Cash fears see rally cancelled at last minute
A CAR rally which was switched to a different course after the deaths of three spectators has been cancelled because ‘insufficient entries’ sparked fears it was heading for a financial loss.
The Jim Clark Rally had been due to be held for the second year running on private tracks in Kielder Forest, Northumberland, on June 5.
The event had been staged on public roads in Berwickshire for almost 20 years but was switched last year after the 2014 tragedy.
Iain Provan, 64, Elizabeth Allan, 63, and Len Stern, 71, died at a stage of the rally near Coldstream.
The Scottish Rally Championship said yesterday they were ‘very disappointed’ with the decision to pull the plug on the event.
Chairman Dave Robson said they had offered a loan to the organisers to allow the rally to go ahead.
He said: ‘We always knew it was going to be a struggle this year, due to the event running so closely to other major rallies in the region.
‘However, the Scottish Rally Championship board offered a five-figure loan to the rally, in order to help the financial situation, but this offer was declined.
‘It’s a massive blow for all of those who’ve worked so hard to ensure the rally could run. The event was fully staffed, including marshals and stewards.
‘It will be a big loss for many businesses around Kelso who will now be faced with accommodation cancellations at short notice.
‘The event always generates a lot of money for those in the tourism and hospitality industries.’
The Jim Clark Rally, which can trace its roots back to 1970, had been held since 1997 on closed public roads until the 2014 fatal accident.
Permission was withdrawn for the event to take place on public roads while investigations continued.
A revised event went ahead in Kielder Forest last year.
Organisers of this year’s rally said they had made the ‘very reluctant decision’ to cancel it at a special meeting.
Jim Clark Rally chairman Dan Wright said: ‘We had insufficient entries by the closing deadline to make the event financially viable.
‘This is an amateur club and we are all volunteers, we simply cannot afford to run the event at a loss.
‘We do have limited funds in the bank but these are being held in reserve for next year’s event when the Jim Clark Rally will return to a closed-road format.’