Co-drivers in the World Rally Championship are a tough bunch as CarShowroom.com.au discovered when we strapped-in alongside Australian driver Chris Atkinson in his Hyundai i20 WRC car for a run through one of the stages used in last weekend’s Rally Australia in Coffs Harbour.
Flying through the air at 180km/h on the dirt forest trail, the Hyundai i20 WRC is in the air, up to a metre from the ground for around 50 metres and when than jump is sideways, the strain on the neck when landing reminds you this is not just another day in the office.
We did it just once, but for Atkinson’s Belgian co-driver Stephane Prevot, this claustrophobic race seat and six-point harness was his office for three days in WRC events.
For safety, co-drivers sit low, right on the floor of the Hyundai i20 WRC – so low you can’t actually see the road in front, but co-drivers get into a rhythm reading their pace-notes to the driver so they only need the occasional visual reference point.
But for us it was the perfect place to watch Atkinson at work as he man-handled the 224kW/400Nm turbocharged 1.6-litre rally car and its six-speed transmission and hydraulic hand-brake (used to induce oversteer to slide around hairpin bends).
For much of the stage used for our run, Atkinson was in top (sixth) gear at astonishing speeds but just as impressive was the stopping power of the Hyundai i20 WRC – the 300mm Brembo disc brakes and Michelin LTX Force tyres arresting speed at an incomprehensible rate on the slippery dirt surface.
Extracting the most from the all-wheel-drive WRC cars is an art in itself – oversteer corrected by nailing the gas pedal so the front wheels pull the car straight (hence the amazing attitude these cars take when cornering).
Without doubt Atkinson is one of the world’s best WRC drivers and all of Australia is hoping he secures a seat with the Hyundai team for the full 2015 championship.
This was a day to remember.
