17/11/2013 Scottish Rally Championship

Hello and welcome to the ARR Craib Scottish Rally Championship 2013.

The action in the second half of the season began up in Elgin

with the Speyside Stages.

It was a chance for defending champion David Bogie

to extend his lead in this year's title race.

But Euan Thorburn, who won the event last year,

and the likes of Barry Groundwater, Donnie Macdonald

and Chris Cawley would all be snapping at his heels.

The Speyside event is unique in the Championship.

It takes place over nine short, sharp stages, which means

if you lose time, you've got very little chance of making it back.

A good start is essential.

Stonehaven's Barry Groundwater was lying third in the Championship

and he was looking forward to the compact tests.

Short stages, you can tend to put a bit more effort into it

because it's not such a long run, so you can drive

a bit harder for a shorter time, a bit more of a sprint type stage.

Title favourite David Bogie was going for his fifth win in this event,

with his main challenge set to come from Euan Thorburn.

Nine stages in total,

so it's about making as little mistakes as possible

and that's what we'll try and do.

We're taking each round as it comes

and we need to get a good result in each round, so...

We won here last year. Another win today would be ideal.

Bogie and Thorburn were both running Ford Focus World Rally cars, so

they should have had a big advantage over the rest of the field.

But a good showing at the previous round in Dumfries had convinced

former Scottish title winner Dave Weston from Aberdeen

to register for the Championship.

He, too, would be using a Ford Focus WRC at Elgin.

Jock Armstrong has only finished two events so far this year.

But it is never wise to write him off.

And he'd be expecting a great battle with Banchory's Quintin Milne,

who by contrast is having a real tilt at Bogie.

Just eight points behind going into the Speyside.

A nice day. There's been a little bit of rain to keep the dust down.

And touch wood, so far we haven't dropped any rounds this year

so we're just going to go for it.

It looks like it was the same old story from Armstrong in stage one,

as he and Kirsty Riddick slid into a ditch, costing them precious seconds.

They came out of Teindland in tenth position.

But there was still only four seconds between the Castle Douglas

crew and fifth place Chris Collie, who had Lisa Watson on the notes.

Quintin Milne and Martin Forrest had come out of the traps quickly

and were sitting fourth of the SRC-registered crews.

Two seconds behind Dave Weston,

who was relishing his return to competitive action

following a six-year lay-off from the Championship.

But as predicted,

it was the other two World Rally cars leading the way.

Thorburn, with Paul Beaton in the navigator's seat, was second,

after negotiating Teindland in 3 minutes and 45.

While Bogie, with Kevin Rae alongside, headed the field

with his first stage time of 3:43.

Even this early on, it looked like it would be nip and tuck

all day between these two crews.

They recorded the same time through Ben Aigan,

so the difference remained two seconds in Bogie's favour.

But they were stretching their advantage over third-place Weston,

who had SRC chairman David Robson on the notes.

Quintin Milne was consolidating fourth,

his lead increasing to eight seconds over fifth-place Chris Collie.

By the time the crews came out of the shortest stage of the day

and into first service,

Bogie held a three-second advantage over Thorburn.

I think we have to go harder now, increase the pace.

Euan's obviously going very well, stages are very slippy, so it's

just about going at a pace where we're not making mistakes.

Because we've got the Championship to think of.

The Duns driver was having yet more of the mechanical problems

that have plagued him over the season.

We've knackered the damper on the second stage, the rebound is

knackered, so it's really stiff. It's not working how it should be.

Again, it's just little things

but it's only a few seconds that we're behind, so

it makes it a little bit tougher.

Bogie and Thorburn have had plenty of time to get used to their

new cars, but what of Dave Weston,

fresh into his WRC and lying third?

I'm really rusty.

Some of the notes I'm not listening to because

I'm concentrating on my driving, on what the car is doing

and I'm moving the car about before corners

and during corners just to remember what it's all about.

But, no, I'm surprised where I am.

I thought I would've been a bit further back than I was, so I'm enjoying it.

It's good.

After his poor first stage, Jock Armstrong had hauled himself

back into the reckoning, moving from tenth to fifth position.

He was now locked in a battle with Quintin Milne,

who'd had a few problems of his own to overcome.

At stage one, the brakes went soft halfway through.

Thankfully, Wayne did a great job of nipping off the caliper here

and it held for the last two stages, but with only three calipers

working under braking, she's unsettling herself.

One side wants to turn on you. The right side wants to come round.

Fortunately, this held and we seem to be on the pace, still in the mix.

We're in fourth and we're just level pegging with Dave and Jock.

The minor placings in the Speyside were changing around a little.

Mike Faulkner, with long-term co-driver Peter Foy,

elevated himself into ninth.

He'd finished the day two places higher

but in truth it's been a disappointing season

while the Aspatria driver gets used to his new Evo IX.

Inverness pairing Donnie Macdonald and Andrew Faulkner were

pushing themselves into contention for decent points.

After the first blast around Gartly Moor,

they were in eighth position of the SRC-registered crews.

We started off quite slow but I'm happy with the pace now,

like, really happy.

Stages are brilliant, absolutely fantastic.

Macdonald would end the event sixth in the points in his Evo IX,

which moved him up into fourth overall in the title race.

But there were two distinct battles going on at the top

of the leaderboard.

Only four seconds separated Dave Weston in third

from Quintin Milne, who had recovered from his earlier

mechanical issues.

Well, he's in a World car and I'm in a Group N grill with

a sequential box, so I'm delighted. I can't ask for any more.

We didn't put a foot wrong which isn't like me - I'm a bit of a balloon.

Milne was just five seconds in front of Jock Armstrong,

who had been on a charge since going off early doors on stage one.

The top two were also duelling it out.

Because the stages were so short,

even a one-second difference between them could be critical.

Bogie gained one more to find himself leading by three seconds

at the end of the test.

Thorburn still wasn't happy with his car's performance.

We couldn't fix the damper on the front left,

so we were having a bit of bother with that.

It was quite dusty there, really fast stage, so I quite enjoyed it.

Bogie and Rae managed to up their pace on stages five and six

so when they came out of Cransmill Hill,

they held a 13-second advantage over Thorburn and Beaton.

Surely too much to make up with only 17 stage miles left.

I must say, I'm really, really enjoying it.

I feel a lot more comfortable in the car and really having a blast.

When Thorburn and his car are working perfectly together,

he can give Bogie a run for his money.

But how the Duns driver must be wishing for the reliability

of his main rival's WRC.

Barring accidents or mechanical problems,

the main struggle was for the third podium place.

Dave Weston held the position up until stage six.

But an issue with his front differential ruined his chances

and he finished the day in fifth.

Still a brilliant return by the champion of 2006.

It couldn't have been much tighter between Armstrong and Milne.

Jock had actually leapfrogged Quintin

and had his nose in front for the first time after stage six.

But it was by the smallest of margins.

Just a second separated the two men.

There was nothing to choose between Armstrong and Milne the second time

around Gartly Moor, so their positions remained the same.

But there was a significant move by Thorburn, who took a massive six

seconds out of Bogie over a stage that was less than five miles long.

It left him just seven seconds adrift.

Was it possible that with the longest test of the day to come next,

Thorburn could reel in his adversary and take the win?

Milne put in a charge around stage eight, Balloch,

and ended the test two seconds clear of Armstrong.

He was now in the driving seat for third as the crews

had their last emergency service point of the day.

We were having a right old battle between ourselves.

It's what rallying is all about.

You've earned it. Cos you're not getting the champagne. It's mine!

It'll be just as sweet if he gets it!

Once again, Thorburn closed the gap on Bogie.

But this time it was by just one second.

With only the final stage to go,

there was six seconds between the pair. Just done Gartly Moor there.

There was an artificial chicane and we just clipped it

and ripped the bumper off. It was good.

We had a good push through Gartly Moor

and then that one felt OK, it was quite slippy.

I pushed harder on the second stage there.

And again, he managed to take one of us,

so I think he's just going all or nothing,

whereas I like to stay where I am.

None of the four crews could afford to make a mistake around Whiteash,

but as so often happens under pressure, someone did.

Euan Thorburn, perhaps a bit overeager to get

away from the start line, stalled his car. ENGINE REVS AND STALLS

Oh, you...

Losing him vital seconds and, more importantly, the event.

Although he completed the stage in the second fastest time,

he couldn't hide his disappointment.

I think the Championship is just about over now. We'll see.

We needed to win today.

Fair play to David, he's built a fair bit of pace and...just...

not had the luck on our side again.

We tried not to make too many mistakes

and I went wide on one corner there.

Quite early on in the stage, that was a lesson of what could happen.

So...happy.

Jock Armstrong had trailed Quintin Milne by just two seconds

going into Whiteash.

But it was the Banchory ace who prevailed,

pipping Armstrong by another two seconds in the test to extend

his lead and grab the points and final podium position.

I was too quicker.

I hit a tree, I hit a tree and it knocked the power switch off.

And I saw the tree, it smacked the windscreen and I killed

the power and I thought, "This happened to someone before."

And I hit the dash and the green button lit up again.

Oh... Jockie, that was a good battle.

That was the best rallying I've had.

Drivers get 30 points for the win, 28 for second,

27 for third, 26 for fourth

and so on, down to one point for finishing in 29th place.

So that means after five events, the drivers' standings are like this.

In the battle for the two-wheel drive victory,

Calum MacKenzie, co-driven by Alan Clark, carried

the day in his Ford Escort Mk2, after Steve Bannister's early exit.

While Kieran Renton and Carin Logan were the best

of the 1,600 category competitors in their Ford Fiesta R2.

This year's Merrick Stages Rally in the forests around Newton Stewart

and Wigtown held more significance than usual.

It was the sixth round out of eight in the Championship and amazingly,

David Bogie could secure a fifth successive title with a win.

It would be pretty crazy, to be honest,

but we're a long, long way away from that.

It's good to be at this point in the Championship, you know,

with using a new car this year, so absolutely over the moon

with how we're going so far and, as I say, it's a long way

until the end of this rally, but we'll certainly be trying.

Bogie's biggest rival, Euan Thorburn,

wasn't prepared to throw in the towel. We'll be trying.

We'll not think about him and see how hard we can go.

Hopefully get a clean run with the car and no problems

and then it's just down to me and see what I can do.

And with his mind on valuable championship points

to boost his own claims to a top-three finish overall,

Banchory's Quintin Milne

had a vested interest in a Thorburn victory.

We've had a good season so far and I hope the championship stays alive.

I'd really like to see Euan.

I think he's got the legs on David if the car holds together.

I'd like to see him win today and keep the championship alive.

David Bogie and Kevin Rae led off the event,

but had a nightmare start on stage one.

Not good, I had a big spin at the start of the stage and I don't know

how much I lost but certainly I lost 21 seconds to Euan through there.

So, just a really, really slippy loggy section

and I just got caught out.

Bogie's loss was Thorburn's gain.

The Duns driver, with Paul Beaton from Inverness,

was now in the box seat,

12 seconds ahead of the field and 21 in front of Bogie.

Jock Armstrong and navigator Kirsty Riddick in their Subaru Impreza were

sandwiched between the two Ford Focus world rally cars after Craig Nell.

Dave Weston and Dave Robson were in 4th,

only eight seconds behind Bogie.

Mike Faulkner and Peter Foy made up the top five,

just a second behind Weston.

And it was tight all the way down to Donnie MacDonald in 8th,

with only eight seconds separating five crews.

Only rarely would you get around the Merrick without some mishap.

And on stage two, it was Thorburn who made a mistake,

almost coming to grief on a right-hand bend.

He lost ten seconds to Bogie on the short three-miler,

which might make things more interesting going into first service.

The stage was really slippy on two and we ran wide on a right-hander

and just about caught a tree and dropped a bit of time there but...

it was only three miles, so after that we just backed off a bit

to make sure we got round.

So, yeah, we're going into the two long stages now.

This is probably

where the rally will be won or lost so we'll be on it.

Jock Armstrong's event was over after a mega excursion into a ditch.

HE SHOUTS

Quintin Milne, with Martin Forrest alongside,

put in a huge effort on stage two

and hauled himself up from seventh to third.

There was a dogfight for that third position -

Dave Weston was just a second behind Milne.

And young Quintin would also face a stiff battle with Mike Faulkner,

who was five seconds behind him in fifth.

Stage two was just horrible and...

Jock went off and it just...

It was so easy to do, we just backed off a little bit to make sure,

dropped a little bit of time but we're here to fight the day

and five seconds off 3rd, so that's...

Looking for a really good battle now to try

and have a go in this long one to see what we do.

There was an interesting side-story to the event.

British Winter Olympic Gold Medallist in the Skeleton, Amy Williams,

was co-driving with motorsport commentator Tony Jardine.

They needed to finish three rallies to get Amy's licence

to compete at Rally GB in Wales in November.

It's not just the pace and the timing, it's how we interact.

And if she gets the rhythm

and timing correct in calling the pace, we'll just get quicker

and of course it's safer that way as well.

At the moment it's to get to the Wales rally in November

and see what happens after that.

Just one step at a time and...

You know, they might chuck me out the car.

I'll see, I'm just enjoying it at the moment

and that's the main thing.

Any hope Bogie had of making up time on Thorburn

after Glentrool evaporated.

Both crews beat the minimum time to complete the stage

as stipulated by rallying's ruling body, the MSA.

They were awarded the same time,

so there was no change to the 11-second gap between them.

Quintin Milne had consolidated his position in 3rd,

with the next fastest time through the stage.

Over the shorter distance of stage four - Arroch Hill -

Thorburn returned to winning ways, completing the five-miler

a second quicker than Bogie.

The pace is incredible, it is really fast.

Yeah, you have to be on it and David's pushing really well

and so are the guys behind. So there's no room for error.

A little mistake or whatever could cost you the rally.

The crews returned to service after Arroch Hill

and the defending champion was fizzing about rules

that undermined his challenge on Thorburn.

We went into stage three 11 seconds down on Euan

and we managed to beat the Bogie time of the stage by 26,

which, in turn, was 11 seconds quicker than Euan.

But of course we don't get rewarded for that time.

Really disappointing.

I thought I drove the stage well and just disappointed really.

Third-place Milne was steadily increasing his time

over Dave Weston and now held a commanding 16-second advantage

with just the long 14-mile stage five to come.

Severe malfunction with the driver and I forgot to put us into gear

in the startline and the launch programme didn't work.

So there was a wee bit of a panic till we got going.

It's just an old Grandpa trying to drive a world rally car.

Faulkner and Foy also hit trouble on Arroch Hill...

..and were frantically trying to sort it out.

Just in the grass coming up to the penultimate corner.

Must have been something in the grass and it broke the front arm.

Faulkner's problems had benefitted Chris Collie.

Although the man from Aberdeen had his own issues with his brakes

that would eventually see him finish just outside the top ten.

With 12 seconds separating leader Thorburn from Bogie,

it was all to play for in the final test Auchenleck -

the fearsome 14-miler.

If David Bogie thought a puncture around eight miles

had scuppered his chances, then it didn't stop him from pushing

as hard as he could to win his fifth successive Scottish title.

But he could only record the fifth-fastest time through

the stage and it seemed the event win would be Thorburn's.

However, as the rain thundered down, Thorburn had also hit trouble,

so which crew had been hampered most?

The screen misted up and the window wipers weren't working

so we couldn't see a thing, it was terrible.

So I'd be very surprised if we had beaten them.

Not good, couldn't see a thing.

We just had to back right off so...

nothing we could do.

I'll need to go.

Thorburn downcast at his performance, but how did Bogie think he'd done?

I got a puncture with about eight miles to go, so...

Says it all, really.

In the end, Bogie hadn't managed to claw back Thorburn's lead,

which kept the championship alive for at least one more round.

I think we've just got it, I've no idea, honestly.

We had so many moments there just trying to pick out where the corners were.

Couldn't see a thing, especially on the fast stuff.

Obviously David's had a problem,

and it's a bit of luck for us for a change.

If we've won then great, but...

that wasn't easy.

Quintin Milne recorded a characteristically cavalier third place

to earn him his third podium of the season.

And what of our embryonic rally pair, Tony Jardine and Amy Williams?

They finished in style, 34th overall

but first in class

and well on course to take part in Wales Rally GB.

In the title race,

Thorburn has now won two events,

compared to Bogie's three.

And once crews have dropped

their two worst scores,

it could be very interesting indeed.

In other classes, Iain Wilson and Keith Fremantle from Dalbeattie

took the honours in the 1600 category in their Vauxhall Nova.

Scott and David Sloan from Dumfries in a Corsa

were the victors in class 2.

And Stewart Davidson, with Kia Beaton on the notes,

made sure of class 5, in an Escort Mark II.

Amy Williams was taking part again in the Colin McRae Forest Stages

in the countryside around Aberfeldy.

But she wasn't the only Olympic Gold Medallist

navigating between the trees.

Britain's greatest ever Olympian Sir Chris Hoy was co-driving

the course car with rally legend Jimmy McRae

in one of Colin's former vehicles.

Massive honour to be sitting here next to Jimmy.

But Colin's memorial rally, it's a huge honour and I'm very excited.

As the championship went into its penultimate round,

Euan Thorburn was threatening David Bogie's lead at the top of the table.

A win for the Duns man would take the title race

to the wire in the final event

at Galloway Hills Rally.

If Bogie prevailed, he'd win a record-breaking fifth

Scottish Rally Championship.

Although the day was starting dry,

there had been rain during the week which would suit

Banchory's Quintin Milne, who won this event last year.

It's been raining, it'll be slippy.

Here's hoping for a good run for everyone really.

David and Euan'll be fighting it out and the rest of us

will pick up some of the pieces.

Others in and around the top five in the title race

were also hoping for a good showing.

Fourth last year, fourth the year before.

I think the field's a little bit stronger this year.

But we've had a lot of bad luck latterly this year.

Not big things but punctures and broken shafts and stuff like that.

So fingers crossed we get that sorted out

and we have a good push.

And spare a thought for Aberdeen's Chris Collie.

He needed a top-five finish to get his championship back on track.

But his mind had been occupied with more important matters

earlier in the week - he'd become the father of twins.

Yeah, I think last night was the first decent night's sleep

I've had...in the last couple of weeks.

So, yeah, just really chuffed and everyone's doing well.

The two-wheel drive cars went in first,

which meant there was a risk of the stages

cutting up for the later four-wheel drives.

Punctures were a real possibility.

Collie's lack of sleep didn't seem to be hindering him -

he lay a creditable fifth of the SRC registered crews after stage one.

Andy Horne in his DAM 4100 GTI was a second ahead of Collie in fourth.

But his event finished early as he retired after stage two

with gearbox problems.

Former Scottish champion Dave Weston was in third,

five seconds in front of the Invernesian.

As usual, the top places were between the two men

fighting for the title.

And there was nothing to choose between them,

as David Bogie and Euan Thorburn in identical Focus WRCs

set exactly the same time for the stage

to put them ten seconds ahead of the rest.

On stage two, White Gate's Thorburn was on fire,

setting the quickest time -

17 seconds faster than any one else.

The roads can change a fair bit under the trees.

It's quite slippy and then you get to an open bit.

It's quite hard to judge where the grip is.

But, no, we had a good run through one and two to be fair.

There was quite big stones being pulled out though,

you have to be careful.

But what of Bogie?

He was only seventh fastest through stage two,

so his dream of making history was hanging by a thread.

He was 21 seconds behind his rival

and only six ahead of third place Dave Weston.

I got a puncture very near the start,

maybe half a mile into the stage, just on the front-left-hand side.

Probably my own fault. I was holding a tight line

and there must have been a rock or something in there.

It's disappointing but there's still a good way to go yet.

Another good performance in White Gate had moved Chris Collie

up a place to fourth overall.

Mike Faulkner, with Peter Foy calling the notes,

had been frustrated all season by teething problems

in his new Evo IX.

But he was making a charge

and stood fifth going into the first service halt.

The form was difficult, took us a bit to get in at the start.

But the second half was a lot better.

There's a lot more grip than we thought.

But then you get in under the trees and it's really slippy,

so judging the grip is the key.

Seven seconds off a podium, it's all very close - everybody's going well.

So, yeah, maximum attack.

There was to be no repeat of last year's win by Quintin Milne.

He retired after stage two

because of back pain caused by a crash during testing.

Jimmy McRae and rookie co-driver Sir Chris Hoy were the

lead course car through the stages.

And although they weren't actually contesting the places,

the old competitive juices were flowing through

the veins of the cycling superstar.

We're not actually part of the rally itself,

we're the course car at the head of the race,

so even taking that into consideration, there's still

definitely a bit of adrenaline, a bit of nerves,

butterflies in your stomach, when you're sitting on the start line. Well, for me, anyway.

But you can see Jimmy mentally switching on. We were having

a bit of a laugh until the lights go out and then he's really focused.

There's trees, there's rocks,

there's hard things you run into, so there's no room for error at all and

I think that's part of the appeal - it's a very precision-based sport.

Stage three, Errochty, was the longest and toughest in the event

at just over 13 miles

and it was a chance for Bogie to make up time on Thorburn.

And he did. But his gain was just four seconds after 13 miles.

21 seconds is a long time to get back in a 45 stage mile rally.

It's not going to be easy, but we'll just keep going as we are.

Dave Weston was excelling himself in his comeback year,

third fastest in the stage and third overall in the event.

Chris Collie was continuing his good series of stage times,

at least in three.

But his bad luck persisted and he retired after stage four

because of suspension issues. Mike Faulkner had also hit problems.

We were trying hard, but we've broken something on the rear brakes,

you can hear it clanging in the wheel, so I don't know whether

it's fixable or not, but all the caliper and wheel scrapers all bent up into the wheel, so...

Donnie MacDonald had a poor start to the event and was only ninth

after stage two, losing 20 seconds due to an overshoot.

He recovered well though and a push in three bumped him up to sixth.

The event standings didn't change much in the next stage.

Except for a charge by Mike Faulkner which elevated him

into third after Dave Weston lost almost a minute caused by a spin.

Although the top two remained the same after stage five, Blackcraig,

there had been drama.

Bogie was again quickest through the stage and although Thorburn was

fast enough to retain his lead, it had been substantially cut to

just eight seconds due to more mechanical issues.

We were having a decent run through that last stage,

but coming towards the end we lost the gear shift, stuck in fourth gear.

It's a pipe that's broken and it's lost all the hydraulic oil

so we changed the pipe

and put some oil in and hopefully it'll be all right for the last one.

We've been quickest on both of the last two stages,

so the pace is there, but I just don't know

if it's enough to be able to take eight seconds in the last 11 miler.

Mike Faulkner hadn't been on the podium since the Granite City

in April, but he was knocking on the door at the McRae.

Three was the one that we really had the problems with,

we got a rock jammed in the wheel.

But it bent all the wheel scraper and everything up into the...

So, we managed to sort that at three,

but we did the other side on four, so...

But we took the wheel scrapers off, did the last stage,

was just fantastic, was like driving a different car,

so I think it had been binding and making the diff do funny things,

so it's made the car so much easier to drive, as well.

Really enjoyed the last stage.

Going into the final test, Craigvinean,

David Bogie had to make up eight seconds on Thorburn

over the ten stage miles.

Not impossible, but extremely difficult.

Thorburn was first to emerge.

I got a puncture, so dropped half a minute.

Don't know where I picked it up, but just the last three, four miles.

Just battle on, really.

That stroke of misfortune for Thorburn

meant Bogie had achieved his dream - he was Scottish Rally Champion

for a record-breaking fifth consecutive year.

Unreal. We were eight seconds down going into that stage,

we took a gamble on tyre choice

and got our tyre choice completely wrong.

Had so many near moments through there,

couldn't have driven it any harder.

And obviously Euan got a puncture and that slowed him down,

but it's great to get it.

You know, after losing the time this morning, absolutely phenomenal.

Still a lump in the throat after five times, you know.

It was just him when he won his British in the Evo Challenge.

They're momentous occasions that you'll never, ever forget.

Bogie's co-driver Kevin Rae was also celebrating his fifth title in a row,

making him the most successful navigator in Scottish Rally Championship history.

Having completed the stages in second place,

Euan Thorburn discovered a serious mechanical problem

with his car as he headed for the finish in Aberfeldy.

He wisely decided to retire rather than risk more damage

and this promoted Mike Faulkner to the runner-up position.

Difficult morning, really, the times were a lot better,

we got the car sorted and then we some problems with the rear brakes.

It was binding and giving us all kinds of diff problems.

Once we got that sorted for the afternoon,

the stage times were great, the car felt really good and just thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon.

David Bogie and Kevin Rae!

Dave Weston claimed the third podium spot,

a really terrific effort by the man from Aberdeen.

Five is the magic number, that's what we were all wanting was the fifth championship.

It's great to have that and now to go to the Galloway Hills Rally

and just enjoy ourselves, it's great.

I'm looking forward to celebrating tonight.

It's been an awesome achievement by David Bogie and Kevin Rae.

Once more, they're the cream of the crop in Scotland.

Despite an early puncture,

Steve Bannister with co-driver Louise Sutherland in a

Mark II escort took top honours in the Two-Wheel Drive category.

Iain Wilson and Keith Fremantle of Dalbeattie came first

in the 1600cc class in their Vauxhall Nova.

So, with the title decided, Bogie and Rae will be able to have a

relatively relaxed drive at the Galloway Hills Rally.

But there's still a battle for second

and third place in the Championship.

The Galloway Hills Rally began in 1974,

but this is the first time it's been included

in the Scottish Rally Championship.

To mark the occasion, they've made this special spectator stage,

it's a mile and a half around a disused quarry just outside Dalbeattie.

An awesome test for the drivers, great view for the fans.

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't as spectacular as the stage.

The rain pelted down which meant conditions would be treacherous.

With the trophy safely in his locker,

2013 SRC Champion David Bogie wasn't under any stress.

But he still wanted to end on a high at an event he loves.

I've been coming to watch this rally

since I was...as young as I can remember. Jock's going to be going very well today.

You know, the organisers have put a lot of hard work in and I would

just like to reward all my team with a win and the end of the season.

Rally sponsor Jock Armstrong has had a wretched time of it over

the past year, only finishing three events.

But he has won his home round five times and would be no pushover.

Euan Thorburn was delighted to have been crowned BTRDA champion

in the last event in Wales

so he had decided not to take part in the Galloway Hills.

That meant Banchory's Quintin Milne secured second

overall in the SRC and he, too, opted not to make the trip south.

I couldn't ask for any more than a handful of podiums

and that win at the Borders,

especially against the calibre of guys we're up against,

they're top drivers, especially a couple of guys in the world cars,

you know, I really don't think I could have asked for any better.

I'm really, really happy.

But third place in the title race was still undecided with only

one point separating Mike Faulkner and Barry Groundwater.

The pressure is on today, right enough.

I was in this situation last year, chasing Mike

and I ended up putting the car off doing so. So, you know,

I certainly don't want to do that this weekend.

Donnie MacDonald had an outside chance of getting third

but it was out of his hands.

You probably need Faulkner and Groundwater to have a few

problems, I think, to genuinely get it.

But it's still there for grabs but it'll be a tall order,

I think, like.

The champions picked up where they left off at the McRae,

clocking the fastest time through Billson's Link.

They were 18 seconds ahead of Armstrong

and navigator John Richardson.

Mike Faulkner with Peter Foy on the notes was making a strong bid

to seal third place in the Championship,

only seven seconds adrift of Armstrong.

And Donnie MacDonald, alongside Andrew Falconer,

was putting pressure on Barry Groundwater's claims

by taking fourth spot on the stage...

..relegating Groundwater and Neil Shanks into fifth.

The first go around Dalbeattie was hazardous to say the least.

Heavy rain made the surface like glass in places

but Bogie forged on, increasing his lead over Armstrong.

Faulkner had problems.

A spin saw him drop 10 seconds, to give some hope to his rivals.

But neither MacDonald nor Groundwater could take advantage.

Although the Invernesian did pull a further seven seconds ahead

in the battle with his Stonehaven opponent.

Stage Three, the Super Special,

was what many of the spectators had come to see.

A blast around the mile-and-a-half track in Auchenlosh Quarry.

By the end of it, the overall places hasn't changed

but Jock Armstrong had at least got one over on Bogie,

beating the Scottish champion by two seconds.

I came to this rally just to win that Super Special but I had

to make an excuse - my windscreen steamed up in the water splash.

I'm sure it did for everyone else

but that made it very difficult so I've still got one more

go at it and, you know, it's like winning the Championship,

that Super Special.

At first service it was still all to play for in the fight

for third in the Championship.

Mike Faulkner, do we know where we are sitting?

Yeah, I think we are third in the registered crews so good start.

A really good first stage. It was looking really good.

A small spin on Stage Two dropped us about 10 seconds.

Lots of standing water

and we just adjusted the line to try to miss the standing water

and it just spun on a slow corner so had to reverse out of it.

It was no problem just very easily done today.

And you are not the only one after this slot, too. Barry's there, too.

Yeah, he's only a couple of places behind.

We've got a bit of time on him at the moment but it's

so easy to make a mistake, nothing is certain yet.

I think we maybe are where we're at. I don't know.

We'll push on in the afternoon but it seems to be slipping

out of our grasp at the moment. Don't tell me you're giving up.

No, I haven't given up. Absolutely not.

It's rallying - anything can happen.

But we're just going to have to push on and see where we get.

In fact, Faulkner and Groundwater were split by MacDonald after

the first three stages.

Although Donnie still wasn't hopeful about his chances.

Just need to try and up it a bit in the next two stages

and try and claw some time back.

At the moment, I don't know where we're stood

but I know we need to claw time back, like.

By the time that the crews reach Stage Five Glengap,

Bogie held a commanding lead over Armstrong

and it seemed likely he would finish off the season in style.

Mike Faulkner had consolidated his position

and looked good for a podium place and vital Championship points.

But there had been a change just behind him.

Barry Groundwater had put in a bit of a charge

and overtaken Donnie MacDonald in the event standings.

Was it too little, too late

for Groundwater to make up time on Faulkner?

Barry, you're looking quite relaxed there

with your cup of tea in your hand. Absolutely, yes.

Does that mean you're happy with how things are going so far?

Well, I mean, obviously where we were today, you know, we are

out to try and get in front of Mike.

It's not going to happen now but we are just going to consolidate

what we've got and in terms of the rally today we are doing

reasonably OK so I'm quite happy with where we're at, yeah.

Groundwater appeared to have settled for fourth and Faulkner

seemed confident he would end the day third in the title race.

We're bang-on so if we're third, providing we're in the top four

and in front of him, that's all it needs to be

so we've just got to try and keep it on the road for the next two.

A remarkable story was unfolding further down the field.

Iain Haining and Mairi Riddick have been the crew to beat

in the Class 3 category.

And once again they led the way,

eventually winning the event in their Vauxhall Nova

and making it a straight eight wins out of eight in the Championship.

First class.

On Stage Seven, the second run through Dalbeattie,

things began to change.

Armstrong recorded the fastest time -

11 seconds quicker than Bogie -

and it was enough to ensure he was runner-up.

But the rallying gods decreed

Bogie would not end the season with a flourish.

He failed to make it back to the finish in Castle Douglas, which meant

Jock with John Richardson captured his sixth Galloway Hills title.

It's come right today and you'll look at the results

in ten years' time and say, "Well, I won it."

So, no, I'm happy with that.

Job sorted. At least I can say I've won a round this year.

As with rival Euan Thorburn's exit at Aberfeldy, Bogie's retirement

was caused by fears of an expensive repair when the oil light came on.

Everyone moved up a place.

Barry Groundwater took third of the SRC-registered crews

with Neil Shanks.

So, in second, it was Mike Faulkner and Peter Foy.

Faulkner had double cause for celebration.

His finish confirmed him in third place overall

in the Drivers' Championship.

It feels like we've salvaged something out of what was

going to be a terrible year so it feels really good.

Steve Bannister had already wrapped up the Championship win

in the two-wheel drive class for the seventh time.

The Galloway Hills was all about securing

the Ladies Co-drivers' title for Louise Sutherland

and he did this with another victory.

Any doubts John Morrison had about winning Class 10

were swept away when closest challenger Fraser Wilson

went off just 200 yards into Stage One -

Morrison confirmed as best in the Production Category.

So, it's been another year when David Bogie

confirmed his dominance of the Scottish Rally Championship.

Five title wins in a row cement his name in the record books.

Quintin Milne will have gained a lot of satisfaction,

finishing as runner-up in his Evo 9.

And Mike Faulkner will be looking forward to next season after getting

to grips with his new Mitsubishi and finishing this year on a high.

Dougal Brown in seventh will be looking to

build his pace for next year to challenge those above.

And for eighth place, Chris Collie, his highlights were a fantastic

second on the Granite and, of course, twin girls in October.

That's all from our coverage of

the 2013 ARR Craib Scottish Rally Championship.

We hope you've enjoyed the action. See you next time.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd