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Round #7 - 1994 SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Championship July 23-24, 1994
Press Notes by Andy Schupack |
Press Notes #1
Maine Forest Summer Rally Rumford, Maine
Round #7 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series
July 23, 1994 - 8:00 AM
1. Welcome to Rumford, Maine, and the first running of the
Maine Forest Summer Rally, Round #7 of the SCCA/Michelin
PRO Rally series. This is the fourth time the national
PRO Rally drivers will be able to score points at the
Rumford event, but the first time the rally has run in
the summer. According to many of the drivers, who have
only seen the roads covered with snow, slush and frozen
mud, it will be like running the course for the first
time.
2. The weather will be hot - in the 90s - and humid for
today's event, with a chance of rain during the day. It
did rain overnight, so the roads might not be as dusty as
feared, as it hasn't rained much in Southern Maine over
the past month.
3. The Maine Forest Summer Rally is a "60 percenter;"
that is, a divisional PRO Rally where national
competitors can score championship points equal to 60
percent of their normal value. Drivers running for
national points will receive 60 percent of a full
national event (first place - 12 points instead of the
normal 20; second place - 9 points instead of 15; third
place - 7.2 points instead of 12, etc.). This is the
East Coast 60 percenter counterpart to the Prescott
Forest Rally which ran two weeks ago in Arizona.
Competitors were able to choose one of the two rallies to
run for points - they could not score points at both
events. Thus, there were no East Coast competitors at
Prescott, and there are no West Coast competitors -
including series leader Jeff Zwart in his Porsche 911
Carrera 4 - here in Maine.
4. New for 1994 is the Michelin Tire Corporation sponsorship
for that national series - a three year agreement between
the tire company and the Sports Car Club of America.
Most of the top competitors are using the specially-
constructed Michelin XGT Rally tires, which come in
several compounds and tread designs to help the cars run
fast in the wide variety of conditions encountered in the
series.
5. Yet another first for this year is the debut of the new
national class - Group 2. These cars, small
displacement, two-wheel drive, normally aspirated open
class cars, give a place for both competitors and
manufacturers to enter a broader range of vehicles which
previously had to run in the big car class. While many
of the Group 2 leaders are based on the West Coast and
are not here this weekend, we have three Group 2 entries
including the Saab 99 of Gerald Sweet/Stuart Spark, who
could improve on their eighth place standing with a win
here in Maine.
6. As registration closes this morning, there are 25 entries
for this year's Maine Forest Summer Rally, with 23 of
them running for national points. This was a big
improvement over the 15 entries that were pre-registered
just days ago, but the last-minute flurry did not come
without a price. The #98 Toyota Celica All-Trac of
Vinnie Frontinan/Frank Arruda was just back from Pike's
Peak and the Metro Rallye Sport team was trying to get
the car ready for this event in their Cambridge, Mass.
shop. Their new car, which debuted at Pike's Peak with
their old motor, wasn't ready, and the old car is not
race-ready after its "off" at STPR. Thus, the Group A
Frontinan/Arruda entry is a no-show. They hope to have
the new car - with new engine - ready for the Ojibwe
Forests Rally the end of August.
7. Another last-minute entry - and DNS (did not start) was
the #35 Audi Quattro of Ivan and Olga Orisek. The
Orisek's Mitsubishi Eclipse burned to the ground in a
hydraulic fluid fire at STPR, and they were going to try
to debut their new Audi 4000 Quattro at this event. They
worked all night Friday on Long Island to get the car
ready for today's start, and drove all night to get here
for the start. They passed tech and got the car to
downtown Rumford for the start, but couldn't get the car
running to transit to stage #1.
8. A special thanks is in order to Carl Merrill, who lent
his helicopter to SCCA in order to allow SCCA/Michelin
PRO Rally cameraman Glenn Mazzone to capture aerial
footage for Sunday's TNN RACEDAY (Sunday, July 24, at
8:30 PM Eastern).
SCCA/MICHELIN PRO RALLY SERIES
ROUND #7 - MAINE FOREST SUMMER RALLY
RUMFORD, MAINE
JULY 23, 1994
FINAL ENTRY/START LIST
Car Driver/ National
# Co-driver Hometown Vehicle Class
3 Carl Merrill Ogunquit, ME Ford Escort Open
Jon Wickens Bloomfield Hills, MI Cosworth
1 Paul Choiniere Shelburne, VT Audi Open
Jeff Becker Great Neck, NY Quattro S-2
98 Vinnie Frontinan Somerville, MA Toyota Group A
Frank Arruda Johnston, RI Celica GT4
11 Selcuk Karamanoglu Bath, ME Mitsubishi Production GT
John McArthur Honeoye Falls, NY Eclipse
12 Bob Elliott Rutland, VT VW GTI Production
Mark Williams Gaithersburg, MD
14 Rick Davis West Chester, PA BMW M-3 Group A
Ben Greisler Philadelphia, PA
15 Rick Swenson Highland Lakes, NJ Mazda 323GTX Production GT
Rod Hendrickson Clinton, NJ
16 Rees Harris S. Burlington, VT Mazda 323GTX Production GT
Thierry Menegoz Montreal, Quebec
26 L. Mark Stone Somers, NY Nissan Violet Open
Tim O'Neil Franconia, NH
34 Sakis Hajiminas Floral Park, NY Audi 4000 Open
Tom Burgess Vancouver, BC Quattro
35 Ivan Orisek White Plains, NY Audi 4000 Open
Olga Orisek White Plains, NY Quattro
29 Ken Beard Stewartstown, PA Dodge Omni Open
Jim Miner Anapolis, MD
17 Greg Healey Hartsville, SC Dodge Ram 50 Truck
John MacLeod S. Easton, MA
13 Donald Taylor Claremont, NH Dodge Omni Open
Donna Taylor Barre, VT
66 Tad Ohtake Dearborn, MI Ford Escort Production
Bob Martin Goodrich, MI
23 Jim Anderson Carrboro, NC Honda Prelude Production
Charles Bradley Admore, PA
18 Gerald Sweet Oakridge, NJ Saab 99 Group 2
Stuart Spark Woodcliff Lake, NJ
24 Pat Ayer S. Burlington, VT Mazda 323GTX Production GT
Raymond Cadieux St. Lazare, Quebec
19 Dean Fry Mohnton, PA Subaru 4WD Open
Don Kennedy Shillington, PA
20 Damon Mayers Taunton, MA Toyota Group 2
Matt Chester Atlanta, GA Corolla
28 Lance Smith Burlington, VT Mitsubishi Production GT
John Pizzagelli Burlington, VT Eclipse
27 Jean LeGault St. Augustin, Quebec Subaru Legacy Production GT
Pierre Racine Quebec
50 Scott Kriesler Pottstown, PA Saab 99 Group 2
Greg Usavage Perkiomenville, PA
32 Carlos Felipe New Bedford, MA VW GTI Divisional
Doug Beaulieu, Jr. Westport, MA
31 Sylvester Stepniewski Keansburg, NJ VW Scirocco Divisional
Adam Pelc Brooklyn, NY
Press Notes #2
Maine Forest Summer Rally, Rumford, Maine
Round #7 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series
July 23, 1994 - 4:00 PM
9. Unfortunately, with his helicopter watching, the Carl
Merrill/Jon Wickens Ford Escort Cosworth had its rally
day end early as Merrill slid off the course near the end
of stage #2, bending wheels and suspension parts. Carl
said he just overshot a quick down-hill left-hander,
and stuffed the car off the road.
10. The rally also ended on stage #2 for the only Rally Truck
class entry in the field - the Dodge Ram 50 of Greg
Healey and John MacLeod. Healey got a flat tire early on
stage #2, but didn't know it. He thought the truck was a
little loose, but tried to compensate by going faster.
He lost control right at the end of #2 and hit a stump
head-on, crunching the front end and ending his run for
the event.
11. The L. Mark Stone/Tim O'Neil Nissan Violet (formerly
rallied by the late Jon Woodner) was running very fast
within sight of the end of stage #2 when Stone thought he
could go a little faster because he had just gone from
dirt to asphalt. Unfortunately, he didn't realize that
the cars in front of him had sprayed lots of rocks on the
road, and Stone slid on the marbles and went far off the
course. Although the car was unhurt, the team lost
almost 20 minutes on the stage.
12. The first two stages were the same road run up and back,
but rally leader Paul Choiniere says that the different
looks of the turns meant that you really didn't learn
anything about stage #2 by running stage one.
13. Other reports from the first two stages:
--The Bob Elliott/Mark Williams VW GTI Production car was
stuck at 3,500 rpm, but the team thinks they have
solved the problem with a new fuel filter.
--The Jim Anderson/Charles Bradley Honda Prelude - also
a Production competitor - is running well, but Anderson
felt he was too timid on the course as it was faster
than other courses he has driven in this, his rookie
year.
--The other competitive Production car - the Ford Escort
GT of Tad Ohtake/Bob Martin - winners at STPR - are
running well, reviving a class battle which has only
materialized as the series has come back East.-
--Group 2 leaders Gerald Sweet/Stuart Spark are running
well in their Saab 99, and they ran better on stage #2
than stage #1 because it was down hill - "great for us
underpowered cars."
--Veteran co-driver Lance Smith, driving the Mitsubishi
Eclipse he and the Vermont Sports Car people built last
year for Antonio Menendez, says the car is running
well, but he is a little rusty.
14. The drivers are now half-way through the rally, having
completed four of the eight stages, and 17 of the 23
starters are still running. Here are the standings
(minutes.hundreds)
Driver/Co-driver Car Class Time
Choiniere/Becker Audi Quattro S-2 Open* 28.18
Harris/Menegoz Mazda 323GTX Prod. GT* 30.35
Karamanoglu/McArthur Mitsubishi Eclipse Prod. GT 32.03
Hadjiminas/Burgess Audi 4000 Quattro Open 32.04
Ayer/Cadieux Mazda 323GTX Prod. GT 32.65
Smith/Pizzagelli Mitsubishi Eclipse Prod. GT 32.72
Elliott/Williams VW GTI Production* 32.79
Davis/Greisler BMW M-3 Group A* 32.92
Sweet/Spark Saab 99 Group 2* 33.66
Taylor/Taylor Dodge Omni Open 34.42
Filipe/Beaulieu, Jr. VW GTI Divisional 34.62
Mayers/Chester Toyota Corolla Group 2 34.67
Anderson/Bradley Honda Prelude Group 2 35.44
Fry/Kennedy Subaru 4WD Turbo Open 35.65
Beard/Miner Dodge Omni Open 36.07
Stepniewski/Pelc VW Scirocco Divisional 45.51
Stone/O'Neil Nissan Violet Open 47.96
* leads class
15. Paul Choiniere had a bigger lead over Harris after
three stages, but dropped a bolt from the suspension of
his Audi Quattro S-2 and limped into the service after
stage #4. Paul still won stage #4, but Harris was able
to catch up. With Merrill out of the competition,
however, Choiniere should be able to hold on and win his
fourth event of the season, and take back the overall
points lead from Jeff Zwart, whose Porsche 911 Carrera 4
ran and won the Prescott divisional earlier this month.
Press Notes #3
Maine Forest Summer Rally, Rumford, Maine
Round #7 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series
July 23, 1994 - 7:00 PM
16. The Harris/Menegoz Mazda is not only second overall, and
first in the divisional points section of the rally, but
is leading Production GT as well over the series points
leaders Karamanoglu/McArthur in a Mitsubishi Eclipse.
Karamanoglu suffered flat tires on both stages #3
and #4 - both on the right rear. The tires ripped out
body work on Selcuk's car, and caused the team to lose
more than 1-1/2 minutes - the lead Harris has over him.
17. The Elliott/Williams VW GTI is leading the Production
class despite continuing annoying problems. Although
they seemed to solve one problem by replacing the fuel
filter, they now have a pinched vacuum line which slowed
them on stage #4.
18. The Group A-leading Davis/Greisler BMW only has to
finish to collect the 12 points for winning the class,
but with the fast 4WD turbo Group A competitors like
Vinnie Frontinan, Peter Moodie, and Tony Takaori all
returning to competition next month at Ojibwe, Davis
needs the points to build his series points lead.
19. The Mayers/Chester Group 2 Toyota Corolla, perhaps the
smallest car in the rally, is having trouble negotiating
the bridges on the logging roads, which seem to be
constructed for wider cars. Their tires get caught in
the middle of the board, causing them to lose valuable
time.
20. The Stepniewski/Pelc VW Scirocco, which turned credible
times through stage #2, ran stages #3 and #4 on two flat
tires, losing almost 15 minutes to the field.
21. The Ayer/Cadiuex Mazda 323GTX Production GT car, fifth
overall after four stages, might have to drop out of the
event with a broken strut.
22. If the rally standings remain the same from now until
the end of the event, the overall series points
standings will not be affected in a major way. The
most significant change will be the overall lead, where
Paul Choiniere have 70 points and Jeff Zwart 63. With
Paul having run five events to Zwart's four, Jeff would
seem to have the advantage as only the best six finishes
count towards the championship. But Paul has a DNF
(when he rolled his car at Wild West), and so he has a
two-point event to drop, so the two drivers are pretty
even going into the final four events.
In Group A - as already mentioned - Rick Davis can build
his point total to 69 points, with major contenders
Vinnie Frontinan (26), Peter Moodie (16) and Tony
Takaori (12) far behind. But remember, four events can
equal 88 points, and all the drivers above could earn
all those points without dropping any points.
In Production GT, Selcuk Karamanoglu finishing second
would give him 82 points, with nearest rival Rhys Millen
having 33 (but Rhys might not run any more events this
year because of budget). Rees Harris, with a class win
here, would be third with 29 points.
In Production, Dave Turner, who is not here, would
retain his 70 points and the lead, but Bob Elliott would
now have 29 points, with Jim Anderson 23 and Tad Ohtake
22 (he's a DNF here - stones put a hole in his oil
sump).
Despite his DNF, Greg Healey continues to lead the truck
class.
In Group 2, Gerald Sweet would move all the way from
eighth to four place with 26 points, behind leaders
Goran Ostlund (64), Mike Whitman (45), and Sam Bryan
(40).
Press Notes #4
Maine Forest Summer Rally Rumford, Maine
Round #7 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally
Series July 23, 1994 - 11:00 PM
23. As the cars pulled into service after stage #6, there was
a feeling of urgency as only 14 cars were still running,
but five of those all had a shot at second place.
Choiniere/Becker were still in first - now by more than
3-1/2 minutes, but Rees Harris in second place had lost a
minute to the field as a stage #6 flat tire forced him to
drive the last three miles on the rim. The errand rubber
tore up some bodywork on the front, and Rees was now only
40 seconds ahead of the Karamanoglu/McArthur Mitsubishi
Eclipse. Right behind them was the Hajiminas/Burgess
Audi, the Elliott/Williams VW GTI, and the
Smith/Pizzagelli Mitsubishi Eclipse - all within two
minutes of each other. As the last two stages were each
16 miles, anything could happen. The service after #6
was only a 20 minute stop, so crews were thrashing to
make the final fixes before the last two stages.
24. The Rick Swenson/Rod Hendrickson Mazda 323GTX went out
after stage four as a rock hit the gas tank, putting a
large gash on the underside of the tank.
25. The Kreisler/Usavage Saab 99 broke something in the
suspension and was forced to retire.
26. The Don Taylor/Donna Taylor Dodge Omni lost its
transmission on stage #5, and was forced to retire.
27. The Maine Forest Summer Rally is now over, and Paul
Choiniere and Jeff Becker have their fourth victory of
the 1994 SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally season. Choiniere and
Becker guided their Audi Quattro S-2 to a 2-minute, 43-
second win over the surprise second-place finishers, the
Rees Harris/Thierry Menegoz Mazda 323GTX. As
anticipated, the second and third place battle - which
was also the Production GT class battle - went right down
to the wire, with Harris edging Selcuk Karamanoglu/John
McArthur's Mitsubishi Eclipse by a mere 10 seconds.
Fourth was the Audi Quattro 4000 of Sakis Hajiminas/Tom
Burgess, with the Bob Elliott/Mark Williams VW GTI taking
fifth overall and winning the Production class.
Other class winners included Rick Davis/Ben Greisler BMW
M-3 (Group A); Damon Mayers/Matt Chester Toyota Corolla
(Group 2).
For Immediate Release Contact: Andy Schupack
(401) 739-5677
CHOINIERE PROVES MAN FOR ALL SEASONS IN MAINE AS
SCCA/MICHELIN PRO RALLY SERIES REACHES HALFWAY POINT
RUMFORD, MAINE -- July 24 -- After sweeping to victories in
snow and ice at previous Maine rallies, the Audi Quattro S-2
team of Paul Choiniere, from Shelburne, Vermont, and co-
driver Jeff Becker have shown they can do it in the dirt as
well as they forged a two minute, 45 second win here at the
Maine Forest Summer Rally, round #7 of the SCCA/Michelin
PRO Rally series.
Choiniere, who has clinched the national series title by
August in the past two years, needed this victory to regain
first place in the points battle as the series heads for the
home stretch.
"We usually run on these Southern Maine paper forest roads in
December, so this was like running a brand new course," said
Choiniere, whose 340 horsepower Audi was able to outrun the
TV helicopter on fast parts of the course. "There were lots
of rocks and rough stuff to watch out for which had been
hidden by snow and ice at previous rallies."
Rees Harris, from Burlington, Vermont, who used to be a crew
member for Choiniere's car, finished second in a Mazda 323GTX
with co-driver Thierry Menegoz. Harris also won the
Production GT Class.
Other class winners included Bob Elliott/Mark Williams in a
VW GTI (Production Class), Rick Davis/Ben Greisler in a
BMW M-3 (Group A class), and Damon Mayers/Matt Chester in a
Toyota Corolla (Group 2 class).
Pre-rally favorite Carl Merrill from Ogunquit, Maine, was
forced from the rally on the second stage when his Ford
Escort Cosworth skidded off the road into a ditch at high
speed. Rally Truck class leader Greg Healey also didn't make
it to the finish, as his Dodge Ram 50 pickup hit a stump
after suffering a flat tire.
In all, 14 of the 23 starters completed the high-speed, 75-
mile course through the Boise Cascade and International Paper
forests near Rumford.
In a PRO Rally, each team consists of a driver and a
co-driver (or navigator), and the exact course is kept
secret until just before the event - unlike World Rally where
practice is allowed. The cars then start at one-minute
intervals and race at top speed against the clock over
competition stages - in this case the closed Boise Cascade
and International Paper forest roads.
Speeds of more than 120 miles-per-hour can be reached on
long straight-aways, with the team achieving the fastest
combined times over the competition stages winning
the event. Drivers stay on the existing roads, and never
blaze their own trails.
SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally events run around the country, in
conditions from the blazing Arizona desert in August to the frozen
tundra of Maine in December, and pit Audis, Mitsubishis, Porsches,
Fords, Toyotas, Subarus and other marques against each other.
The 1994 SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series consists of eleven events,
and is sponsored by Michelin Tire Corporation, with field
administration by the American Rally Association, and series sanction
by the Sports Car Club of America.
The next event on the SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally circuit will be the
Ojibwe Forest Rally, to be held in Bemidji, Minnesota,
August 27 - 28.
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