For
Immediate Release - May 11, 2004
Lancaster/Palmdale, CA – The Subie Gal Racing team and
team car "Burnsie the Rally Wagon" found the breaking point in their
quest for a finish at the 21st running of the Rim of the
World ProRally. Rim of the World is the
third round of the SCCA ProRally National Championship
held in
Lancaster, California and
hosted by
Subaru Western Region.
The team fought mostly a losing battle with the elements but
did manage to finish the SCCA ProRally - 12th overall
- but quite a few cars down in car class.
For this years
2-day
event, the organizers tried something new by introducing a
small side-by-side spectator special-stage
with 2 cars at a time attacking the course. This was quite the crowd pleaser as
was the new venue - the newly completed Antelope Valley Fairgrounds. This was
a HUGE and spectacular venue filled with rally cars, service crews, vendors, and
show cars - basically the ultimate "rally show."
The mountain and desert "Rim"
roads were, as in most all years past, very rugged and challenging for both car
and rally teams. Unfortunately, this year - Team SubieGal and Burnsie nearly
fell victim to the rough terrain.
“We just
encountered one issue after another... after another,” explained Subie
Gal Racing team driver Jamie Thomas, “The repair list
reads like a grocery shopping list - bent control arm, broken axle, inner tie
rod gone bad, 02 sensor chewed through, clutch pedal that sticks to the floor,
car overheating and an intercom that just didn't want to work. It really was
very very difficult to press on - we considered withdrawing but that's just not
me, I decided to try to keep the car moving until the rally's end - whatever
that end may be!“
Halfway though Saturday's
stages, 'Burnsie the Rally Wagon' suffered a crack in the drivers side control
arm, with no spare on hand and no time to swap it out, the team had to press on,
gingerly so as not to bend it back into the body of the car. This is easier
said than done on the super rough Rim Roads - and eventually - it did bend, the
team drove the final 3 stages with a fully bent control arm! As if that was not
enough, for whatever reason, the clutch pedal - beginning 5 stages from the
rally end, began to stick flat to the floor and would not come back up. This
left the team with little option but to "pick a gear and stick with it" - as
continual shifts were simply not possible. The end result of nearly
over-revving the car was a tired and overheating rally wagon. This meant that
the team had to run a few stages with the heater at full tilt to keep the engine
cool and protect it from certain destruction. Stage times, speed factor and
overall placement were quite abnormal for the team, but finishing the event was
in itself a challenge and they managed to keep it together and limp it home.
The team
still retains the lead in the Northern Pacific & Western States Rally
Championship in the PGT car class as well as earning them some
much needed points in the National ProRally
Championship. The Rim of the World ProRally is to be
televised on SPEED channel – check your local listings for dates/times.
Next Event:
Dryad Quest/Shitepoke Clubrally –
June 5/6 - http://www.nwr-scca.org/rally/dryad.html
Subie Gal Racing team thanks 2004 season sponsors:
Carter Subaru,
Allsubaru.com,
Need-Desire.com
StonGard.com,
RallyPerformance
CavettRally.com
Smart-Service.,
IonPerformance.com,
Rallitek.com,
Nasioc.,
Grillcraft.com,
Karttrak,
WoodinvilleWindshield.
Shaneyfeltmotorsports.Subie
Gal Supporters
Very Special Thanks to Crew
members: Nick,
Gordon, Mike, Eric, and to Russ for the use of his
awesome trailer once again! Thanks gang!
Member
of the
NorthWest Region SCCA
SCCA Regional Achievement Award Winner (1996-2003)
SCCA RECORD SEVEN YEARS IN A ROW!!!
