Nostalgia in the Forest ….
For the third year in succession, this year’s Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally in Aberfeldy on Saturday 5th October, will form part of the Mintex British Historic Rally Championship, as well as our own national ARR Craib Scottish Rally Championship.
There is one difference this year. Instead of being the final round of the UK-national 8 round championship series, Perthshire will host the penultimate round, with this year’s final round being held in the south of England two weeks later (19th October).
According to rally organisers, Coltness Car Club, this promises to boost the entry list as competitors will still be chasing points before the final round decider.
Even so, last year the Colin McRae Stages provided a drama-filled finale to a thoroughly exciting three-way battle for the MSA British Historic Rally Championship. This year, as the series’ penultimate round it becomes a vital must-do event for crews in contention for both the overall championship and the individual classes.
“Penultimate rounds are all about pressure, especially in the MSA British Historic series, which is always closely fought on the final run-in to the championship finish line,” says BHRC Chairman, David Lucas. “The McRae Stages provide a really tough test for crews: the terrain is unlike anything else that Mintex MSA competitors encounter during the season, and consequently it is a great leveller.”
Three-times British Historic Rally Champion David Stokes (from Dursley) enjoys the annual challenge of the Mintex MSA series’ most northerly event. “What you get at the ‘Colin McRae’ is typical Scottish stages. The tracks are considerably narrower than Wales, and there are lots of little blind brows, which makes the stages extremely technical to drive. You have to be very tidy and stay on-line; slide wide at a corner on a Welsh rally and you can generally get away with it: do that in Scotland and you are in trouble.”
The sight of ‘Stoker’ flinging his MkI Ford Escort around the hills and glens of Perthshire will surely stir the memory cells of some of the county’s old-time rally followers. Especially those who can recall the exploits of Perth’s James Rae who won the Scottish Rally Championship title way back in 1970 and again in 1972 in a similar car. A treat for the ears as well as the eyes.
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