THE opening weekend of the Scottish speed season sees drivers from as far away as Thurso and the North of England entered for the first two rounds of the Guyson Scottish Sprint Championship at Kames Motorsport Complex in Muirkirk on April 12 and 13.

While the Sunday event has attracted the bigger entry, both days will see a star-studded field.

Strong favourite is Alloa ace Wallace Menzies who will be using the meetings as a dry run for his challenge for the prestigious British Hillclimb Championship in which he finished a highly creditable third last season.

On his last appearance at Muirkirk in October his 3.2 litre V8 DJ Firestorm was timed at an incredible 129mph.

Wallace’s wife Nicola, also a regular on the national hillclimb scene, will drive the PC Force with which she was runner-up in October, just before her engine expired spectacularly in a huge cloud of smoke. Another lady competitor who will attract a lot of attention will be twenty-year-old Louise Calder from Thurso as she has greatly impressed in her first full season of competition in her Jedi racing car.

Sunday will have an international atmosphere will the arrival of 19 competitors from the North of England chasing points in the Cross-Border Speed Championship. Practice starts 9.30 am. each day with racing proper around 1.15pm.