Jon Armstrong got to experience the ‘real McRae’ at Goodwood

SOME rally cars become legends in their own right.

There’s Paddy Hopkirk’s Mini Cooper S, which he drove to victory in the 1964 Monte Carlo Rally; there’s the Lancia Stratos and Delta’s which enjoyed incredible successes in the WRC during the 1970s and 1980s; the Audi Quattro’s that dominated the top flight in the early 1980s, piloted by the likes of Walter Rohrl and Michele Mouton, and there’s Ari Vatanen’s Ford Escort RS1800, to name just a few.

But the daddy of them all when it comes to legendary rally machinery, the ‘real McRae’ if you will, is the 1995 Subaru Impreza 555, but more specifically the L555 BAT.

That’s the dark blue, gold wheeled ‘Scoobie’ a then 27-year-old Colin McRae wrote into WRC folklore during that epic 1995 season that saw him produce an unforgettable drive during the Network Q RAC Rally to win the overall world title.

And one local driver, namely Kesh native, Jon Armstrong, had the honour of piloting that exact car, the one McRae clinched the WRC driver’s crown in thirty years ago, at the prestigious Goodwood Festival of Speed.

With Colin’s daughter, Jon’s girlfriend Hollie, beside him in the passenger seat, Armstrong thrilled the crowds at a sun-splashed Goodwood, doing donuts as he sped up the famous hillclimb.

“It was cool and as you can imagine it’s very difficult to visualise how it would feel but it felt so cool to drive and even better than you can imagine!,” he beamed.

“It’s THE car, the one that inspired a lot of people.”

The 30-year-old also had the chance to drive another of McRae’s machines, a Mk II Ford Escort and he admits, driving such valuable – financially and sentimentally – machinery, especially when the owner is in the car beside you, adds a certain extra pressure.

“I wasn’t driving hard at all, I was just trying to enjoy the cars and look after them and just enjoy the moment,” he explained.

“[Having a McRae in the passenger seat when driving the Subaru] definitely added a lot of pressure I would say and the Mk II Ford Escort was Colin’s car as well, but it was sold to a private owner [Steve Gallagher] – it was the first rear-wheel-drive car I’ve ever driven and I hoped into it and the owner was sitting beside me!

“That was a real pressure moment and I think I half spun it towards the end but those are opportunities you have to take with both hands.

“You don’t want to make a fool of yourself, so there’s not a lot of margin for error, but you can still have a skid and enjoy yourself.”

Overall, Armstrong thoroughly enjoyed the Goodwood experience, from the social aspect to the driving side of things.

“It’s the first time I’ve done the full weekend and it was really nice because it’s something I’ve always looked at and thought ‘I’d love to go there and even just spectate’,” he said.

“I got a little taster last year. I was there for a day and did a little bit of work, but this year was a pleasure, I enjoyed it and I got to drive some nice cars.

“It was so relaxing, with no pressure and I had the opportunity to mingle with rally legends, racing drivers, F1 drivers and that was really cool. And the big ball on the Saturday night was awesome as well.”