Off to a good start!

Hi All,
Apologies for the delay, its bein a busy few weeks once again!
We've had a lot of events going on over the recent weeks, coupled with my new job at M-Sport, so it has been exciting times. Firstly we had the launch of our new Fiesta S2000 at Belline Estate in Piltown. This was a fanastic day, and I must hand it to my PR manager Trevor McGrath for putting on a sterling show and gave the year a very professional start!
The day following the launch we took part in the forestry championship test day in Cork. It was a great day to learn the car and get mileage under my belt in the new mount, and I can assure you that I enjoyed it immensely!
Two days later we had our first tarmac test in the car prior to the Galway International Rally. All I can say is that I'm still in awe of what the car can do on a piece of road that I have driven all my rally cars on before. We spent a long day there testing all components and finding the best compound of Pirelli tyre, and I felt very confident with where we ended up.
And then we headed to Galway, for what was to be a tremendous weekend. A good solid start, led to a steadily increasing pace, resulting in 2nd overall, and the first non-WRC car home! It was a dream start to the year, in possibly the most difficult and challenging events of the year. It was nice to get the reward back for all the hard work everyone put in during the preceeding weeks and months, and it really sets up what looks to be a very good year!
Finally yesterday, we performed course car duties on my local rally, the Wille Loughman Memorial. The main aim was to get a good setup for the rapidly approaching Bulldog International rally in just three weeks now! I feel we achieved this, and I was really pleased with where we ended up in the end, and I would like to thank Barry Duggan and his team for allowing me to get perfect test miles in the new car.
Next weekend I am competing in the Mayo Stages rally, a round of the Dunlop National Rally Championship, and it will be Gareth's brother Dai that will Co-drive, as Gareth is on holidays, (well for some!). It will be the first time that I have done a round of this championship that my dad played such a vital role in over the last ten years, so It's nice to get out and do a round of a chamipionship that he won previously!
On a seperate note, work at M-Sport is going well, and I am slowly settling into my new surroundings, whilst learning more and more with each day. I'll keep you informed of anything new and exciting going on with my placement as time progresses!
For now, I must catch my flight back to Manchester for a short weeks work before Mayo next weekend!
All the best,
Craig