BIG-HEARTED bus driver Mark McKay is gearing up for a whirlwind 862-mile dash around Scotland in a rally car, writes David Carnduff.

Mark is more used to transporting passengers on a McGill’s bus on the busy Auchenback to Paisley route.

However, he is taking time out to visit every senior football club in the country in an epic 24-hour drive that will start in Dingwall, visit St Mirren’s Paisley 2021 ground and end at the national stadium, Hampden Park.

Mark, 38, will be joined by co-driver Sharon McNaughton, who also works for McGill’s, as they raise money for Who Dares Cares - a charity which helps people with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

They’re converting a 2001 Ford Focus, bought for £200, into a fully-equipped rally car for the fundraising challenge, which takes place in September.

Mark, of Foxbar, Paisley, said: “I have been talking about doing this for years. We did a lot of research working out a possible route that would take us to all senior football clubs in 24 hours.

“I bought the Ford Focus for £200 but I’ve spent a lot more converting it from a standard saloon to a full rally car.”

Mark and Sharon plan to set off on the fundraising trip on September 15 - a date that has special relevance, as it will be exactly 10 years to the day that Scots rally hero Colin McRae, his son Johnny and two friends died in a helicopter crash near Lanark.

As a tribute, the car used on the round-Scotland dash will be a replica of the one Colin drove in the 2001 World Rally Car Championships.

Mark added: “The reason for choosing to raise money for Who Dares Cares is that my mum Irene met one of the charity’s founders, Colin McLachan.”

The rally challenge is due to reach St Mirren’s stadium at around 2pm on September 16.

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