NEWRY, MAINE — With the first five rally events of the 2010 Rally America National Championship in the record books, the top Regional and National rally teams from across the United States and Canada will soon be making their way to the tiny resort village of Newry, Maine for the New England Forest Rally - home to the Sunday River Resort, for the final round of the 6-event 2010 Rally America National Championship. Set for Friday and Saturday, July 16 & 17, 2010, as many as 65 or more top-level rally teams are expected to be competing on some of the fastest gravel and forest roads in the country for top honors at this always-popular rally event. Sitting atop of the Rally America National points championship and expected to be competing at this year's New England Forest Rally is Rockstar Energy Drink driver, Antoine L'Estage from Quebec, Canada. Minus any drastic situations, L'Estage and his co-driver, Nathalie Richard are poised to be crowned the new Rally America National Champions, thus breaking Subaru Rally Team USA's Travis Pastrana's run of four consecutive Rally America National Championships! After missing the last two rally events, Pastrana returns to U.S. soil after spending 2 months performing in a live Nitro Circus show in Australia and is looking to defend a third place overall finish in the season standings. He will be the lone Subaru Rally Team USA representative as teammate and BMX legend, Dave Mirra, is expected to miss the New England Forest Rally in preparation for X Games 16. Monster World Rally Team's Ken Block from Encinitas, California is also returning to U.S. soil after competing in World Rally Championship's Rally Portugal event. Block will finish the Rally America season in a new 2010 Ford Fiesta. The internet "Gymkhana" video sensation and DC Shoes co-founder has had a difficult season adjusting to his new Fiesta with multiple DNFs and would like to finish the year on a positive note with a win. Block's notable accomplishment this season was winning the 2010 edition of the 100 Acre Wood Rally in Missouri for the 5th straight year! The hotly-contested Super Production class is expected to be all fireworks in Maine with PMR Motorsports' Patrick Moro from Dublin, Ohio leading the charge in his Subaru WRX STI over Littleton, NH's Travis Hanson, also piloting a Subaru. Moro surpassed Hanson in the Super Production class standings at last month's STPR Rally in Pennsylvania after Hanson failed to finish, but both drivers have been invited to compete at this years Summer X Games Rally Car Racing event. Bethel, Maine native Chris Duplessis wrapped up the Rally America National Two-Wheel-Drive Class Championship at the STPR Rally in June and netted his first-ever invitation to compete at ESPN's X Games as a result. At this year's New England Forest Rally, Duplessis and co-driver Catherine Woods from Ontario, Canada will campaign a TRD-backed Scion xA rally car supported by 0-60 Magazine and SPARCO. This year's New England Forest Rally will host a large contingent of Regional rally teams from across the Northeastern United Sates and Eastern Canada. These teams will be competing for their share of $15,000 in prize money as the New England-based rally will be the second of three unique rally events in the United States that make up the 3-round Danza del Sol MaxAttack! Championship for 2010 - the other two rally events on the calendar are the Oregon Trail Rally in May and the Lake Superior Performance Rally to be held in Houghton, MI on October 16-17. Although the New England Forest Rally will be contested over two days and 130 plus miles of gravel and forest stages for the National competitors, the Regional rally teams will compete on the very same roads, but in two separate 1-day Regional rally events run simultaneously with the National rally. Friday's Regional rally will be known as the "Mexico Regional Rally" presented by the Mt. Washington Auto Road and will include a "Super Special" in the town of Mexico, Maine. Taking place at the Mexico Recreational Area located just off Route 17 in Mexico, spectators will be have the opportunity to watch their favorite rally driver or team complete an entire gravel rally stage, complete with a jump. This stage will be run twice from start to finish right for maximum spectating! Fans will also have the chance to get drivers and co-drivers autographs as well as an up-close look at the service crews as they take care of their rally cars at the Service Park which will also be based at the Mexico Recreation Area. Also available on Friday, July 16th the New England Forest Rally organizers will make available a number of spectator buses provided by the Sunday River Resort. The busses will take interested spectators from the Mexico Rec Area to where they'll be able to view the spectacular Concord Pond Stage - one of the most popular stages in the Country. The busses will depart from the Mexico Recreation Park at 5:00pm and will return after the stage is completed. A limited number of tickets will be available for just $5.00 per person - they can be purchased at the "Rally America" Information Booth which will be located at the Mexico Rec Area during the running of Friday's Super Special. On Saturday, July 17, 2010, the rally action moves slightly north and west to the area surrounding Errol, NH where rally teams will compete on a series of gravel and forest stages. The town of Errol, known more for snowmobiling in the winter as well as hunting and fishing is welcoming the Rally with open arms and offering service area space and amenities for teams and fans alike. Errol's premier sporting goods outfitter, L.L. Cote, located in the heart of Errol, is sponsoring the Saturday Regional Rally and will serve as the official refueling location for teams as they re-prep their rally cars. Amateur photographers will again have the opportunity to participate in Rally America's popular photo contest where they can submit their best shots from the New England Forest Rally for a chance to win a pair of DC Shoes and an autographed Ken Block poster - visit www.rally-america.com for all the details. For ongoing live updates through out the New England Forest Rally or for more information regarding a detailed event schedule, lodging and an on-line Spectator Guide, please visit the official Rally America web site at www.rally-america.com or go to www.newenglandforestrally.com. 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 taking 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 known as stages. The 2010 Rally America National Championship series consists of six exciting events that take place throughout the United States in many different weather and road conditions. Top teams in the Rally America Championship are also invited to compete in ESPN's Summer X Games, the leading action sports event broadcast live on ESPN. A complete list of invited X Games 16 athletes can be viewed here: espn.go.com/action/xgames/news/story
About Rally America, Inc.: Additionally, through a partnership with ESPN, qualifying Rally America drivers will be invited to compete in ESPN’s Summer X Games 16, the annual leading action-sports event that’s broadcast live on ESPN. For more information, be sure to visit www.rally-america.com. Rally America is introducing "Rallycross" to America for the first time on August 27-28, October 9-10, and November 6-7 at the New Jersey Motorsports Park. Fans will be able to watch two-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive rally cars compete wheel-to-wheel on a closed-loop 1.3 mile tarmac and gravel circuit in timed heats from the comfort of grandstands and special viewing areas. Rally America is proudly supported by Subaru of America, Inc., BFGoodrich Tires, the Team O'Neil Rally School, Able Planet, Hawk Performance Brakes, Rally-Tire.com, RaceWatches.com, Exedy Racing Clutches, RECARO, Mazda and the Danza del Sol Winery.
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