Tag: david sterckx

Rally – 2014 Rally in the 100 Acre Wood Preview

Mike Shaw

Round 2 of the Rally America National Championship gets underway this Friday and Saturday at what is traditionally the fastest event of the season, The Rally in the 100 Acre Wood.  Wide roads with firmly packed dirt make for high speeds with drivers frequently butting up against the rev-limiter.  Last year such speeds weren’t possible as a freak storm pounded the area with ice pellets and freezing temperatures that turned the event into Sno*Drift 2.0.  That won’t be the case for 2014 though as the forecast is showing temps in…

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Rally America – Serious Problems Ahead

Mike Shaw

Remember last season where every major class came down to the final event to decide the championship?  Two of those titles came down to the final day, and one wasn’t sealed until the final stage.  It was simply epic.  There were some great battles between Ken Block and David Higgins all season long.  David Sterckx overcame his mechanical issues from the previous year to take the championship in Super Production and Mason Moyle had his best season yet finishing second in the class.  In 2wd Brendan Reeves showed us American’s…

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LSPR Day 1 – Rally America Championship Still Too Close To Call

Mike Shaw

If you don’t follow rally racing, then this would be a good time to start.  These are the events that rally fans dream about.  A final championship battle that wages between great competitors who are willing to go flat out and not conserve anything to be crowned champion.  Mother nature threw a bit of a curve ball preventing top speeds, but the battle continues with leaders barely ahead of their rivals.   Hoonigan Racing Division’s Ken Block and Craig Drew started first on the road in wet slippery, or as he put…

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Rally America Season Finale – Champions To Be Crowned

Mike Shaw

It all comes down to this weekend.  The final race of the 7 round Rally America Championship season.  There is nothing left to conserve.  It will be win it or bin it at the Lake Superior Forest Rally on the forest roads outside Houghton, Michigan.     Thanks to the Federal Government shutdown taking so long to be resolved, the originally scheduled stages for Friday that were on federal forest lands are no longer available.  Instead Saturday’s scheduled stages on private lands are going to be repeated on Friday as well.…

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Review – 2013 New England Forest Rally

Mike Shaw

The long summer break for rally in America is over. It had been two months since STPR and teams were more than ready to get back into the action at the New England Forest Rally, the 5th round of the Rally America Championship.     As a quick recap, back at STPR Ken Block and co-driver Alex Gelsomino finally got the win they had been waiting for all season. Their win came rather easy as his closest rivals weren’t a factor. Antoine L’Estage didn’t have a car to compete in…

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2013 Oregon Trail Rally – Day 3

Mike Shaw

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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2013 Oregon Trail Rally – Day 2

Mike Shaw

Day 2 of the Oregon Trail Rally is where the real test of vehicle strength and driver endurance would occur.  Just outside of the picturesque town of Hood River, the forest roads here are some of the most technical and the most dangerous on the Rally America calendar.  The surface is rough with large stones that can be pulled out.  A wrong pacenote here can be a very dangerous thing with giant trees and large drop offs around every corner. Ken Block was eager to gain back the time lost…

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Oregon Trail Rally – Preview Part 2

Mike Shaw

In this part I’m going to discuss the drivers and teams gearing up for the Oregon Trail Rally, and are they ever plentiful. At last check there were 79 entrants on the start list.  Sorry for the lack of images, but have been short for time.  I’ll be taking plenty out on the stages though! The favorites are of course going to be David Higgins and Craig Drew in the Subaru Rally Team USA Impreza WRX STi. Team Subaru has a good lead in the points after getting second at…

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