The podium result was hard-won after the team lay in fifth place overall after the first night of competition: “Honestly, on Friday night, I was questioning whether we could turn the race around” said Comrie-Picard, “but between some smart setup changes on the team’s part and a bit of a reset in my driving style, we managed to turn the tables on our competition on Saturday and go from over a minute out of second place to a solid result and a kickoff to our championship. I’m as proud of this result as of any in more than ten years of rally driving.”

The Scion team is competing for the overall two-wheel-drive Rally America Championship in 2012, and is very happy with the finish this weekend. Said Gordon Ting, team principal: “This is a solid result and a terrific points haul. We know from last year that we have what it takes to win on gravel, and we’re looking forward to the 100 Acre Wood Rally in late February to prove it!”

The conditions were treacherous, with a combination of water on ice, glare ice, and a dusting of snow over ice. Said co-driver Jeremy Wimpey: “Imagine your worst nightmare of an icy road surface, then drive it through the woods on a one-lane road at 90mph. It was that sort of weekend…”

BFGoodrich Winter Slalom KSI tires provided the traction for the team. Said Comrie-Picard: “Nothing should be able to grip the glare ice we were on; it’s a testament to the tires that we stayed on the road at all. The Winter Slalom’s compounding and tread pattern gave us the advantage we needed.”

The team shared the podium with Ford Fiestas in first (Chris Duplessis) and third (Dillon Van Way) places. It marks the sixth time in seven Rally America appearances that the Scion xD has been on the podium. The team plans to contest the entire Rally America Championship.

ABOUT ACP: Andrew Comrie-Picard is the 2009 North American Rally Champion, five-time X Games Athlete, and an X Games medalist. He has also competed in the RallyCar Rallycross series, the FormulaD drift championship, short-course off-road racing, and in the Baja1000. When he isn’t racing, Comrie-Picard works in film, television, and print media as a precision driver, producer, and host. He lives in Los Angeles, California.
—
For more information and video highlights, visit: www.acpracing.com, www.rallyxd.com, and www.scionracing.com. Find ACP on YouTube or Twitter under ACPRacing, and at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=648360509

Photos:

Team Scion xD Rally flies through a snowy corner. Envy Photography

Podium result for Comrie-Picard and Wimpey. Scion Rally xD

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The high-energy, action-packed show features two pro drivers battling for best time and style on a stunt course laid out by ACP and tested in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X rallycross car.

The pilot episode pits 2011 American Rally champion David Higgins against his Subaru Rally Team USA teammate, X Games star Dave Mirra, in spectacular contests of speed and style.

This exciting new show takes action motorsports to a never-before-seen level of extreme as the two drivers race in identical rally cars on the most dangerous course imaginable, inside a working steel mill, at speeds of up to 90 miles per hour. Stacey Keibler (WWE, Dancing with the Stars) co-hosts and goes for a thrill ride in ACP’s car.

This exhilarating contest features two rounds of competition between the two rally stars. Round One is a lap of the Battle Cross course scored by time, with each driver given two attempts to clock their fastest time around the difficult course. Round Two is a two-minute freestyle session scored for difficulty, creativity, precision and style by two expert judges: drifting champion Samuel Hubinette, and rally driver Stephan Verdier.

Produced and directed by Rob Cohen, the top action director and creator of the The Fast and the Furious franchise, Battle Cross was created to attract a young adult audience with the intense visual excitement of 400-horsepower cars competing on challenging courses that combines spectacular jumps with high-speed precision maneuvers.

With a new and unique competition format, a course that lives and breathes pure havoc, and the most skilled drivers on the planet going at breakneck speeds, Battle Cross is poised to become a must-see show for racing fans.

Check www.speedtv.com/programs/battle-cross for further information and additional show times on November 18th and 20th.

Teaser on-car videos available on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InpzBkn5tdc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6XSu7xxSZg

Photos: ACP consults with Rob Cohen on the set of Battle Cross. The ACP Racing Mitsubishi Evolution X on the set of Battle Cross.

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The new engine, built at AMS Motorsport in Chicago and installed at race shop Rallispec near Philadelphia, uses Brian Crower internals and custom JE Pistons to the same specs ACP Racing used to take the bronze medal in this year’s X Games Rally Car event.

“We added a few tricks to this one” said Comrie-Picard, “but it’s essentially the tried and true formula that took us to the championship and through the X Games this year. We’re still going to have to search for more power, but this is a step in the right direction.”

The team will still run the engine on the 40mm intake restrictor and OEM Mitsubishi turbo that they normally use in rally competition. “We haven’t found the right turbo-tune formula to make this car run fast on the 45mm restrictor allowed by the Rallycross rules,” said crew chief Eric Vlasic, “so we’re staying on the small restrictor which is good for torque off the line. Andrew should be able to pull on the starts, but he’ll just have to deal with staying in front of the more powerful cars once they’re all up to speed.”

The top-spec Ford Fiestas of Olsbergs and the Citroen C4 of Liam Doran are all well-developed cars developed for this format of racing flown over from Europe for these events in America. All run the large restrictors and develop close to 600hp, almost twice what the main North American competitors – including ACP Racing – are typically making from their rally-derived cars.

Comrie-Picard doesn’t see this as an impediment. “We’ve got lots of game that isn’t all about the power. First off, we have the BFGoodrich rally-spec tires from their WRC and IRC efforts, which are terrific. And if it’s wet, we have other options in this range that the other guys don’t have.” Southern New Jersey was affected by flooding late Thursday night and Friday morning from heavy rains, although these are expected to taper through the weekend.

“Second, I’ve got a bit more track and short-course experience than some of the other guys, and that helped in the previous event. That advantage is small and won’t last for long, but I plan to maximize the edge” claimed Comrie-Picard.

The event will be extremely competitive, with former European Championship-winning platforms in the Ford Fiestas and the Citroen C4, and the debut of Rhys Millen to the format in an ex-WRC Hyundai Accent. Combined with the nail-biting, fan-friendly, and highly-televisable Rallycross format, the series is bound to succeed as it builds momentum into 2011.

“When you’ve got more manufacturers coming in and cars flying over from Europe for a new American racing series, you know you’re on to something,” said Comrie-Picard. “This is a series that’s getting huge.”

The NOS Energy team will return at the next scheduled Rallycross event on November 6-7 at the same venue, which will be the last of the three-event 2010 series. For next year, “watch this space,” quipped Comrie-Picard. “We’ll be busy this winter getting ready to take this series in 2011.”

Comrie-Picard will be interviewed on Road & Track Speed Radio this Saturday Oct. 2 at 1pm Pacific, 4pm Eastern. The broadcast is distributed through various local affiliates and can be streamed at www.radioamerica.org. You can read his feature article on rally driving techniques in the current issue of Grassroots Motorsports.

ABOUT THE DRIVER:
Andrew Comrie-Picard is the 2009 North American Rally Champion and in 2010 competed in X Games for a fifth time and won a bronze medal. He also drifts at the professional level for Dodge Motorsports and BFGoodrich in the FormulaD drift championship in a Viper. When he isn’t racing, Comrie-Picard works in film, television, and print media as an automotive expert; he hosts the television show Ultimate Car Build-off (http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/ultimate-car-build-off/) airing on Discovery Channel. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

ABOUT RALLYCROSS:
Rallycross is a highly-exciting, fan-oriented motorsport in which 500+ horsepower cars go head-to-head on a closed-circuit dirt and tarmac course. More info can be found at www.rally-america.com

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), BFGoodrich (www.bfgoodrichtires.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Enkei Wheel (www.enkei.com), Albins Off Road Gears (www.albinsgear.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Recaro (www.recaro.com), Lincoln Electric (www.lincolnelectric.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

For more information and video highlights, visit: www.acpracing.com and read the team’s blog at www.drinknos.com. Find us on YouTube or Twitter under ACPRacing, and at http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=648360509

ACP leads into first corner at New Jersey Rallycross in August, photo by Neil McDaid

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Despite competing throughout the heats and “A” final event with a blown headgasket and the interior heater on full blast in the over-90 degree temperatures, and while racing with a smaller 40mm intake restrictor than the 45mm-restricted winning European-spec Ford Fiesta, Comrie-Picard drove his Mitsubishi Evo rally car to the limit to be in the A final and score the result.

“I’m really happy with the weekend for a bunch of reasons,” said a happy ACP. “First off, it’s terrific proof that Rallycross is going to work as a format in the US. The thousands of fans were insanely enthusiastic, and the track administration said it was by far the most exciting event they’ve hosted since they opened the beautiful facility three years ago, and that includes Grand-Am and Superbikes.” The Rallycross track arrangement used sections of the well-engineered racetrack, then diverted onto several dirt portions built specifically for the event, including a jump, and a “joker” diversion course that each car is required to take once per heat.

“Second, we had a great result considering that the two Fords that beat us were full-spec European rallycross cars, and the two Subarus were the US factory team effort. For us as privateers, and especially considering our small turbo and restrictor, we really couldn’t have hoped for better. I drove the car right to the edge, and better yet, we all had crazy fun doing it.” Fellow competitor Dave Mirra and Comrie-Picard were seen in each others’ pits after heats talking excitedly about what had happened in each race. “This is real fun for us, honestly. In rally, you might talk to each other after a stage and try to compare notes on the course. Here, we’re like ‘dude! I totally got you where the joker merges in over the jump!’ That’s fun, and the spectators love it too” said ACP.

The team was assisted by BFGoodrich tire technology derived from successful World Rally programs, using tarmac rally tires of the type used by top BFGoodrich teams internationally. “The braking was insane,” said Comrie-Picard, “one of the other top competitors on a different tire rear-ended me in a braking zone when he locked up. I should have known he wasn’t on BFGs.”

The NOS Energy team will return at the next scheduled Rallycross event on October 2-3 at the same venue, with a new AMS motor and polycarbonate windshield. “We’ll be back with an evolved car and more game. Make no mistake,” quipped Comrie-Picard, “we’re in it to win it.”

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), BFGoodrich (www.bfgoodrichtires.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Enkei Wheel (www.enkei.com), Albins Off Road Gears (www.albinsgear.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Recaro (www.recaro.com), Lincoln Electric (www.lincolnelectric.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

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Andrew Comrie-Picard, five-time X Games competitor and principal of ACP Racing, took the Bronze in Rally Car Racing in his 2006 Evolution IX, and Samuel Hubinette, Comrie-Picard’s teammate in professional drifting, took the Bronze in the new discipline of SuperRally in ACP Racing’s 2008 Evolution X.

Comrie-Picard also finished sixth in SuperRally after a spin in traffic in the semi-final qualifier saw him miss a place in the final.

“This is a great result for the team” said Comrie-Picard. “Relative to our main rivals we have a very privateer effort, but this X Games shows that we really punch above our weight.”

Innovation has been the key to many of ACP Racing’s successes. At X Games this year, both competition cars ran almost pure ethanol fuel, which gave more power and also an environmental consciousness to the effort.

Ironically, the spin in the SuperRally semi-final qualifier was the result of contact between the two team cars, after Ken Block slowed with a mechanical problem in front of Comrie-Picard who was immediately in front of Hubinette. Comrie-Picard corrected his line to avoid Block and Hubinette was unable to avoid Comrie-Picard’s car, spinning him out and taking over the lead in the semi-final.

“It was a racing incident, pure and simple” said Comrie-Picard. “It’s something we have to get used to in SuperRally. There’s going to be unavoidable contact.”

Both Comrie-Picard and Hubinette are expected to continue competing in the new American sport of SuperRally under both the RallyCar RallyCross banner and the X Games SuperRally discipline in 2011. “It’s a mad, bad, racing format and its time has come” said Comrie-Picard. “I could hear the crowd screaming from inside the running car. That tells me the sport has a future.” A highlight of the entire X Games was the two ACP Racing team cars going over the 70-foot gap jump in tandem, nose-to-tail. The crowd was on its feet for this never-before-seen spectacle.

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), BFGoodrich (www.bfgoodrichtires.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Enkei Wheel (www.enkei.com), Albins Off Road Gears (www.albinsgear.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Recaro (www.recaro.com), Lincoln Electric (www.lincolnelectric.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

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For Comrie-Picard, the result was the culmination of successful year as a driver, TV host, and now team owner. “We’ve competed at every X Games, but this year was probably the most challenging. The venue change, the rules changes, and running a car for a guest driver – all these things made concentrating on my own driving difficult, and yet we were lucky enough to come through with a medal” said ACP.

The X Games Rally Car Racing had previously taken place at the Home Depot Center, but this year was at the historic LA Coliseum. Rules changes saw the allowance of European-format 600-horsepower cars, and Comrie-Picard supported FormulaDrift teammate Samuel Hubinette by lending Hubinette his newer Mitsubishi Evoluiton X for the SuperRally competition.

“Actually all the pressure and complexities that this year threw at us were probably a good thing. We didn’t have time to think about anything else, so when race day came, we just went for it. X Games is all about putting it out there, and that’s exactly what we did” said Comrie-Picard.

Ford drivers Tanner Foust and Brian Deegan took first and second place respectively, and fellow Canadian Antoine L’Estage tied with Comrie-Picard for the Bronze in lieu of a showdown medal match. He, like Hubinette, was competing in a newer Mitsubishi Evolution X.

The result was a tremendous success for ACP Racing and Comrie-Picard, as only a day before they blew their high-spec large turbo and so competed with a stock Mitsubishi turbo and 40mm intake restrictor. This meant they were competing with about 200hp less than their main rivals on 45mm intake restrictors.

“You work with what you have,” quipped ACP. “We’ll be back next year with all the game we can muster, and we’ll be in it for the gold.”

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), BFGoodrich (www.bfgoodrichtires.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Enkei Wheel (www.enkei.com), Albins Off Road Gears (www.albinsgear.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Recaro (www.recaro.com), Lincoln Electric (www.lincolnelectric.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

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“It’s a great result,” said Comrie-Picard, “everything went according to our strategy and the win is an important one at this point in the season. It’s great that the car, the team, and our partners are all working so well.”

Comrie-Picard and co-driver Jeremy Wimpey, in their NOS Energy Mitsubishi on BFGoodrich tires, started off the three-day event with a strong performance at Portland International Raceway and took a narrow lead into the first night over rivals Ken Block (Ford/Pirelli), Dave Mirra (Subaru/BFGoodrich), and Antoine L’Estage (Mitsubishi/Yokohama).

Early on the second day of competition, in the Hood River region of Oregon, Block set two fastest times and briefly overhauled Comrie-Picard for the lead, but on the next stage rolled the car and was unable to continue. The same corner had claimed Mirra with a roll earlier in the day. L’Estage cracked a wheel and dropped back in the field but was able to claw back to third place overall by the end of the competition.

William Bacon, in a Mitsubishi Evolution similar to Comrie-Picard’s, put in a steady and fast drive with no major problems to finish second, 44 seconds off the winning time.

“We just went out with a pace in mind and stuck to the plan,” said co-driver Wimpey, “we pushed a bit on the first night to get the lead then paced ourselves for the next two days to be where we needed to be at the end.”

The event included a wide variety of road characters and surfaces, from tarmac and mixed tarmac stages on Friday, to twisty, technical, and rough gravel stages on Saturday, to very fast, smooth, and silty stages on Sunday. Hot weather tested the endurance of cars and teams.

The result vaults Comrie-Picard past Block and into to a tie for fourth place with Dave Mirra in the Rally America Championship.

Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover hundreds of miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), BFGoodrich (www.bfgoodrichtires.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Pfitzner Performance Gearbox (www.ppgearbox.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), Recaro (www.recaro.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com) and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

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“No regrets,” said Comrie-Picard. “A podium finish would have been nice but we had a clear shot at the win – we had to go for it.”

The NOS Energy-backed rally team of ACP and co-driver Jeremy Wimpey had already overcome an early misstep and had clawed from 53rd overall to second place, and were angling for the win, when they went off road just a few kilometers from the end of the grueling ice and snow contest.

The duo had planned a strong start, but a surprisingly slick corner on the first stage caught them off-guard. They were the second leading car to wind up in the ditch early in the event — following defending Canadian champion Pat Richard’s tracks right off the road at a popular spectator corner.

“You can count on Quebec spectators to help you out, but even we thought this was a lost cause,” said Comrie-Picard. “The car was deep in a ditch; I can’t believe they got us out.”

The crowd of spectators, led by legendary Quebec rally driver Sylvain Erickson, hooked a tow rope to the team’s competition car and pulled them back on course. The incident cost them five minutes, damaged the driveline, and dropped them to 53rd place overall.

But the team didn’t give up. The NOS Energy service crew repaired the car and Comrie-Picard and Wimpey put in a clean performance and steadily climbed up the standings until the long, deep forest stages late in the contest when they turned up the heat and clawed into second place overall.

A cautious drive to the end would have virtually guaranteed the team a podium finish, but with one long stage to go and a minute-and-a-half to gain, Comrie-Picard saw an opportunity.

“Points are points, but it’s called ‘racing’ for a reason,” said Comrie-Picard. “We had won the previous stage by over a minute, so we decided to push for the win.”

The team drove to the limit, sliding wildly at times and using the low snow banks to nudge the car back into line at full speed.

With just six kilometers to go, the team was on pace for the victory when they slid wide on a treacherous corner and wound up in a snowy field. The team dug frantically and put deadfall wood under the tires, but it took a hard pull from the car of competitor Ian Crerar to get them back on the road. The team lost 20 minutes on the stage and finished out of the points.

Comrie-Picard’s team was not the only one to have difficulties. The other two key championship contenders had problems this weekend, so the points race remains wide open.

Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover more than 100 miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.

The sport is featured in the annual X Games, the premier action sports event on the globe, featuring athletes competing for medals and prize money in sports including BMX Freestyle, Moto X, Skateboard, and Rally. Comrie-Picard has been among the dozen invited drivers in each of the four years since the rally discipline was introduced to the contest and he expects to return in 2010.

For more information and video highlights, visit: www.acprally.com. Find us on Twitter, YouTube or Facebook under ACP Rally.

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), Yokohama Canada (www.yokohama.ca), Bully Dog (www.bullydog.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), Team Dynamics (www.teamdynamicsracing.com), Pfitzner Performance Gearbox (www.ppgearbox.com.au), Endless (www.endlessusa.com), NBB (www.nbblights.ca), Sparco (www.sparcousa.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com) and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

Photo courtesy of Mat Janiak, www.WorldRallySport.com.

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The NOS Energy-backed rally team will take on Sno*Drift in their familiar, top-spec Evo IX. Despite tough competition from factory-backed teams, Comrie-Picard remains a favorite for the win.

“I’m feeling good about our chances this weekend,” says Comrie-Picard. “Between the heavy development of the Subaru team cars and the new threat from Ken Block in that European Ford, there’s a lot of amazing new machinery out there — but we’ve got reliability and experience on our side.”

Comrie-Picard will be accompanied by co-driver Jeremy Wimpey at this event. The duo ran select events together in 2009, scoring a mid-season win together in Colorado.

The driver took the win at Sno*Drift in 2006 and has finished on the podium in each of the past two years. The team is counting on a combination of tactical aggression and experience to get them to the top as they take on a 100 mile course that will see them hit speeds of 130 mph on glare ice and snow.

“Snow and ice driving is a real artform and I love it,” says Comrie-Picard. “I grew up with this weather; I’m right at home in these conditions.”

The Rally America national championship is a challenging, all-season series comprised of six events across the country. The 2010 season will also see the launch of the European-style rally cross discipline mid-year. Comrie-Picard is expected to take on both of these US rally series and make a return to the X Games for a fifth year. As part of his bid for the North American title, he will also compete in the Canadian Rally Championship. The multi-talented driver, who made his debut in short-course off-road truck racing in 2009, is planning a cross-disciplinary push this season that will also see him take on Formula Drift events.

Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover more than 100 miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.

The sport is also featured in the annual X Games, the premier action sports event on the globe featuring athletes competing for medals and prize money in sports including BMX Freestyle, Moto X, Skateboard, and Rally. Comrie-Picard has been among the dozen invited drivers in each of the four years since the rally discipline was introduced to the contest and expects to return in 2010.

Special thanks from the team to the Garland Lodge and Resort in Lewiston, Michigan, and to Mitsubishi Research and Development.

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), Yokohama Canada (www.yokohama.ca), Bully Dog (www.bullydog.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), Team Dynamics (www.teamdynamicsracing.com), Pfitzner Performance Gearbox (www.ppgearbox.com.au), Endless (www.endlessusa.com), NBB (www.nbblights.ca), Sparco (www.sparcousa.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com) and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

Photo courtesy of Scott Rains.

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The win represents the first championship for the Mitsubishi Evolution X, and the first rally championship for NOS Energy Drink.

“This is a terrific result, especially given that we were working on developing the new rally car throughout this first competition season for the Evolution X,” said Comrie-Picard. “But our sponsors and our team came through and we won a very tight championship race.”

A late-season push, including a win at Rally Colorado and a second-place finish at the Rally of the Tall Pines, sealed the driver’s title for Comrie-Picard. Co-driver Jeremy Wimpey joined the team to secure both of these top finishes.

The season-ender was unusually dry and warm and made for very fast speeds and intense competition. Fans and media at the contest noted Comrie-Picard`s aggressive driving throughout the event — which saw him tearing off bumpers, bending bodywork, and even taking out a finish board — in contrast to his normally tidy style.

“We told ACP to win the championship or leave it in the woods,” said crew chief Eric Vlasic. “He actually did leave some of the car in the woods, but he brought in the championship!”

“We had this car wide-open the whole time,” added Comrie-Picard. “I just wasn’t lifting in most corners or over crests and fortunately, the Ohlins TTX shocks were amazing, the Yokohama tires took the super-high sideloads at 200 km/h (120 mph), and our K&N filter kept the engine safe even through some deep water splashes.”

The team is already preparing for 2010 and looks forward to defending the championship and competing at the X Games for a fifth time.

The NOS Energy Drink motorsports team has had an exceptionally successful year, winning four major racing titles: the North American Rally Championship, the Formula Drift Championship, the Redline Time Attack Series, and the NASCAR Nationwide series.

Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover hundreds of miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.

The ACP Rally program is made possible by: NOS Energy (www.drinknos.com), K&N (www.knfilters.com), Mitsubishi Canada (www.mitsubishi-motors.ca), Yokohama Canada (www.yokohama.ca), Bully Dog (www.bullydog.com), Motul (www.motulusa.com), AMS (www.amsperformance.com), Works (www.worksevo.com), Brian Crower (www.briancrower.com), JE (www.jepistons.com), Exedy (www.exedyusa.com), Ohlins (www.ohlinsusa.com), Pfitzner Performance Gearbox (www.ppgearbox.com.au), Mishimoto (www.mishimoto.com), Oakley (www.oakley.com), Innovate Motorsports (www.tuneyourengine.com), Team Dynamics (www.teamdynamicsracing.com), Endless (www.endlessusa.com), NBB (www.nbblights.ca), Sparco (www.sparcousa.com), NGK (www.ngksparkplugs.com), Seibon Carbon (www.seiboncarbon.com), Rockford Fosgate (www.rockfordfosgate.com), Piloti (www.piloti.com), and Skull Candy (www.skullcandy.com).

For more information and video highlights, visit: www.acprally.com and read the team’s blog at www.drinknos.com. Find us on YouTube or Twitter under ACPRally.

Photos courtesy of the Canadian Association of RallySport and Neil McDaid.

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