The Royal Scottish Automobile Club (RSAC) Scottish Rally is the highlight of the

Scottish Rally Championship The Scottish Rally Championship is a rallying series run throughout Scotland over the course of a year, that comprises both gravel and closed surface rallies.http://www.scottishrallychampionship.co.uk/ SRC Homepage Points are awarded to the top ...

and the longest-standing rally event in Scotland, having been first contested in 1932. The event takes place in May or June of every year and the organisation claims that the warm weather and unique forest stages draw competitors from around the world. The rally has previously hosted a round of the

World Rally Championship The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...

, enjoying the status of being a round of the Rally Championship for Drivers in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

, and it also spent 26 years on the calendar of the

European Rally Championship The European Rally Championship (officially FIA European Rally Championship) is an rallying, automobile rally competition held annually on the European continent and organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The champions ...

but in recent years it has been limited to being a round of the

History

The first Scottish rally took place from 4 to 9 July 1932 on a route of approximately through Scotland and England and consisted of six days of competition with participants beginning the rally at one of six start points in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

and

Droitwich Droitwich Spa (often abbreviated to Droitwich ) is an historic spa town in the Wychavon district in northern Worcestershire, England, on the River Salwarpe. It is located approximately south-west of Birmingham and north-east of Worcester. The ...

. The first day involved competitors travelling from their chosen starting point before all rendezvousing in Scotland later in the event and finally ending in Edinburgh. Unlike in modern rallies where the object is to complete the course in as short a time as possible, competitors were set an average speed that they were expected to maintain on each stage. Points were awarded for meeting this target, the condition of the car at the end of the stage, and even for the number of occupants of each vehicle. There were also tests of driver and vehicle such as accelerating and braking challenges and "kerb driving" (driving as close as possible to the kerb without touching it). There were even dances organised in the evenings to allow drivers to socialise. There was no single overall winner of the rally but G.F. Dennison (driving a Riley) was crowned champion of the small car category, while the large car category was won by J.S. Couldrey in a

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...

. There were also control prizes awarded for the best performer from each of the six starting points. It was not until 1961 that a driver was awarded the overall winner's title, John Melvin being the first driver to receive that honour. The event used to enjoy International status, however since 1988, as the

moved to include only one event per country, it has been reduced to a National event in favour of the

RAC Rally Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calen ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. Over the years, the event has been based in towns and cities throughout

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

including

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

and

Dunoon Dunoon (; gd, Dùn Omhain) is the main town on the Cowal peninsula in the south of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located on the western shore of the upper Firth of Clyde, to the south of the Holy Loch and to the north of Innellan. As well ...

. However, since 1997 it has been centered in

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...

in South West Scotland. The Scottish Rally formed part of the

from 1970 until 1996, but arguably its biggest moment came in 1978 when it formed part of the Cup for Rally Drivers. There was no World Championship title for rally drivers at this point, but the title was the precursor to today's

drivers' champion. Notable winners of the Scottish Rally include

Roger Clark Roger Albert Clark, MBE (5 August 1939 – 12 January 1998) was a British rally driver during the 1960s and '70s, and the first competitor from his country to win a World Rally Championship (WRC) event when he triumphed at the 1976 RAC Rally. ...

Hannu Mikkola Hannu Olavi Mikkola (24 May 1942 − 25 February 2021) was a Finnish champion world rally driver. He was a seven-time winner of the 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland and won the RAC Rally in Great Britain four times. Career Mikkola's rally career s ...

Stig Blomqvist Stig Lennart Blomqvist (born 29 July 1946) is a retired Swedish rally driver. He made his international breakthrough in 1971. Driving an Audi Quattro for the Audi factory team, Blomqvist won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in 1984 an ...

Ari Vatanen Ari Pieti Uolevi Vatanen (; born 27 April 1952) is a Finnish rally driver turned politician and a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1999 to 2009. Vatanen won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in 1981 and the Paris Dakar Rally ...

Tony Pond Tony Pond (23 November 1945 – 7 February 2002) was a British rally driver. Career His first outings in a rally car were on the then regular (in the early '60s) Saturday night road rallies in the home counties around London, driving a Mini C ...

, Malcolm Wilson,

Richard Burns Richard Alexander Burns (17 January 1971 – 25 November 2005) was an English rally driver who won the 2001 World Rally Championship, having previously finished runner-up in the series in 1999 and 2000. He also helped Mitsubishi to the world ...

and

Colin McRae Colin Steele McRae, (5 August 1968 – 15 September 2007) was a Scottish rally driver. He was the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Champion, and in 1995 became the first British driver and the youngest person to win the World Rally Championship ...

. The most successful drivers in the event's history are Roger Clark and

David Bogie David Bogie (born 31 July 1987) is a British rally driver from Dumfries. He has held the title of Scottish Rally Champion for a record breaking six years from 2009 until 2013 and 2022. At the end of season 2011, he was both Scottish and Britis ...

, who tied Clark's record of six wins in 2019.

List of winners

A full list of rally winners from the first time a single overall winner was recognised in 1961 until the present day is shown in the table below, along with their co-drivers and the car being driven.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official Rally Website

RSAC Official Website
1932 establishments in Scotland Scottish Rally Championship Rally competitions in the United Kingdom Motorsport in Scotland Sports competitions in Scotland Motorsport competitions in the United Kingdom European Rally Championship rallies