Former title-holder Jimmy Girvan holds an eleven point lead going into the
Jim Clark Reivers Rally a week on Sunday [May 25] - the only asphalt event on the County Saab Scottish Rally Championship calendar.
However, with the fiercely-contested series now at the half-way point, the Inverness driver knows he - and navigator Kirsty Riddick - cannot miss a beat as he steers his Subaru Impreza through the Berwickshire and Lammermuir lanes.
The 1990 champion took maximum points on the first two rounds, but had to settle for second to Dumfries star David Bogie on last month's Granite City Rally.
Bogie got his championship campaign back on track in Aberdeenshire after rolling his Mitsubishi Evo 9 on the previous Border Counties round.
With Hawick's Kevin Rae on the notes, the 20-year-old will be keen to keep up the momentum at the wheel of his hired Toyota Corolla WRC - the car in which he took his maiden SRC win on the McRae Stages last September.
There will be strong challenges though from Mike Faulkner and team-mate Steven Clark, who lie second and third in the points respectively.
Faulkner has been delighted with the performance of his Gp A Mitsubishi Evo 6 since major work was carried out on the car following the opening Snowman round. The Carlisle-based driver, with regular navigator Peter Foy, goes into this weekend in confident mood.
As does Clark - although he could be forgiven for feeling a little apprehensive following his last outing on the Reivers in 2006. Then, as co-driver to Malcolm Proudlock, his day came to an abrupt and spectacular end, when their Subaru Impreza barrel-rolled and crashed into a field on the famed “Macks Mill” stretch.
This time out, the Elgin-based Clark will be at the wheel of his trusty Evo 4 and says he has no qualms.
“Although I've never driven a 4-wheel drive car on tarmac, I'm looking forward to it”, said Clark. “Certainly memories of the accident won't affect me, and we'll be flat out from the off!”
Just seven points separate Stonehaven's Barry Groundwater in fourth place in his Evo 9, and Bogie in eighth.
Between them, Dumfries farmer Rory Young has built up consistency in his Evo 5 to move into fifth spot, one ahead of Duns' Alistair Thorburn - who will again be battling for family supremacy with son Iain in their respective Subarus.
A further point behind in seventh is another GpN regular - John Morrison of Conon Bridge in his Evo 9.
One of the stories of the Scottish Championship season so far has been the return to competition of Lanarkshire farmer Walter Henderson, who teamed up with his former co-driver Jim Kinloch after 12 years away from rallying.
![Jimmy Girvan. Subaru Impreza. Granite City. County Saab Scottish Rally Championship [Pic credit: RALLY-PHOTO.COM]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/439116.jpg)
