STEAMBOAT SPRINGS Rally America

Top rally teams head to Colorado for Round 8
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS (Rally America) – “Ski Town USA” is the next stop on the calendar for the top teams in the Rally America Championship when they hit Steamboat Springs on September 19-20 for Rally Colorado – Round 8 of the 9-event Rally America National Championship.
Last year’s Rally Colorado overall win went to Subaru Rally Team USA’s driver, Travis Pastrana, who will be looking for a repeat and says he’s planning to “go all out for the final two events of the season,” despite already securing his fourth Rally America Championship. Pastrana has had mixed results at this event over the years, with his most spectacular rally career crash occurring here during the 2005 event when he rolled seven and three-quarter times and walked away unhurt.
He can expect a challenge for the overall win from his teammate Ken Block, who’s had a tough season in 2009. Pastrana already has the top spot in the Series’ rankings – with just two events left, nobody can catch him – however, Block will be looking to secure the runner-up overall position and needs a strong finish at Rally Colorado to help insure his chances of success.
Currently in the second spot in the overall standings is Polish newcomer Andi Mancin, who is running his first full Rally America Championship season this year in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Mancin is still looking for his first overall U.S. win and will mix it up at the front of the pack at this event.
Also returning to the series after a two-round break is NOS Energy Drink’s Andrew Comrie-Picard with his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Just two points behind Ken Block in the overall standings, there is no doubt he will seriously challenge Block for the runner’s up position in the Championship point standings.
Super Production class leader Piotr Wiktorczyk and local challenger Jimmy Keeney will put up a fight, though, in what is expected to be an exciting class battle right up until the final round of the season. Subaru Rally Team USA’s Super Production Class entry, Dave Mirra, will not be present at the last two rounds of the Championship due to conflicts with his busy BMX schedule.
In the 2-Wheel Drive Class, expect another reliable performance by newcomer Dillon Van Way from Carencro, LA. The youngster has posted consistent results this season to take the class lead over Monument, Colorado’s John Conley.
The Rally Colorado event poses unique challenges to rally teams. The high altitude and subsequent lack of oxygen at this event saps the rally cars’ power. Despite this drain, the event has a reputation of being a one of the fastest in the Series featuring many high-speed sections on flowing roads. Expect variable weather and some dust if it is dry. The high altitude, coupled with fast straights places the high horsepower Open class cars at a distinct advantage.
The rally is headquartered in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, known as “Ski Town”, USA. The small mountain community that’s home to numerous world-class ski and snowboarding events is also home to the largest ski jumping complex in America — used for training by the US Olympic Ski Jumping Team.

Rally car racing is considered the extreme sport of automobile racing and is often described simply as “real cars, real roads, real fast.” This all-season motorsport sees drivers and their co-drivers take modified road cars to the limit as they achieve blistering speeds over courses that cover more than 100 miles of gravel, dirt or snow-covered roads.
The 2009 Rally America National Championship series consists of nine exciting events that take place in a range of challenging weather and road conditions in a season that extends from February to October. Throughout the year, teams take on everything from the forest logging roads in Minnesota, to the Pacific Northwest forest and coast paths.
Top teams in the series are also invited to compete in the Summer X Games, the leading action sports event broadcast live on ABC and ESPN.

Driver Andrew “ACP” Comrie-Picard and his NOS Energy Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX took a decisive win this weekend at Rally Colorado, the 8th round of the national Rally America series.

“I love it when it’s a battle,” said Comrie-Picard. “We were fighting tooth-and-nail with Travis (Pastrana) early in the rally and that’s really satisfying.”

The challenging Colorado rally through the high-desert roads around the Yampa Valley is fast and often features widely variable weather. This year was no exception. Dry, dusty conditions on Day 1 were replaced by driving rain that turned the roads slick with mud on Day 2. The rally ended under a rainbow.

A ferocious early battle shifted gears on Day 2. Comrie-Picard and co-driver Jeremy Wimpey found themselves holding position at the front of the pack for the second half of the rally after Subaru Rally Team USA rival Pastrana barreled through a chicane – taking huge penalties.

“We would have preferred to have raced hard in a close fight right to the end,” said Comrie-Picard. “But to finish a minute and 46 seconds in the lead is an accomplishment to be proud of after 100 miles of racing.”

The duo took the most stage wins of any team, winning eight of the 16 stages.

The first-place finish moves Comrie-Picard into the top-three in the overall Rally America series — ahead of Subaru Rally Team USA driver Ken Block — and extends his lead in the North American Championship. With one round remaining in US competition, the driver is assured to at least tie Block for third place in the 2009 season.

“If Rally Colorado was anything to go by, the final round next month is going to be intense,” said Comrie-Picard. “We’re making every round count this season.”

The Colorado event saw the team return to US competition for the first time since their top-five result at X Games 15 this summer in Los Angeles. The team took a two-round hiatus from regular season competition both to prepare for the prestigious contest, and also to return their competition vehicle to gravel rally specification afterward. Rally America allows two event drops in the season, counting seven of nine rallies toward the championship.

Second-place went to Polish driver Andi Mancin and co-driver Maciej Wislawski, while Nathan Conley and co-driver Todd Moberly finished in third-place overall.

It’s the first time that Mitsubishi cars have scored a one-two finish in Rally America history.

“It was great to see two Mitsubishis atop the podium,” said Comrie-Picard.

About Rally America:
Based in Golden Valley, Minn., Rally America sanctions the premier rally racing series in the United States, the Rally America National Championship Series. For 2009, Rally America conducts nine National Championship events at venues across the country.