'Carnage' forecast by Scottish rally organiser

Published on Thursday 19 November 2009 23:02

WHILE the rest of Scotland battened down the hatches yesterday as the torrential rain and howling winds battered the country, and government bodies warned motorists not to drive, Alister McRae and some of the world's fastest drivers were embarking on RallyScotland.

The final round of the Intercontinental Rally Championship, which covers 500 miles over two days through some of Europe's most demanding forest stages, severely tested the organisers even before the first cars enter today's stages. "It's going to be carnage tomorrow," admitted Iain Campbell, who is Clerk of the Course and has master-minded the event's route.

"The mud is basically three or four inches thick through most of the five stages the cars will tackle on Friday. Saturday's stages through the Trossachs should be slightly better, but Friday is going to be horrific."

It's not exactly the image EventScotland, one of the race's partners, had, when they attracted the rally to Scotland, the aim of "showing the countryside of Scotland in all her spectacular beauty." And with more storms forecast tomorrow afternoon, there must already be fears that the live helicopter-based television pictures scheduled to be beamed via Eurosport to around 50 million homes in Europe will not go ahead.

Lanark's McRae, the 38-year-old who now lives in Perth, Western Australia, and is one of the favourites for the rally, is competing in an international

event in Scotland for the first time since he won the Scottish Rally with Volkswagen in 1998.

"Doesn't seem right, having to travel 10,000 miles to compete in your home event," the former British Rally champ laughed as he took a break from overseeing the preparation of his Proton Satria S2000.

McRae, one of the favourites for the 500-mile TW Steel-backed event which has attracted 70 crews, faces tough competition from the Peugeot of newly-crowned IRC champion, Dungannon's Kris Meeke.

Meeke established a 4.0-second gap over the Skoda of Darlington's Guy Wilks after the opening two superspecial stages at Scone Palace. McRae heads into the forests today fourth, 12.4s adrift of Meeke and 0.7s behind the Peugeout of third-placed Adam Gould.