viewing points across the rally with live commentary and up to date results and rally news," said Colin Fletcher.

The service park will be located at Corrigans Beach Reserve in Batemans Bay allowing spectators to watch the crews fettling the rally machines at service breaks during the day.

Organisers are expecting more than 70 teams for the Kumho Rally of the Bay across all of the classes and categories with a wide variety of cars ranging from the Classics to the latest four wheel drive turbos.

In 2012 the Kumho Rally of the Bay brought close to half a million dollars into the Batemans Bay district with drivers from across Eastern Australia and 2013 promises to be the same.

For further media information contact: