After a five-year absence the third running of the Three Legs of Mann Rally is set to take place from March 16-18.

The event is organised by the Historic Endurance Rallying Organisation (HERO) and is for vehicles produced before 1986.

It will criss-cross the island from a Douglas base, with the three legs taking place during the Friday daytime, Friday night and Saturday daytime.

There will be around 20 autotest-style sections across the event, and a further 15 regularity (average speed) tests. The event will cover closed venues such as Jurby and some plantations, along with open road runs.

Closed road sections will be kept to minimum, but offer a further element that events do not have in the UK.

Clerk of the Course for the rally is Guy Woodcock, a name well-known to local rally fans as a regular competitor on the Manx National (for which he has also been deputy clerk of the course) and more recently a leading challenger for the Rallee Classicagh category of Rally Isle of Man. That event’s organising team will be assisting with staging the Three Legs event.

Woodcock, who was the winning navigator in 2012, says the organisers have been surprised by the level of interest for the event: ’We hoped for 45 entries, and have received more than 60! The island’s motorsports name has been a great draw.’

The entries range from a 1938 4.25-litre Bentley Derby onwards to Austin Healeys and the more familiar Porsches, Minis and Ford Escorts.

As with all motorsport, the event requires volunteer marshals and timekeepers. You do not need to be a registered marshal to get involved and it is a great fun event to start out on if you’ve never done it before. Even if you only have a few hours to spare that will be a huge help.

If you can assist, please contact chief marshal Ian Butcher on 07462 198562 (not 07624) or [email protected]

l Running with the event on the Friday night section will be a round of the IoM Navigational Rally Championship, Druidale Motor Club’s March Rally.

This will give local crews the chance to sample something a little bit different, and also ensure plenty of familiar faces out on the event.

l Entries are now open for the Manx National Rally (May 5-6) - manxautosport.org