Over 100 pre-war cars will be on the starting line of the Endurance Rally Association’s sixth Flying Scotsman Rally on Friday 4th April 2014, following a new route that starts in the Midlands, allowing the drivers to experience more of the Scottish Borders and Scotland before finishing 600-miles later in Gleneagles, Perthshire.
The ‘Great Northern’ edition starts at 8am on Friday 4th April from the Forest of Arden Hotel and Country Club, ten miles south of Birmingham, where Bentleys, Lagondas, MGs and Jaguars will be followed by Ford Model As, Rileys and Rolls Royces as they motor towards the north.
After an overnight stop near Blackburn, the journey takes in remote routes through Lancashire and Yorkshire. The second day will see the car cross the border into Scotland, reaching Gleneagles, north of Edinburgh, on Sunday 6th April at around 5pm. The rally is composed of timed sections, test and checkpoints and is the only long-distance rally purely for vintageants. To add to the atmosphere of the rally competitors are encouraged to dress in period, matching the Pre-war style of their cars, with a trophy to be awarded at the gala dinner at Gleneagles.
Philip Young, Endurance Rally Association’s Rally Director, said: “We have entrants coming from all over the UK and Europe, with even Americans, Canadians and Australians taking part, making it a truly international celebration of pre-war motoring.
“But don’t let the vintage dress they will be wearing fool you. There are plenty of teams who are definitely in it to win it. Entrants will be judged on their performance and reliability and will have to maintain certain average speeds over set distances along the route. Once we hit the road, that's when the competitive spirit will be seen in all its glory.”
Amongst those taking part is the winning team from the 2013 Peking to Paris Rally and the 2012 Trans-America Rally, Phil Garratt and Keiran Brown in their 1932 Alvis Speed 20 who will be hoping to complete a hat-trick of wins.
The oldest car in the Flying Scotsman is the 1912 Chalmers 10 driven by last year’s ‘Pioneer’ division winners Robert Abrey and Brad Webb from the UK, while fellow British team Vincent and Victoria Fairclough claim the youngest motor in action with their 1948 MG TC.
Scrutineering takes place between 12noon and 5pm on Thursday 3rd April where the vehicles are given a final inspection. However supporting the rally is a team of experienced rally mechanics that can cope with almost anything these special cars can throw at them.
The Endurance Rally Association has a track-record of over 60 major international events behind them including the new Alpine Trial 2014, the Road to Mandalay 2015 and the Peking to Paris Motoring Challenge, next held in 2016.
For more information on the Alpine Trial or any future Endurance Rally Association event – call +44 (0) 1235 831221 or visit www.endurorally.com
