Brendan Reeves and Rhianon Gelsomino have continued on their winning way, taking victory in today's Heat 1 of the Lightforce Rally SA, round 4 of the Kumho Tyre Australian Rally Championship (ARC) by 2 minutes 10.7 seconds.

Competing in Reeves' Subaru WRX, the pair set the pace early, winning the first four stages of the day, increasing the lead as each stage progressed.
With five daylight stages complete, they held a 32 second lead going into the two night stages.

The heavy rain that the Mt Crawford region of South Australia experienced on Thursday and Friday had, thankfully, ceased but the roads were very slippery and caused a number of drivers to come unstuck.

There was no such misfortune for Reeves who drove a sensible rally mindful of the road conditions but he did strike some minor trouble on the first of two night stages when he drowned the car's air cleaner in a watersplash.

An exhaust gasket leak - which melted the steering rack boot and sway bar rubber - also caused some concerns but he and Gelsomino were able to push on and take the win.

Reeves' closest rivals on the day, Simon Evans and Ben Searcy, also driving a Subaru WRX, hit a kangaroo on the way to the start of the final stage, damaging their car. They could only manage to drive through the stage slowly and record a finishing time.

"We've had a good day and enjoyed being back on the South Australian roads," Reeves said.

"Whilst it wasn't totally drama free, we stayed on the road and were able to manage the niggling problems we had towards the end of the day.

"The mechanics will fix the exhaust leak tonight in service and we'll be ready to go again tomorrow.

Lightforce Rally SA resumes tomorrow (Sunday) with another six stages in the Mt. Crawford region.

Lightforce Rally SA, Heat 1 results
1. Brendan Reeves/Rhianon Gelsomino, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti;
2. Molly Taylor/Bill Hayes, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, +2:10.7;
3. Brad Markovic/Glenn Macneall, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, +2:12.7.