16 Sep 05
Deep in the Nordic forests, home of rallying and a place of earth-shattering natural beauty, natural fibres are a no-no. In Finland, the shell suit is still alive and well. In bright polyester purples and nylon yellows, rally fans swarm into the forests for their fix: to watch exhaust-popping rally cars sliding sideways. They are outnumbered only by a rival army of pine, birch and spruce.
After the sanitised world of Formula One, where spectators are usually kept hundreds of feet away from the action, rallying is the last remaining form of motor sport where the fan gets as big an adrenalin rush as the driver - whether this is in Finland, or at the British round of the World Championship, Wales Rally GB in Cardiff.
Sideways, wheels spinning frenetically, bumpers kissing tree bark, drivers such as Matthew Wilson - tipped to be Britain's next Colin McRae - can slip a rally Ford Focus (a machine based on the road car) through a gap not much wider than a garage door. "I love going out in the forests to watch rallying; the sound, the buzz, the atmosphere is electric," says Wilson, who was taught to drive by 1981 world champion Ari Vatanen. "But I prefer being out there driving, especially in the cold. The dedication of the fans is amazing."
