TEXT FPO - Driving Sports TV

WIth OnLY thRee events gone in the Rally america
series and six left, it is still anyone’s ballgame. how-
ever, I predict that this will be the year that Ken block
and alessandro Gelsomino take the crown for them-
selves. after two years in the shadow of teammates
travis Pastrana and co-driver Christian edstrom,
block and Gelsomino have won two of the first three
events in dominating fashion. however, we can’t rule
out those two brothers of mayhem, Chance and Fate,
in shaping the outcome of this season.
“I’m definitely going to try for the championship.
This year, we’ve got a plan,” remarked block at the
Olympus podium ceremony.
Whatever that plan is, it’s working very nicely.
block won seven of the 16 Olympus stages outright
and finished second on four more. On the five remaining
stages, a quirk in the Rally america championship
rules created a tie with up to 17 other competitors.
as a safety measure, FIa and Rally america require
event organizers to keep average stage speeds
below 80mph. They do this by limiting the minimum
possible stage score to an 80mph average. If any competitor
exceeds this on a given stage, that stage must
be changed or eliminated the following year.
because this is the first running of the Olympus
Rally on new roads outside Pomeroy, Wash., the average
stage speed was exceeded on five of the 16 total
stages. each stage of the rally was run at least twice,
and on the last stage of the event the top 18 competitors
all earned the minimum stage time. The first
running of that stage saw 16 of the top 17 competitors
earn the minimum time.
From its days as a WRC round in the 1980s
through 2007, the rally was based in Olympia, Wash.
but due to a management change within a key landowner
there, the organizers lost their signature roads.
The town of Pomeroy, though, was ready to step in to
provide a new home for the event.
Pomeroy is a small farming town located in the
Palouse hills near the Idaho border. The terrain is
windswept grassland, covering steep hills and narrow
winding canyons. The stage roads normally
serve as farm access to the cattle ranches and wheat
fields of the area. even in mid-april, snow threatened
throughout the entire event, but held off to give Rally
america its first dry and unfrozen event of the year.
The new Olympus roads were exceptionally
smooth and featured long, straight stretches that encouraged
speeds above 120mph. a cooperative county
sheriff used his radar gun to record trap speeds on
the event, and the top speed of 124mph was not set
by an stI, but rather by a venerable Volvo 240 driven
by John Lane and Jason Grahn of Washington. Who
could have predicted that?
In the end, Pastrana and new co-driver Derek
Ringer took second place overall, winning the four
stages that block didn’t. Pastrana/Ringer finished the
rally 23.9 seconds behind block/Gelsomino. Contenders
tanner Foust and Chrissie beavis took third,
1:12.8 behind block/Gelsomino.
Fourth place went to the Mitsubishi evo team of
andrew Comrie-Picard and Marc Goldfarb, keeping
them in second place for the season so far. two-time
PGt Champions Matt Johnson and Jeremy Wimpey
kept their X Games hopes alive with a strong fifthplace
finish.
2004-5 national champion Patrick Richard and
co-driver alan Ockwell finished sixth overall. because
he doesn’t compete in the entire Rally america
series, Richard is something of a wild card when
the series comes to the Pacific northwest. With past
P-WRC experience, Richard is tough to beat on his
home turf. Look for this team to keep the pressure on
at next month’s Oregon trail Rally.
Last year’s Group 5 champions Kyle sarasin and
Mikael Johansson finished seventh in their open
class subaru. The 18-year-old sarasin continues to
drive well and finish in the top 10. Last year’s Olympus
runners-up andrew Pinker and Robbie Durant
finished in eigth position. They usually do better in
the Pacific northwest, having won the last two Oregon
trail events. Look for this team to go all out next
month in Oregon.
also new at this year’s Olympus Rally, Primitive
Rally enterprises owner Paul eklund and co-driver
Jeff Price debuted the first 2008 stI to enter any stage
rally in north america. The car arrived in Produc-
RALLY-AMERICA SERIES
block/gelsomino earn decisive Olympus victory.
Photo: Lars Gange, rally.subaru.com
tion Gt trim, sporting snow tires and stock front suspension
because no rally tires will fit on the 17-inch
wheels required to clear the stI’s front brakes. “The
car performed great, and I love the active center diff,”
eklund said. “I just left it on automatic the whole
time.” eklund and Price finished 16th overall and fifth
in the Production Gt class. Look for them to climb up
the standings at Oregon trail as they get the new stI
sorted out.
speaking of Production Gt, the class was won by
stephan Verdier and scott Crouch, followed closely
by Patrick Moro and Mike Rossey, each team driving
a WRX. among two-wheel drive cars, Group 5 honors
went to the Canadian team of Zbigniew szewczyk and
tomasz Karzynski in their Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer,
and Group 2 was won by local northwest favorite Lou
beck and co-driver Jerry Mizar in their Ford Focus.
Production class was taken by the brothers team of
Jan and Jody Zedril in their Mitsubishi Lancer.
Production is not normally a popular class in the
Rally america series. because the class is limited to
stock cars of low power, Production lacks the sex appeal
of faster classes. but a new rule could change all
that – at least at the regional level. new for 2008, Rally
america has eliminated the 4-valve-per-cylinder
multiplier in the Production formula. This change allows
1.8-liter aWD subaru Imprezas into the Production
class.
For all the high speeds of Olympus, the event
was kind to equipment. none of the top contenders
damaged their cars, so they should all be in top form
for the Oregon trail Rally, to be held May 16-18 outside
Portland, Ore. block and Gelsomino may have a
strong lead, but this season isn’t over for a long time
yet. <
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