Thomas Lawless, the 2005 United States Rally Champion, with Irish codriver Brian Sharkey in a Mitsubishi Evo IX won tarmac Rally Tennessee, the second round of the United States Rally Championship. Daniel O’Brien and Brendan McCabe in a Subaru Impreza STi took second and Martin Donnelly with Stephen Duffy in Mitsubishi Evo IX were third. Enda McCormack with Bernard Farrell in another Mitsubishi Evo IX rounded up the Irish-American brigade.

David Alan with Ben Slocum in their handsome, black Subaru Impreza WRX won the Production All-Wheel-Drive Cup classification and placed fifth overall. Only 16 seconds behind was a new team of William Petrow and Jeremy Neyhart in Subaru Impreza WRX. Petrow, with a different co-driver, Vincent Nguyen, won the Production Cup classification at the previous round – Rally New York USA. Scott Wilburn and Aaron Crescenti, who were battling engine issues in their Subaru Impreza WRX throughout the rally, were third.

Brad Morris and Doug Nagy in a Two-Wheel-Drive Mitsubishi Lancer won the Two-Wheel-Drive category, Dan Brosnan and Shane McCann, winners of Two-Wheel-Drive category at Rally New York USA, in a Nissan Sentra took second, and Andrew Frick and Ryan Scott in a Ford Focus placed third. Robert Maunz with Mark Sackett won the Two-Wheel-Drive Production Cup classification.

After Rally Tennessee, the Championship will continue with five gravel rounds – Idaho Rally International, Rally West Virginia, Gorman Ridge Rally (California), Prescott Rally (Arizona) and the final round – International Rally New York. Most rounds of the Championship allow for reconnaissance of the rally course and pacenoting.

The United States Rally Championship, now in its fifth season, is taking bold steps to make national competition more affordable and accessible to a larger number of rally teams. This is the third season of the new Championship structure that minimizes or, for many teams, eliminates the need for repeated cross-country travel during the Championship season by providing competition on each side of the country. The final round of the Championship at the end of the year counts both in the Atlantic Division and the Pacific Division and together with the results from all previous rounds decides the top spots in the Championship. The highest-scoring six teams from the USRC Pacific Division are eligible for the coveted cash travel subsidies totaling $12,000 to attend the final round in New York.

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* Round Four of the Atlantic Rally Cup expands to Linden and Lobelville, Tennessee
* New sponsors join event

Perry County’s annual event, Rally Tennessee, is only days away and it appears this year will be another year of growth for the event. In the current economy, this is an exciting development for the local communities and the competitors!

“So far it’s looking very good.” said Anders Green of NASA Rally Sport. “Last year we had thirty-six entrants. This year, with a few last minute folks that aren’t yet listed on the web site, I’m expecting a few more than that, maybe forty total.” The current competitor list on the event’s web site, RallyTennessee.com, shows twenty-four car and thirteen motorcycle entrants. Green added that the declining economy has had a significant effect on the amount of entries at rallies throughout the country.

The excitement is spilling over into the local community as several new sponsors join the event. This year’s sponsors include the City of Lobelville, the Perry County Chamber of Commerce, Performance Friction Brakes, P-Sport, the Commodore Hotel & Caffe, Village Pizza, and Sonic of Linden. Additional local businesses are sponsoring discount coupons for spectators.

For the racers, the roads of Tennessee are one reason they are drawn to Perry County and this year’s event added two new stages to the schedule. Now racing roads in both Linden and Lobelville, there is even more for spectators to enjoy as well. The rally will be in downtown Lobelville on Saturday, coinciding with a free country music concert being offered that night at the Lobelville Music Park. On Sunday, the rally will be at the Perry County High School in Linden.

Rally Tennessee is the fourth round of the notable Atlantic Rally Cup and the second round of the Atlantic RallyMoto(tm) Cup. It is also the second round of the United States Rally Championship.

There’s still time to get involved with the rally. “Volunteering really opens up the door for a lot of folks. Many competitors got their start as volunteers.” said Green. “We treat our volunteers well — with a free t-shirt, free breakfast, free lunches, and an exclusive invitation to the awards ceremony. Plus, they get to hang out with all the racers. Being right on the course for the rally all day long is pretty exciting, too!” RallyTennessee.com has more information on volunteering opportunities.

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