Named after the storybook home of Winnie the Pooh, the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood is set in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains of Missouri and features very high speeds on smooth and flowing gravel roads that are a favorite of many rally drivers. Pastrana, with co-driver Christian Edstrom, pushed hard from the first stage and pulled away from a very competitive field, winning the first seven stages of the event. After Pastrana’s closest challenger, former Canadian Rally champion Antoine L’Estage, lost time with a problem early on the second day Pastrana found himself with a comfortable lead of over one-minute on rival and former Subaru driver Ken Block.

However, late in the event, Pastrana’s run toward an expectant victory came to an abrupt halt. Damage to a suspension component on Pastrana’s Subaru resulting from a hard rear-wheel impact into a ditch cut Pastrana’s rally short. The incident occurred on the short spectator viewing stage held within a town park, and Pastrana was able to nurse his Subaru to finish the stage. Although they feverishly attempted a roadside repair, there was insufficient time for Pastrana and Edstrom to complete the effort nor was there a scheduled service stop where their Subaru Rally Team USA crew of mechanics could work on the car.

“This one is really tough to swallow. I had everything I needed to win here,” explained a dejected Pastrana. “Our Subaru was perfect and totally unbeatable. We were able to just pull away from everyone on the first half of the rally and then just had to cruise to the finish. It was a small mistake; I cut a corner and then exited too wide and didn’t know there was a drainage ditch there. I just can’t believe it.”

Pastrana’s Subaru teammate Dave Mirra adopted the strategy of gaining experience in his car rather than showcasing outright pace and did so successfully, finishing a trouble-free 4th Overall. The 100 Acre Wood Rally was Mirra’s first gravel rally in the higher specification 2010 Open Class Subaru after spending the 2009 season in the more restrictive Super Production class. Mirra was also sitting for the first time with veteran co-driver Martin Headland. “I’m very happy with the result. I wanted to just drive through this event and carefully learn the potential of the Open Class Subaru,” explained Mirra. “This car has better handling, braking and power than anything I’ve ever driven so it’s a lot to get used to and I still have to learn where the limits are. I took it easy and slowly increased my pace where I was comfortable.”

“Although SRT USA departs from this event without the win we were seeking, the display of performance and reliability from our Open Class Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally cars leads me to believe we were in a league of our own,” pointed out James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “Kudos to the team for having developed such an impressive yet very drivable package. Travis drove an aggressive but comfortable pace and was in a great position for the finish if not for that untimely error. Dave took a sensible approach to learning his car and finished just one position from the podium.”

Subaru Rally Team will compete next at the Olympus Rally, based in Olympia, Washington on April 23-25.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, 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 rally.subaru.com and for the latest news follow the team on Twitter: twitter.com/srtusa.

Photos: Lars Gange | rally.subaru.com

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Named after the storybook home of Winnie the Pooh, the 100 Acre Wood Rally is set in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains of Missouri. Based in and around the town of Salem, the 100 Acre Wood Rally features very high-speeds on smooth and flowing gravel roads that are a favorite of many rally drivers. However, in recent years the weather has unleashed freezing rain, sleet or snow in the days leading up to and during the event turning the roads treacherously icy. Weather reports for this weekend’s event currently indicate clear and seasonably cool conditions.

“Subaru has won the 100 Acre Wood Rally four years in a row so we know we have the right car and the right setup,” explained Pastrana. “Our goal here is to win and extend our championship lead. I think if the weather holds out this will be one of the fastest, most tightly contested events of the year.” Pastrana leads the six-round 2010 Rally America National Championship after a win last month at round one, the Sno*Drift Rally in northern Michigan.

Subaru driver Dave Mirra will have veteran co-driver Martin Headland alongside at the 100 Acre Wood Rally in place of co-driver Derek Ringer, with whom he worked with in 2008 and 2009. Headland, a former two-time Canadian Rally Champion has 35 years of co-driving experience and has entered over 150 performance rallies. Headland was a long time co-driver of one of Mirra’s key rally tutors, driving instructor Tim O’Neil. “The roads in Missouri are very fast and I drove really well there last year, but I was in a lower specification Super Production class Subaru STI at the time,” said Mirra. “This year I will have more power and even better handling with Subaru Rally Team USA’s Open Class car and am looking forward to adapting to the new car this season .”

The rally action kicks off at approximately 4pm CST local time this Friday, February 26th, and continues through Saturday, February 27th. For daily event photos and news updates visit www.rally.subaru.com or follow the team at www.twitter.com/srtusa. Results and other event news can be found at www.rally-america.com.

Subaru Rally Team USA is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., Subaru Tecnica International (STI), Subaru Performance Tuning (SPT), DC Shoes, BFGoodrich Tires, RECARO, Vision X, Alpinestars, Motul, GReddy, Exedy, VP Fuels 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

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Live coverage of The Race of Champions to be broadcast on Eurosport and online through Freecaster – Action to be broadcast daily in Europe from 12:00 GMT, 13:00 CET – CCTV5 showing all three days of action live in China Motorsport fans around the world will get the chance to watch the biggest ever Race of Champions live on TV or on their computers, after organisers confirmed that the event will be broadcast live on TV channels across the world, as well as online through www.raceofchampions.com and www.freecaster.tv.

The three-day event will be held in Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium from Monday 2 to Wednesday 4 November and, like the 2008 Olympics, the time difference means that most of the action will take place during the European afternoon. “This is the first time The Race of Champions has been held outside Europe, and we don’t want fans to miss out on live coverage,”said Fredrik Johnsson, President of event organisers IMP. “As well as the TV companies who will show the event around the world, the online broadcast, which was extremely popular last year, means that if viewers can’t get to a TV, they can watch the action live action wherever they are.

“The Race of Champions 2009 begins with ROC China on Monday 2 November, where China’s top racers will compete to see who represents the country in The ROC Nations Cup on Tuesday. The ROC Nations Cup will feature drivers put into pairs based on their nationality, with each team battling to prove they are the fastest nation. In The Race of Champions itself, on Wednesday 4 November, all the top drivers will fight against each other to see who is crowned the “Champion of Champions”. All days of the event are broadcast live on www.raceofchampions.com, with action starting each day at 20:00 local time in China, which is 12:00 GMT and 13:00 CET.

Drivers confirmed for this year’s event include newly-crowned F1 World Champion Jenson Button, seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher, eight-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen and five-time MotoGP Champion Mick Doohan. Any media interested in broadcasting the event through their website should contact press2009@raceofchampions.com. Other ROC news, 2008 AMA Supercross and 2009 National Motocross Champion Chad Reed will step in as Mick Doohan’s Australian Team-mate in The Race of Champions. Jamie Whincup decided not to attend due to concerns it may affect his chances of winning a second consecutive V8 Supercar Championship.

Worldwide television coverage confirmed for ROC 2009 so far:

Worldwide www.raceofchampions.com

- Live coverage of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Europe Eurosport

- Live coverage, delayed coverage plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Middle East Al Jazeera Sport

- Live coverage plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Asia Eurosport Asia

- Live coverage, delayed coverage plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions South America ESPN International

- Highlights of The Race of Champions Pacific ESPN International

- Highlights of The Race of Champions Australia Network Ten

- Delayed coverage plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions ESPN International

- Highlights of The Race of Champions Brazil Sport TV

- Live coverage of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions China CCTV5

- Live coverage of ROC China, The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Finland MTV3

- Live coverage of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions France Eurosport France

- Live coverage, delayed coverage, plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Great Britain British Eurosport

- Live coverage, delayed coverage, plus highlights of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions Iceland 365

- Live coverage of The ROC Nations Cup & The Race of Champions USA Discovery Channel

- Highlights of The Race of Champions and delayed coverage of ROC Nations Cup

Editors’ Notes Photos are available on www.raceofchampions.com Alternatively you can E-mail press2009@raceofchampions.com

The Race of Champions was started in 1988 by Fredrik Johnsson and Michele Mouton, the world’s most successful female rally driver. The event has traditionally moved from venue to venue around the world, being most recently held at the Stade de France in Paris (2004-2006) and Wembley Stadium in London (2007-2008). The 2009 event will take place in The Beijing National Stadium from Monday 2 to Wednesday 4 November, on a specially constructed asphalt circuit. The Race of Champions 2009 will be made up of three separate competitions – ROC China, The ROC Nations Cup and The Race of Champions itself. Each competition pits drivers against each other in a head-to-head format, with equal equipment ensuring races are won and lost on talent alone.

ROC China will decide which drivers represent the host country in The ROC Nations Cup, which takes place the following day. The ROC Nations Cup features drivers paired into teams based on their nationality. In 2009, a group stage will decide which four teams progress to the semi-finals, when a best-of-three knockout competition will determine who makes it to the final. Last year Team Germany (Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel) beat Team Scandinavia (Tom Kristensen and Mattias Ekstrom) in the final to win The ROC Nations Cup for a second consecutive year.

In The Race Of Champions individual drivers go head-to-head until the champion is decided. In 2009, a group stage will be held to decide the final eight drivers, before the traditional knockout format resumes for the quarter-finals. In last year’s Final, Sebastien Loeb beat David Coulthard in the third race of a best-of-three battle. Drivers confirmed for The Race of Champions 2009 include: Seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher (Team Germany) Formula 1 World Championship leader Jenson Button (Team Autosport Great Britain) Red Bull Racing F1 race winner Sebastian Vettel (Team Germany) World Rally Championship leader Mikko Hirvonen (Team Finland) 13-time Formula 1 Grand Prix Winner David Coulthard (Team All Stars) Five-time MotoGP Champion Mick Doohan (Team Australia) Eight-time Le Mans 24 Hour Winner Tom Kristensen (Team Scandinavia) Triple World Touring Car Champion Andy Priaulx (Team Autosport Great Britain) Double World Rally Champion Marcus Gronholm (Team Finland) Double DTM Champion and two-time Race of Champions winner Mattias Ekstrom (Team Scandinavia) World Touring Car Champion Yvan Muller (Team France) 10 time X Games Gold Medallist Travis Pastrana (Team USA) 2008 AMA Supercross Champion Chad Reed (Team Australia) Two-time Formula Drift National Champion Tanner Foust (Team USA) 2009 Dakar Rally Winner Giniel de Villiers (Team All Stars) 2009 FIA Cross-Country Cup Winner Guerlain Chicherit (Team France) For media enquiries call Paul Rayner on +86 152 1042 7721 or email press2009@raceofchampions.com

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Teammate Ken Block Secures Third Place

Subaru Rally Team USA driver Travis Pastrana put an authoritative stamp on his fourth consecutive Rally America National Championship with a dominating win at the 2009 Lake Superior Performance Rally (LSPR). Pastrana, from Davidsonville, MD, mathematically won the 2009 Rally America Championship at the Ojibwe Forests Rally in late August. With nothing to lose and no pressure, Pastrana entered LSPR stating he was intent on simply driving to dominate, taking risks and putting on a proper show for the fans. He lived up to his claims by leading from the start at the wheel of his 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI rally car and finishing fastest on fifteen of LSPR’s seventeen stages. Pastrana, with co-driver Christian Edstrom, won by a comfortable margin of over four minutes. The win at LSPR is Pastrana’s 6th of the nine-event 2009 Rally America National Championship and caps the most successful season of his rally career. Pastrana’s Subaru teammate Ken Block, with co-driver Alex Gelsomino, finished in third position overall and won the Super Production class.

The Lake Superior Performance Rally is headquartered in Houghton, at the northern tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The rally is revered by rally drivers for its difficult conditions, which typically include high speeds on tree-lined roads with variable weather making stages a white-knuckled affair. Adding to the challenge are over seventy miles of night stages where visibility can be in short supply.

“I drove flat out, took some risks and had a lot fun,” explained Pastrana at the podium ceremony. “Christian [Edstrom] and I wanted to win as many stages as possible and really show how fast we can go, its definitely a different strategy when the points and the championship don’t matter!”

Pastrana’s goal of winning all of the event’s seventeen stages was interrupted only by former Canadian Rally Champion Antoine L’Estage who narrowly beat Pastrana on two stages on the first day of competition. Pastrana went on to win all eight competitive stages on the second and final day of LSPR cruising to a victory of over four minutes.

“It’s sometimes difficult to believe that Travis only began his rallying career a few short years ago,” said James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “In that time, he has really developed into a devastatingly quick and well-rounded driver who can also maintain a consistent pace and provide the team with sufficient feedback to maximize car set-ups. Achieving four consecutive Rally America national titles is quite a testament to Travis and his co-drivers, the strength of Subaru’s technical partner in Vermont SportsCar, and performance from our Subaru Impreza WRX STI.”

Pastrana’s Subaru teammate Ken Block entered LSPR in a Super Production (SP) Class 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI. The production-based, minimally modified, Subaru stood in as a replacement for Block’s usual Open Class STI rally car which sustained heavy damage in a crash at the Ojibwe Forests Rally. Block performed well to wring out all he could from the car and achieved a podium result, a rarity for a Super Production class car amongst the more powerful Open Class specification vehicles. In the latter stages of Day 1, Block found himself having to measure his pace as his car began showing signs of engine trouble. Block backed off considerably but was still able to handily win the Super Production class overall as well as finish in third position overall.

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, Vision X, 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

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“This was a great rally for us,” said Pastrana. “It’s one of my favorites because it’s a more technical rally than some of the others on the circuit and it’s great to drive.”

Heading into this event, Pastrana had already secured the Rally America driver’s title for 2009 and said his objective was to earn as many stage wins as possible. With nothing to lose, he admitted he drove hard and took plenty of risks to win all but two stages – falling only about four seconds short of an outright sweep over more than 120 miles of racing.

In second place were Canadians Antoine L’Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard. The team occasionally competes south of the border, largely in pursuit of the North American Rally Championship, which counts events from both Canada and the U.S. Despite a two-minute penalty for a jumped start on Friday, the team put in a consistent performance to land on the podium.

“I’m happy overall,” said L’Estage. “Now we’re going into the final Canadian event of the year leading the North American Rally Championship and that’s what we’re here for.”

In third place overall and taking the Super Production class win, despite an ailing engine, was the Subaru Rally Team USA crew of Ken Block and Alex Gelsomino. The duo have been running in a borrowed Super Production class car for the final rounds of the championship after a bad wreck that put their Open class Subaru out of commission.

“It’s been a horrible year for us,” said Block, who finished the season fourth in the points. “Blown turbos, car overheating, mechanical issues… I’ve been driving the best I ever have and I feel I just can’t get anything to go my way.”

The crowded Super Production class saw Heath Nunnemacher and co-driver Mike Rossey take second place, followed by Pat Moro and co-driver Ole Holter in third. The podium finish wasn’t enough for Moro to overtake Jimmy Keeney in the points for the 2009 class win. Keeney and co-driver Melissa Keeney finished fourth in class at this event to take the Rally America Super Production class championship for 2009.

A stroke of bad luck saw Piotr Wiktorczyk out of the hunt for the class title before the race could begin; his engine blew during practice.

The Polish team of Andi Mancin and co-driver Maciej Wislawski battled engine trouble at this event to finish in fifth-place overall. The result wasn’t what Mancin had hoped for, but it was enough to earn him runner-up status in the 2009 championship after challenger Andrew “ACP” Comrie-Picard and co-driver Jeremy Wimpey suffered a blown engine late on Day 1. ACP wound up third in the Rally America standings for 2009.

In two-wheel-drive, 17-year-old driver Dillon Van Way locked up the two-wheel drive Rally America title with a start here this weekend.

All results are considered informational pending official race processes.

The fall colors are brilliant in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula at this time of year. It was cold and drizzly on Friday as cars headed out for the opening stages, with snow reported in some areas. It was a picture-perfect autumn day when the rally finished Saturday.

As the season ender, this rally also plays host to the Rally America awards banquet, presented by BFGoodrich Tires, at the Rockhouse Grill & Tavern on Sunday. Awards for the season will be handed out at the Sunday ceremony.

Considered the extreme sport of automobile racing, rally car racing is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover more than 100 miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads. Among the marques typically represented in Rally America events are Subaru, Mitsubishi, Dodge, Ford and Volkswagen.

Top teams in the Rally America National Championship series are also invited to compete in ESPN’s annual Summer X Games competition, the leading action sports event broadcast live on ABC and ESPN.

Rally competition resumes January 29-30 with the 2010 Rally America season opener, Sno*Drift, in Atlanta, Michigan.

Photo: Lars Gange

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Comrie-Picard and Pastrana had been trading stage wins, with Pastrana 20 seconds ahead by the end of the day. But a moment of distraction saw Pastrana and co-driver Christian Edstrom barrel through three pylons in a chicane on Saturday’s final stage. The misstep cost the duo seven minutes in penalties and dropped them from first to 8th place overall.

“We had a shaky start with a few small mechanical issues that held us back and we were starting to reel Travis in stage by stage,” said Comrie-Picard, who is accompanied by guest co-driver Jeremy Wimpey at this event. “We’d rather fight to the finish without the penalties, but we’re pleased to be in the lead.”

Pastrana has already secured the 2009 title- with just two rounds remaining, nobody can catch him in the points. But Comrie-Picard is among a tight pack of top drivers who are still battling it out for the remaining spots in the top three.

Pastrana’s Subaru teammate Ken Block also took a one-minute penalty on the chicane, bumping Polish driver Andi Mancin into second place after the Day 1 stages.

Block and co-driver Alex Gelsomino were in third place after the opening day, more than two minutes ahead of the fourth-place team of Nathan Conley and co-driver Todd Moberly.

Block is competing in the Super Production class this weekend. His Open class rally car is out of commission after a big wreck at Round 7, and they have taken over Dave Mirra’s ride for this event. Mirra is sitting his round out due to a conflict with his BMX competition schedule.

“I just want to do well in the car and get the best out of it,” said Block.

The lower-spec car is a big change for Block, whose aggressive style demands the high power available in his Open class car to pull him out of corners. Even so, he still managed to set the fastest time on the first stage of the rally and by the end of Day 1, he was well ahead of the other drivers in the class.

A very fast driver, Block has struggled this season to find a pace that earns him reliable finishes and he has DNF’d more rallies than he’s finished. He’s currently in third place in the championship, behind Mancin.

With the wildcard entry of Block in the Super Production class, regular contenders are planning their strategy. Pat Moro and local driver Jimmy Keeney are fighting hard. If Moro can earn second-place in the class this weekend, he’ll enter the final round of the championship in a tie for the class lead with Piotr Wiktorczyk — who is absent from this round.

In the two-wheel drive class, Monument, Colorado’s John Conley is in the lead, ahead of reliable performer Dillon Van Way from Carencro, LA.

The Rally Colorado event poses unique challenges to rally teams. Many teams were complaining that they were down on power or overheating during the high desert stages Saturday. The high altitude and subsequent lack of oxygen at this event saps the rally cars’ power. Despite this drain, the event has a reputation of being a one of the fastest in the Series featuring many high-speed sections on flowing roads. Teams expect variable weather and there has been dust on Day 1. The high altitude, coupled with fast straights places the high horsepower Open class cars at a distinct advantage.

The rally is headquartered in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, known as “Ski Town”, USA. The small mountain community that’s home to numerous world-class ski and snowboarding events is also home to the largest ski jumping complex in America — used for training by the US Olympic Ski Jumping Team.

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

The 2009 Rally America National Championship series consists of nine exciting events that take place in a range of challenging weather and road conditions in a season that extends from February to October. Throughout the year, teams take on everything from the forest logging roads in Minnesota, to the Pacific Northwest forest and coast paths.

Top teams in the series are also invited to compete in the Summer X Games, the leading action sports event broadcast live on ABC and ESPN.

Click to see Travis Pastrana’s time penalty interview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09vte2zppoM&feature=player_embedded

Photo Credit: Kevin Hahn/Rally America

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Block crashed his Open Class Subaru heavily at the previous event, The Ojibwe Forests Rally. Although Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino walked away unharmed their Subaru rally car was terminally damaged. With insufficient time to prepare a spare rally car, SRT USA has opted to provide Block with the team’s Super Production class Subaru in Mirra’s absence at Rally Colorado.

The Super Production (SP) class, a new category in the 2009 Rally America series, features minimally modified, production-based cars. The SP class features much more restrictive regulations on modifications than the Open Class, where Block has been driving for the past three seasons. The SP Subaru features a stock engine, stock gearbox and very limited body shell modifications.

“It will be a big challenge to just get in and drive that car, the handling and power will be different and I won’t be able to be as aggressive with it,” explained Block. “But with Travis [Pastrana] having locked-up the Rally America Championship already, I have no pressure to win. We can treat this outing as an extended testing and development session for the SP car, but of course I’ll be trying my best to keep up with my usual Open class competitors!”

Subaru Rally Team USA driver Travis Pastrana mathematically secured his 4th consecutive Rally America National Championship with a win at last month’s Ojibwe Forests Rally. Pastrana and his co-driver Christian Edstrom will enter Rally Colorado with no pressure and have vowed to drive flat-out to put on a show for their fans this weekend. Rally Colorado is based in the picturesque resort town of Steamboat Springs, just 150 miles into the mountains west of Denver. The rally includes over 100 miles of fast, high-altitude gravel roads that are dusty when dry and notoriously slick when wet. The action starts Saturday morning and runs through Sunday afternoon. Fans can follow the rally live at www.rally-america.com and view daily SRT USA photo and news updates at rally.subaru.com.

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

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Last year’s Rally Colorado overall win went to Subaru Rally Team USA’s driver, Travis Pastrana, who will be looking for a repeat and says he’s planning to “go all out for the final two events of the season,” despite already securing his fourth Rally America Championship. Pastrana has had mixed results at this event over the years, with his most spectacular rally career crash occurring here during the 2005 event when he rolled seven and three-quarter times and walked away unhurt.

He can expect a challenge for the overall win from his teammate Ken Block, who’s had a tough season in 2009. Pastrana already has the top spot in the Series’ rankings – with just two events left, nobody can catch him – however, Block will be looking to secure the runner-up overall position and needs a strong finish at Rally Colorado to help insure his chances of success.

Currently in the second spot in the overall standings is Polish newcomer Andi Mancin, who is running his first full Rally America Championship season this year in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Mancin is still looking for his first overall U.S. win and will mix it up at the front of the pack at this event.

Also returning to the series after a two-round break is NOS Energy Drink’s Andrew Comrie-Picard with his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Just two points behind Ken Block in the overall standings, there is no doubt he will seriously challenge Block for the runner’s up position in the Championship point standings.

Super Production class leader Piotr Wiktorczyk and local challenger Jimmy Keeney will put up a fight, though, in what is expected to be an exciting class battle right up until the final round of the season. Subaru Rally Team USA’s Super Production Class entry, Dave Mirra, will not be present at the last two rounds of the Championship due to conflicts with his busy BMX schedule.

In the 2-Wheel Drive Class, expect another reliable performance by newcomer Dillon Van Way from Carencro, LA. The youngster has posted consistent results this season to take the class lead over Monument, Colorado’s John Conley.

The Rally Colorado event poses unique challenges to rally teams. The high altitude and subsequent lack of oxygen at this event saps the rally cars’ power. Despite this drain, the event has a reputation of being a one of the fastest in the Series featuring many high-speed sections on flowing roads. Expect variable weather and some dust if it is dry. The high altitude, coupled with fast straights places the high horsepower Open class cars at a distinct advantage.

The rally is headquartered in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, known as “Ski Town”, USA. The small mountain community that’s home to numerous world-class ski and snowboarding events is also home to the largest ski jumping complex in America — used for training by the US Olympic Ski Jumping Team.

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

The 2009 Rally America National Championship series consists of nine exciting events that take place in a range of challenging weather and road conditions in a season that extends from February to October. Throughout the year, teams take on everything from the forest logging roads in Minnesota, to the Pacific Northwest forest and coast paths.

Top teams in the series are also invited to compete in the Summer X Games, the leading action sports event broadcast live on ABC and ESPN.

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“It is game-on for the next two rallies,” said Pastrana at podium. “It’s great to drive without any pressure. A lot of the other drivers have had hard a season and bad luck, but things have just gone my way. My Subaru Impreza WRX STI has been perfect all year. It just works for me at every rally, it’s easy to drive and lets me focus on winning.”

“Travis really has transitioned into rally like fish to water ever since his first event with Subaru in 2004,” said James Han, motorsports marketing manager at Subaru of America, Inc. “To think that he has earned four consecutive national titles under Subaru Rally Team USA is all testament to Travis’ skills as a rally driver, thorough preparation by our team partner Vermont SportsCar, and consistent performance capability of the Impreza WRX STI regardless of terrain or driving condition.”

The Ojibwe Forests Rally featured over 130 miles of technical, sandy gravel, forest roads in northern Minnesota, around the town of Bemidji. The event is a favorite amongst rally drivers for its demanding fast and flowing roads and numerous stages run in darkness of night.

The rally began with a duel between Pastrana and his Subaru Rally Team USA teammate Ken Block. Entering the Ojibwe Forests Rally, only Block had a mathematical chance to catch Pastrana in the standings but needed to secure a win to keep his hopes alive. After the first two stages, the highly competitive friends and rivals were separated by just seconds. The challenge however was cut short on stage three when Block impacted a large rock while cutting the inside of a corner that launched his Subaru off the road, hitting a tree and rolling to DNF. Both Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino were unharmed in the crash. With Block out of the picture and several of his closest challengers experiencing small problems of their own, Pastrana found himself with a healthy lead early in rally. The driver of the #199 SRT USA car backed off his pace but was still able to win all but three of the event’s fifteen competition stages.

In 2nd place overall for the majority of the event was the third Subaru Rally Team USA entrant of Dave Mirra and co-driver Derek Ringer, driving a 2009 Subaru Impreza WRX STI in the Super Production class. Mirra drove one of his best events of his young rally career, consistently finishing each stage ahead of the rest of the field and chasing Pastrana while maintaining a healthy lead in the Super Production class. However, on the penultimate stage Mirra’s car suffered an electrical issue that brought his car to halt, ending his run to the podium prematurely. “Everything was going our way and I was driving really well so it’s unfortunate not to finish and get the result on paper,” said Mirra. “My Subaru was running great until that [electrical] problem forced me out of the event. But that’s rally, anything can, and does, usually happen.”

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: Max Lawton | rally.subaru.com

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