Rally of Scotland will take place on Friday 7 - Sunday 9 October

Running on a Friday - Sunday format again, and one week earlier than in 2010, this year's event will be decided by three days of competitive driving on timed Special Stages on closed Forestry Commission Scotland gravel roads in Stirling, Perth & Kinross and North Lanarkshire.

The Rally of Scotland is the penultimate round of the high-profile Intercontinental Rally Challenge and could see the crowning of a new IRC Champion as one and a half times the normal points on offer for a win will be up for grabs. That is expected to lead to a first-class overseas entry while also attracting a number of leading domestic crews eager to make a name on the international stage. Among the top British names will be Lanark's Alister McRae and Dumfries' David Bogie.

Adding to the entertainment, spectators will see a supporting rally for national crews being held on Saturday's and Sunday's stages that follows straight after the headlining IRC event. Furthermore, the route for IRC competitors features a Ceremonial Start at Stirling Castle, a central service park at Perth Airport and a Ceremonial Finish at Scone Palace.

The RACMSA Rally of Scotland is supported by EventScotland, the national events agency, together with Stirling and Perth and Kinross Councils. The route traditionally takes in some of Scotland's most iconic and historic landmarks across two of the country's most picturesque constituencies: Stirling and Perth & Kinross.

This year's event has officially joined forces with Colin McRae Vision - the charity set up in memory of the legendary Scottish rallying hero to support underprivileged children. Furthermore, Colin's father Jimmy, himself a five times British Rally Champion, will drive the 'Zero' course car on the event (7-9 October) - this will be one of Colin's first and best remembered competition cars, the Subaru Legacy in which he won the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Championship titles.

Details of the 2011 route and timetable are available HERE - updated 23 August.

Praise for the 2010 RACMSA Rally of Scotland

Juho Hanninen - "After seeing the stages I was saying 'yes! yes! I really want to do this rally. The tracks are superb. Everything is so well organised. The pre-event reconnaissance, the marshals, the finish of the stages, the road sections, the officials, the service areas… it's very professionally organised - world class. Without doubt Rally of Scotland is one of the very best we do."

Kris Meeke - "The stages have been in incredible condition. From a driving point of view it's the best rally in the championship and certainly the best rally in the UK."