Route announced for Rally GB 2020!

[HKSjbg]

Since I’m still bored back at work (I’m on rotation with my colleague, they won’t let me just stay at home the whole time ) I have been looking into the viability of a Scotland-based Rally GB.

I knew it had to include the Perthshire stages as well as the stages close to Dumfries (i.e. where the RSAC Scottish has been based since about 1997) and realised Glasgow is in a pretty good position to be host city and service park HQ. Not only is it the most populous city in Scotland, but you can be at the start of the first forest stage, Greskine, in an hour-ish and similar time to get to Carron Valley to the north (though this would probably be better served as the power stage, not the first of its leg, given it’s reservoir-side location).

With that in mind here is just a list of possible stages and their kilometerage:

1. Bellahouston Park - 2.08km
2. Greskine - 17.82km
3. Ae - 14.32km
4. Twiglees - 10.28km
5. Castle O’er - 9.72km
6. Craik - 14.81km
7. Cardrona - 10.27km
8. Yair - 8.87km
9. Black Loch - 9.82km
10. Glentrool - 29.71km
11. Elibank - 19.89km
12. Carron Valley - 8.36km
13. Loch Ard - 33.52km
14. Drummond Hill - 18.66km
15. Griffin - 21.26km
16. Errochty - 17.68km
17. Craigvinean - 17.89km
18. Scone Palace - 3.37km
19. Knockhill - 3.57km
20. Devilla - 9.91km

281.81km

Where possible, the stages are the longest length I could find on ewrc-results.com and rally-maps.com and from either last year’s R.A.C. Rally or the most recent Rally Scotland. Some exceptions are Glasgow’s Bellahouston Park taken from the itinerary of the 1987 Scottish, Yair, Black Loch and Glentrool taken from Mobil 1 Rally Championship from 1999 and I think the oldest forest stage length I took was Devilla, also from the ‘87 Scottish.

Assuming there will be some from that list that are no longer available or suitable, there’s still a lot of km around given that 281.81km is all from single passes!

[the sniper]

Since I’m still bored back at work (I’m on rotation with my colleague, they won’t let me just stay at home the whole time ) I have been looking into the viability of a Scotland-based Rally GB.

Scotland would be my ideal 'local' replacement for Wales if an RAC style event isn't possible. There's so much choice there, many nice (if rougher) stages and fantastic scenery. The three editions of Rally of Scotland show what an event could/would look like there. I'd just add an extra day in the middle of any of those itineraries on the Saturday with a rough itinerary of:

Cardrona 1
Elibank 1
Yair 1
[Hawick Tyre Service]
Craik
Castle O’er
Twiglees
Cardrona 2
Elibank 2
Yair 2

Base the event at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston near Edinburgh (and right next to its Airport). Centrally there you're just an hour away from stages in the North, Borders and Trossachs (Middle). I'd run the Borders day on the Saturday to attract more spectators from the south and Marshals, as I'd be using six stages there.

[AnttiL]

Yair 2

Base the event at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston near Edinburgh (and right next to its Airport). Centrally there you're just an hour away from stages in North, Borders and Trossachs (Middle). I'd run the Borders day on the Saturday to attract more spectators from the south and Marshals, as I'd be using six stages there.

And you could still go to Kielder as well. In 1986 they had a night break and a super special in Ingliston.

[the sniper]

And you could still go to Kielder as well. In 1986 they had a night break and a super special in Ingliston.

The only problem is, in this scenario Scotland would be paying the bills, and there's no chance they'd let it stray into England!

[HKSjbg]

Base the event at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston near Edinburgh (and right next to its Airport). Centrally there you're just an hour away from stages in the North, Borders and Trossachs (Middle).

I had considered that - being a showground with plenty of tarmac sections it looks ideal. I just didn’t know whether closer to Edinburgh would be worse for liaisons and whether airport traffic would cause problems for rally traffic coming in and out (or vice versa).

The thought of keeping it free for a Super Special also entered my mind, then I got distracted by finally finding out where Devilla forest is

Edit: just had another look and Ingliston is a shorter drive to Cardrona than mostly anywhere in Glasgow to Greskine