Rally driver Dominic Hodge, of Bampton, successfully swapped to the co-driver's seat last weekend, when he navigated his own Telserve and Redstone Telecom-backed Peugeot 205 to second overall at the BP Motors 'Get It Sideways' Stages Rally, with former national champion Matt Barker at the wheel.

The temporary role reversal came about due to Hodge repaying a favour to Barker, who had stepped in at the last minute to navigate for him on the previous weekend.

The venue at Down Ampney, Gloucestershire, had not been used for rallying for several years, and the fast perimeter roads around the former airfield were made treacherous by slippery mud on the concrete surface. Even so, Barker and Hodge set consistent top three times throughout the nine-stage event.

Their West Midlands Motorsport-prepared car never missed a beat all day and they came home 36 seconds behind local expert Andy Corner in a much more powerful Peugeot 205, and beating several Subaru and Mitsubishi four-wheel drive cars in the process.

Hodge, who was pleased to have adapted well to his role on the day, said: "I hadn't navigated for many years, and it felt strange at first. Co-driving is all about reading the route ahead for the driver and checking stage times, so I was really busy. But I thoroughly enjoyed it."

He was also very impressed by Barker's pace, and said: "Matt gave me a valuable lesson in how to drive fast today. It shows exactly what can be done with a well-prepared, reliable car. He held a perfectly controlled slide through the corners, used every last inch of road, and often found grip where you would never expect it. Trying to get somewhere near to his level of expertise in the future gives me a real goal to aim for with my own driving."