Watch video highlights of David Higgins winning the Sno*Drift Rally:

Defending 2011 Rally America National Champion David Higgins launched his 2012 title defense with Subaru Rally Team USA by achieving a decisive victory this past weekend at the Sno*Drift Rally. Higgins, driving a 5-door 2012 Subaru WRX STI rally car, dominated the rally leading from the start and winning 15 of the event’s 24 competitive stages. Higgins finished nearly two minutes clear of his closest rival. The Sno*Drift Rally was not easy by any respect; David’s biggest challenge was keeping his STI on the event’s treacherously icy roads. Higgins proclaimed the variable and slick road conditions as the toughest rallying he has ever encountered.

The Sno*Drift Rally, round one of the six-event 2012 Rally America National Championship, challenged nearly 70 top rally teams with over 130 miles of snow and ice-covered roads in northern Michigan. Constant changes in weather and road conditions coupled with several stages run in total darkness make this rally notoriously challenging. Drivers will attest that the biggest challenge of the rally is that spiked or studded tires are not allowed, making traction extremely elusive when conditions are icy. Drivers this year were greeted with exactly that; a recent thaw and subsequent freeze turned many of the stage roads into sheets of smooth ice.

Higgins and his co-driver Craig Drew were up for the challenge from the onset and all but sealed their victory with a commanding performance on the first loop of stages where Higgins posted several blisteringly fast stage times while his rivals struggled with the icy conditions. After winning the opening four stages, Higgins had amassed a nearly two-minute lead on his rivals before the first service halt. However, maintaining that lead on the treacherously ice-covered roads was one of the biggest challenges the veteran rally pro Higgins has ever tackled.

“The icy roads combined with lack of spiked tires makes this one of the toughest rallies and a challenge I think that is unique in rallying anywhere in the world,” explained Higgins. “Mentally it’s very draining, as you are constantly on the edge all weekend with the knowledge that any small mistake could just end the rally. The grip levels would go from variable to non-existent in a flash.”

The lead Higgins had amassed on the opening day of competition was only briefly under threat for the first loop of stages on the morning of day-two. Higgins, running on ice tires, encountered fresh snow on the stages allowing his chief rival Antoine L’Estage, who had chosen a snow tire, to claw back some time. After switching to snow tires at the first service, Higgins responded to the threat and won five straight stages to regain nearly all of the time lost in the morning while sealing his victory.

“This was a great victory and a strong result to start our title defense,” explained Higgins. “Our Subaru was perfect all weekend and allowed Craig [Drew] and I to just concentrate on the job under these wild conditions.”

Added James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc., “David and Craig drove prudently to a tremendous result, and Subaru Rally Team USA prepared a car in our 2012 Subaru WRX STI that has proven to be the class of the field this weekend. Having to constantly assess traction levels under such difficult road conditions within the context of competition driving rapidly takes a mental toll, and our #75 driver pairing truly rose to the occasion and ultimately prevailed.”

Higgins and Subaru Rally Team USA head next to the high-speed gravel roads of The Rally in the 100 Acre Wood, Feb 24-25, in central Missouri.

About Subaru Rally Team USA
Subaru Rally Team USA is managed by Vermont SportsCar and proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, PIAA, Motul, and VP Racing Fuels.

For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries, visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

About Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 600 dealers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill production plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. is the only U.S. automobile production plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. For additional information visit www.subaru.com.

Photos: Lars Gange | Subaru.com/rally

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PIAA remains the recognized leader in the manufacturing of innovative high performance automotive lighting and aftermarket products for decades. PIAA will supply Subaru Rally Team USA with powerful HID lights that are fitted to the team car for night rallying and will supply the team with PIAA Super Silicone Wiper blades.

Subaru Rally Team USA will begin the 2012 Rally America National Championship at the season opener Sno*Drift Rally in northern Michigan, Jan. 27 and 28 against a stacked field of over 70 entries. The Sno*Drift Rally features over 130 miles of snow and ice-covered roads in northern Michigan. Constantly changing weather and road conditions coupled with many stages run under total darkness make this rally extremely challenging. Rally America rules also prohibit the use of spiked or studded ice tires at Sno*Drift, placing a premium on road traction.

The Subaru WRX STI of team driver David Higgins will cut through the darkness of Sno*Drift’s night stages with the help of between four and six PIAA Racing Series HID lamps housed in carbon fiber light pods mounted to the hood and front bumper. The PIAA Racing Series HID lamp is a competition-specification driving light used by top rally and race teams across the world including PIAA partners in the World Rally Championship, Dakar, Grand Am Racing and Le Mans Series.

Subaru Rally Team USA will be looking for another banner year from team driver David Higgins, who joined Subaru Rally Team USA at the start of the 2011 season. Higgins’ impressive 2011 season at the wheel of his Subaru WRX STI included winning the Rally America National Championship, claiming victory and a new record time at the famed Mt. Washington Hillclimb and earning a Bronze at the ESPN X Games SuperRally event. The 2011 Rally America driver’s title was the fifth in the last six years for Subaru Rally Team USA drivers in the Rally America Championship (2006-2009, 2011).

About Subaru Rally Team USA
Subaru Rally Team USA is managed by Vermont SportsCar and is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, PIAA, Motul, and VP Racing Fuels.

For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries, visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

About PIAA
PIAA has been the acknowledged leader in the manufacturing of innovative high performance automotive lighting and aftermarket products for decades. Visionary design, inspired engineering, and quality components are the hallmark of PIAA’s reputation with drivers of distinction. PIAA supplies Subaru Rally Team USA with powerful HID lights that are fitted to the team cars for night rallying as well as PIAA Super Silicone Wiper blades. For more information please visit piaa.com.

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X Games icon Dave Mirra, Higgins’ Subaru teammate in 2011, is expected to continue to drive for Subaru but will focus on the Global RallyCross Championship, because of several conflicting dates with the Rally America Championship event calendar. An announcement about the team’s rallycross plans will be made in the near future.

Higgins joined Subaru Rally Team USA at the start of the 2011 season, and had an impressive year at the wheel of his Subaru WRX STI, earning three victories and two-second overall finishes in the six-event 2011 Rally America National Championship; as well as claiming victory and a new record at the famed Mt. Washington Hillclimb. The 2011 Rally America driver’s title was the third for Higgins in the USA having won the SCCA ProRally Championship in 2002 and 2003. Higgins also won the British Rally Championship in 2004 after winning the Group N title in the British Rally Championship in 1997, 1999, and 2002. As a testament of his passion for the sport, Higgins and his family also operate a UK-based training facility, The Forest Experience Rally School. Higgins was born on the Isle of Man but resides in Wales with his wife and two children.

“I’m excited to defend my title with Subaru as we have made some great progress in the development of our STI rally car in the off-season, and so the confidence is high right now,” explained Higgins. “The Rally America Championship is a fantastic series with a great mix of events and conditions coupled with a very high level of competition. I expect 2012 to be a big fight but we have the right car and the right team, so I’m really looking forward to it!”

“Subaru Rally Team USA is kicking off the 2012 season with aggressive goals in place while maintaining a dedicated approach towards defending our Rally America title and contending for the Global RallyCross Championship,” indicated James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “I’m encouraged to have the 2012 Subaru WRX STI serve as our technical backdrop and renew our ongoing partnership with Vermont SportsCar. Sno*Drift [Rally] will be a great measure of our current level of preparedness against what looks to be a healthy entry list.”

About Subaru Rally Team USA
Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, PIAA, Motul, VP Fuels, and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries, visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

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Based in Bancroft Ontario, two hours’ drive from Toronto; the Rally of the Tall Pines is one of the most difficult rallies in Canada due to the mix of high level competition and challenging roads. The event also features a daunting 126 miles of competition stages run in just one long day, taxing both the crews and the cars. This challenge presented an ideal test session for Subaru Rally Team USA outside the pressures of the Rally America National Championship. Subaru Rally Team USA brought the latest evolution of their 2011 Subaru WRX STI rally car which included new suspension upgrades that the team sought to test.

“This rally was one of the most difficult of my career, the roads are so challenging and there is a big variety in surface grip and conditions. There are jumps, off camber turns, blind crests everywhere and rough spots,” explained Higgins. “It really made for an ideal test for the car and I think we learned more about the car at this rally than we have at the previous four events we’ve run with it.”

Higgins and his co-driver Craig Drew began the rally with a conservative pace as they experimented with car setup as part of the test and sat in 3rd place overall early in the event. The duo hit some trouble near the midpoint of the rally when their car was slowed by a tire puncture in-stage and then on a subsequent stage were forced to stop within the stage and change another tire puncture. Higgins lost nearly three minutes to the rally leader in the process.

However, Higgins’ top two rivals, current Canadian champion Antoine L’Estage and former Canadian champion Pat Richard were befallen by mechanical problems near the midpoint as well leaving Higgins comfortably in 2nd place overall for the remainder of the event. Higgins went on to win the final seven stages of the rally and at the finish had closed the nearly three-minute gap to the leader down to just over thirty seconds.

“David and Craig drove perfectly to plan as our intention from the beginning was to approach this event as a valuable opportunity testing different components and adjusting car set-ups in advance of our 2012 race campaign,” indicated James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “The talent within the field was strong, and our team performed well… finishing credibly against drivers with many years of experience at [the Rally of] Tall Pines.”

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos by Mike Proulx and Melina Lamoureux

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Based in Bancroft Ontario, two hours’ drive from Toronto; the Rally of the Tall Pines is one of the most challenging rallies in Canada due to the mix of high level competition and variable weather conditions. The late November date brings the likely appearance of ice, snow or mud on the event’s fast and flowing tree-lined gravel roads. Higgins can also expect a heady challenge from Canadian Rally Championship regulars such as current Canadian champion Antoine L’Estage whom Higgins battled all year in the Rally America National Championship. Also entered is former Canadian Champion and Subaru Rally Team Canada driver Patrick Richard along with nearly fifty other top Canadian rally teams.

Higgins and his co-driver Craig Drew have never competed at the Rally of the Tall Pines and are approaching the event conservatively with the knowledge that the Canadian series regulars are highly familiar with the roads and weather conditions. However, Higgins and Subaru Rally Team USA will focus primarily on further developing the team’s 2011 Subaru STI rally car ahead of the 2012 season.

“The roads look awesome and the weather will be a big factor,” explained Higgins. “The event should prove an excellent test for car development as the team has a few new things to try on the car. I am looking forward to renewing the battle with Antoine (L’Estage) and also challenge the likes of Pat Richard and Crazy Leo (Urlichich). I’ve never run the event before and so we’ll see how we go against the regulars, but it will be great to be back in my Subaru as I have not competed since July.”

The Rally of the Tall Pines will close out a banner year for Higgins that saw him win three Rally America Championship events outright on his way to the 2011 series crown, a win and new record at the revived Mt. Washington Hillclimb plus a Bronze Medal at the ESPN X Games 17 Rally Car Racing competition.

Higgins, from the Isle of Man, was the 2002 and 2003 SCCA ProRally Champion (the precursor to Rally America) as well as the 2004 British Rally Champion. Higgins lives in Wales where he and his family operate The Forest Experience Rally School.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

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-5th Rally America title in past six years for Subaru Rally Team USA-

Subaru of America, Inc. Subaru Rally Team USA driver David Higgins has won the 2011 Rally America National Championship with a 2nd Overall finish at the season finale, the New England Forest Rally, this past weekend. In a hotly contested season Higgins and his co-driver Craig Drew piloted their BFGoodrich Tires-shod 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car to three victories and two 2nd Overall finishes in the six-event Rally America National Championship. The 2011 driver’s title is the third for Higgins in the USA having won the SCCA ProRally Championship in 2002 and 2003. Higgins also won the British Rally Championship in 2004.

“It’s amazing and hasn’t really sunk in yet,” explained Higgins at the podium celebration. “The level of competition was really fierce all year, and it was a big challenge for me to come back to the USA after seven years away and adjust to new events, a co-driver I had never worked with before as well as new car. But everything meshed really well and our Subaru STI was a joy to drive fast. Driving for Subaru is every rally driver’s dream as the brand is so famous for rallying, so this is something really special for me.”

“Both David and Craig have done a stellar job the entire season extracting the utmost performance from their STI, supported by the solid car preparation by our team,” noted James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “With the championship comprised of only six rounds against defending titleholders Antoine [L'Estage] and Nathalie [Richard] with their experience on those events makes SRT USA’s successful effort in regaining the championship that much more special. The effort of our team members and supporting sponsors has been exceptional, and the superlative performance of our STI was properly showcased.”

Higgins joined Subaru Rally Team USA at the start of the 2011 season, replacing longtime Subaru team driver Travis Pastrana who had earned the Rally America National Championship from 2006 through 2009. A season-long rivalry quickly ensued between Higgins and Canadian rally ace Antoine L’Estage, the defending Rally America Champion and Canadian Rally Champion. Higgins and L’Estage were at each other’s heels at every rally with the rivalry coming to a dramatic head last month at the Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally where Higgins came from behind late in the event to beat L’Estage by a mere 1.3 seconds.

The victory last month in Pennsylvania earned Higgins enough of a points lead over L’Estage that Higgins only needed to finish fourth or better at the New England Forest Rally this weekend to secure the driver’s title. A tactical fight ensued in New England with Higgins maintaining a 2nd overall position behind L’Estage while driving just fast enough to keep the chasing pack comfortably behind him.

In addition to three event victories and the driver’s title in the Rally America series, Higgins recently won the re-born Mt. Washington ‘Climb to the Clouds’ Hillclimb. He smashed the course record by over 30 seconds, driving the same Subaru STI he utilized in the Rally America Championship. Higgins has little time to celebrate, earlier this month he was invited to compete at ESPN Summer X Games 17 in Los Angeles. He will compete in both the Rally Car Racing and RallyCross competitions taking place on July 30th and 31st respectively.

Follow the Subaru of America Facebook page and subaru_usa on Twitter

About Subaru Rally Team USA
Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

About Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., the company markets and distributes Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of more than 600 dealers across the United States. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill production plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. is the only U.S. automobile production plant to be designated a backyard wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. For additional information visit www.subaru.com.

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

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Third victory in a row extends Higgins points lead in Rally America National Championship

Subaru Rally Team USA driver David Higgins and co-driver Craig Drew have won the Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally (STPR), round five of the 2011 Rally America National Championship, by a mere 1.3 seconds over rival Antoine L’Estage. Higgins and L’Estage battled back and forth throughout the event with Higgins staging a late rally comeback that saw him take the rally lead on the penultimate stage after overcoming a thirty-seven second deficit midway through the final day of action. The amazingly close finish came after over 120 stage miles spanning two days of competition on high-speed forest roads of north-central Pennsylvania. The win at STPR is Higgins’ third victory in a row in the series and extends his points lead in the Rally America National Championship standings heading into the sixth and final round next month, the New England Forest Rally.

Higgins’ Subaru teammate Dave Mirra with co-driver Marshall Clarke finished 5th overall after staging his own comeback by working his way up the leaderboard from a 12th overall position after giving up nearly eleven minutes due to a pivotal pace notes error. Mirra’s Subaru STI sustained damage from the resulting accident but remained mechanically sound, and Mirra was able to continue and impressively work his way up the field for a valuable points finish.

The battle between Higgins, a winner at STPR in 2002 and 2003, and Antoine L’Estage, the defending Rally America Champion and 2010 STPR winner, was exceptional. L’Estage struck first and grabbed a 14 second lead after a short first day of competition. Higgins then battled back early on day-two and took a slight lead before dropping time when his in-car intercom with co-driver Craig Drew failed while on-stage forcing Higgins to slow down while they used an improvised hand signal system.

“With no intercom it was very challenging, Craig (Drew) would be waving signals to me but it was hard to see his hands and to know what exactly he was trying to tell me,” explained Higgins. “In the end I worked out that when he was waving like crazy I needed to slow down!”

Higgins was then hampered by a tire puncture in-stage that slowed him further, leaving him thirty-seven seconds adrift of L’Estage with just four forest stages and one short Super Special Stage remaining. Higgins then pushed his Subaru STI to the limit and began to catch L’Estage on the final loop of stages. In a nail biting comeback Higgins eventually overtook L’Estage on the penultimate stage and took a 2.5 second lead into the final Super Special Stage where he held off L’Estage’s final charge to win by a mere 1.3 seconds.

“It was a fantastic battle with Antoine and (co-driver) Nathalie (Richard). It’s always great to win a close fight so think I will remember this for some time,” said Higgins at the podium celebration. All of STPR’s competition stages were won by either Higgins or L’Estage, with Higgins fastest on seven stages and L’Estage six.

STPR is round five of the six-round Rally America Championship and is based in Wellsboro, PA. STPR features some of the fastest roads in the series with many technical sections with trees closely lining the roads. Severe dust caused visibility issues until approximately midway on day-two, when heavy rains in the area challenged teams with slippery roads.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

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The 2011 Oregon Trail Rally began with a set of mixed surface stages held at the Portland International Raceway in front of thousands of fans before moving to the scenic farmlands in and around The Dalles and Dufur area for days two and three. The event began with dry and dusty roads but heavy rains and thunderstorms moved into the area during day two which made conditions extremely challenging for competitors.

Higgins led from the start of the first leg at Portland International Raceway by winning all four stages and achieving a small lead of over ten seconds heading into Leg Two’s traditional gravel stages. On Leg Two’s first loop of stages, Higgins experienced a problem with his rear brakes, dropping him just one second off of the lead. After having the brake issue addressed during the first service break, Higgins went on maximum attack and won the remaining three stages of the day convincingly. Higgins’ closest rival, defending Rally America Champion Antoine L’Estage, was hampered by multiple tire punctures which contributed to the time gap to Higgins to eventually create a virtually insurmountable lead of nearly three and a half minutes.

Higgins then spent the third and final day of the rally conserving his lead and staying out of trouble as he went on to win his second consecutive Rally America event with a victory by over three minutes and twenty six seconds.

“This is a fantastic win and although we had a nice lead early on, the rain made conditions treacherous and it was a big challenge the whole way,” explained Higgins. “My Subaru STI, my co-driver and many of the stages in the championship are new to me this year and we knew it would take a few events to get the rhythm going, but we are there now and the team and I have a really high level of confidence headed into the final two events.”

Subaru Rally Team USA now heads back to the east coast for the final two rounds of the 2011 Rally America National Championship; The Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally (STPR) in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania June 3-4 and the New England Forest Rally based out of Newry, Maine July 15-16.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

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Sadly, a fatal accident occurred late on day one of the rally involving privateer competitor Matthew Marker of Elk Rapids, MI. Marker’s Co-driver Christopher Gordon of Brooklyn Park, MN, was not seriously injured. Due to the accident, Rally America officials halted the the Olympus Rally at the conclusion of stage six and subsequently cancelled the second day of the National portion of the event. The final results of the rally were consequently based on the leader board after stage six giving Higgins and Mirra 1st and 4th place finish positions, respectively.

31-year-old driver Matthew Marker was in his fifth year of participating in the Rally America National Championship and was a popular driver among his peers. Marker was known to have ambitions of improving his Championship standings and taking part in building the sport’s popularity.

“As much as those of us directly involved in motorsport recognize the inherent dangers, that knowledge still serves little to lessen the loss of a fellow competitor and rally community member,” said James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “Matthew was a rally enthusiast and exciting driver within the sport and highly thought of among his peers. His passing is tragic, and our thoughts go out to his friends and family members during this very difficult time.”

Subaru Rally Team USA is scheduled to compete next at the Oregon Trail Rally on May 13-15, 2011.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

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The inventive Twin Peaks course featured hairpin turns, a 70-foot gap jump and competition that ran right through a century-old warehouse. The thousands of spectators in the grandstands enjoyed aggressive and exciting racing all day long.

The challenging weekend for Mirra began on Friday when he rolled his rallycross-prepared 2011 Subaru STI during a practice session maneuvering a tricky corner underneath the gap jump. The damage was superficial but a misstep the following day saw him tag the wall during the 2nd Heat race resulting in mechanical damage. Mirra’s team of Subaru Rally Team USA technicians worked feverishly to repair the car for the subsequent B-Main race where Mirra finished in 2nd overall and earned a spot in the A-Main Final. Mirra then pushed to make up ground from the rear of the grid start position but slid wide and tore a rear wheel off his Subaru late in the race. To the delight of the thousands of fans in attendance, Mirra soldiered on with three wheels.

Mirra was buoyed however by setting extremely competitive lap times during his early heats in which he clearly showed the potential pace of the still-in-development Subaru STI rallycross car. “Thanks to Subaru and the entire team for all the hard work this weekend,” said Mirra. “The new STI is strong, very strong. We didn’t end up on the podium this weekend but based on our lap times, we are there.”

Full Twin Peaks racing coverage will air on ESPN May 14. The series has a multi-year programming relationship with ESPN, with Global RallyCross Championship broadcasts slated to follow NASCAR Nationwide and NHRA shows on ESPN and ESPN2.

For your viewing pleasure: Sights and sounds of Subaru Rally Team USA driver Dave Mirra at Round 2 of the Global Rallycross Championship:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Subaru#p/u/6/nWyoAHbqvug

Although the next Global Rallycross event is not until mid June the crew at Subaru Rally Team USA will be extremely busy in the meantime with three Rally America National Championship events. The next two stage rallies stay on the west coast, starting with the Olympus Rally in Ocean Shores, Washington from April 30th to May 1st. David Higgins and Craig Drew in the SRT USA #75 WRX STI will team up with Dave Mirra and Marshall Clarke in #40 STI in an all-out campaign through the woods of the Olympic Peninsula. The Olympus Rally is followed just two weeks later by the Oregon Trail Rally based in Portland, Oregon May 13-15 and then the Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally in Pennsylvania on June 3-4th.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, VP Fuels and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit subaru.com/rally and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

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