Former Subaru Rally Team USA Driver Dave Mirra Dies at 41

We are sorry to report that multiple X-Games gold medalist and frankly BMX God, Dave Mirra has passed away due to an apparent suicide in Greenville, North Carolina.  Dave made the transition from pedal power to Subaru Rally Team USA and competed in both Rally America and the earlier years of Red Bull Global Rallycross.  Mirra was known as one of the most approachable guys in professional motorsports.  As many have probably already said, he seemed like “your average Joe” and was very easy to talk to.  I remember spectating at Oregon…

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Track Details Emerge for Red Bull GRC Final at The Linq in Las Vegas

With the large gap since round 9 at DirtFish Rally School, we’ve already known for some time that next week’s final round of the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship would be the championship decider.  Mathematically Joni Wiman, Ken Block, Nelson Piquet Jr., and Scott Speed all have a shot at taking home the crown, and GRC didn’t have to falsely add final event “double points” to make it happen (ahem…F1 and IndyCar).  To add to the excitement, the final round takes place in Las Vegas during the “so famous it’s infamous” (old “Friends”…

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Red Bull GRC at DirtFish – Behind the Scenes Part 3 “The Tires”

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadWhen we first arrived at DirtFish Rally School for Round 9 of the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship, it was wet and sloppy.  This was actually the first wet conditions Red Bull GRC has had since Yokohama became the official tire supplier.  We stopped over at the Yokohama mobile tire shop and chatted with Yokohama Motorsports Specialist Paul Algarin about all things rubber.  Take a listen.  

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Red Bull GRC at DirtFish Rally School – Behind the Scenes Part 2 “The Starters”

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadHave you ever wondered how those timed starts at Red Bull GRC events worked?  Sometimes it seems like the lights go green just a few seconds after the red lights go out, other times it seems like an eternity .  While we were up at DirtFish for Round 9 of the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship we spoke to the start control team of “Big P”, Sean, and Jake as they explain how their start system functions, how it has evolved because it used…

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Red Bull GRC at DirtFish Rally School – Behind the Scenes Part 1

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadI had the pleasure of getting a behind the scenes view of the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship at DirtFish Rally School in Snoqualmie, Washington.  We all hear about the big name drivers that bring in the crowds like Ken Block, Tanner Foust, Travis Pastrana, etc., but there are a lot of amazing people that work behind the scenes to make these events both entertaining and safe. One such group is the Red Bull GRC Safety Team, and we had the chance to chat…

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Red Bull GRC at DirtFish – A Fan’s Perspective

One thing we really enjoy here at OpenPaddock is getting the fans perspective.  I ran into a friend of mine who came with his son to the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship at DirtFish Rally School last weekend and he agreed to write up his thoughts.  Without further ado, here’s Aaron’s experience from the weekend. As a big fan of stage rally, one of my guilty pleasures is Rallycross. One of the reasons I like it so much is because it combines my love of cars going sideways with my…

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Red Bull GRC at DirtFish Rally School – The Definition of What Rallycross Should Be

I can sum up in just a few words what Red Bull GRC Seattle at DirtFish Rally School was like.  DirtFish DEFINED rallycross.  Simple as that. Why?  Well, as you have heard me say time and time again, it is all about the track.  The grounds at DirtFish were a perfect venue for the sport.  The cars started on tarmac, switched to gravel around the long turn 1, then back to tarmac as they went into the covered planar building, then back to gravel into turn 10, then to a…

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Red Bull GRC Seattle – OpenPaddock On-Site and Behind the Scenes at DirtFish

OpenPaddock.net is super excited to have been invited to get an up-close view of the Red Bull Global Rallycross event at DirtFish Rally School just outside of Seattle, Washington.  I’ll be there all weekend with OpenPaddock contributor, Robert Mahony who will be acting as our chief photographer.  We’ll do our best to get you a detailed behind the scenes experience of what is expected to be one of the highlights of the entire GRC season.   I actually attended the event at DirtFish in 2011, then called GRC Twin Peaks.  The sport…

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Red Bull GRC – Power Rankings for LA

Last week I spoke with Chris Leone of the Red Bull GRC and we summarized the season so far as it heads to the west coast.  As the clock ticks down to this weekend’s double-header in LA, I came up with my opinion of where I think the drivers rank.  Note that this doesn’t exactly reflect the championship standings as this isn’t just where they finish, but about their consistent speed and potential.  I’ve jotted down a few comments about each driver, let me know if you agree or disagree with their…

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Red Bull GRC Returns to the Dirt at The Dirt Track in Charlotte

Although gravel and dirt would make any traditional rally car at home, the Red Bull GRC cars are more tuned for tarmac and will be struggling for grip this weekend.  Smooth acceleration and clean driving will be the key.  Tune into NBC at 2:00PM Eastern (11:00 AM Pacific) to watch all the action. To catch heat races make sure you go to http://livetiming.net/grc   IN BRIEF: The Charlotte area is home to a significant portion of the Red Bull Global Rallycross field, making this weekend’s tilt at The Dirt Track at Charlotte…

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