BOOK REVIEW: McRae, Just Colin

Rarely does a book demand to be read from cover to cover in one sitting, but McRae, Just Colin, by Colin McMaster and David Evans, does just that. 

It is a tome dedicated to Colin McRae, the mercurial Scot who won the 1995 World Rally Championship. McMaster — a close friend of McRae’s as well as a gifted photographer — blends his own works with other carefully-selected archive imagery to paint the McRae legend in fresh hues, adding absorbing commentary from those who knew him best.

The book provides enough detail on McRae’s childhood without losing the over-riding theme, before covering his ascension to World Rallying in a year-by-year format. Further key insights entice the reader to dive in, covering everything from Colin’s special relationship with the Motu Gorge stage of Rally New Zealand to the rivalry between him and the late Richard Burns that so captivated the British media.

What shines through is the honesty of those who provided insights into Colin’s life, both personally and professionally. There are no punches pulled here, to the pure benefit of the reader. Massive controversies, such as the team order saga at the 1995 Rally Catalunya (where McRae was forced to concede victory to his team-mate Carlos Sainz) are revisited by the key players, including David Richards (Prodrive’s team principal, who made the decision) and Sainz himself. 

Derek Ringer and Nicky Grist (McRae’s two most prominent co-drivers) take the reader into the car round-by-round, covering the extremes of emotion which make up a WRC championship challenge. The final section captures the emotion felt at the time of his passing (McRae, along with five-year-old son Johnny and family friends Graeme Duncan and Ben Porcelli died in a helicopter crash) with thoughtful words and poignant pictures.

The reader is left riding a wave of emotion, and the conclusion that Colin McRae was someone who simply refused to give up, or indeed, grow up. Avoidable accidents — where he’d rather destroy a car going for victory than settling for a lower place — were dotted throughout his career, but when he was ‘on it’ you were left in no doubt that he was the fastest driver of his generation.

If the book’s content is as consuming as it gets for a motorsport fan, sadly the proof-reading of the 256 pages leaves a bit to be desired, with frequent misspellings of driver names and missing words that weren't expected, given the quality of the authors. 

That gripe aside, McRae, Just Colin is a must-read, not only for rally fans, but for enthusiasts of motor sport in general.

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