Round 4 – Motorsport UK Scottish Rally Championship - A Postcard from Scotland

Report and Images by :DEEGEE: Motorsport Photography

Saturday 20^th July 2024

A lot of planning usually goes into a motorsport photography excursion.  Planning where to go, what kit to take, my route to the event, and importantly, where I can be fed and watered etc, etc.

But in my most recent outing it was all down to pure luck and a remarkable coincidence. Many months ago, in the depths of Winter, a family Summer holiday was booked in an isolated, idyllic location in the Galloway Forest Park in south-west Scotland.  A chance to wind down and enjoy some quiet time, walking the dog and enjoying the spectacular scenery in the area.

Looking forward to the break, and with the packing complete, I spent a moment the evening before we set off on our journey over the border, checking out the “Things to do in Scotland” website.

A Deer Park, a Summer Fair, some castles. All seemed pleasant enough and just the sort of events to fit in with a relaxing and quiet break, but what’s this ? The 2024 RSAC Scottish Rally. 

Further investigation revealed the event was taking place on the first full day of our holiday. Scotland is a very big country covering 30 thousand square miles, but amazingly two minutes research on the “t’interweb” revealed the event was based in Dalbeattie, about a twenty-minute drive from our idyllic cottage. My interest was alerted and I delved further into the details of the route the rally was to take.

Special Stages were to be held in Dalbeattie, Kinharvie and Glengap forests it seemed.  I have travelled the length of the UK covering the RAC / Network Q Rally in the past and recalled visiting the Dalbeattie stage on a cold, November day, covering the event for the Hull Daily Mail, many years ago, but the two other stage names didn’t ring a bell, so I made some further enquiries. 

Kinharvie it seemed was a non-spectator stage, so ruled out quickly, but looking on Google Maps, much easier than using OS Maps, as was the case when I followed rallying more regularly, it seemed the Glengap stage passed through part of the Laurieston Forest where our holiday home was located.  What’s more, the special stage on which the cars would be speeding past was less than a mile walk from the front door of our cottage!!

I couldn’t resist this remarkable opportunity. Being at the right place at the right time is what a motorsport photographer seeks every time they venture out with their camera.  Destiny, it seems, had led me to this spot, and unbeknown to me the first full day of what was supposed to be taking in the sound of nothing more than gentle waves lapping on the shores of a loch and involve landscape photography with a wide- angle lens, was now going to involve revving engines and my familiar telephoto lens.

The offer of a day shopping for my wife and daughter, without me tagging along, was enough to seal the deal for me. So here is some background to the Scottish Rally Championship, the Scottish Rally and a few shots taken on the first full day of our “family” holiday. 

The 2024 Asset Alliance Group Motorsport UK Scottish Rally Championship is held over seven events, with five gravel rounds and two tarmac rounds, offering something for everyone.

This year, five rounds count towards a competitor’s final score, giving crews the opportunity to put together a championship campaign and recover from any mishaps or non-starts.

One of the longest-running stage rallies in the UK, the RSAC Scottish Rally, which marks the halfway point in the championship, took place last weekend, for the 78^th time in its history.

Supported by Dumfries and Galloway Council for the twenty-seventh time, the 2024 rally this year, as was the case in 2023, was based in the “Granite Town”, as Dalbeattie is known.

From the rally base at Jas P Wilson Forest Machines, just south of the town centre, which provided a central location for Scrutineering, Service, and Rally HQ, eighty crews faced 44 miles of forest tracks, spread over six tests in the Dalbeattie, Kinharvie and Glengap forests.



I set off, after a hearty breakfast on Saturday morning, on the short walk to the 9.74-mile-long Glengap stage, the longest of the event, which was to be used twice during the day.

The weather forecast for the day was overcast with periods of rain, (typical 2024 Summer weather it seems), so I made sure I was fully prepared, with waterproof trousers and a large umbrella.  At least I wouldn’t have to worry about dust!! 

Nonetheless, I made sure a clear filter was in place to ensure the risk of a stone striking my lens directly, always a risk when photographing rallying, was reduced as much as possible. 

The opportunities to take photographs “on stage” nowadays are more restricted than when I was a regular rally-goer, with spectators and photographers alike, “encouraged” to use “safe” zones, known as Spectator Viewing Areas.

Viewing Areas were the main reason I stopped photographing rallying regularly, as they usually go hand in hand with miles of hazard tape, restricting spectators to a view that requires binoculars, and photographers huge telephoto lenses. I’m sad to say this area was no different. 

However, as a motorsport photographer I have learnt to use my ingenuity to overcome the issues these “Areas” create, including arriving on-stage in plenty of time, and going “off piste” so to speak.

The stage was very rough, particularly the last three miles, with large boulders prominent, and very narrow, bounded by thick bracken.  Steady drizzle, which set in mid-morning, made the forest tracks very slippery. I found a spot which provided a variety of shots, away from the Viewing Area, and settled in for the stage to commence.

The spot coincided with where a lone Marshal was posted, who for a £25 Amazon voucher had travelled for 3 hours from his home in Dunoon, via a ferry, to the event, paying for an overnight stay in a hotel in Castle Douglas, and his fuel.  Well out of pocket he seemed happy with his gift, his enthusiasm for the sport outweighing any financial reward, but finding marshal’s for events, without whom the rally would not have gone ahead, is becoming increasingly difficult. 

These people, who volunteer their time and money, are the lifeblood of rallying, indeed motorsport in the UK, standing out for hours, often in poor weather, and should be heartily applauded. 



The rally itself was a closely contested affair, with David Bogie, partnered by Kirsty Riddick, in a Polo R5, claiming his eighth victory on this event.

They led home northern Irishman Jonny Greer, who was starting his first Scottish Rally since 2017, alongside co-driver Niall Burns in their Citroen C3, by just 13 seconds.

Current championship leaders Evan Thorburn and co-driver Kier Beaton in their Volkswagen Polo R5 completed the podium positions, a further 23 seconds in arrears.



2023 winners and local crew Jock Armstrong and Owen Patterson, in their debut drive in their Skoda Fabia, unfortunately went out after the very first stage with mechanical issues.

Sadly, after the first run of the stages, the weather, not for the first time this season, took a serious turn for the worse, as torrential rain set in, bringing my brief outing in the forests to a premature end. 

As a consequence my intended trip to Dalbeattie (Stage 6), via a shuttle bus, and the subsequent ceremonial finish in the town’s High Street, had to cancelled. 

The crews now enter the second half of the championship with three gravel rallies. 

They include the Grampian Rally based in Aberdeen, which will take place in August.

This will be followed in September by the Galloway Hills Rally, which will return to the Galloway Forest Park, where Castle Douglas will provide the headquarters, and the final event of the championship, the Snowman Rally in October, which will be centred in Inverness.



Not what I had planned when booking our Summer holiday in January, but a thoroughly fun first day, or at least before the atrocious monsoon conditions set in.  What’s more, I had the rest of the week to spend with my family relaxing, soaking up breathtaking loch and mountain views and starry night skies, and exploring the rolling Galloway glens and the wonderful wildlife on offer.

You can see more of our rally reports by clicking the image below.

Thanks to David Gowshall for this report which you can share with your friends on Social Media using these links.

You can see more of :DEEGEE: Motorsport Photography by clicking his website picture.