Category: North American Rally

News from the various stage rally organizations throughout North America.

Rallies This Weekend – We Laugh at Silly Long Off Seasons!

Mike Shaw

Unlike most other forms of motorsports, rally racing is already in full swing for the 2015 season. There is no need to wait for good weather as difficult winter conditions are prime territory for the fire breathing, crest jumping, beasts of rally. Last month already saw the Internationale Jännerrallye in Austria for the ERC, Rally Monte-Carlo for the WRC, and the Sno*Drift Rally in Rally America. This weekend we get even more championships underway with the Middle East Rally Championship, Canadian Rally Championship, and the ERC is already into round…

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100 Acre Wood Rally Gets Boost With Last Minute Entries

Mike Shaw

  I’ve been watching the entry list for the 100 Acre Wood Rally pretty closely, especially after the low car count that came to Sno*Drift last weekend.  Although as I said in my review of that event here, Sno*Drift is a unique rally and isn’t probably the best test of what the season will look like going forward.  Sno*Drift had only 36 entries of which 13 were national entries.  As of this writing 100 Acre Wood has almost double at 60 cars on their entry list and 19 of those are…

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PR – OREGON TRAIL RALLY PARTICIPATES IN PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW

Mike Shaw

PORTLAND, OREGON (February 2, 2015) – Billed as the premier Auto Show of the Pacific Northwest, the Portland International Auto Show will this year include a display from the Oregon Trail Rally.   The Oregon Trail Rally, round 3 of the 2015 Rally America National Championship calendar, will present two competition vehicles as part of the Subaru display at the Auto Show. On the main floor of the Oregon Convention Center, fans will have the opportunity to view these finely prepared rally racing vehicles. Event officials and drivers will be available…

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RALLY – David Higgins Wins Sno*Drift in New 2015 WRX STi

Mike Shaw

Round one of the Rally America National Championship kicked off this last weekend with the iconic Sno*Drift Rally in Atlanta, Michigan.  The snow covered and icy roads of Montmorency County played host to both national and regional competitors with just 36 entries this year.  Although a little light in car count vs. some of the past seasons, this is an event that seems to have an ebb and flow of entrants from year to year.  What makes Sno*Drift so unique isn’t just that it is a winter rally, but that it is…

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RALLY – NASA Rally Sport Announces Affordable Testing Program

Mike Shaw

I have to say that NASA Rally Sport has been extremely innovative the past few years.  From adding “Rally Moto” and experimenting UTVs to timing and scoring using jailbroken Nook tablets.  Not every idea works out, but some things just make logical sense and today’s press release is one of those ideas that makes sense.  Usually only top teams can afford to shut down a section of road and do proper testing, however NASA Rally Sport’s grassroots mantra is all about being inclusive.     Newberry, MI (January 29, 2015)The mantra…

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RALLY – Subaru Rally Team USA Releases 2015 Car and Livery

Mike Shaw

So we finally have the new livery that Subaru Rally Team USA will be using for the 2015 season.  4 time consecutive Rally America Champion David Higgins and co-Driver Craig Drew will be piloting the new 2015 Subaru WRX STi sedan in the white wintery conditions of the Sno*Drift Rally in Michigan this Friday and Saturday.  Sno*Drift is round 1 of the Rally America National Championship.  Subarus new livery is more dramatic than what they’ve used in the past, but still contains plenty of Subaru Rally Blue.  What do you fans think of it?  Let us…

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Rally America to Launch “RALLY AMERICA RADIO” with Jim Beaver

Mike Shaw

We at Open Paddock have been calling for Rally America to offer some sort of live coverage for a long, long time. The excitement of an event is easily lost due to time, so interviewing at stage ends when drivers are quite honestly the most emotional after a tough stage is what adds drama and excitement to rallying. Today Rally America announced it will be working with Jim Beaver of the “Down and Dirty Radio Show” to pull off this new Rally America Radio program. Jim’s Down and Dirty Radio…

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Higgins Tests New 2015 Subaru STI Rally Car

Mike Shaw

David Higgins has been shaking down the new 2015 Subaru WRX STI sedan rally car at Team O’Neil Rally School in New Hampshire.  This is the new generation vehicle for Vermont Sportscar and Subaru Rally Team USA that 4 time consecutive Rally America Champions David Higgins and Craig Drew hope to take to an unprecedented 5th title this season.  I’ve been hearing that it might also get a new wide-body kit added to it when the official launch and new livery is introduced, but even like this it looks pretty damn…

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