Vincent Bonner and Seamus McGettigan were the hometown heroes in 1983 as they became the first Donegal crew to win their home international. For much of the event however, it appeared Bertie Fisher would be the victor as he held a comfortable lead in his Opel Manta 400 up until Saturday afternoon when he left the road on Fanad Head. Bonner inherited the lead but a hard charging Austin McHale, recovering from gearbox problems on the Friday, overhauled him on on the final day only to be hit with three punctures on the final run of Atlantic Drive allowing Bonner and McGettigan a clear run to the finish in front on thousands of fans in Letterkenny.