BLESSED ARE THE MEEKE; My EXCLUSIVE chat with local rallying hero & IRC champion.

Byline: Darren Liggett

BLESSED with probably the best day job in the world rally ace Kris Meeke has just been crowned Intercontinental rally champion.

Kris will be taking part in the final round of this year's Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) in Scotland on November 19 to 21 and as you read this he'll probably be blasting down a country road in a bid to get his fifth win in the IRC.

The Peugeot UK driver has already secured the IRC drivers' title in the last round in San Remo but will lead off a strong gathering of local drivers in this week's Rally Scotland, all keen to get on the top step of the podium.

I was over in Scotland for the launch of the rally a few weeks ago and Kris took time out of his incredibly busy schedule to have an exclusive chat with me about his incredible rise to rally stardom.

Here's how it went:

DL: "When you were young were you mad into cars?

KM: My interest in motorsport and rallying in particular was through my father's involvement in motorsport as he built and prepared rally cars for Bertie Fisher. I grew up around his workshop so I think it was in my blood from a very early age. From the driving end of it I didn't start competing until I was 21. It wasn't something I set out to do as I got my education then went to Queens University and qualified as a mechanical engineer and went to work with the Ford World Rally team. It was only after that I entered a competition in a magazine and it all snowballed very quickly.

DL: What sort of cars did your father work on?

KM: Everything from MK1 and MK2 Escorts, Opel Mantas and Asconas, BMW M3s then into the Subaru and Evos eras. He prepared Bertie Fisher's rally car for 30 years. He's not involved anymore but still takes a keen interest.

DL: Is it true you started off in navigation rallies?

KM: Yes in the Northern Ireland Championship I was navigator and my brother drove as I was only 16 and he was 17 and the one with a licence.

It developed a fantastic discipline for me as it learns you rallying from grass roots. It gives you the concept of time controls and has stuck with me. I did enjoy navigating as it gives you an appreciation from that side of the car.

DL: Do you still live in Northern Ireland and have a house here? KM:Yes, Dungannon but it's not that often that I see it.

DL: What road car do you currently drive?

KM: I was driving a Peugeot 4008 but just recently changed to a 207GTi. My co-pilot Paul Nagle has a GTi and I was visiting him in Killarney and I got a drive in it. It's a cracking piece of kit. I really enjoy driving it. The 4008 jeep was really practical as I could fit my mountain bike in it but I have a van now for that and I'm really happy with the 207GTi.

DL: So you like mountain biking but is it just for fitness or for fun too.

KM: I really enjoy mountain biking but I primarily use it for training. You have to go to the gym regularly but I'm more into outdoors. It's quite ironic as my team mate this year is French star Nicolas Vouilloz and he was 10 times World Downhill Mountain Biking champion.

DL: Tell us about your Peugeot S2000 rally car.

KM: It's a 2-litre normally aspirated 4-wheel drive car developing in and around 285bhp. The only real difference between it and a World Rally car is it doesn't have a turbo.

It only weight 1,200kgms in weight and is purely designed to get you up to speed as quick as possible. Rally cars aren't designed for just top end speed more for driveability.

DL: Is the next step for you WRC?

KM: Ultimately in the future I'd love to move across to WRC but at the moment the IRC for me is the right place to be. There is no depth to the WRC at the moment, there's only about four factory drivers. In the current climate it's so hard to get sponsorship. IRC on the other hand is generating a bit more of a buzz about it.

The competition is close. There is more manufacturer involvement and more factory seats. It's a fantastic place to be and I still hold the ambition to be World Rally Champion but don't know if I'll ever get the opportunity.

I just need to be in the right place at the right time. I'll just keep my head down and try and make it work.

DL:: Has the recession affected the IRC?

KM: I have to be honest, from my end of things since the recession kicked in things have never been better. I got my break with Peugeot UK at the end of 2008, I was very fortunate to get my break during very hard times. It has went very well for us this year and has lifted the spirits within Peugeot UK.

The ultimate gain for any manufacturer is to generate sales and to raise the moral within the company by gaining a victory for their team so it has worked from all angles.

DL: If you had any children would you be OK for them to follow in your footsteps and choose rallying as a career.

KM: I would as it's a fascinating sport, I wouldn't change anything in my life or the direction it went.

Not only do you get to see the world but you get to see it from a point of view where you are travelling way out into the far reaches of every country. Places that you'd never get to see normally.

By all means I'd advise not just my children, if I ever have any, but any young person to set their goals on rallying as it's an amazing sport to be involved in. I wouldn't change anything for the world.

DL: It must of been a great honour to be mentored by the late Colin McRae.

KM: It is well know in the rallying community how much of an influence Colin McRae was on my career and it went on much beyond motorsport, he basically took me in as a younger brother and lived in the family home for a number of years.

He knew the rally community in Scotland very well and it's very much a second home for me. It is going to be a very special occasion. For me it quite ironic, there's so many aspects to 2009, my life and my rally career has come full circle.

DL: So back to the IRC and the final round in Scotland. You've the championship won and the pressure's off you but will you still go flat out?

KM: Yes the pressure is off a little bit as regards to the championship but I'd definately like to finish the year on a high and there'd be no better way to try and achieve that.

When the helmet's on and I get to the start line I'll be treating it like any other rally and try and do the best job I can. Hopefully I'll put on a show for the spectators."

And that was that, Chris had to rush off to catch a plane but I was honoured to spend 10 minutes with a local legend. He is not only an inspiration for the youth in Northern Ireland but also proves that if you put your mind to it you can achieve anything. I wish him every success in Scotland and in next year's IRC season.

CAPTION(S):

HIGHLAND FLING Kris with Miss Scotland at the rally launch MEEK, BUT BY NO MEANS MILD ICR Champion Kris Meeke and, below, sideways in his Peugeot UK S2000 rally car WINNERS Kris with co-pilot Paul Nagle in San Marino SILVERWARE Kris with some of the trophies he has won