By AmandaLittle

Published at 11:24, Tuesday, 02 December 2008

EVERY time Scott Martin fastens his crash helmet and straps himself into a high-powered car, it’s proof that he has conquered the demons which once saw him walk away from rallying.COMPETING alongside British champion Higgins was great experience and with Clarke he won the ultra-competitive Fiesta Sporting Trophy.

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motorsport: In 2005, Scott Martin suffered an horrific leg break after smashing into a tree – now he’s back to help his best pal become rallying’s top driver

Focused, committed and ambitious, Martin’s frame of mind is a complete contrast to the emotions he felt three years ago when he quit as co-driver to Matthew Wilson, vowing never to sit in a rally car again.

On Friday the Cumbrian pair will be in action in the Wales Rally GB, aiming to underline their potential as Britain’s brightest young rally stars by securing a top 10 place in the drivers’ title race on the final round of the World Rally Championship.

It’s been a dramatic turnaround for Martin, who lost the stomach for the adrenaline rush of tearing into hairpin bends on forest tracks when he and Wilson suffered terrible injuries in a horrific 104 mph smash in Wales while contesting the British Rally Championship in April 2005.

The pair, who drive for the Stobart Motorsport team, were coming down a hill, known as the ski run, in sixth gear on a surface resembling polished marble after overnight rain.

For only a split-second, Wilson was distracted by Mark Higgins’ broken-down car parked up, missed the braking point by a couple of metres, before their Ford Focus hit loose gravel and careered full-pelt into a tree.

Slumped in the passenger seat of the mangled wreckage, Martin was screaming in agony as he looked down at his horrifically mis-shapen broken right leg with the bone protruding through the skin.

Next to him, Wilson had passed out after seeing his dislocated right wrist jutting out at a bizarre angle, and then swallowed his tongue.

Paramedics had to pull Martin out through the windscreen before he was airlifted to hospital.

Five months later, the pair returned to action with a confidence-boosting display in the Park Systems Stages National Rally in Newtonstewart and a victory in the Trackrod Rally Yorkshire, before securing a top 10 finish in the Ulster Rally on their return to British Rally Championship action.

But within weeks, Martin suffered another devastating blow to his fragile morale when his close friend and fellow co-driver Michael Park was killed in the Wales Rally GB.

Park, co-driver for Markko Martin, died when their Peugeot crashed heavily into a tree on the passenger's side.

“What happened to Michael was another huge hammer blow,” admitted Martin.

“It was horrific really. Everyone was upset about it and I can remember crying in one of the service areas. He’d been a friend and someone I respected who had helped me.

“Matt and I did a few rallies after the accident and I was starting to notice a problem. The enjoyment had gone out of rallying for me, and I decided I didn’t want it anymore. We’d done well in rallies on our return and everything was positive but I knew I had to be true to myself. My head just wasn’t right and I’d completely fallen out of love with rallying.

“I didn’t want to go into the following year in that frame of mind and not feeling 100 per cent right. Expectations were high for Matt – and I didn’t want to mess it up for him.”

Martin quit as Wilson’s side-kick to the shock and dismay of the young driver, who was preparing to become the youngest-ever British pilot to contest every round of the World Rally Championship.

Wilson, the son of Ford World Rally team chief Malcolm Wilson, is tipped as a future champion and regarded Martin as a crucial part of his future plans.

The pair had been selected for the British Rally Elite programme – a scheme dedicated to guiding the careers of Britain’s best young drivers and navigators in the hope of producing the next Richard Burns or Colin McRae.

Everyone told Martin he was throwing away the chance of a lifetime and the opportunity to fulfil his ambition of being part of a WRC team – something he and Wilson had dreamed of since growing up together in Cockermouth.

The 27-year-old, who now lives in Carlisle, said: “My dad and Matthew’s grand-dad are business partners, and they both rallied so I was brought up with it.

“I can remember at the age of 10 asking Malcolm for a job at his rally car workshop.

“As kids Matt and I would sit on chairs or the stairs in overalls and helmets imagining we were in a rally. Even though he was younger than me, I had to make do with the role of co-driver.

“As we grew older, we would drive cars round the back fields. We were always thinking about rallying. The seed got planted very early on that I would co-drive and he would drive. It was our joint dream. When I decided to quit, Matt could tell there was something wrong.

“I went to his house and told him and his mum and dad. It was hard but I had to be true to myself and say I was dead against rallying again. Matt was shocked as he could see I was giving up a good opportunity, but in that state of mind I didn’t think I would be much use to him.”

As a last resort, Martin consulted Edinburgh sports psychologist Hugh Richards – and by the end of the second session he’d had a change of heart.

But by that time it was too late as Wilson, preparing for his debut season in WRC, had appointed Michael Orr as his co-driver and a two-year contract had been signed and sealed.

Still best pals, Wilson and Martin went their separate ways, with Martin becoming co-driver to both Mark Higgins and Barry Clarke.

But there was to be a further test of Martin’s resolve as he was again rocked by tragedy in his first event in 2006 in Catalunya – exactly 12 months on from his own accident.

As the car driven by Clarke careered off the road, it collided with another car, hitting the other crew’s co-driver.

By this time Martin was starting to reconcile himself with the perils of the sport.

Now two years on, he is reunited with Wilson, 21, as the only British crew in the WRC and, although he still bears some of the physical scars of the accident, the mental ones have healed completely.

He said: “We’re here for a short time and sometimes you have to take risks to do what you love doing. For me it’s rallying.

“I read somewhere that our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but how we react to what happens.

“You can take care of yourself but then things can happen when you’re riding a bike or crossing the road. If you have confidence in the driver and the safety of the car, then that all helps.

“Since Matt and I were reunited this year, it’s gone really well and there have been so many highlights. We’ve had some great rallies and seen some glimpses of what we’re capable of.

“A top 10 finish in WRC is on the cards and we’re really looking forward to Wales because it’s our home event.

“I know I’m really lucky to have this chance. Our dream is to be world champions – and that would be a fantastic achievement.”

Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk