Subaru Canada Rally Team driver Patrick Richard and his co-driver Alan Ockwell made an impressive start in their campaign to win their third consecutive Canadian Rally Championship, at the 2010 Rallye Perce Neige, held this past weekend near Maniwaki, QC, Canada. Overcoming an early deficit, the pair clearly demonstrated that they were the fastest team in the field, but an unknown mechanical issue on the events 9th stage forced the team to withdraw, meaning the defending Canadian champions failed to score any points at the first event of the 2010 championship season.

“We were running pretty strong, and we were getting ready to re-claim the lead,” explained co-driver Alan Ockwell, of Toronto, ON. “But on a road section we noticed an odd sound coming from the engine bay. Despite that, we started the stage, but when the warning lights came up on the instruments, we pulled over and that was that. We still dont know what caused the problem but the mechanics will be going over it when we get back.”

Despite retiring from the event, Richard and Ockwell both remained buoyant for the remainder of the season. Driving a Subaru Impreza STI prepared by Rocket Rally Racing, of Squamish, BC, the team was able to dramatically claw back an early deficit, putting on a great show for fans and specatators lining the ice covered roads. An off-road excursion on the first stage of the event saw the team momentarily lie in 50th position out of a total of 55 entires. Once repairs were effected, the team dominated the remainder of the event, winning every stage but one, and at times being nearly 2 seconds per kilometer faster than their nearest championship rivals. This raw demonstration of speed put the team firmly into a podium position and in contention for the lead of the event when they had their problem.

“As usual, if I put myself in a position where I need to respond with really fast times, its not a problem, but it puts a lot of stress on the equipment, and the co-driver,” joked four time Canadian Champion Patrick Richard. “Its too bad we couldn’t finish the event, as we had already reclaimed all of the time we had lost at the beginning, and we were having a lot of fun in the process.”

It was also a fantastic debut for the team’s new tire supplier, Yokohama Tire Canada. Having recently signed a deal with Yokohama to run ADVAN Motorsport tires for the entire 2010 Canadian Rally Championship, the driver was adamant that running their tires was the right choice. “In Canada, unlike in most other rally championships world-wide, drivers must compete on ice covered roads without using any studs, meaning tire choice and selection is critical. On the ice and snow, the Yokohama product clearly gave us an advantage over the rest of the field, and we wouldn’t have been the fastest car out there without them.”

Despite not scoring any points at this seasons’ opening event, the team’s primary championship rivals also did not fare very well, with the 2009 Championship runner up also failing to score points due to an off-road excursion. “With all the championship contenders falling to finish, the championship is basically going to re-start at the next rally, and with the speed we’ve shown we’re confident for the rest of the season.”

The next round of the 2010 Canadian Rally Championship will be the Rocky Mountain Rally, held in Calgary, AB. All events of the 2010 Canadian Rally Championship are televised nationally in English on TSN and TSN2, and in French on RDS. The Canadian Rally Championship is also internationally broadcast in Europe/Asia on MotorsTV, please check your local listings for details.

Rocket Rally Racing is based in Squamish, BC, Canada and operates the Subaru Rally Team Canada on behalf of Subaru Canada, with associate sponsors Yokohama Tire, Gulf Lubricants, Vision-X Lighting, Crawford Performance and ACT providing product support for the 2010 championship campaign.

Photo: Andrew Harvey / www.andrewharvey.ca

Continues to Offer the Most Lucrative Rally Contingency Program in North America

Subaru of America, Inc. announced today increases to its contingency award payouts for Subaru drivers in the 2010 Rally America National Championship. The Subaru Rally Support Program, which was created in 2005, continues to be the most lucrative contingency program in North American rallying, with over $20,000.00 available per event for eligible Subaru drivers to earn. The program will again focus support on the popular Super Production class (SP) within the Rally America National Championship where the top finishing eligible Subaru SP driver can now earn $7,000.00 at each round.

The Super Production class was created in 2009 by Rally America to offer a compromise between the top-tier Open class and the more restrictive Production GT class. This new category provides a cost-effective means for models such as the Subaru Impreza platform-based WRX and STI to compete not only head-to-head with but also be capable of challenging the top of the leader board at any Rally America National Championship event. The class was hotly contested in 2009 and moving into the new season, Subaru hopes to attract even more new entrants to the sport and the SP class with substantially increased award payouts. Under the revised 2010 program the top finishing eligible Subaru SP class driver can now earn $7000.00, more than double the $3,000.00 payout the program offered in 2009. Prize payouts in 2010 will be awarded to the top ten finishing Subaru SP class registrants.

Finish Position Among Eligible SP Class Drivers	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th-10th
Payout for “Plan A” eligible SP Class Drivers*	$7,000	$4,000	$3,000	$2,500	$1,500	$500

One of the key attractions of the SP class for Subaru drivers is the allowance of several key modifications to Subaru Impreza WRX and STI model rally cars to make them more affordable and competitive to prepare and run as compared to meeting compliance for the PGT class. This includes but is not limited to: allowing vehicles to be updated or backdated within a body style of the model, fitting of hydraulic handbrakes, and granting broader brake system modifications. The SP class also features a larger turbo inlet restrictor than the PGT class, 34mm versus 32mm, positioning SP cars to potentially produce more power.

“The healthy number of SP-classed Subaru entries throughout the 2009 season speaks to the relevance and popularity of this relatively new class specification,” explains James Han of Subaru of America, Inc. “We are pleased at the impact our Subaru Rally Support Program has made within the Rally America National Championship and proud to continue our role in supporting Subaru rally entrants for the 2010 season.”

In addition to this continued support to SP class participants at Rally America National Championship events, Subaru of America Inc., will also offer a $200.00 ’start fund’ to any class of Subaru entered in a Rally America Regional rally that runs concurrent to a national event weekend.

The 2010 Subaru Rally Support Program is administered and managed by Vermont SportsCar. For complete rules and information on how to register please visit http://rally.subaru.com/overview.html

For more information about the Rally America’s Super Production class please refer to the Rally America rule book and rule bulletins found at http://rally-america.com/rules.php.

*Certain eligibility rules apply. For complete rules, regulations and car eligibility restrictions please visit the official rules page of the Subaru Rally Support Program here http://rally.subaru.com/overview.html

Mark Fox in the #54 National Guard rally car received the 2009 Rookie of the Year award capping an action packed rookie season in the Rally America Championship Series.

Fox joins the company of recent winners Ken Block, Kyle Sarasin, “Cowboy” Kenny Bartram, and Dave Mirra who have all gone on to successful rally careers.

Rally America presents the award to the driver who has made the most significant pro-gress in his first year of national competition and holds the highest overall year-end standings. Fox was a clear leader in the competition having nearly secured the title after Rally Colorado’s tie for third, resulting in a fourth place finish. Adding to the accom-plishment is the fact that Fox competed the entire season with rookie co-driver, Jake Blattner at his side. “It’s a real honor to be in the company of the past winners” said Fox. “It feels great to be rewarded for the hard work and difficulties that accompany a first championship season”.

“It’s a steep learning curve, and it couldn’t have happened without such a solid team”. “We learned continually throughout the season, and that knowledge insures we will com-pete successfully next year” The 2009 campaign was defined by change with team adjustments and Fox driving three different cars. The team finally purchased a 2007 WRX Impreza. In the new car he went on to place fourth, seventh, and tie for third in the last three races of the year.

We would like to thank our fans and everyone who helped make this season such a great success. See you next year!

Subaru Rally Team USA driver Ken Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino will participate once again in the 2009 Colin McRae Forest Stages in Scotland this weekend. Block will be at the wheel of a sister car to his usual Rally America National Championship vehicle, a 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI built to Rally America’s Open Class specifications. As the high-powered Vermont SportsCar-prepared, #43 Subaru STI does not conform to any of the car specification classes featured at the McRae Stages, the final round of the Scottish Rally Championship, Block will run as course-opening car for exhibition only.

As well as aligning his name to the rally, the late Colin McRae for many years ran as opening car on the event. For McRae’s Scottish fans this was the only chance to see him drive on home-soil. After Colin McRae’s passing in 2007, the rally was transformed into a star-studded event in 2008 when former WRC champions and dozens of rally legends competed in the event to pay tribute to McRae. The 2008 edition of the event saw Subaru Rally Team USA teammates Block and Travis Pastrana compete in historic cars along with their mentor, American rally legend John Buffum.

Block thoroughly enjoyed his time at event last year and jumped at the chance to attend again in 2009. “Colin was a friend and mentor and is sadly missed by so many, so competing at the Colin McRae Forest Stages is a small tribute to Colin and his fans. It was an honor to be invited to compete last year with so many rally legends, the atmosphere was amazing,” explained Block. “This year I’ll be in my usual Subaru, it’s an extremely powerful car, and I’ll make sure to put on a good McRae-style show for all the fans!”

Block’s Gymkhana Subaru STI also made the trip across the Atlantic for a rare display appearance and as a bonus for the fans, Block is scheduled to perform a short driving demo with his course-opening Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car on Friday night at the Perth Racecourse, where the rally headquarters is based.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, DiRT2, RECARO, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, GReddy, and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit rally.subaru.com and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photo: Lars Gange | rally.subaru.com

As the United States Rally Championship (USRC) passes (www.usrallychampionship.com) the midpoint of its fifth season, competition is heating up in all categories on both sides of the country. The United States Rally Championship awards separate National Championship titles in the 2WD (Two-Wheel-Drive) category and in the AWD (All-Wheel-Drive) category. In addition, eligible crews compete for the 2WD Production Cup and the AWD Production Cup. Most USRC events provide for two-pass reconnaissance and allow pace notes.

In the Atlantic Division and overall, the Irish crew of Daniel O’Brien, a former Eastern States Champion, and Brendan McCabe in a Subaru Impreza is leading the AWD Championship at midseason. They have been steadily climbing in the standings by finishing fourth at Rally New York USA and second at Rally Tennessee. Another Irish team of Tom Lawless with co-driver Brian Sharkey, who flies in for the USRC events all the way from Ireland, in a Mitsubishi Lancer is second after winning Rally Tennessee. Ken Block and Alex Gelsomino, in a Subaru Impreza, two-time winners of Rally New York USA are third in the AWD Championship. In the Pacific Division, Keith Jackson and Marra Estep in a Subaru Impreza are leading after winning Rally Idaho. Two more Subaru teams of Paul Eklund with Jeff Price and Byron Garth with Ron Crawford are second and third.

In the 2WD Championship in the Atlantic Division and overall, the Irishmen Dan Brosnan and Shane McCann in Nissan Sentra are leading after winning Rally New York USA and placing second at Rally Tennessee. They are the 2008 USRC runner-ups in the 2WD category. Josh and Jeremy Wimpey in a Volkswagen GTi are second with a second place at Rally Idaho. Wimpey brothers are the 2007 USRC runner-ups in the 2WD category. Brad Morris and Doug Nagy in a 2WD Mitsubishi Lancer are third. They won Rally Tennessee. In the Pacific Division, Lauchlin O’Sullivan, a former Mitsubishi USA Team driver, with co-driver Karen Wagner in a Dodge SRT-4 are leading after winning Rally Idaho. Aurimas and Amy Bakchis in an Eagle Talon are second and Cody Crane with Patrick Darrow in a Honda CRX are third.

Subaru driver William Petrow is leading the AWD Production Cup in the Atlantic Division with a win at Rally New York USA and a second place at Rally Tennessee. The leading co-driver is Austin Gager who has placed third and fourth in the previous events. Another Subaru crew of Byron Garth and Ron Crawford is leading the AWD Production Cup in the Pacific Division.

Michael Reilly and Josh Benthien in a Ford Focus SVT are in the first place in the 2WD Production Cup in the Atlantic Division. Alex Rademacher and John Stewart in a 2WD Subaru Impreza are leading the 2WD Production Cup in the Pacific Division.

The United States Rally Championship will continue with the remaining events that include Gorman Ridge Rally (www.gormanridgerally.com) in California, Prescott Rally (www.prescottrally.com) in Arizona and the final round of the Championship – International Rally New York (www.rallynewyork.com).

Pacific Division teams are competing for coveted cash travel subsidies that will be awarded to top six teams in the Division. The total of $12,000 in subsidies will be distributed to Pacific Division teams to assist them with travelling to the final round of the United States Rally Championship in New York.

The United States Rally Championship 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.

Wiktorczyk part of the closest finish at the X Games 15 against Mancin
Los Angeles, CA, August 3rd, 2009: Sobieski Vodka Rally Team driver – Piotr Wiktorczyk completed his X Games debut last weekend finishing ninth overall after power steering failure got them eliminated in their round against Andi Mancin.

Piotr was able to test his 2001 Subaru Impreza during two practice sessions on asphalt which made up part of the X Games track on Wednesday and Thursday. The team made many changes and improvements to the car which helped with the handling and understeering as well as the power output of the car. Overall the day was very positive and all changes helped to achieve better lap times. Wiktorczyk also took two members of ESPN staff and KBC TV station reporter for a ride in Sobieski Vodka car on Thursday during the media rides session.

On Friday, Polish driver based out of Chicago had one practice run and one seeding run, also on the asphalt section of the track, and was able to qualify eight which paired him with another Polish driver – Andi Mancin in the first round of Sunday’s competition.

Sunday, during the competition, Wiktorczyk and Mancin faced each other as a last pair in the first elimination. Sobieski Vodka car flew over the 70 foot gap first, landing smoothly and on target. However right after Piotr lost power steering and drove two laps of the course without it. Piotr’s Subaru was also under steering badly, but he was able to keep up with Mancin and made a last push coming back into the stadium. Wiktorczyk and Mancin gave fans the thrill as they crossed the finish line only 1.9 seconds apart. Sobieski Vodka car was still able to achieve third fastest time of the first round, loosing only to later gold medalist Kenny Brack and Andi Mancin.

The driver of the Sobieski Vodka Rally Team, Piotr Wiktorczyk, commented, “I can’t believe X Games is over! Even thou we didn’t put in the run we could, I’m really happy with our result. We overcame a massive amount of struggles with the new car and unfortunately a faulty power steering pump got us eliminated during the first round. On the other hand we fought a great battle and came in only two seconds behind Mancin’s car in what many said was one of the best races. Big thanks to Sobieski Vodka and White Frog Entertainment! We really could not have done this without them. Also thanks to ESPN for putting on an awesome show and treating us like rock stars. One of the best racing experiences ever!!! I really hope we can come back next year with more experience and a better car.”

Grzegorz Dorman – who usually sits with Wiktorczyk as a co-driver at X Games filled in a role as a team manager – added, “It is a great feeling that we made it here. The experience is surreal and I hope to be back here one day, hopefully reading notes in the right seat. It is a great exposure for the sport of rallying in the US and we are thrilled to make it a part of X Games. I’m also glad that we could represent a Polish sponsor – Sobieski Vodka – on the occasion that the first Pole ever took part in this event.”

Photo – Yujiro Otsuki

PPD Motorsport team driver Piotr Wiktorczyk is sponsored by:
Sobieski Vodka – Main Sponsor – www.MySobieski.com – “The Noble Sobieski Vodka, a Royal Beverage”
White Frog Entertainment – www.WhiteFrogEntertainment.com – “It’s a Lifestyle”
Motul Lubricants – www.Motul.com
Excel Property Investments
Arlington Collision Center

PPD Motorsport media partners:
SubieSport – http://www.subiesport.com/ – “The independent Subaru and Rally Magazine”
Driving Sports TV – http://www.drivingsports.com/

For more information about the X Games 15 go to www.EXPN.com
For more information about Rally America National Series go to www.rally-america.com
For more information about the team go to www.PPDMotorsport.com
Twitter – www.twitter.com/PPDMotorsport
Facebook – www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-Barrington-IL/PPD-Motorsport/78603096902

Subaru Rally Team USA driver Travis Pastrana captured his 15th career X Games medal in this past weekend’s ESPN X Games 15 Rally competition at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles where he won the silver medal. Pastrana, driving a BFGoodrich Tires-shod 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car was the clear favorite after winning Gold at least year’s edition of the event. However, Pastrana’s bid for a second straight Gold was halted midway through the Gold medal race when he clipped a cement barrier with his right front wheel, nearly ripping the wheel from the car, thus handing former Indianapolis 500 winner Kenny Brack the Gold medal. Pastrana’s X Games medals count now include nine gold, four silver and two bronze. Four of his 15 medals have been awarded in the Rally competition.

The premiere action sports event in the World, ESPN’s X Games 15 features a variety of action sports including BMX, Skateboarding, Freestyle Motocross and Rally car racing. The X Games rally event featured a large dirt gap-jump as the centerpiece of the approx 1.9 mile course laid out at the Home Depot Center Stadium in Los Angeles. The course included a dirt section within the stadium while the bulk of the course is a serpentine loop through the paved parking lots and access roads outside of the stadium.

Pastrana graciously acknowledged that his driving error in the final was a result of pushing hard to win against a very determined Kenny Brack, a former winner of the Indianapolis 500. “If Kenny [Brack] wasn’t so fast it would have never happened. I was really impressed by him,” said Pastrana. “On my first lap it seemed like we were dead-even, but I knew I could drive smoother and faster, so I tried to take a clean tight line through the very narrow turn that enters back into the stadium for the second lap. I just apexed too early and clipped the inside cement barrier with my front right wheel, I would have kept going but I had no steering and knew I wouldn’t make it over the large jump. It was a wild event as always and Subaru again provided me a perfect car that worked so well everywhere.”

Pastrana entered the X Games Rally Car final bruised and battered after attempting a seemingly impossible backflip with a 360 degree rotation in the Freestyle MotoX competition on Friday night. Pastrana landed hard on his right arm and hip leading to painful swelling. “As long as I can physically drive, everything is OK. The pain just goes away when I get in my Subaru, it didn’t slow me down,” explained Pastrana.

Pastrana’s Subaru teammate Ken Block was well on his way to winning his quarter-final match against Freestyle MotoX legend and Off-Road Truck racer Brian Deegan before a small mistake cost him the win. With a sizable lead on Deegan after the first lap, Block slid wide and hit his right rear wheel on a cement barrier. As Block powered through the turn and headed for the daunting 70ft-gap jump at the center of the stadium, he noticed the car was not getting power down to the ground (Block would later learn the impact had broken the right rear wheel and driveshaft). With just a split second to decide if he could gain enough speed to clear the gap-jump, a potentially dangerous situation for himself and the ESPN commentator riding along inside the car, Block decided against going over the jump. Instead Block swerved around the jump and went on to continue his lap with an ailing rear wheel, eventually finishing ahead Deegan. ESPN however disqualified Block for going off-course around the jump. “I had less than a second to make a decision, I didn’t know what was wrong with the car but I knew I hit that wall and I suddenly had trouble accelerating toward the jump,” explained Block. “I had an ESPN commentator riding in car and I just didn’t want to potentially hurt her; I would probably have gone for it otherwise.”

Subaru Rally Team USA’s third entry was BMX legend Dave Mirra, driving an identically prepared 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI to those of Block and Pastrana. Mirra was paired against eventual Gold Medal winner Kenny Brack in the quarter-finals. In a tightly fought match-up, Mirra drove smooth and mistake free but Brack edged him out for the win. “The course was a lot of fun and I’m glad I made a clean, mistake free run, but it was Brack’s day and his smooth driving style really worked well on this type of course,” said Mirra. Mirra didn’t leave the X Games empty handed. The BMX icon won a Bronze medal in the BMX Freestyle Big Air competition, bringing his lifetime X Games medal count to 22. Mirra is this most decorated X Games athlete with 14 gold medals, four silver and four bronze

“Although we fell just short of winning X Games Rally, the heightened competition certainly helped fuel this year’s spectacle,” said James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “I’m proud that every member of Subaru Rally Team USA including our three drivers worked tirelessly to meet the challenge, and leaving X Games unfulfilled makes us even more determined for the following year.”

Pastrana and his Subaru Rally Team USA teammates Ken Block and Dave Mirra all entered the the X Games driving the same production-based 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally cars that they utilize in the 2009 Rally America National Championship. Pastrana is well on his way to earning his fourth consecutive Rally America National Championship after winning four of the six rounds run thus far in 2009.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, DiRT2, RECARO, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, GReddy, and Vermont SportsCar. For more information on Subaru Rally Team USA, as well as exclusive photo and video galleries visit rally.subaru.com and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange, rally.subaru.com

In hot and dusty conditions, the Subaru Rally Team Canada pairing of Pat Richard of Squamish, B.C., and Alan Ockwell of Toronto won the 2009 Rocky Mountain Rally, round two of six in the Canadian Rally Championship presented by Subaru and supported by Yokohama.

The win earned critical championship points for Richard, who failed to finish the first event of the season. Richard and Ockwell are the defending Canadian Rally Champions and won this event in 2008. This event also marks the ten-year anniversary of Richard’s rally career.

The pair took advantage of road position on Friday to take an early lead and held their first place position to the end.

“With us earning maximum points, this is the best possible result for the championship,” said Richard.

Andrew Comrie-Picard of Toronto and co-driver, Robbie Durant of England finished second in their Mitsubishi Evolution X. The two recently teamed up and have showed impressive speed in American events. The 2009 Rocky Mountain Rally was their first Canadian event together.

“We came here with the car still needing a lot of development, so this is a really fantastic result for us,” said Comrie-Picard. “We learned a lot about what we need to develop on the car to be even faster at the next event.”

Third place went to Nick Mathew of Calgary and his sister Kelly Mathew of Caledon, Ont. The pair started rallying just last year, but have matured quickly and earned their first national podium finish.

“I’m floored. We ran a great, smooth rally, and we’d love to just keep running more stages,” said Nick Mathew. “Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.”

While battling for the lead, Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., suffered a mechanical failure, ending their event, and costing them valuable championship points. Coming into the Rocky Mountain Rally, L’Estage was leading the Championship, but now sits tied with Pat Richard.

Eric Grochowski and co-driver, Leanne Junnila, of Calgary won top points in the two-wheel drive championship in their Volkswagen Golf. The two struggled through the final stage after a rear wheel fell off, but were still able to cross the finish line with a nine-second lead.

“We didn’t hit anything, the part just failed, but we made enough time earlier in the day to keep our win,” said Grochowski.

“This was a tough event with some unique challenges thrown at the crews,” said Terry Epp, the National Series Manager for the Canadian Association of Rallysport. “The high altitude stages rob the cars of power, making drivers really work for their results.”

Rally car racing is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” The all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over closed-road courses that typically cover more than 150 kilometers of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads. Fans can get up close to the cars in the service areas and catch all the action from specially designated spectator points located at the best spots on the route.

The Canadian Rally Championship is comprised of six events held nationwide in a season that extends from February to November. The series is presented by Subaru Canada, supported by Yokohama Canada and features contingency programs from Subaru Canada and Mitsubishi Canada. The Canadian Association of Rallysport (CARS) is the official sanctioning body for rallying in Canada.

The series heads East for the next round of the championship, the Rallye Baie-des-Chaleurs, in New Richmond, Que., June 26-27, 2009.

Full coverage of the championship will air on RDS and TSN. The 2009 Rallye Perce Neige premieres on TSN on Saturday, June 13 at 11:30 EST, and the 2009 Rocky Mountain Rally premieres on TSN on Saturday, June 20 at 11:30 EST. Check local listings for more details.

Rocky Mountain Rally Final Results (full results at www.rockymountainrally.com)

1) Pat Richard – Alan Ockwell (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1 hours 32 min. 34 sec.
2) Andrew Comrie-Picard – Robbie Durant (Mitsubishi EVO X) – 1:38:50
3) Nick Mathew – Kelly Mathew (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1:41:03
4) Simon Losier – Francois Morin (Mitsubishi EVO VIII) – 1:41:42
5) Colin Armstrong – Keith Morison (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1:41:45
6) Gord Olsen – Todd Patola (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1:42:06
7) Hardy Schmidtke – Adam Vokes (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 1:42:57
Rejean Losier – Maxime Losier (Mitsubishi EVO VIII) – 1:43:26
9) Piotr Kadlubowski – Krystian Ostrowski (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1:44:04
10) Bruno-Pierre Allard – Lyne Murphy (Subaru Impreza STI) – 1:45:49

PHOTOS: Warwick Patterson/Flatovercrest.com

The Prescribed Burn Rally Team will be traveling to Alberta to compete in their first national event of the 2009 rally season, the epic Rocky Mountain Rally, taking place on the ranchland roads outside of Calgary May 28-30. This will be the second outing for the team’s new 2004 Subaru STi rally car, which has received suspension and brake upgrades since the team’s open class win at the Cochrane winter rally in March.

The Prescribed Burn Rally Team is aiming to improve upon their 2008 result of 6th overall. Driver Mark Jennings-Bates is looking forward to giving the new car its first hard drive on the fast, open Alberta roads: “We were happy with last year’s finish, but it was a learning experience for us. This year we are better prepared, with the right tires and more knowledge. We’re planning on pushing our limits from the very first stage, and staying in close battles with some of the eastern teams that finished just ahead of us last year.” Rocky is a particular challenge for co-drivers, because it is run on computer generated ‘Jemba’ notes, a vast difference from most events, where teams are permitted to generate their own pace notes. With a new rally computer in the car, co-driver Jennifer Daly is feeling confident: “Two years ago Rocky was the first event for Mark and I as a team, and we’ve come a long way since. The car is well-equipped and we are working well together; I think we’ll be able to push harder and use the Jemba notes more effectively than in the past.”

The Rocky Mountain National Rally will be broadcast on TSN this fall as part of the televised Canadian National Rally Series. The event draws rally teams from across Canada, including the 2008 championship winning Rocky Rally Team, lead by Patrick Richard. The 2009 Rocky Mountain Rally begins on stage roads familiar to the teams from other regional Alberta events, and features a head-to-head superspecial at the Race City Speedway on Friday night.

The Prescribed Burn Rally Team is sponsored by BCResortHomes.com, Agar Paint & Autobody, BigO Tire in Westbank, Aerius Engineering, Wyatt Auto Parts, Kelowna Moving Centre, Provisiondata.com, The Great Canadian Oil Change and Bell Racing. The team is supported by K96.3FM, Castanet.net, Green Couch Designs.

Ken Block/Alex Gelsomino (Subaru Impreza WRX) have once again proved that they are the masters of the roads in New York’s Catskill Mountains. The two Californians won Rally New York USA for the second year in a row. The Subaru Rally Team USA duo took the lead on the first of 23 special stages and were never overtaken. Their lead when they reached the finish line in Walton, New York was over a minute.

The weather in the Catskills was hardly Spring-like, whatever the calendar may have said. Friday’s leg featured cool weather and light to moderate rain. Saturday’s leg had near-freezing temperatures, with alternating light rain and snow flurries. It was not ideal for vacations (in what is a resort area), but the rally competitors and service crews took it in stride. In the late stages of the rally, with many of the class victories settled, some drivers were admitting that they were only driving at about 90%, to avoid going off the road.

Otis Dimiters/Dominik Jozwiak (Subaru Impreza) were second most of the way and finished in the runner-up position. Dimiters admitted to two spins in the slippery conditions, but otherwise the event went smoothly for them.

Former winners Seamus Burke/Eddie Fries (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) placed third. The team lost time on Friday due to contact with a guard rail at speed, but recovered and put in a clean drive over the remaining miles.

There was a strong race in the two-wheel-drive category, which was ultimately settled in favor of Dan Brosnan/Shane McCann (Nissan Sentra). Thomas Greer/Bob Della Rocco (Volkswagen Golf GTI) were the runners-up, ahead of 2WD Production trophy winners Michael Reilly/Josh Bentien Ford Focus SVT.

Note: Rally New York USA is the opening round of the U.S. Rally Championship. Each day’s event is also scored as a round of the regional New York Rally Championship.

Results:
1 Ken Block/Alex Gelsomino, Subaru Impreza WRX, 1st AWD
2 Otis Dimiters/Dominik Jozwiak, Subaru Impreza, 2nd AWD
3 Seamus Burke/Eddie Fries, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, 3rd AWD
4 Daniel O’Brien/Brendan McCabe, Subaru Impreza, 4th AWD
5 Patrick Brennan/Eamon Sweeney, Subaru Impreza WRX Sti, 5th AWD
6 Eoin McGeough/Cathal McAree, Subaru Impreza WRX, 6th AWD
7 Maciej Przybysz/Kristin Przybysz, Subaru Impreza, 7th AWD
8 Mike O’Leary/John O’Leary, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, 8th AWD
9 William Petrow/Vincent Neuven, Subaru Impreza, 9th AWD, 1st AWD
10 Dan Brosnan/Shane McCann, Nissan Sentra, 1st 2WD
11 Thomas Greer/R. Della Rocco, Volkswagen Golf GTI, 2nd 2WD
12 Michael Reilly/Josh Bentien, Ford Focus SVT, 3rd 2WD, 1st Production 2WD
13 Thomas Barton/Brian Barton, Mazda 323, 4th 2WD
14 Bill Miller III/Constantine Mantopoulos, Audi A4 Quattro, 10th AWD, 2nd AWD Production
15 Andrew Wickline/Steve Kurey, Audi 90 Quattro, 11th AWD
16 Woitek “Al” Kulpa/Adam Pelc, Volkswagen Golf GTI, 5th 2WD
17 Thomas Lawless/Brian Sharkey, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, 12th AWD
18 Andrew Havas/Aaron Crescenti, Mazda RX-7, 6th 2WD

For the fourth year in-a-row, Subaru Rally Team USA driver Ken Block has won the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood event, hosting round two of the 2009 Rally America National Championship, in dominating fashion. Block was uncatchable behind the wheel of his 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI on the fast and flowing Missouri roads, cruising to victory by over forty seconds. Subaru teammate Travis Pastrana was Block’s only competition early on, but his challenge was cut short when he went off the road while pushing hard to match Block’s pace, leading to car damage forcing him to retire from the rally. Subaru Rally Team USA’s new third driver, BMX legend Dave Mirra, was the biggest surprise of the event with his debut in the new Super Production class, finishing second in class and leading the class for nearly the entire rally.

The Salem-based Rally in the 100 Acre Wood event in Missouri is a high-speed gravel rally featuring fast and flowing roads that are a favorite of many rally drivers. Ken Block especially favors this event and it clearly shows with four straight dominating wins. The rally, set in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains, is known for highly variable weather conditions. Most of this year’s rally was dry and fast but a sudden flash snowstorm affected the final stages of the event.

As expected, Ken Block and co-driver Alex Gelsomino got off to a flying start winning three of the five stages on Day 1 to achieve a comfortable lead of over one minute. They maintained that lead throughout Day 2 with mistake-free driving, cruising to victory by over forty seconds. “I love the flow of the stages of this event, I love the high speeds,” exclaimed Block at the finish. “My Subaru was really setup perfectly and that gave me the confidence to go flat-out on the real high-speed sections.”

With four wins in a row at the 100 Acre Wood Rally Ken Block now shares a record with his mentor, American rally legend John Buffum, who won this event four times in a row from 1977 to 1980. “To share a record of any sort with [John] Buffum is incredible,” mentioned Block. “I don’t think I’ll come close to any of his other records though!”

Block’s new Subaru teammate, BMX legend Dave Mirra raised eyebrows with his debut in the recently introduced Super Production (SP) class, a new category for 2009 that features minimally modified, production-based cars. Mirra showed impressive speed at the start of the rally in his Subaru WRX STI, finishing Day 1 in third Overall and leading the SP class comfortably. Mirra was the fastest in-class on eight of the event’s fourteen competition stages. Unfortunately, Mirra narrowly missed out on a class win when he slowed on Stage 14 to ensure he stayed on the road due to a flash snowstorm in that area. Fellow SP class challenger and veteran Subaru privateer Matt Johnson capitalized on the treacherous road condition and beat Mirra for the SP class win by just three seconds. “I felt really comfortable in the SP-spec Subaru, and it was really encouraging to see our stage times were right up there with the Open Class cars,” explained Mirra “I’ve got a lot of confidence now and I know I can fight for the SP class championship this year and maybe even mix it up at the top of the standings for some Overall points too.”

Three-time defending Rally America Champion Travis Pastrana vowed to challenge Block this weekend, and it looked as if the two drivers would be locked in a tight battle. After taking the early lead from Block on stage three, Pastrana made an error on Stage 4 that sent his Subaru off the road. Although Pastrana and his co-driver Christian Edstrom walked away unharmed, their Subaru was too damaged to continue.

The next rally scheduled for Ken Block is the all tarmac Rally New York USA, April 3-4 2009 where he will defend his 2008 victory. All three Subaru Rally Team USA drivers will be back in action at the Olympus Rally, round 3 of the 2009 Rally America National Championship, April 18-19 2009. Please visit www.subaru.com/rally for event details, photos and more team information.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, GReddy and Vermont SportsCar.

Piotr Wiktorczyk and Grzegorz Dorman completed their
gravel debut in 2009 Rally America Championship series by finishing 100 Acre Wood
Rally. Their team PPD Motorsport was forced by weather to play risky tire game which
didn’t end so fortunate for some of the teams. Wiktorczyk was able to secure third
place in Super Production class, while taking eight place in overall classification.
Wiktorczyk started the rally well off the pace and was very disappointed with his stage
times at the first service break. Piotr quickly started to get back on his groove and stage times he
achieved on the last three stages of the day were much closer to the class leaders.

PPD Motorsport began the second day of the rally ready to pursuit the class leaders, but were only
able to match their stage times while taking few class wins. That was till the stage fourteen where the
road conditions changed dramatically and went from dry gravel into seven inches of snow. While others
were struggling Wiktorczyk made up almost 55 seconds to class leaders and were only 26 seconds off
the second spot and 45 seconds to get the lead in the class. Team came out ready to fight for the win
on the last and very difficult stage, but rally organizers canceled the last stage due to one of the
opening car having problems getting thru the snow on the stage.

Piotr Wiktorczyk: “What a great rally! The roads were so enjoyable to drive. This rally really
showed what a great battle we will have this year. Four SP cars had stage wins and Dave Mirra really
showed that he will be a force to deal with this year. I was very surprised at the speed he showed early

Another podium finish for PPD Motorsport
on. I also knew that Matt Johnson will be hard to beat at this event, but didn’t except him to push this
hard. I’m really pumped and hope we can pull off west coast.”
Grzegorz Dorman: “While disappointed that the last stage got canceled, we are even more
motivated to fight for the championship now. Dave Mirra came out quickly to surprise a lot of people
and became a very strong competitor in Super Production. Conditions once again got little crazy in
Missouri , but this is rally and you have to be prepared for this. After two events our position overall and
in the class is promising, but still not where we want it to be. We realized that our competition is fast and
we will work even harder to be more competitive.”
Piotr Wiktorczyk and Grzegorz Dorman next event will be Olympus Rally based in Olympia, WA on
April 15 to 17th. PPD Motorsport will continue to fight for Super Production title there as well as more
points towards XGames spot.

PPD Motorsport would like to thank their new sponsors for this event, White Frog Entertainment
and Motul Lubricants for joining the team before their west coast events.

After having competed in only a handful of rally
events, BMX legend Dave Mirra has won his first rally race, the 2009
Team O’Neil Rally, at the wheel of his 2007 Subaru Impreza WRX STI
rally car. Mirra dominated the New Hampshire-based snow rally by
setting fastest time on all but one of the event’s eight stages and
finishing with a lead of fifty seconds. The wins comes just over one
year after Mirra began his burgeoning rally career that has since seen
him be named the 2008 Rally America Rookie of the Year as well as earn
a Bronze medal at last summer’s X Games 14 Rally Car Racing event.

“I’m really excited to get my first win, the roads were a lot of fun
here,” explained Mirra. “Running in these snowy conditions was
perfect preparation for the Sno*Drift Rally [which serves as the first
round of the Rally America Championship] next week, so I will have a
lot more confidence from the start.”

Mirra’s rally program will expand in 2009 with increased support from
Subaru of America, Inc. and Monster Energy that will see him join
Subaru Rally Team USA drivers Ken Block and Travis Pastrana at all
nine rounds of the 2009 Rally America National Championship as well as
X Games 15. Mirra will compete in the new Super Production class and
will debut a 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI early in the race season.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America,
Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT),
DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, GReddy,
and Vermont SportsCar.

About Dave Mirra:

Mirra became a pro BMX rider in 1992 and holds the record for most X
Games medals (including most Gold medals), and has medaled in every X
Games since its inception in 1995. With his current X Games medal
count at twenty one, Mirra is recognized as one of the World’s most
well known Action Sports athletes and is credited with bringing
freestyle BMX into the mainstream.

Mirra has always been a car enthusiast and became hooked on rallying
after friend and Subaru Rally Team USA driver Ken Block introduced him
to the sport. Mirra completed a test and training program with Vermont
SportsCar in late 2007 and entered a limited number of rounds of the
2008 Rally America National Championship, making an impressive debut
season to earn 2008 Rookie of the Year honors. He surprised rally
veterans and casual fans alike on his rally debut at X Games 14 where
he earned a Bronze medal, after defeating two championship-caliber,
North American drivers in separate head-to-head heats.

Seamus Burke/Eddie Fries (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) have won International Rally New York for the second year running. For this former national champion team, this comes at the end of a season of mechanical difficulties.

At the finish, Burke/Fries were three minutes ahead of Seamus’s son Joseph Burke and co-driver Ole Holter (Subaru Impreza WRX). Holter noted at the finish, that this was only the younger Burke’s second outing in a powerful turbocharged, all-wheel-drive car – and in the first he won the Black River Stages Rally in Upstate New York.

Celsus Donnelly/Barry Smyth (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) had been a solid second for most of the rally. But with two special stages remaining, the car engine failed, apparently due to head gasket failure.

Brian Scott/John Dillon (Subaru Impreza WRX) finished third, after a cool performance in which they went just fast enough for a top finish – sufficient to take the all-wheel-drive category title in the U.S. Rally Championship.

The two-wheel-drive (2WD) category in the rally was taken by the husband-wife team of Kristopher and Christine Marciniak (Dodge Neon), who also won the 2WD division of the U.S. Rally Championship. They were followed to the finish by Dan Brosnan/Shane McCann (Nissan Sentra) and the father-son team of Simon and Kieran Wright (Ford Focus).

Hampton Bridwell/Josh Katinger (Ford Focus SVT) were in contention with Marciniak/Marciniak early in the rally, for both the 2WD win and championship. But when the Ford slid off the road on the first day, the team was forced to “play catch-up.” They were closing on the leaders again when they rolled the car – without harm to themselves, but it put them out of the rally.

International Rally New York was the final round of the United States Rally Championship and the New York Rally Championship. It began in Callicoon, New York on Thursday evening, and ended in nearby Walton this evening.

For further information, check the event web site, www.rallynewyork.com.

Subaru Rally Team USA’s Travis Pastrana and Ken Block have hit the cover of the September 2008 issue of Racer X Magazine! The jaw-dropping cover-shot features Pastrana flipping his freestyle moto-x bike over his teammate Ken Block’s airborne 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car, the two crossing in the air after taking off from separate jumps. The issue of Racer X features an extensive article about Block and Pastrana regarding their success rally racing in the USA and across the World. The issue also features a stunning pull-out poster of the jump from DC Shoes. The September 2008 issue of Racer X will be on newsstands this week.

The cover story is a massive accomplishment as Racer X is one of the premier motocross publications in the US. Both Ken Block and Travis Pastrana are very pleased and honored to be featured on the cover, and excited with the progress and popularity rally is exhibiting as a growing sport in the US. Pastrana being the reigning two-time Rally America National Champion and Block having earned Silver at last year’s X Games Rally competition, the Subaru Rally Team USA teammates are no strangers albeit relative newcomers to the rally racing scene. “We are honored to have a rally car on the cover of one of the top moto magazines in the world. The photo shoot was so much fun and it was great to showcase the skills of our multi-talented and very dynamic team. Plus I never turn down a chance to jump my rally car!,” said Ken Block. The Racer X issue marks the 7th time that Ken Block as graced the cover of a major magazine.

The cover shot was taken during a two day video shoot on a jump built for the newest of Travis Pastrana’s line of videos aptly named Thrillbillies Double Wide. The videos feature motorized antics and stunts intertwined with outtakes from the lives of action sports athletes. Pastrana leaping from an airplane with no parachute was among stunts in last year’s video, Thrillbillies. The newest Nitro Circus video will include this motocross-over-rally-car jump just outside Salt Lake City, Utah. A video clip of this historic feat can be viewed at DC Shoes website. Click here for the video!

Pastrana and Block will be seen in action jumping again at the biggest event of the year for North American Rallying, the ESPN X Games 14 in Los Angeles, Aug 3rd. The X Games will be broadcast live on ABC with highlights and preview shows on ESPN. Visit subaru.com/rally for complete details and more news and photos.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, Boost Mobile, Recaro, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, GReddy, PIAA and Vermont SportsCar. For team news and information please visit www.subaru.com/rally

Wellsboro, PA, June 5th 2008: Arkadiusz Gruszka and Grzegorz Dorman representing Art Rally Team will compete in fifth round of Rally America National Series, Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally (STPR). This round will be also a part of Regional championship and the Polish team will be taking a part of it.

This will be the first start of team Gruszka / Dorman at STPR, but after winning the Gravity Park 2 event two weeks ago they build their confidence and hoping for at least podium finish in Pennsylvania, but they first will have to fight for it with over 40 other teams, which close to half of them will enter Regional event as well.

The rally will consist of 115 competitive stage miles divided onto 13 stages in Tioga County, PA. The roads used for this event are one of the best in the country, but the drivers have to be on top of their game the entire event, each and every stage to bring a high overall position to the finish.

Arkadiusz Gruszka: “From what I heard from other competitors that have competed here before, this rally won?t be an easy one for us, but the plan is simple: be at the finish, try to finish strong, gain more and more experience. This is the plan we set at the beginning of the year and we want to stick to it. All other positve facts are just a bonus to our 2008 season.”

Grzegorz Dorman: “This is my favorite rally in US by far. I feel like at home here. I think splitting the event into two days and addition of the Super Special stage will make this event even more interesting and enjoyable.”

Arkadiusz Gruszka and Grzegorz Dorman are currently second overall and in Open class in Rally America Central Region championship and fighting for the best positions at the remaining events.

Art Rally Team is sponsored by European Auto Exchange from Lombard, IL – Home of Certified Luxury Automobiles and supportes by Freight Kong and Art Logistics – One Stop for all Your Shipping Needs.

BMX legend and burgeoning rally driver Dave Mirra got his
first chance to drive a top specification Open Class Subaru rally car in
competition on the final day of last weekend’s Oregon Trail Rally, after
swapping cars with Monster Energy teammate Ken Block. Mirra was northing
short of impressive at the wheel of Block’s BFGoodrich Tires-shod 2007
Subaru Impreza WRX STI, netting a 3rd and a 4th fastest overall stage
time on two of the four competition stages run on Sunday. Block, who
was leading the Rally America National Championship points standings
entering Oregon ’stepped-down’ to drive Mirra’s lower spec, non-turbo
Subaru Impreza.

The swap was possible only after Block and Mirra found themselves
officially out of the Oregon Trail Rally, round four of the Rally
America National Championship, after they each slid their usual rally
cars into ditches and became stuck off the road. Neither rally car
sustained damage and the duo had the option of re-starting the event the
following day for the final four stages of competition. Although they
could not score national championship points the roads and the
competition would be the same.

So the two friends kept things interesting by arranging a car swap with
each other! Block literally signed his top-spec Open class rally car
over to Mirra on Sunday with a message on the hood that read; “Congrats
Dave, it’s graduation day here’s your new car. Keep the shiny side
up!” Block then spent some time with Mirra pointing out a few of the
differences and unique features of his car before handing over the keys.
Block’s Subaru Rally Team USA backed Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car is
built to the limit of the Rally America Open Class rules, with nearly
double the power of Mirra’s ‘rookie spec’ Subaru. Block’s car is also
lighter and features a dog-engagement transmission enabling quicker,
clutch-less gear shifting.

Mirra was slated to begin driving this higher-spec rally car at the next
round in Pennsylvania (the Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally, June
6-7th ) after having started off his rally career with a much lower
specification, non-turbo Subaru Impreza. After competing in five rallies
over the past six months Mirra recently earned a full unrestricted Rally
America competition license, allowing him the opportunity to drive a
much more powerful machine such as Block’s Subaru.

With a huge grin, Mirra and his co-driver Alex Kihurani jumped into
Block’s rally car and cautiously attacked the four remaining competition
stages on Sunday. “That Subaru was just amazing to drive, it’s a whole
different ball game than the car I’ve been learning with,” explained
Mirra. “I had to be really careful because I kept getting stuck in the
dust of cars that I was catching up with ahead of us, but we had a clean
run on one of the stages where I got 3rd fastest overall. It was an
amazing opportunity to get to test this car on some real rally stages
ahead of the next rally in Pennsylvania, where I’ll be driving this car
again. I’m still buzzing from this drive, it was incredible.”

Ken Block, with co-driver Alex Gelsomino, will debut the much
anticipated all-new 2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI at the next round,
making his 2007 Subaru available to Mirra for the remainder of the 2008
season. Mirra will run a limited number of the remaining 2008 rally
events due to BMX competition schedule conflicts.

While Mirra was learning to tame Ken Block’s wildly powerful rally car,
Block had to contend with driving Mirra’s much slower Subaru through the
technical loose gravel roads of Oregon. “We had a good time with it,
even if it was painfully slow!,” said Block. “It was a good lesson in
how to keep momentum up through the turns, because the car just lacks
the raw acceleration of my usual ride. Most of all it made me really
appreciate my own Subaru! I was glad to see Dave didn’t put a scratch on
my car and he set a few very impressive stage times, so it was very
encouraging.”

Dave Mirra’s rally program is made possible with support from Monster
Energy, Vermont SportsCar, DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Exedy,
PIAA, Motul, Greddy, Alpinestars and Subaru of America.

Subaru Rally Team USA driver Travis Pastrana and co-driver Derek Ringer have won the 2008 Oregon Trail Rally with a faultless drive at the wheel of their 2007 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car. Pastrana, the two-time defending Rally America National Champion, pulled away from the field on the very first stage and cruised to victory after a majority of his challengers retired from the rally due to a mixture of mistakes and mechanical difficulties. This marks the first victory for Pastrana this season and his first victory with his new co-driver, former WRC Champion Derek Ringer of Scotland.

The technical, dusty gravel roads of the Oregon Trail Rally, round four of the 2008 Rally America National Championship, proved extremely challenging for North America’s top rally drivers as nearly half the field succumbed to crashes or other off-road excursions. Included in this attrition was Pastrana’s teammate Ken Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino who slid their #43 Subaru wide and dropped into a ditch while sitting in second place overall on day two of the rally. "There was a misleading stage note that caught me out, we slid a bit wide and into a ditch and just got stuck there," said Block. "It was so frustrating because the car was totally fine and undamaged, and I had not been pushing at all."

It seemed as though only Pastrana made it through the rally unscathed as he drove mistake-free while his Subaru rally car ran flawlessly all weekend. Only a tire puncture near the end of the rally caused some concern for Pastrana, but with over a three minute lead over second place overall, Pastrana was not bothered by it. "We had some trouble finding our rhythm early in the rally, but then it all just came together and I just started driving smooth and fast while it seemed everyone around me was hitting trouble, it was a wild event," explained Pastrana. "The roads were just amazing, lots of fun but very challenging. This win puts us right at the front of the championship hunt." Pastrana moves up to 2nd Overall in the Rally America standings, just one point from first overall.

Pastrana and his Subaru Rally Team USA crew now head overseas to Greece for their second event of the 2008 Production World Rally Championship (P-WRC) campaign. The Acropolis Rally, May 30-June 1, is round seven of the 2008 World Rally Championship and will serve as Pastrana’s second P-WRC this year, having competed in Rally Argentina in March.

Further team information and photo/video galleries can be found at www.subaru.com/rally .

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, Boost Mobile, Recaro, Alpinestars, Motul, Exedy, Greddy, PIAA and Vermont SportsCar.

The Temple Canyon Hill Climb, based in Canon City, CO, marked the second round of the Colorado Rally Cup and the first flat out high-speed event of the 2008 schedule. Twenty-one teams entered the rally classes for the annual Mothers Day weekend race, setting a new overall entry record for the rally classes.

Practice and qualifying on Saturday greeted teams with one of the smoothest road seen in years, but with ominous weather. After wind and sporadic periods of rain made conditions less than hospitable for officials and course workers, two all-wheel-drive teams posted qualifying times faster than the standing record of 3:21.75 with three more teams within three seconds of the record. In two-wheel-drive the record wasn’t under threat, but five teams were within 10 seconds with a further two just 13 seconds off of top qualifier John Conley, with co-driver Keith Rudolph, in their Dodge Neon SRT-4.

Conditions improved overnight and Sunday greeted teams with a forecast of mid-70s with a slight breeze, ideal conditions for racing. On the first run, the competition in rally all-wheel-drive that had been building during practice and qualifying began to boil over with the top four teams within five seconds and all under the record with two additional teams just seconds more back. After the second run a total of 5.53 seconds covered the top 5 teams in rally all-wheel-drive with all 5 teams breaking the previous record and .52 seconds separating first from second. As the dust settled Jason Waples and JP Hodgson came out ahead, 0.52 seconds in front of their teammates Todd Moberly and Rebecca Greek to go 1-2 for JP Motorsports/Phoenix Autosport, with Mike Whitman and Aaron McConnell finishing just ahead of Dave and Allison Kern to finish third.

Rally two-wheel-drive saw John Conley and Keith Rudolph finish a comfortable 7.2 seconds ahead of Scott Leonard and Adam Kniepp, who just finished ahead of Jim Gillaspy and Chris Daniher and Jeremy Brown and Simon Branton-Housely. Further down the order the remaining five entries were all within six seconds forcing all teams to be on the limit and flat out on both runs. Unfortunately the rally two-wheel-drive class also saw the Texas-based entry of Fornari and Paipott suffer a race-ending crash after just starting their first run on Sunday, forcing the team out of the event and throwing into jeopardy the rest of the team’s season as they make repairs to their Mazda RX7.

Teams will have a short three week break, then will head to the Continental Divide Hill Climb based in Monarch, CO. After such tight battles at Temple Canyon, the competition is sure to be fierce as teams battle for Colorado Rally Cup points and Colorado Hill Climb Association results.

About the Colorado Rally Cup:
The Colorado Rally Cup is a multi-organizational championship. Formed by competitors for competitors, entered teams compete in eight events covering three different versions of rallysport-based competition in three different classes. More information on the Colorado Rally Cup can be found at: http://www.ColoradoRallyCup.org

About the Colorado Hill Climb Association:
For 37 years the Colorado Hill Climb Association (CHCA) has been putting on a series of all-dirt hillclimbs in Colorado. Host to a variety of different classes the CHCA will offer its brand of high-speed dirt racing at five events, promising something for just about every motorsport fan in the process. More information on the CHCA, as well as detailed results, can be found at: http://www.CHCAracing.com

Story & Photo (c) 2008 Kevin Hahn – Jason Waples with interim co-driver Jason Hodgson continued to show his prowess at Colorado Hill Climb Association events and took an impressive victory over team mates Todd Moberly and Rebecca Greek. Their .52 second victory is one of the closest seen in the rally classes at a CHCA event and put them just nine points back in Colorado Rally Cup standings after two events.