The Road to Wales leads straight to Rally GB for ARR Craib MSA Scottish Rally Championship Junior drivers Thomas Gray & Caroline Carslaw who tackle one of the biggest events of their burgeoning rally careers this weekend – Wales Rally GB. Whilst they won’t be mixing it directly with World Champion Sebastien Ogier or top British driver Kris Meeke, they take on the challenge of the national event, which runs over 3 days based around the Service Park at Toyota GB’s factory on Deeside.
The pair won their places in the event through the Road to Wales scheme run by the MSA by finishing 1st in the Junior Category on the Championship counting Jim Clark Reivers and RSAC Scottish events respectively during successful championship seasons where Gray, from Tore near Inverness claimed the Scottish Junior Title, and Carslaw from Dunlop, Ayrshire finished the season as Ladies Champion.
With the generosity of the Jim Clark Reivers & RSAC Scottish organising clubs in passing on the entries they received from the MSA, the Championship organisers started to make plans along with some of their Championship partners to enhance their entry and lend their support to help make the experience one to remember.
The full support package for each crew consists of;
A Simpson Composite Hybrid Restraint Device courtesy of Vital Equipment
4 competition tyres courtesy of Pirelli & AW Motorsport
All the Fuel required for the rally car for the Event courtesy of Vital Equipment
4 competition alloy wheels courtesy of Speedline Corse UK
10 Litres of Engine Oil & 10 Litres of Transmission Oil courtesy of Morris Lubricants/Vital Equipment
Both Thomas & Caroline were delighted to receive such generous support, with the package valued at around £2000 for each driver;
“The entry to Rally GB was a huge boost, and then to receive this further support on top is just the icing on the cake. It’s very much appreciated after a long season and David (Wilson, his co-driver) and I can’t wait to get started” said Gray before making the 400 mile trip South.
Although it wasn’t quite as far for Caroline and co-driver John Duke, they were equally excited as the opportunity that awaited them;
“We’ve got to thank the Scottish Rally Championship and their supporters, as well as the events for giving us firstly the opportunity, and then the support package to help us get to Wales this weekend. This is the biggest event we have ever done, and its great to have Scotland behind us.”
The Scottish Rally Championship would like to thank the organising clubs of the Jim Clark Reivers & RSAC Scottish Rallies for offering their Road to Wales entries to the top SRC Junior crews.
We would also like to thank Ivor Braiden at Speedline Corse UK, Andrew & Ann Wood at Andrew Wood Motorsport and Matthew Corby at Pirelli, and Alistair Roberts at Vital Equipment for their generous support and helping the championship promote rallying amongst junior crews in Scotland.
