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Fintan McGrady - 2009 in the driving seat McGrady Insurance Bishopscourt Stages 2009 McGrady Insurance Bishopscourt Stages 2008

Circuit of Ireland National Rally, April 2009

Congratulations to Fintan for a great run in the 2009 Circuit.  This year the stages took place in the South Down and South Armagh area.  A fast pace was set from the off and competition in Fintan’s 2.0 litre, 2 wheel drive class was fierce from the off.  With Mark Hanna calling the notes the distinctive McGrady Insurance Mark II was in the thick of the action right until the end of the two day event.  But for a mis-fire and a problem with his diff the final result may have been different but Derry’s Mark II expert Camillus Bradley eventually came out on top in the class, with Michael Conlon second and  Fintan and Mark third.  That left them in an excellent 8th place overall, taking some notable scalps along the way.

 

 

Ulster International, August 2009

Another top 10 killer performance by Fintan and the modified RWD brigde.  The 2.0 litre boys had to give way to the superior power of the 2.5 men, with the bigger engined cars working really well from the off.  Fintan made a couple of errors of judgement during the night stages, without which his result would have been better.  Nonetheless the target to finish inside the top 10 tarmac stages is continually being met and the McGrady Insurance Mark II is improving with every outing.

 

Moneyglass Rally Time Trial, September 2009

Another great day behind the wheel saw Fintan take 5th overall and 1st in class.  This was his first time on the concrete lanes of the Higgins Estate and gave him another opportunity to get some valuable stage miles under his belt.

 

Wicklow, October 2009

A damp day in this classic event provided much entertainment but Fintan and new co-driver for the day. John Rowan, excelled.  Thinking there were slow out of the blocks it was a surprise to find out there were top of the 2.0 litre pile and 5th overall after the first set of stages.  However this impressive run was not to last as the car landed heavily on the second last stage and sheered steering arm nuts.  Back to the drawing board to get ready for 2010!   

21 Years and still going strong
Linda McQuoid recently completed 21 years service with McGrady Insurance.  She joined the company as a school leaver and hasn’t looked back.  Her years of experience are invaluable and we look forward to Linda being part of the company for many more years to come.  She is pictured with the founder of the company, Mr Malachy McGrady receiving a gift as a thank you gesture for her loyalty and commitment.

Glengormley's Derek McGarrity and James McKee raced away with their second successive victory at the McGrady Insurance Stages on Saturday, round two of the Hankook MSA N.I. Stage Rally Championship!

Bishopscourt Race Circuit hosted round two if the Northern Ireland Rally Championship on 14th March.  The event, sponsored by McGrady Insurance and organised by the Ballynahinch & District Motor Club attracted a full capacity entry of 120 crews.  The event also welcomed the camera crews of UTV’s RPM Motorsport.

There was an action-packed start to the day when Raymond Johnston's car caught fire, and Eoin McErlean overturned into a field! Thankfully, marshals were able to extinguish the fire before it was too late but the incidents forced organisers to award most crews nominal times for the rally opener. At least that worked in favour of McErlean, who was able to get back on all four wheels and complete the event!

At the top of the leaderboard, there were no such troubles for Derek McGarrity. He lead from start to finish in his Subaru Impreza WRC to make it two wins in a row at Bishopscourt.  Rivals Connor McCloskey and Francis Regan made a wrong tyre choice for the opening stage and spun their Focus, immediately handing McGarrity a 13 second advantage and he kept up his pace all day to come out on top by almost half a minute.

Omagh's Seamus Leonard and John McCafferty took the final podium position in their Subaru Impreza WRC. As a newcomer to the Hankook Championship, Leonard is building his experience of circuit based events, so third was a satisfying result for the former Irish Tarmac Group N champion.

There was fiery start to the Sunoco Fuels Group N category when Raymond Johnston's car caught fire on the opening stage. A seemingly harmless incident at the first corner quickly caused round one winner Johnston some major concerns.

With Johnston out of the event, a new name was destined to top the Sunoco Fuels Group N podium. Reigning champion Cathal Rogers was hotly tipped to take the spoils but he made a few bad tyre choices which dropped him down the order, while John McGlaughlin also had troubles of his own.

Instead, the battle went down to the wire between three men. Mark Massey, Alan Burrows and John Walker. Only a handful of seconds separated the three crews but in the end, victory and ninth overall were awarded to Mark Massey and Alan Purdy. Donagh Kelly and Kevin Flanagan finished just three seconds adrift in 10th overall, while Alan and Gavin Burrows were a further two seconds behind.

There was another close battle in the Superdrive two-wheel-drive category between three crews. In a tussle that went right down to the wire, Trevor Moore, Camillus Bradley and event sponsor Fintan McGrady were all fighting for honours in their immaculately prepared Mark IIs.

It was Bradley who entered the final stage with the upper-hand but he caught another competitor on the test
and lost vital seconds. Trevor Moore and Ray Fitzpatrick capitalised and a stunning time saw them nab the category victory by three seconds from Bradley and Danny O'Neill, with Fintan McGrady and Gary Rodgers taking a close third.
On 8th March 2008 the McGrady Insurance Stages took place in Bishopscourt in round two of the Pacenotes MSA Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship.  The competitors tackled 6 stages, representing 40 miles.  Derek McGarrity topped the podium piloting a Subaru Impreza WRC S12b, winning by more than half a minute from Connor McCloskey and Francis Regan.

McCloskey narrowly missed out on victory at round one at Kirkistown, which went in Sean Devine's favour, but this result was enough to see him lead the championship.  The expected challenge from round one winner Devine failed to materialise at the Bishopscourt event. A stage one excursion after the infamous jump saw him burrow a hole in a row of tyres. He escaped with frontal damage but later retired after stage three.

Devine's demise left Glenn Allen and Raymond Johnston battling for third overall.  With one stage remaining Johnston held the advantage by 1.5 seconds. A no holds barred attack was on the cards for both men through the final stage.  Despite Allen getting caught up in some traffic and finishing the stage with smoke billowing from underneath his car, thanks to collecting one of the circuit's tyres, the reigning champion managed to seal the final podium spot after Johnston spun off the road!

Early Group N leaders, Alan Carmichael and Margo Christie, had to settle for seventh overall at the finish. They had been running well up the order but an 'off' on stage four saw them lose more than half a minute. A great recovery drive followed to see them net seventh overall, ahead of Mark and Cormac Doyle who completed the top eight.

In the ever competitive Superdrive two-wheel-drive category, James Kennedy and John Rowan emerged victorious for the second event in succession. They battled throughout the day with Rodney White, event sponsor Fintan McGrady and Bob Riddles but Kennedy eventually emerged as the victors by a narrow margin.


Professional qualifications
Over the last number of years McGrady Insurance has taken pro-active steps towards all staff members gaining professional qualifications.  All staff have undertaken and passed Chartered Insurance Institute exams at some level.  Rhonda Flynn, Fiona Cunningham and Colin Degan became the most recent staff to attain their Chartered Insurance Institute Certificate.  They, along with a number of others are progressing towards the next level of qualification.  On passing his latest module Colin commented “With the support of the company I have been able to sit the CII exams to enhance my day to day knowledge and demonstrate to our clients that they can trust us to advise them professionally.  It has given me more confidence when dealing with clients and I want to keep pushing to gain further qualifications”.  Rhonda, Fiona and Colin are pictured along with some of the other McGrady Insurance staff who have successfully gained accreditations from the CII.
Accident & Breakdown Recovery Service McGrady Insurance Bishopscourt Stages 2007

McGrady Insurance have linked up with CRASH Services to offer motorists an innovative 24 hour Accident & Breakdown Recovery Service through the UK and Ireland.   We have been working together since January 2008 to help motorists in times of need.  As Fintan McGrady explains; “McGrady Insurance has been in the insurance business for over 40 years and are now serving the third generation of some families.  We have large number of motor policyholders who insure with us because they appreciate the local service we provide.  If our clients are involved in an accident, we introduce them to CRASH as they are the specialists in Accident Management”.

  “CRASH aims to take the hassle away from any accident situation.  They manage the claim on behalf of our clients and liaise with insurers to get them back on the road as quickly as possible

 “In addition to the claims handling service, we can also offer an additional Breakdown service at a reasonable price when customers take out a motor policy with us.   Motorists want the extra reassurance that Breakdown cover offers.  The service covers any mechanical/ electrical fault or breakdown as a result of an accident.  If your vehicle breaks down at your home or any location in the UK and Ireland, a recovery operator will be dispatched to assist you with the hour.  The Service is available to any private or commercial vehicle up to 7.5 tonnes.”

 The product has further been enhanced in 2009 to include cover for punctures, lost keys (or locked in vehicle) and fuel shortages.  This is in addition to Homestart Assistance and Roadside Assistance.  What’s more, you can use this service up to three times during the period of your annual motor policy anywhere in Ireland and UK.

 We can offer the McGrady Insurance/CRASH Services claims handling service and Breakdown/Recovery service for just Ł20.   At that price can you afford to be without it?  Contact us today for full details.

 
Cookstown's Glenn Allen has finally broken his duck in the Pacenotes MSA Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship, as he secured victory at Saturday's McGrady Insurance Bishopscourt Stages Rally!

With Damien Connolly calling the notes, Allen steered his Toyota Corolla WRC to the top of the podium and emerged victorious by just 9.7 seconds. In a day long battle, it was a closely fought affair which went down to the wire between the Cookstown crew and Dromara father and son team, Denis and Stuart Biggerstaff.

The battle for production category honours, also known as Group N, was just as intense. The spectacular Richard Cathcart had returned in his Subaru, and he fought tooth and nail with Jim Crozier, throughout the day. Fastest on the opening stage, Cathcart and navigator William Mavitty grabbed the advantage ahead of Kieron Graffin and Liam Reid, while Crozier and Laura Marley were a close third.

The event sponsor was in the thick of the action in this category as Fintan and Cormac McGrady gave Camillus Bradley and Danny O'Neill a run for their money.  

Telephone: 028 4461 5933   Fax: 028 4461 3838
McGrady Insurance is a trading name of McGrady Ltd., which is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority