Ray Wilson may hail from the small town of Pokeno, nestled in the Waikato region 53km south-east of Auckland, but most of his rallying of late has been in South Island events.
Wilson has been to the top echelons of New Zealand rallying, but nowadays it is more about having fun. He started out with a Mini before moving on to a 1300cc Starlet, in which he won his class in three consecutive Rally New Zealand.
Mazdas were next for Ray, and he competed in New Zealand, Malaysia and Perth. He finished second in the 1988 Asia–Pacific Championship before family took precedence. After that, he became involved in the business of developing, servicing and building more cars, specialising in Subarus.
Wilson first came south for an Eastern Southland Car Club Rally in 2018, when he tackled the Catlins Coast Rally in a car built in memory of a good friend and fellow competitor, Malcolm Stewart, and which carried a message about motor neurone disease and neurological disorders to raise awareness.
At the time Ray came south for the Catlins Rally in 2018, he said John Silcock was providing a base for the car in the South Island, allowing him to do South Island events, and that he enjoyed the challenge of rallies he hadn’t done before. That adage still holds true today with Ray.
“We evolved a plan and purchased a Subaru Impreza and rebuilt it before it came to the South Island. I love it down here, and then we splashed out and bought a van for parts. We use John Silcock’s place as a base, leave the car here, and fly in and out. There are lots of events down south that I have never done regularly.
“There is probably not a road in the North Island that I haven’t done, so this is a bit of a new adventure. I brought the Mazda to Canterbury in those days, and in doing Catlins with the Audi and Otago, it reinforced that it was a good plan.”
“I did Wyndham in 2023 and had a ball. It was a good event, and I wanted to come back.”
Currently, Ray is staying in Catlins with friends, and the car is in the shed here. “It has worked out well.”
“My expectations for Rally Southland are just about having some fun. I tend not to look at my results until the end. It is about friends, families and having a good time and having a smile at the end.”
All the cars and drivers in the Barry Robinson Memorial Rally Southland will be at Invercargill Central from 4pm on Friday, 17 July, where there will be an opportunity to get autographs and see the cars up close before the Ceremonial Start at 6pm.
The following day, the cars leave Wyndham at 8.30am, tackle seven high-speed Special Stages, and conclude at the Ascot Park Hotel in Invercargill at 3.45pm.
Header Image: Graeme Fraser
