With sticker and shirt sales going VERY well and just under two months till what could potentially be the largest Subaru event EVER, we though it time for a bit of an update as to what's going on.
PRODRIVE
Prodrive today issued the following Press Release to the mainstream motoring media:
"McRae tribute to set new world record
A world record 1000 Imprezas are expected to descend on Prodrive on August 31, as the Subaru community gathers to pay a fitting tribute to the late Colin McRae.
Led by McRaes 1995 World Rally Championship-winning Impreza 555, a convoy of Subarus will leave Colins home town of Lanark at 10 am on Saturday 30 August. The initially small group of Subarus will head down the A74, M6, M42 and the M40 before arriving at Prodrive in Banbury later the same day.
On Sunday August 31, organisers of the McRae Gathering expect more than 1000 Subarus from all over the UK to gather at Prodrive. The British motorsport company is the home of the Subaru World Rally Team, where Colin spent the most successful years of his rallying career; first winning the British Rally Championship in a Subaru Legacy in 1991 and 1992, before graduating to the works team Impreza and famously becoming Britains first world rally champion in 1995.
Colin also helped Subaru win the manufacturers championship in 1996 and 1997 and his 1996 Group A Impreza 555, will lead the convoy up the M40 for the final leg of its journey from Banbury to Prodrives proving ground in Warwickshire.
Having just set a world record for a gathering of Subarus, the aim is then to set a world record for a parade of Subarus, as all the cars circulate around the 2 mile test track. As a final mark of respect, the Subarus will park up on the mile-long straight to spell out the name Colin McRae in letters more than 100 feet tall and visible to anyone flying into nearby Birmingham International airport.
Prodrive chairman, David Richards, was instrumental in putting the young Colin McRae into a Subaru and nurturing his talent. He said: Colin was not only an exceptional driver, but also a remarkable person and a great friend to everyone at Prodrive. Single-handedly he brought the sport of rallying into everyones living room, whether it was through his sideways exploits in the forest or through the many video games which bore his name. I can not think of a more fitting tribute to Colin than a gathering of so many Subarus, a car for which he did so much to make as popular as it is today.
The McRae Gathering is only open to Subarus and to take part, all cars must bear the special McRae Gathering plate. There is an entry charge of £10 for each car and all proceeds will go to the McRaes nominated charities. For more information and to join the convoy please visit
www.mcrae-gathering.co.uk."
We cannot express how grateful we are to Prodrive for supporting us in the way they have. Already the McRae Gathering website is seeing increased traffic from across the globe as a result. Website articles and forum topics have been recorded in South Africa, Australia, USA, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Poland - amongst others and yesterday we received contact from a Rally Magazine in Argentina wanting to cover this event. Interest is expected to continue to grow as word spreads.
SUBARU WORLD RALLY TEAM
When the Subaru World Rally Team were approached about offering items to auction for this event, we expected a few bits and pieces - maybe some SWRT jackets or fleeces. Never in a million years did we expect what they have offered us...
Apart from
"an actual set of Petter Solberg's 2008 (blue and yellow rather than the newer style) rally overalls (cleaned, fortunately) which we'll get Petter to autograph at the Festival of Speed. These are not replica - and they are rarely made available to the public for purchase."
SWRT have offered up a truly once in a lifetime experience that money simply cannot buy:
"An 'SWRT Team Member for a day' - we would provide the relevant winner with the following prize (let's make sure the auction amount goes up eh!). The chance on the Saturday of Rally GB, to be a team member for the day. They will be supplied with full team kit for the day (which will be theirs to keep afterwards, so they can get souvenir autographs etc), and will be tasked with working with various team members throughout the day, whether this be washing the recce cars, helping clean wheels, supporting the crew in their general tasks, as well as a unique full in-depth tour of the service area, being able to touch and feel virtually everything (drivers excluded!) and gain a full appreciation of what is required to run and work in a rally team, even eating with the crew members - more than anything being able to experience the real inside of the greatest rally team. (We'll throw in a hospitality ticket for their guest on this day).
Then, on the Sunday, this person and a guest will be able to sample the nicer things in life as we'll provide them with full hospitality in the SWRT hospitality centre, while they can continue to watch the service in action from the 'nice' side of the service park and see the mechanics get dirty while they stay clean (and probably dry!).
The only key thing is they will need to be available first thing on the Saturday morning (and we'll know nearer the time what time the team will start) and it will be a long day, but if they fancy seeing SWRT inside-out, this is their chance."
There will be more on this soon. Please DO NOT contact us regarding bids for either item at this time. We are open to offers of other items for auction - the more exclusive the better! Every penny will go to the McRae Charities and we will give extensive exposure to those helping us out.
Other bits and pieces...
THE CONVOY AND WEEKEND
Please note that a McRae Gathering Sticker will be required to participate in ANY part of the weekend's events, not just to gain entry to Prodrive. If you want to just be part of the convoy then leave or join the convoy part way then you MUST carry an official sticker on the front of your car and you must register your details with us. This is a condition of Police approval for the event.
HOTELS
Many people are still looking for accomodation for this event (we did tell you to book ages ago!) We've had contact advising of a new Holiday Inn Express opened in Banbury. Details are:
Holiday Inn Express,
Stroud Park, Ermont Way, Banbury, Oxon, OX16 4AE
Tel: 01295 234567 Fax: 01295 234568
Thanks to Lee for the heads-up on this.
CHARNOCK RICHARDS!
If I'd had a pound for every email I'd received asking what time the convoy will be at Charnock Richards Services I'd have donated about a squllion quid to the charities by now! We WILL be carrying out a recce of the route leaving Lanark at 10am and sticking to the 60mph of the convoy on the day to gain approximate times we'll be at each given meeting point, but that all has to fit in around our jobs and lives! We'll be carrying that out in the next few weeks so please - stop asking! We know folk are excited about this and there's a real buzz that is growing daily, but you don't need to know 8 weeks in advance the exact timing!
SHIRT ORDERS
Orders have been coming in for these by the load. There is a big backlog so PLEASE allow 28 days for delivery before contacting us.
Please DO NOT, as someone did, order multiple shirts in different sizes expecting a refund on the ones that do not fit. Shirts are embroidered to order for you personally and we will NOT entertain that as a reason for a refund. We're not Marks & Spencer.
STICKER ORDERS
We're pretty much on top of these now, but again would ask that people allow the full 28 days for delivery before chasing orders.
Whilst we're on the subject of stickers, we've taken on board the comments that we've seen about the Gathering stickers being too big to keep on cars long-term. Given the scale of this event and the permissions we've had to obtain, it's vital the stickers on display over the weekend are large and clear to the Organisers and Marshals to show who is part of the event and to smooth traffic flow. In light of your feedback, smaller souvenir stickers are being worked on so you have something you can keep on your car to show you were part of this event without being massive like the official stickers. We're proposing these smaller stickers are given out on the day at Prodrive as a souvenir. You may make a voluntary donation for these if you wish rather than them be a mandatory purchase, but they will only be available to those who are at Prodrive and who have already paid for their "big" sticker(s) and as with everything else, all profits will go to the charities. More info on this will follow.
WHERE WE'RE AT!
We're sure many of you want to know how much has been raised so far for the charities and how many cars are registered so far. The sheer workload of just keeping up with the overwhelming volume of sticker orders, shirt orders and answering day-to-day queries along with us trying to hold down our real-life jobs has left us somewhat stretched as we never expected the level of interest generated. We'll be looking at the facts and figures this week and will report back soon. suffice to say the sums raised so far are WAY beyond what we expected.
More soon
McRae Gathering Team
