The loss of WRC legend Colin McRae to a tragic set of events that occurred on the 15th of September 2007 when his helicopter, a Eurocopter AS350, crashed 1 mile north of the McRae home in Lanark, Scotland, was felt ( and is still felt ) deeply by motor sport fans all over the world. The fact that 2 of his friends and his own 5 year old son Johnny perished along with him, was nothing short of devastating…
The 90’s were a great time for rally fans, with epic battles taking place between Subaru, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Citroen, Ford and Toyota. Colin was larger than life and I vividly remember him going through a stage so fast that it looked like he was always driving like his life depended on it. He crashed often enough and some of us joked that his nickname was Colin McCrash. The bravery and sheer commitment on any surface was stupefying. You just knew that when you watched Colin McRae drive, that he was going to either win or crash out completely. “If in doubt, Flat Out.”, he used to say.
Fast forward to the point where I found myself face to face with the very car he drove in the 1998 rally of San Remo, Italy; an S4 specification Subaru WRC GC8 Impreza. It was a deeply emotional experience for me, spiritual even. STi Mitaka were gracious enough to give me some quiet time and unlimited access to the car so that I could bring you this feature. They even removed the barricades around the car and helped me position it for clearer shots.
Read more: 7Tune
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