IRC Rally of Scotland preview : The challenges

The all-action Intercontinental Rally Challenge is back on gravel for the third running of RACMSA Rally of Scotland next week with six drivers still locked in combat for the coveted title.

With live coverage on Eurosport and extra points offer to the top 10 eligible finishers*, the event is set to emulate the high drama and thrilling battles witnessed on several rounds of the IRC this season. Such has been the close nature of the competition in 2011 that the winning margin on four events has been less than two seconds. Scotland’s IRC qualifier is set to be no different.

Rally of Scotland’s stages are some of the fastest and most spectacular on the calendar. Winding their way through the picturesque Perthshire and Stirlingshire countryside in the centre of the country, the stages use mainly closed-forest roads with blind crests, climbs and descents, sharp drops, tight junctions, off-camber corners and tree-lined straights all in store for the bulging entry.

The event gets underway with two runs through the Carron Valley stage on Friday night (7 October) following the ceremonial start at Stirling Castle. Carron Valley, which measures 8.36 kilometres in length, uses forest roads around Carron Reservoir close to Stirling and will provide an early test for the IRC crews, who will tackle the stage in the dark.

Saturday’s itinerary features three repeated stags in Perthshire: Craigvinean, Drummond Hill and Errochty. The finishes of Craigvinean and Drummond Hill have both undergone minor changes for 2011 with the last two kilometres of Craigvinean featuring several high-speed crests, while the second Drummond Hill run will be held after dark. The two passes through Errochty will be shown live on Eurosport and are set to attract an audience of millions around the world.

The county of Stirlingshire will host Sunday’s action. Following a third visit to Carron Valley, competitors will tackle two runs of the Loch Chon and High Corrie stages, which include sections of the old Loch Ard test, before the event draws to a close at Scone Palace where two short stages will be held prior to the ceremonial finish. Scone Palace, on the outskirts of Perth, is where kings of Scotland were crowned in centuries past.

On both days the permanent service park will be housed at Perth Airport although a remote service will be available in the town of Callander on Sunday to reduce the total liaison distance for the competitors while providing welcome respite following the first 25.81-kilometre High Corrie test, both runs of which will be covered live on Eurosport.

In addition to forming the penultimate round of the main IRC, Rally of Scotland counts for the new-for-2011 IRC Production Cup for R4 and Group N-specification four-wheel-drive machines, plus the IRC 2WD Cup for two-wheel-drive cars.

All crews competing on RACMSA Rally of Scotland will be eligible for the Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy, which is presented to the driver whose performance best embodies the spirit of the rallying legend. A panel of experts consisting of the IRC’s Motorsport Development Manager Jean-Pierre Nicolas, Gilbert Roy, the Director of Editorial and Programme Development at Eurosport Events, and Jim McRae, Colin’s father, choose the winner on each round of the IRC