Local driver Andrew Graves, who last year came second with his son Hayden as co-driver, took up the supporting role for another driver this time and his team ultimately finished in fourth place.
"We were third until the second-to-last stage and then we dropped a bit of time to a fellow competitor," he said.
Graves was co-driving for Christchurch’s Josh Marston and said the pair missed out on third place by only 2.8sec.
His son was co-driving for Jack Stokes.
Stokes and the younger Graves were 10.5sec behind first place on day one.
However, mid-afternoon on day two, they got a puncture, which caused some issues with the car, and they ended up not finishing.
"It’s really sad to see, but it’s really awesome to see they’ve got pace and they have gelled together as a team," his father said.
Reigning national champion Ben Hunt was the overall winner.
Graves said getting a punctured tyre was unlucky, but they did happen often in the forestry stages, where there were more sharp rocks.
Graves said he worked with his son in the leadup to the big day, but neither took their eyes off the competition on race day.
"As soon as our helmets go on, we’re competing against each other," he said.
He also said it was nice to see his son do well separately "mixing it up with the big boys".
The duo will be competing against each other again soon in the Timaru rally, and across the country all year, before the final NZ Championship rally in Whangarei, in November.
"Onwards and upwards," Graves said.
