The 16 car field for the Mt. Hood Rally included many local veterans and some novices eager to take on the 6.14 mile “Road 17” just south of Hood River. I drove the stage in my passenger car and it was amazingly fast and flowing with only a few long sweepers that would require some good timing as to when it tightens and opens back up. I had thought it might have had a few twisty bits, but not really. The fastest person on this stage is the one that…
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PORTLAND, OREGON (May 28, 2014) – The spectacular scenery of The Columbia River George, Mt.Hood and surrounding areas will be on display this weekend as The Oregon Trail Rally, held May 2-4, airs on NBC Sports Network this Sunday, June 1 at 3 pm PT. Round 3 of the Rally America National Championship will feature rally racing from Portland International Raceway (PIR) and on the challenging gravel roads of Dufur and Hood River. The one-hour show is jointly produced by Rally America and Rage Productions (Bend, OR) and will…
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First of all, I must admit that I’m not the best at following the local/regional rally competitors here in the Pacific Northwest. That will change this year though with the new Cascadia International Rally Championship having their first event at the Oregon Trail Rally. As Dave Henderson of Suspect Motorsports told us in our interview a few weeks ago in podcast Episode 226 , the Cascadia IRC is a new “Championship within Championships” designed for regional teams in the Pacific Northwest to compete beyond just single events. This means some…
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Round three of the Rally America National Championship gets underway this week with the Oregon Trail Rally. The only event on the calendar in the western United States, Oregon Trail is also the longest event spanning 3 days. The Weather: Over the last week the Pacific Northwest has had some fairly heavy rain, however drying conditions are in the forecast with temperatures in the 70’s for Friday and Saturday with only a slight possibility of a few scattered showers on Sunday. Their could be some dusty conditions on Saturday…
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I’m finally getting around to finishing this up. Taking the time off for a rally means having to make it up when you get back. Still very much worth it though! Day 3 of the Oregon Trail Rally is all about speed. Those teams that survived to make it to the final day of the rally would be treated to the open rolling hills east of the Mt. Hood forest. Here the roads are smooth, fast, and flowing with hardly a tree in sight. Drivers should be able to hit…
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