After a week of heavy build up and much anticipation, Sunday saw the Pikes Peak hill climb finally get under way. The anticipation of the classic event was built up even more than usual with news that Marcus Gronholm would participate in an 800 hp rallycross derived Ford Fiesta. Suzuki had their usual pit bull Suzuki Sport XL7 in top form as the battle was set to take place. Once the event got under way however, Gronholm would quickly find that Pikes Peak is a different breed. One that is…
Read MoreTag: 2009
Rally – LDR Blog for NEFR Event!
Before I post the actual content of the blog from John on to the site, I want to tell him and all the folks over at Last Ditch Racing how awesome it was that we were able to chronicle their trip through the New Englan Forest Rally. This is the home event for LDR and I am very happy that they were able to send us updates between autograph sessions, recce, and the event. I want to personally thank John and the team for a great blog and hope that…
Read MoreLe Mans – 2010 Class Shift?
As we now approach the ALMS race at Lime Rock, the discussion has finally started on revamping the current class system to just two classes. Since the departure of the Le Mans big shots Audi this season and the death of Porsche in the LMP2 class, the racing has been junk. We have witnessed one car dominate each of the classes except GT2. Acura has a firm grip on the LMP1 and LMP2 series because they are the only car really taking part. The kicker to that point is Acura…
Read MoreRally – LDR 16 July Blog
Recce took us about 12 hours today. One pass recce on organizer supplied JEMBA notes. Some new stages, but most are familiar. More rocks poking up than usual. Grip will be an issue on some stages that are sandy and some others that are covered with coarse, loose gravel. As we’re running further down the order, hopefully the front runners will sweep the stages clean for us and not rut things up too much. 🙂 We had an interesting time coming down a mountain transiting to the last stage. The…
Read MoreF1 – Webber to Stay at RBR?
Red Bull has announced today that it would like Mark Webber to stay in the car for the 2010 season. Fresh off of his first career victory last weekend, the Australian is set to begin talks very soon. It is amazing what one victory can bring you these days. Many forget that it took Webber nearly his whole career to get the elusive grand prix win. However victories are not everything in racing. Mark has been a phenomenal setup driver and really understands the car and its capabilities. These are…
Read MoreRally – LDR @ NEFR 2008
Rally – LDR Daily Blog for 15 July
Last Ditch Racing at the New England Forest Rally Wednesday night and the short tow(3 hours) to our home rally is done and we’ve enjoyed a nice dinner with friends at the local brew pub. I imagine that rallying is like a lot of other sports whose championships cover large geographic areas. We see our rally friends in the context of rallies, but often in the most remote areas of the country. I’m not sure we’d recognize each other if we passed in a shopping mall! War stories are told,…
Read MoreRally – Last Ditch Racing Exclusive Content!
This weekend will see our friends in the Rally America series head to New England for the New England Forest Rally. Last Ditch Racing whom will be competeing in the Open Class has provided us a drivers blog exclusive to Open Paddock that will fully document an event in America’s premier rally championship. You will be able to visit openpaddock.net all weekend long for exclusive updates on how the team is performing and just exactly what it takes to be a rally driver. Last Ditch Racing is based out of…
Read MoreEpisode 00 – Open Paddock Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | Download It is with great pleasure that we post our first podcast. This is a pilot episode as we work out the kinks and fiddle with the controls. Please enjoy the commentary and give us your feedback.
Read MoreRally – America Finally Gets WRC Back
In news that has brought tears to my eyes and joy to thousands, the U.S. will finally get the WRC back on the television and it is going to be in HD. It has been a few years since Sebastian Loeb and Marcus Gronholm graced the speed channel and now the WRC’s promoting body the ISC will bring the series back to millions in the U.S. Discovery Channel has picked up the tab for the series and will show coverage on the HD Theatre channel which is one of the…
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