Double Jim Clark delight for Bogieposted in RSCOT29 | 05 | 2011

    SCOTS RALLY ACE David Bogie continued his blistering form this season when he completed a double success in the Duns-based Jim Clark Rally, winning both the counters in the British Rally Championship and the Scottish title race.

    The 23-year-old Dumfries driver's win in Saturday's Jim Clark International Rally marked his third win in the opening four rounds of the British Championship, but he was made to fight hard for victory on the tarmac roads which wind their way through the the Borders.

    Driving his Mitsubishi Evo IX, Bogie and Hawick co-driver Kevin Rae eventually won by 17.6secs ahead of the Skoda Fabia S2000 of Ireland's Jonny Greer, with Bristol's Adam Gould third in his Subaru, a further 46.8s adrift.

    "It was certainly far from easy," admitted Bogie, who now leads the British Rally Championship by 12 points from Welshman Elfyn Evans who finished fourth. "Jonny and Adam kept me honest right through the day.

    Action from the Jim Clark in Duns High Street

    "We had a few issues with the rear of the car and that impacted on the car's handling; we spun on Stage 11 and that cost us a bit of time, but in the end we backed off simply to manage the advantage we had.

    "It's always been one of my dreams to win the Jim Clark International Rally. It's the only rally run on closed-off public roads on mainland Britain and, because of its association with Jim Clark, it's a very special event.

    "So it's great to have won here and have it on my CV. Now I have to focus on finishing the season by making sure I win the British Championship for the first time." But there was no immediate celebration from the talented young Scot.

    As soon as he had he finished the International event on Saturday evening, he began preparing for the fourth round of the Scottish Rally Championship, today's Jim Clark Reivers Rally which again used the tarmac roads round Duns.

    Action from the first run through the stage at Bothwell

    And yet again, Bogie dominated proceedings to take his third win in the opening four rounds of the SRC. Swapping his Mitsubishi for an MG Metro 6R4, Bogie controlled the day to win comfortably by 71.3secs from Duns driver Euan Thorburn in another Mitsubishi.

    "This rounds off a stunning weekend for me," Bogie, whose Reivers win was his third in consecutive years, beamed. "I've never won two rallies in a single weekend before, so this is something really very special. I wasn't able to celebrate on Saturday, but I think we might enjoy tonight."

    Bogie now leads both the British and Scottish Rally Championships by significant margins as both competitions reach their halfway point of the season, and the Scot is well on course to achieve a historic double success.

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    Jim McGill

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