The Twentieth Year
Round 5 of the 1996 SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series
May 31 to June 2, 1996
Wellsboro, Pennsylvania
The STPR is the four-time winner of the "Rally of the Year" award because it presents a complete weekend of competition. The rally uses the generally smooth and twisty Pennsylvania State Forest roads, which form some of the best stages in the country. The high stage-to-transit mileage means you can enjoy the 140 stage miles without having to drive for days. A Friday night welcome party, an after-rally Pizza party and the Awards Banquet, all included, help ensure you are taken care of.
The STPR is unique in the United States in having a Parc Expose most closely resembling the European tradition. The cars are lined up on display around the Green (town square) in picturesque Wellsboro, which features a gaslighted main street.
There will be two accompanying Coefficient 3 Divisional PRO Rallies: the Finger Lakes Divisional Rally and the Tioga Divisional Rally.
Tentative Schedule of Events:Thursday, May 30
* 7:30 pm How to Rally - for entrants in the Special Olympics Rally How to Spectate at a PRO Rally Friday, May 31 All registration activities are at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Pearl Street, Wellsboro * Noon - 2:30 pm Registration for Special Olympics Rally * Noon - 8:30 pm Reistration for Competitors - STPR National, Tioga Divisional, and Finger Lakes Divisional * Noon - 8:30 pm Raffle ticket sales for set of Michelin tires, proceeds to Tioga Co. Special Olympics * 1:00 pm - 6:00 & 7:00 - 9:00 pm Scrutineering at the Fairgrounds * 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm Practice Stage for registered participants who have completed Scrutineering * 2:30 pm - 8:30 pm Registration for PRO Rally workers * 3:00 pm First car starts Special Olympics Rally * 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm Divisional PRO Rally Licensing Seminar * 9:00 pm - 11:30 pm Welcome party for registered participants Saturday, June 1 * 10:20 am Parc Expose around The Green * 11:00 am First car starts daylight section of STPR '96 and Tioga Divisional Rally * 11:00 am - until ?? Rotary Club Chicken Barbeque, St. Paul's Episcopal Church Hot Dog/Soda Booth, and Michelin tire raffle * 11:30 First car reaches the first Spectator area. See program for details and location * 12:35 pm First car reaches the second spectator area * 3:20 pm Second Parc Expose around The Green * 5:00 pm First car starts evening rally sections * 7:20 pm, 10:15 pm First car reaches evening Spectator Point Sunday, June 2 * 1:20 am First car finishes STPR '96 * 8:00 am Provisional results posted in Penn Wells Hotel lobby * 9:30 am Brunch and Awards at the Penn Wells Hotel Dining Room. Tire raffle winner selected
MEDIA_ALERT
Event: Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally (STPR) - Round #5 of the 1996
SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series. Race cars from around the
world will compete at high speeds through the Pennsylvania
State Forests near Wellsboro, Pennsylvania.
When: Friday - Sunday, May 31 - June 2, 1996
Schedule_-_Friday
noon - 8:30 PM - Competitor registration - St. Paul's
Episcopal Church, Pearl Street - Wellsboro.
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM, also 7:00 - 9:00 PM -
Scrutineering, Tioga County Fairgrounds
2:30 PM - 8:30 PM - Worker registration - St. Paul's
3:00 PM - Begin Special Olympics Rally
Schedule_-_Saturday
7:30 AM - 9:00 AM - Late worker registration - St. Paul's
Episcopal Church, Pearl Street -
Wellsboro.
10:20 AM - Parc Expose - display of rally cars - at the Green
in downtown Wellsboro.
11:01 AM - First car starts daylight section of STPR and
Tioga Divisional Rally.
11:30 AM - First car reaches first spectator point
12:35 PM - First car reaches second spectator point.
2:00 PM - Rotary Club Chicken Barbeque; St. Paul's Episcopal
Church Hot Dog/Soda Booth - On the Green
3:40 PM - Second Parc Expose around the Green
5:01 PM - First car leaves for Evening Section of STPR
6:15 PM & 9:00 PM - First car reaches the evening spectator
point
Schedule_-_Sunday
1:20 AM - First car finishes STPR Rally - downtown
Wellsboro.
Where: Rally headquarters will be at the Penn Wells Hotel, 62 Main
Street, Wellsboro. A list of public viewing areas for the
rally is published in the rally program available at the Penn
Wells Hotel, or the Wellsboro Chamber of Commerce, Main and
Central Streets, in Wellsboro.
Duration: 150 stage miles, 365 total miles, 13 stages
Rank: Full National Rally, sanctioned by the Sports Car Club and
sponsored by Michelin Tire Company. Presented by the Finger
Lakes Region of the Sports Car Club of America, with the
cooperation of the Wellsboro Chamber of Commerce and the
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, Bureau of
Forestry. Local sponsor is Citizens & Northern Bank.
Expected Top National Entries: Paul Choiniere - defending five-time
overall national champion - won this rally last year - in his new '96
Hyundai Elantra; Carl Merrill - 400 HP Ford Escort Cosworth -fastest car
on the circuit - won Wild West rally earlier this year; Tom Ottey -
finished in the top five several times last year -in his Open class
Hyundai Elantra; Selcuk Karamanoglu - Turkish rally champion now living
in Maine - won Doo Wop event in Washington in March in an Production GT
Eagle Talon; Ralph Kosmides - new Group 5 Toyota Supra - currently
leading this new class; Sam Bryan, new factory-supplied Group 5 Saab 900
turbo; Janice Damitio, from Montesano, Wash., only woman entered in
national event - in a Toyota Celica GTS 4WD - narrowly missed being the
first woman to win a rally championship last year; Cal Landau, fastest
Pennsylvania racer (from Coraopolis), defending Production GT champion,
in a Mitsubishi Eclipse.
Visuals: There will be escorts to take photographers and video crews
onto the course during the daylight part of the rally on
Saturday. Anyone requiring supplied photos or video should
contact Andy Schupack in the press room starting May 30.
Rally cars going through water, rough terrain, and sliding
at high speed through tight turns provide exciting visuals.
Media Info: We will provide phone-ins on event information, driver
interviews, and results. We will fax stories and agate
Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We have B-roll available
for TV.
The press room will be located in the Green Room on the
first floor of the Penn Wells Hotel.
Contact: Andy Schupack - national series media liaison:
(717) 724-2111, ext. 426
at the rally May 30 - June 2
or
(401) 739-5677 (before May 30 or after June 2)
1996 Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally Entry List
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
National PRO Rally - Entry/Start List
(May 22, 1996 - preliminary)
Car
Num. Driver/Home Town Navigator/Home Town Vehicle/Tires Class
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 Carl Merrill John Bellefleur Ford Escort Cosworth Open
Ogunquit, ME Thornhill, ONT Michelin
1 Paul Choiniere Jeff Becker Hyundai Elantra Open
Shelburne, VT Great Neck, NY Michelin
11 Frank Sprongl Dan Sprongl Audi Quattro Open
Toronto, ONT Toronto, ONT Michelin
8 Bruno Kreibich Rod Hendricksen Audi Quattro Open
Ridgewood, Queens, NY Clinton, NJ Michelin
33 Tom Ottey Pam McGarvey Hyundai Elantra Open
Columbus, OH Columbus, OH Bridgestone
7 Cal Landau Eric Marcus Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT
Coraopolis, PA Dayton, OH Michelin
12 Selcuk Karamanoglu Yorgi Bittner Eagle Talon PGT
Bath, ME Plain City, OH Michelin
13 Vinnie Frontinan Frank Cunningham VW Corrado Group 5
Somerville, MA Boston, MA Michelin
4 Sam Bryan Robinson Walden Saab 900 Turbo Group 5
Kent, WA Shoreline, WA Michelin
14 Jon Kemp Gail McGuire Audi 4000 Quattro Open
Attica, NY Avon, NY Michelin
15 Henry Krolikowski Cindy Krolikowski Dodge Shadow Group 5
Wyandotte, MI Wyandotte, MI Sears
17 Rick Davis Ben Greisler BMW M-3 Group 5
West Chester, PA Philadelphia, PA Michelin
16 Ralph Kosmides Joe Noyes Toyota Supra Group 5
Newport Beach, CA Bothell, WA Michelin
18 Bruce Newey Charles Bradley Toyota Celica Group 5
Atlanta, GA Ardmore, PA Michelin
19 Bob Elliott Mark Williams VW GTI Group 2
Rutland, VT Gaithersburg, MD
20 Gerald Sweet Stuart Spark SAAB 99EMS Group 2
Oakridge, NJ Woodcliff Lake, NJ Michelin
42 David Peterson Greg Chaloupka VW GTI Group 2
Aspen, CO Aspen, CO Michelin
39 Mike Whitman Paula Gibeault Datsun 510 Group 2
Farmington, NM Ridgecrest, CA Michelin
66 Tad Ohtake TBD Ford Escort GT Prod.
Dearborn, MI Michelin
24 Jan Jolles Steve Finney Volvo 142 Group 5
Ithaca, NY
25 Ivan Orisek Olga Orisek Audi Quattro Open
White Plains, NY White Plains, NY Michelin
26 L. Mark Stone TBA Nissan Violet Group 2
Somers, NY
27 John Pizzagalli Eric Hauge Mitsubishi Galant PGT
S. Burlington, VT Napa, CA Michelin
28 Kurt Thiel George Thompson VW GTI Group 2
Rochester, NY Rochester, NY Michelin
29 Pete Lahm Jimmy Brandt Datsun 510 Group 2
Phoenix, AZ Odessa, MI Michelin
30 John Vanlandingham TBD Saab 96 Group 2
Stoneham, MA Michelin
Lon Peterson Bill Gutzmann Kia Sephia Prod.
Victorville, CA Ontario, CA Toyo
31 Jim Anderson Martin Dapot Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
Carrboro, NC Reston, VA Michelin
32 Greg Trepetin Sonia Trepetin Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
N. Potomac, MD N. Potomac, MD
34 Greg Healey John MacLeod Dodge Ram 50 Pick-up Prod.
Poughkeepsie, NY S. Easton, MA BFGoodrich
36 Lesley Suddard Anne Thomas Dodge Charger Group 5
Wilmington, DE Nashua, NH Michelin
37 Peter Watt Dick Casey Suzuki Swift GT Prod.
Peterborough, ONT Fairfax Station, VA Bridgestone
38 Don Rathgeber TBD Ford Mustang Open
Livonia, MI
41 Keith Kresiler Chris Erney Mazda 323GTX Open
West Chester, PA Sterling, VA Michelin
43 Jacek Kotowski Marek Bulaj Eagle Talon TSI PGT
Lawrenceville, NJ Lawrenceville, NJ Michelin
44 Scott Kreisler John Bonasera Nissan 200-SX Group 2
Boyertown, PA Trappe, PA Bridgestone
45 Dean Fry Don Kennedy Subaru Legacy Open
Mohnton, PA Shillington, PA Nokia
Serguei Beloussov TBD Mazda 626 Group 2
Philadelphia, PA
48 Michael Bodner Stephen Bodner Audi Quattro Open
Southfield, MI Hamtramck, MI Michelin
49 Michael Curran Joe McGirl Ford Mustang Group 5
Yonkers, NY New York, NY
50 Jeremy Chambers Neil Roeth Saab 900 Group 2
Wilmington, DE Brooklyn, NY Michelin
51 Jay Kowalik Jeff Wheeler Acura Integra GS-R Prod.
London, Ohio E. Liberty, Ohio Michelin
52 Chris Havas Pete Pollard VW Golf Group 2
Richmond, VT Etobicoke, ONT
FINGER LAKES DIVISIONAL AND TIOGA DIVISIONAL PRO RALLIES
60 Thomas Brann Matt Chester Subaru 4X4 O4 Div.
Mahopac, NY Atlanta, GA Michelin
61 Ed Mucklow Mark Bowers Mitsubishi Starion O2 Div.
St. Albans, WV Afton, VA Michelin
62 Eric Schroeder Jennifer Mynhier VW Jetta GLI U2 Div.
Indianapolis, IN Indianapolis, IN
63 Robert Pao Robert Howard VW GTI U2 Div.
Bridgewater, NJ Andover, NJ Michelin
64 Arthur Wojcik Igor Cukrowski Ford Escort U2 Div.
Maspeth, NY Jackson Heights, NY Michelin
65 S. Stepniewski Adam Pelc VW Scirocco U2 Div.
Keansburg, NJ Brooklyn, NY
67 Paul Kelbel Phil Barnes VW GTI U2 Div.
New York, NY Cortland, NY
68 Miroslaw Madej Dariusz Szerijko Suzuki Swift U2 Div.
Hicksville, NY Rye Brook, NY Avon
69 Jeff Harty Lynn Dillon Toyota MR-2 U2 Div.
Garrett, IN Evansville, IN Michelin
70 Gerry Brinkman Robert Barrall VW GTI U2 Div.
Freehold, NJ Bethlehem, PA
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #1
5/31/96, 8:30 AM
1. Welcome to Wellsboro, PA, site of the 20th running of the
Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally. The organizers are
looking forward to a healthy entry, good weather, and
great racing. The weather forecast from the National
Weather service calls for sunny on Friday, with highs in
the upper 70's, clear Friday night with lows in the mid-
to-upper 40's, and sunny Saturday with highs in the upper
70's to low 80's. There is no precipitation in the
forecast until Sunday afternoon - well after the rally is
over.
2. The story that seems to be shaping up for the Open class
here is who won't be coming and why:
- Canadian National Champions Frank and Dan Sprongl will
not be able to make it as planned. Their Audi Quattro
S-2 lost its engine at the Michelin Big Horn PRO Rally
in Alberta, Canada, two weeks ago. A replacement
engine is on order from Germany, but it did not make
it here in time.
- Carl Merrill and John Bellefleur also took a recent
trip to Alberta, Canada. During the Michelin Rocky
Mountain PRO Rally last weekend, they rolled their
Ford Escort Cosworth. They just got it back to Maine
mid-week and have not had time to make repairs.
Merrill considered coming with his 450 bhp Chevy S-10
Pickup Truck, but decided against it at the last
minute.
- Tom Ottey and wife/co-driver Pam McGarvey overheated
their Millen Motorsports-built Hyundai Elantra at the
Rim of the World PRO Rally earlier this month in
California. In testing for STPR, they discovered the
engine needs a complete teardown, so they will sit out
this round. This setback follows a series of problems
with the Ottey's Hyundai, which has not finished a
rally since it debuted last year at the Lake Superior
PRO Rally in Michigan.
- Henry Joy IV is home this weekend being a Dad. Last
December, newborn Henry Bourne Joy V made his
appearance, and as a result, Henry IV has chosen to
run an abbreviated season this year. Joy finished
second to Choiniere at the Rim of the World event.
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #2
5/31/96, 2:00 PM
3. A late development on the Carl Merrill front. Libra
Racing will be providing Merrill with a car to race to
replace his injured Ford Escort Cosworth. The former
Paul Choiniere national championship Audi Quattro S-2,
which car owner John Buffum and co-driver Mark Williams
recently took to Peru and won the Peruvian national
rally, has been pulled from mothballs and prepared for
Merrill to drive this weekend. Because of the last
minute nature of this arrangement, the car is still
stickered with the Peruvian logos from the Rally of the
Incas last fall, and still wears a rather sizeable rear
fender dent from the event. Merrill, who is only one
point behind Choiniere in the point standings, really
needs to score points here to remain competitive for the
championship. Canadian Brian Maxwell will co-drive for
Merrill.
4. Here is a round-up of the classes:
--With the late Merrill entry, the Open class now has the
Choiniere/Becker '96 Hyundai Elantra, Merrill's Audi
Quattro S-2, and the Bruno Kreibich/Rod Hendricksen
Audi Quattro. Bruno, who has competed in most of the
19 previous STPR events, is the sentimental favorite to
win his first Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally, and his
first overall rally since 1991, when he won a
Westcliffe, Colorado and Ojibwe Forests. Choiniere's
Hyundai has been especially fast over the last two
events when mechanical problems have put them behind.
Choiniere put eight minutes on the field at the Wild
West event - moving from 19th place to a 4th place
finish, after motor mount problems put the team back
after the first day of rallying.
Other Open class competitors include the Jon Kemp/Gail
McGuire Audi 4000 Quattro, the Keith Kreisler/Chris
Erney Mazda 323GTX, the Dan Rathgeber Ford Mustang, and
Mike Bodner/Steve Bodner Audi Quattro.
--In Production GT, Selcuk Karamanoglu/Yorgi Bittner
remain the favorites to win the class as they have done
so far this year at Doo Wops, Wild West and Rim of the
World. In fact, they won the Doo Wops event overall,
and were second at Wild West, just 59 seconds behind
winners Carl Merrill/John Bellefleur. Selcuk
is running so much faster this year due to the
discovery of a faulty boost gauge just before the start of
the season. It turns out his HKS turbo was showing 17 PSI,
but his actual boost was only stock factory spec. Now he
has fixed the problem and turned up the boost, he estimates
he has 20 more horsepower. The defending Production GT
champions Cal Landau/Eric Marcus in their Mitsubishi Eclipse
will be Selcuk's top competition, with the John
Pizzagalli/Erick Hauge Mitsubishi Galant, the Rob Bohn/Lynn
Dillion Mitsubishi Eclipse, and the new L. Mark Stone/Marc
Goldfarb Mitsubishi Galant all hoping to contend as well.
--The Group 5 story should be the most interesting yet, with
the previous Group 5 winners all here plus some great new
entries. Leading the pack are the class leaders Ralph
Kosmides/Joe Noyes in their Toyota Supra, which has won both
Washington events and Rim of the World. This weekend,
however, Ralph and Joe will have lots of stiff competition
as the best of the West meets the best of the East. Besides
Kosmides, from Newport Beach, Calif., the other West Coast
team to make the trip East is the Sam Bryan/Rob Walden Saab
900 turbo from Seattle. The car produces 300 horsepower,
and the team hopes to improve on their debut performance
last month at Rim of the World where the car suffered from
turbo problems and subsequently rolled.
Sand Hills Group 5 winners Henry Krolikowski/Cindy
Krolikowski are entered in their Dodge Shadow, and have
always run well at STPR. The Bruce Newey/Charles Bradley
Toyota Supra, winners of the now-defunct Group A class last
year, have converted their 4WD car into a 2WD racer for this
year's Group 5 competition and will be making their season
debut.
Vinnie Frontinan/Frank Cunningham will be debuting a new VW
Corrado in Group 5. The car has only run up and down the
narrow street in Somerville, Mass., where Vinnie's repair
shop is located, but it has to potential to win the class.
Another former Group A contender, Rick Davis/Ben Greisler,
in their BMW M-3, will be competing in Group 5, along with
the Leslie Suddard/Anne Thomas Dodge Charger.
--Group 2 has a similarly-impressive list of competitors,
with class leaders Dave Peterson/Greg Chaloupka in a VW GTI
having won the class at Wild West. Peterson looked to have
the victory in hand at Rim of the World, but was overtaken
on the last stage by the Mike Whitman/Ben Bradley Datsun
510. Whitman is also here this weekend, with Rim organizer
Paula Gibeault in the navigator seat. Also in from the West
is the Pete Lahm/Jimmy Brandt Datsun 510. The Kurt
Thiel/George Thompson VW GTI, winners in South Carolina
earlier this year, are here, along with John Vanlandingham's
ancient Saab 96, which won the class in Maine last summer.
The Bob Elliott/Mark Williams 1964 Ford Falcon Rallye Sprint
289 cu.in. V-8 (more on this car later) will be using this
event as a tune-up for the FIA Historic Rally Trophy, and
could be stiff competition for the others.
Rounding out the Group 2 competitors are the Scott
Kreisler/John Bonasera Nissan 200-SX, the Jeremy
Chambers/Neil Roeth Saab 900, the Chris Havas/Pete Pollard
VW Golf, and last year's near-champions Gerry Sweet and
Gerald Spark in their Saab 99.
--In the Production class, leaders Lon Peterson/Bill Gutzmann
have travelled from the West Coast to try to extend their
points lead in their '96 Kia Sephia. Defending Production
champion Tad Ohtake - although not running the whole season
this year - is here this weekend in his Ford Escort GT, as
are the two Honda Preludes of Greg Trepetin/Sonia Trepetin
and Jim Anderson/Martin Dapot. Peter Watt has come down
from Canada to run his Suzuki Swift, and Greg Healey/John
MacLeod's Dodge Ram 50 pick-up - now a Production entry
after the demise of the RallyTruck class - are also
contenders. Rounding out the class is the former Peter
Cunningham Acura Integra GS-R being driven by Jay
Kowalik/Jeff Wheeler.
# # #
1996 Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally Entry List
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
National PRO Rally - Entry/Start List
(May 31, 1996 - 5:00 PM)
Car
Num. Driver/Home Town Navigator/Home Town Vehicle/Tires Class
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Paul Choiniere Jeff Becker Hyundai Elantra Open
Shelburne, VT Great Neck, NY Michelin
3 Carl Merrill Brian Maxwell Audi Quattro S-2 Open
Ogunquit, ME Port Hope, ONT Michelin
8 Bruno Kreibich Rod Hendricksen Audi Quattro Open
Ridgewood, Queens, NY Clinton, NJ Michelin
7 Cal Landau Eric Marcus Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT
Coraopolis, PA Dayton, OH Michelin
12 Selcuk Karamanoglu Yorgi Bittner Eagle Talon PGT
Bath, ME Plain City, OH Michelin
13 Vinnie Frontinan Frank Cunningham VW Corrado Group 5
Somerville, MA Boston, MA Michelin
4 Sam Bryan Robinson Walden Saab 900 Turbo Group 5
Kent, WA Shoreline, WA Michelin
14 Jon Kemp Gail McGuire Audi 4000 Quattro Open
Attica, NY Avon, NY Michelin
15 Henry Krolikowski Cindy Krolikowski Dodge Shadow Group 5
Wyandotte, MI Wyandotte, MI Sears
17 Rick Davis Ben Greisler BMW M-3 Group 5
West Chester, PA Philadelphia, PA Michelin
16 Ralph Kosmides Joe Noyes Toyota Supra Group 5
Newport Beach, CA Bothell, WA Michelin
96 Bruce Newey Charles Bradley Toyota Celica Group 5
Atlanta, GA Ardmore, PA Michelin
19 Bob Elliott Mark Williams 1964 Ford Falcon Group 5
Rutland, VT Gaithersburg, MD BFGoodrich
20 Gerald Sweet Stuart Spark SAAB 99EMS Group 2
Oakridge, NJ Woodcliff Lake, NJ Michelin
42 David Peterson Greg Chaloupka VW GTI Group 2
Aspen, CO Aspen, CO Michelin
39 Mike Whitman Paula Gibeault Datsun 510 Group 2
Farmington, NM Ridgecrest, CA Michelin
66 Tad Ohtake Nigel Booth Ford Escort GT Prod.
Dearborn, MI Northville, MI Michelin
25 Ivan Orisek Olga Orisek Audi Quattro Open
White Plains, NY White Plains, NY Michelin
26 L. Mark Stone Marc Goldfarb Mitsubishi Galant PGT
Somers, NY Atkinson, NH Michelin
11 John Pizzagalli Eric Hauge Mitsubishi Galant PGT
S. Burlington, VT Napa, CA Michelin
28 Kurt Thiel George Thompson VW GTI Group 2
Rochester, NY Rochester, NY Michelin
29 Pete Lahm Jimmy Brandt Datsun 510 Group 2
Phoenix, AZ Odessa, MI Michelin
30 John Vanlandingham TBD Saab 96 Group 2
Stoneham, MA Michelin
37 Ed Maklenburg Barbara Steencken Dodge Omni GLH Group 2
Milford, MI Milford, MI
22 Lon Peterson Bill Gutzmann Kia Sephia Prod.
Victorville, CA Ontario, CA Toyo
31 Jim Anderson Martin Dapot Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
Carrboro, NC Reston, VA Michelin
32 Greg Trepetin Sonia Trepetin Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
N. Potomac, MD N. Potomac, MD
34 Greg Healey John MacLeod Dodge Ram 50 Pick-up Prod.
Poughkeepsie, NY S. Easton, MA BFGoodrich
36 Lesley Suddard Anne Thomas Dodge Charger Group 5
Wilmington, DE Nashua, NH Michelin
27 Peter Watt Dick Casey Suzuki Swift GT Prod.
Peterborough, ONT Fairfax Station, VA Bridgestone
41 Keith Kresiler Chris Erney Mazda 323GTX Open
West Chester, PA Sterling, VA Michelin
43 Jacek Kotowski Marek Bulaj Eagle Talon TSI PGT
Lawrenceville, NJ Lawrenceville, NJ Michelin
44 Scott Kreisler John Bonasera Nissan 200-SX Group 2
Boyertown, PA Trappe, PA Bridgestone
45 Dean Fry Don Kennedy Subaru Legacy Open
Mohnton, PA Shillington, PA Nokia
77 Serguei Beloussov Kendall Russell Mazda 626 Group 2
Philadelphia, PA Knoxville, TN
49 Michael Curran Joe McGirl Ford Mustang Group 5
Yonkers, NY New York, NY
50 Jeremy Chambers Neil Roeth Saab 900 Group 2
Wilmington, DE Brooklyn, NY Michelin
51 Jay Kowalik Jeff Wheeler Acura Integra GS-R Prod.
London, Ohio E. Liberty, Ohio Michelin
52 Chris Havas Pete Pollard VW Golf Group 2
Richmond, VT Etobicoke, ONT
54 Rob Bohn Lynn Dillon Mitsubishi Eclipse PGT
Noblesville, IN Evansville, IN Bridgestone
FINGER LAKES DIVISIONAL AND TIOGA DIVISIONAL PRO RALLIES
38 Don Rathgeber Russell Rathgeber Ford Mustang 02 Div.
Livonia, MI Livonia, MI Michelin
60 Thomas Brann Matt Chester Subaru 4X4 O4 Div.
Mahopac, NY Atlanta, GA Michelin
48 Michael Bodner Stephen Bodner Audi Quattro Open
Southfield, MI Hamtramck, MI Michelin
61 Ed Mucklow Mark Bowers Mitsubishi Starion O2 Div.
St. Albans, WV Afton, VA Michelin
62 Eric Schroeder Jennifer Mynhier VW Jetta GLI U2 Div.
Indianapolis, IN Indianapolis, IN
63 Robert Pao Robert Howard VW GTI U2 Div.
Bridgewater, NJ Andover, NJ Michelin
64 Arthur Wojcik Igor Cukrowski Ford Escort U2 Div.
Maspeth, NY Jackson Heights, NY Michelin
65 S. Stepniewski Adam Pelc VW Scirocco U2 Div.
Keansburg, NJ Brooklyn, NY
67 Paul Kelbel Phil Barnes VW GTI U2 Div.
New York, NY Cortland, NY
68 Miroslaw Madej Dariusz Szerijko Suzuki Swift U2 Div.
Hicksville, NY Rye Brook, NY Avon
69 Jeff Harty David Bruce Toyota MR-2 U2 Div.
Garrett, IN South Point, OH Michelin
70 Gerry Brinkman Robert Barrall VW GTI U2 Div.
Freehold, NJ Bethlehem, PA
71 Brett Silvius Jeff Fithian Mazda 323 GTX O4 Div.
New York, NY Atlanta, GA
72 Charlie Langan Hughie Langan Ford Escort U2 Div.
Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia, PA
# # #
1996 Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally Entry List
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
National PRO Rally - Entry/Start List
(Final Entry List/Start Order)
Car
Num. Driver/Home Town Navigator/Home Town Vehicle/Tires Class
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 Carl Merrill Brian Maxwell Audi Quattro S-2 Open
Ogunquit, ME Port Hope, ONT Michelin
1 Paul Choiniere Jeff Becker Hyundai Elantra Open
Shelburne, VT Great Neck, NY Michelin
8 Bruno Kreibich Rod Hendricksen Audi Quattro Open
Ridgewood, Queens, NY Clinton, NJ Michelin
18 Selcuk Karamanoglu Yorgi Bittner Eagle Talon PGT
Bath, ME Plain City, OH Michelin
7 Cal Landau Eric Marcus Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT
Coraopolis, PA Dayton, OH Michelin
13 Vinnie Frontinan Frank Cunningham VW Corrado Group 5
Somerville, MA Boston, MA Michelin
4 Sam Bryan Robinson Walden Saab 900 Turbo Group 5
Kent, WA Shoreline, WA Michelin
14 Jon Kemp Gail McGuire Audi 4000 Quattro Open
Attica, NY Avon, NY Michelin
74 Pat Ayer Rob Jones Audi Quattro Open
South Burlington, VT Burlington, VT
15 Henry Krolikowski Cindy Krolikowski Dodge Shadow Group 5
Wyandotte, MI Wyandotte, MI Sears
21 Rick Davis Ben Greisler BMW M-3 Group 5
West Chester, PA Philadelphia, PA Michelin
16 Ralph Kosmides Joe Noyes Toyota Supra Group 5
Newport Beach, CA Bothell, WA Michelin
96 Bruce Newey Charles Bradley Toyota Celica Group 5
Atlanta, GA Ardmore, PA Michelin
19 Bob Elliott Mark Williams 1964 Ford Falcon Group 5
Rutland, VT Gaithersburg, MD BFGoodrich
20 Gerald Sweet Stuart Spark SAAB 99EMS Group 2
Oakridge, NJ Woodcliff Lake, NJ Michelin
42 David Peterson Greg Chaloupka VW GTI Group 2
Aspen, CO Aspen, CO Michelin
39 Mike Whitman Paula Gibeault Datsun 510 Group 2
Farmington, NM Ridgecrest, CA Michelin
66 Tad Ohtake Nigel Booth Ford Escort GT Prod.
Dearborn, MI Northville, MI Michelin
22 Lon Peterson Bill Gutzmann Kia Sephia Prod.
Victorville, CA Ontario, CA Toyo
25 Ivan Orisek Olga Orisek Audi Quattro Open
White Plains, NY White Plains, NY Michelin
12 L. Mark Stone Marc Goldfarb Mitsubishi Galant PGT
Somers, NY Atkinson, NH Michelin
11 John Pizzagalli Eric Hauge Mitsubishi Galant PGT
S. Burlington, VT Napa, CA Michelin
28 Kurt Thiel George Thompson VW GTI Group 2
Rochester, NY Rochester, NY Michelin
29 Pete Lahm Jimmy Brandt Datsun 510 Group 2
Phoenix, AZ Odessa, MI Michelin
31 Jim Anderson Martin Dapot Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
Carrboro, NC Reston, VA Michelin
23 Greg Trepetin Sonia Trepetin Honda Prelude VTEC Prod.
N. Potomac, MD N. Potomac, MD Michelin
34 Greg Healey John MacLeod Dodge Ram 50 Pick-up Prod.
Poughkeepsie, NY S. Easton, MA BFGoodrich
36 Lesley Suddard Anne Thomas Dodge Charger Group 5
Wilmington, DE Nashua, NH Michelin
27 Peter Watt Dick Casey Suzuki Swift GT Prod.
Peterborough, ONT Fairfax Station, VA Bridgestone
37 Ed Maklenburg Barbara Steencken Dodge Omni GLH Open
Milford, MI Milford, MI
52 Chris Havas Pete Pollard VW Golf Group 2
Richmond, VT Etobicoke, ONT Michelin
41 Keith Kreisler Chris Erney Mazda 323GTX Open
West Chester, PA Sterling, VA Michelin
43 Jacek Kotowski Marek Bulaj Eagle Talon TSI PGT
Lawrenceville, NJ Lawrenceville, NJ Michelin
44 Scott Kreisler John Bonasera Nissan 200-SX Group 2
Boyertown, PA Trappe, PA Bridgestone
45 Dean Fry Don Kennedy Subaru Legacy Open
Mohnton, PA Shillington, PA Nokia
49 Michael Curran Joe McGirl Ford Mustang Group 5
Yonkers, NY New York, NY
77 Serguei Beloussov Kendall Russell Mazda 626 Group 2
Philadelphia, PA Knoxville, TN
50 Jeremy Chambers Neil Roeth Saab 900 Group 2
Wilmington, DE Brooklyn, NY Michelin
51 Jay Kowalik Jeff Wheeler Acura Integra GS-R Prod.
London, Ohio E. Liberty, Ohio Michelin
53 David Liebl Lou Binkley Mazda RX-7 Group 5
Gaithersburg, MD Frederick, MD
54 Rob Bohn Lynn Dillon Mitsubishi Eclipse PGT
Noblesville, IN Evansville, IN Bridgestone
FINGER LAKES DIVISIONAL AND TIOGA DIVISIONAL PRO RALLIES
60 Thomas Brann Matt Chester Subaru 4X4 O4 Div.
Mahopac, NY Atlanta, GA Michelin
48 Michael Bodnar Stephen Bodnar Audi Quattro Open
Southfield, MI Hamtramck, MI Michelin
71 Brett Silvius Jeff Fithian Mazda 323GTX 04 Div.
New York, NY Atlanta, GA Bridgestone
32 Jose Vicente Eduardo Besada Audi Quattro 04 Div.
Newark, NJ Newark, NJ
61 Ed Mucklow Mark Bowers Mitsubishi Starion O2 Div.
St. Albans, WV Afton, VA Michelin
38 Don Rathgeber Russell Rathgeber Ford Mustang 02 Div.
Livonia, MI Livonia, MI Michelin
62 Eric Schroeder Jennifer Mynhier VW Jetta GLI U2 Div.
Indianapolis, IN Indianapolis, IN
63 Robert Pao Robert Howard VW GTI U2 Div.
Bridgewater, NJ Andover, NJ Michelin
64 Arthur Wojcik Igor Cukrowski Ford Escort U2 Div.
Maspeth, NY Jackson Heights, NY Michelin
65 S. Stepniewski Adam Pelc VW Scirocco U2 Div.
Keansburg, NJ Brooklyn, NY Michelin
67 Paul Kelbel Phil Barnes VW GTI U2 Div.
New York, NY Cortland, NY
68 Miroslaw Madej Dariusz Szerijko Suzuki Swift U2 Div.
Hicksville, NY Rye Brook, NY Avon
69 Jeff Harty David Bruce Toyota MR-2 U2 Div.
Garrett, IN South Point, OH Michelin
70 Gerry Brinkman Robert Barrall VW GTI U2 Div.
Freehold, NJ Bethlehem, PA Michelin
73 Tony Dapaz Paul Outiero Toyota Celica GT4 O4 Div.
Elizabeth, NJ Edison, NJ
75 Charlie Langan Hughie Langan Ford Escort U2 Div.
Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia, PA
40 C. Mantopoulos Steve Rourke Audi Quattro 04 Div.
Staten Island, NY Tolland, CT
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #3
6/01/96, 4:00 PM
5. 58 starters took the countdown in front of the Wellsboro
Chamber of Commerce to start the 20th running of the
Susquenhannock Trail Pro Rally here in Wellsboro, PA.
After a "will he come?/won't he come?" start to the
weekend, it looked like Carl Merrill might not be able to
start the rally, as electrical problems caused him some
anxious moments. Car owner John Buffum had to do some
fast repairs on the lighting harness on the start line,
and Merrill lost his first on the road status. Merrill
got off in time, though, and was first out on Stage 1.
6. John Vanlandingham was a late scratch early this morning.
Unable to find a co-driver, he came to Wellsboro in hopes
of filling the right seat in his Group 2 Saab 96 by start
time. It was not to be, and Vanlandingham finally gave
up and became a spectator. Also withdrawing before the
start were late entries Marvin Lummen and John Atsma from
Grand Rapids, MI, who had entered the divisional rally in
a Dodge Omni GLH.
7. Pat Ayer and co-driver Rob Jones added their names to the
fray at the opening of registration today. Due to the
speed which was expected of them and their seed, they
were inserted into the start order in ninth position.
Ayer and Jones are competing in Paul Choiniere's 1991
and '92 championship season Audi Quattro which Pat
purchased last year. Carl Merrill's Audi Quattro S-2
entry is Choiniere's 1993 and '94 championship season
car.
8. Another late entry is Constantine Mantoupoulus, who is at
his first national event since winning the Group A class
at the Maine Forest Rally last year. Unfortunately,
Mantoupoulus is forced under the new PRO Rally Regs to
enter the divisional rally this time, since his co-driver
does not have a national license.
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #4
6/01/96, 5:00 PM
9. Licensing problems have forced other teams into the
divisional as well. The father/son rally team of Don and
Russell Rathberger will run their Ford Mustang in the
divisional, where brothers Michael and Stephen Bodnar
(Audi Quattro) will join them. Both co-drivers (Russell
Rathberger and Stephen Bodnar) are relatively new to the
sport and do not hold national licenses.
10. Reports from the early stages are that the roads are
fast and quite slippery. All of the dirt stages were
graded within the past couple of days, and the cars are
feeling the lack of grip.
11. Several cars have retired as of the close of the first
two stages. Ivan and Olga Orisek completed the first
stage in their Audi Quattro, but have suffered a
suspension failure and were unable to continue. Bob
Elliott and co-driver Mark Williams didn't make it
through stage one in their 1964 Ford Falcon as their
newly-built Ford 289 cu. in. Cobra V-8 broke a timing
chain.
12. Serious incidents requiring emergency intervention have
caused the closing of both stage one and stage two. (See
separate notice following) Unfortunately, in each case,
the closing took place before the first divisional car
had left the start line. Therefore, as the cars were
beginning stage three, the divisional cars had not
completed a single special stage.
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #5
6/01/96, 6:00 PM
13. The incident at stage one involved the Mazda 626 of
Serguei Beloussov and Kendall Russell which hit a tree
just short of the water crossing. On stage two, John
Pizzagalli and Erick Hauge tossed their Mitsubishi
Gallant onto its roof in the creek. All drivers were
transported to Soldiers and Sailors Hospital and all but
Beloussov have been released.
The organizer issued the following statement:
From: Andy Schupack - Media Liaison
John McArthur - STPR Chairman
3:00 PM - Saturday, June 1, 1996
The report from Soldiers and Sailors Hospital is that all
four competitors involved in the two incidences of the
STPR PRO Rally are in stable condition.
The John Pizzagalli/Erick Hauge Mitsubishi Galant (car
#11) hit the bridge 5.36 miles into stage #2, and rolled
into the creek below, landing on its roof. The drivers
were taken to Soldiers and Sailors Hospital, where they
are expected to be released shortly.
On stage #1, the Serguei Beloussov/Kendall Russell (car
#77) Mazda 626 hit a tree near the end of stage #1. Both
were taken to Soldiers and Sailors Hospital, where Ms.
Russell is expected to be released shortly, and Mr.
Beloussov will be held overnight for observation.
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #6
6/01/96, 7:00 PM
14. The new VW Corrado being debuted here this weekend by
Vinnie Frontinan and Frank Cunningham is out of the
rally. Three miles from the end of stage two they slid
into a rock damaging the car to a point where it could
not continue.
15. The Kurt Thiel/George Thompson VW GTI entry, winner in
Group 2 at the recent Sand Hills event, was expected to
be a top finisher here, but a submerged rock at the water
crossing broke the rear suspension and took the local
team out of the rally.
16. The Bruce Newey/Charles Bradley Toyota Celica Group 5 car
is running well, matching stage times with the class
leaders for three of the four stages, but got stuck with
an electrical problem on stage #1, losing more than 14
minutes to the field.
17. The Cal Landau/Eric Marcus Mitsubishi Eclipse Production
GT car is lagging behind class leaders Selcuk Karamanoglu
and Yorgi Bittner because of brake problems. The team is
bleeding the brakes at the service break after stage #4.
# # #
SUSQUEHANNOCK TRAIL PRO RALLY
STAGES 1 THROUGH 4
STAGE 1 STAGE 2 STAGE 3 STAGE 4 TOTAL
STONY ASAPH MILL RIM THRU
DRIVER/CO-DRIVER CAR # CROSSING RUN HOLLOW STOCK MTC-2
------------------- ----- --------- -------- ------- ------- -------
Choiniere/Becker 1 5.78 9.47 5.92 11.63 32.80
Karamanoglu/Bittner 18 5.88 9.61 5.90 11.90 33.29
Ayer/Jones 74 6.00 9.58 5.82 11.97 33.37
Kemp/McGuire 14 5.99 9.76 5.98 12.31 34.04
Stone/Goldfarb 12 6.01 9.88 5.97 12.11 33.97
Kreibich/Hendricksen 8 6.16 9.75 6.00 12.49 34.40
Merrill/Maxwell 3 6.13 9.91 5.95 11.91 33.90
Bryan/Walden 4 6.17 9.92 6.00 12.21 34.30
Landau/Marcus 7 6.18 10.06 6.01 12.40 34.65
Krolikowski/Krolikowski15 6.37 10.23 6.13 12.43 35.16
Davis/Greisler 21 6.29 10.36 6.29 12.56 35.50
Sweet/Spark 20 6.29 10.42 16.71
Kosmides/Noyes 16 6.24 10.48 6.38 12.35 35.45
Newey/Bradley 96 20.09 10.61 6.14 12.96 49.80
Whitman/Gibeault 39 6.42 10.34 6.19 12.39 35.34
Lahm/Brandt 29 6.42 10.52 6.33 12.47 35.74
Thiel/Thompson 28 6.32 10.85 17.17
Fry/Kennedy 45 6.41 10.85 6.46 13.32 37.04
Peterson/Gutzmann 22 6.68 10.67 6.49 12.78 36.62
Suddard/Thomas 36 6.56 10.85 6.59 13.06 37.06
Havas/Pollard 52 6.57 10.85 6.31 12.88 36.61
Anderson/Dapot 31 6.58 10.85 6.39 12.98 36.80
Kreisler/Erney 41 6.66 10.85 6.56 13.29 37.36
Kotowski/Bulaj 43 6.74 10.85 6.63 13.04 37.26
Healy/MacLeod 34 6.77 10.85 6.89 13.24 37.75
Ohtake/Booth 66 6.88 10.85 6.50 13.07 37.30
Kreisler/Bonasera 44 6.99 10.85 6.97 14.01 38.82
Bohn/Dillon 54 7.00 10.85 6.74 13.20 37.79
Curran/McGirl 49 7.00 10.85 17.85
Watt/Casey 27 7.00 10.85 7.19 14.13 39.17
Chambers/Roeth 50 7.00 10.85 7.15 13.57 38.57
Kowalik/Wheeler 51 7.00 10.85 6.29 21.28 54.42
Trepetin/Trepetin 23 7.00 10.85 6.69 13.40 37.94
Liebl/Binkley 53 7.00 10.85 7.16 14.69 39.70
Peterson/Chaloupka 42 6.98 11.01 6.79 13.03 37.81
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #7
6/01/96, 11:00 PM
18. Stages five, six and seven have claimed several victims,
mostly due to equipment failures. On stage five, the
Saab 900 Turbo of Sam Bryan/Rob Walden dropped out with
mechanical troubles. Tony Dapaz and co-driver Paul
Outiero withdrew their divisional-entry Ford Escort
because of a broken suspension component, also on stage
five.
19. The Michael Curran/Joe McGirl Ford Mustang failed to
start stage six, while L. Mark Stone and Marc Goldfarb
finished the stage in their Mitsubishi Galant but
withdrew shortly thereafter. The VW Scirocco of
Stepniewski/Pelc broke down about 5 1/2 miles into stage
six and the pair was given a ride to the end where their
crew rescued them. At this writing, the car is still in
the woods. Also ending the rally at stage six was the
Ford Escort of Wojcik/Cukrowski, which managed to drive
in ahead of the sweep vehicle under its own power, but
then dropped out of the rally.
20. With the field beginning to thin, only the VW GTI of
Kelbel and Barnes and the VW Jetta GLI of Schroeder and
Mynhier withdrew on stage seven.
21. The rally was held up on both stages five and six. The
state police had to be summoned to deal with rowdy fans
at the spectator area on stage five before the rally
could go on. Sobriety checks were done, and several
partiers were escorted from the woods. Once the state
police gave the go ahead, the rally was able to continue,
by this time, well more than an hour late.
# # #
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #8
6/02/96, 12:30 AM
22. On stage six., the first few cars got through
unencumbered, but somewhere around mid-pack, the Mazda
323 GTX of Keith Kreisler and Chris Erney became stuck on
a bridge 3.41 miles into the stage, blocking the course
to further traffic. The rally was stopped once again,
and the car was moved to the side of the course. Later
Kreisler and Erney limped into the finish, but were
reported not to have started stage seven.
23. Stage eight began at 10:45 PM (1 hour and 45 minutes
behind schedule) and at that time, the decision was made
to expand the window between cars to 2 minutes due to
heavy dust on the special stages. Stage ten was
cancelled in an effort to bring the rally back on
schedule. But by the end of stage eight, it was obvious
that with a 2 minute dust window, the rally would
continue to run at an increasing time deficit. The
organizers decided to further shorten the event and
cancelled stages eleven and twelve. As a result, the
first cars are due to arrive in downtown Wellsboro at
1:45 AM.
24. The latest car to fall prey to mechanical gremlins is the
Audi Quattro of Jon Kemp and Gail McGuire. They dropped
out on stage nine with brake failure.
# # #
National Standings after seven stages:
Car
Driver Co-driver # Car make Class Time
Choiniere Becker 1 Hyundai Elantr Open 68.60
Karamanoglu Bittner 18 Eagle Talon PGT 71.01
Ayer Jones 74 Audi Quattro Open 71.61
Kreisler Erney 41 Mazda 323 GTX Open 73.20
Merrill Maxwell 3 Audi Qauttro S-2 Open 73.77
Kreibich Hendricksen 8 Audi Quattro Open 74.29
Landau Marcus 7 Mitsubishi Ecl PGT 74.79
Kemp McGuire 14 Audi Quattro Open 75.39
Krolikowski Krolikowski 15 Dodge Shadow Gp5 76.11
Kosmides Noyes 16 Toyota Supra Gp5 76.93
Davis Greisler 21 BMW M3 Gp5 77.11
Whitman Gibeault 39 Datsun 510 Gp2 77.77
Anderson Dapot 31 Honda Prelude Prod 78.18
Havas Pollard 52 VW Golf Gp2 79.42
Lahm Brandt 29 Datsun Pl-510 Gp2 79.52
Fry Kennedy 45 Subaru Legacy Open 79.89
Bohn Dillon 54 Mitsubishi Ecl PGT 80.19
Peterson Gutzmann 22 Kia Sephia Prod 80.21
Ohtake Booth 66 Ford Escort GT Prod 81.20
Peterson Chaloupka 42 VW Golf GTI Gp2 81.53
Kotowski Bulaj 43 Eagle Talon PGT 81.70
Chambers Roeth 50 Saab 900 Gp2 82.76
Trepetin Trepetin 23 Honda Prelude Prod 82.98
Kreisler Bonasera 44 Nissan 200SX Gp2 83.80
Watt Casey 27 Suzuki Swift G Prod 85.62
Liebl Binkley 53 Mazda RX7 Gp5 86.30
Newey Bradley 96 Toyota Celica Gp5 92.83
Suddard Thomas 36 Dodge Charger Gp5 95.48
Kowalik Wheeler 51 Acura Integra Prod 96.31
Healy MacLeod 34 Dodge Pickup Prod 120:75
STPR '96
Wellsboro, Penn.
Round #5 - SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
Press Notes #9
6/02/96, 7:00 AM
25. The 20th annual Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally is now in
the books, and Paul Choiniere/Jeff Becker have claimed
their fourth straight STPR title, and widen their points
lead in the 1996 SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally series
championship. Their '96 Hyundai Elantra finished 2:51
ahead of the Production GT class winner and second entry
overall, the Eagle Talon of Selcuk Karamanoglu/Yorgi
Bittner.
Karamanoglu, the Production GT points leader, faced his
toughest class competition of the year, drove another
amazing rally, outdistancing several Open class
competitors again despite a more than 100 horsepower
disadvantage to those entrants. Selcuk won the class by
more than eight minutes over the Mitsubishi Eclipse of
Cal Landau/Eric Marcus, who were troubled by brake
problems early and could not catch up after that.
Third overall was the Audi Quattro of Pat Ayer/Rob Jones,
with the Carl Merrill/Brian Maxwell Audi Quattro S-2
fourth and the Audi Quattro of Bruno Kreibich/Rod
Hendricksen fifth. This was the first time that Audi
Quattro entrants have placed three cars in the top five
positions in several years.
The most hotly contested class was the Group 5 field,
where the Saab 900 turbo of Sam Bryan/Rob Walden was
leading the class by more than a minute before a crank
spark sensor failed on stage five, forcing a DNF. The
battle then turned to a dogfight between the BMW M-3 of
Rick Davis/Ben Greisler and the Dodge Shadow of Henryand
Cindy Krolikowski, with the Krolikowskis nipping
Davis/Greisler by less than 15 seconds in the end. The
two entrants were virtually tied going into the last
stage. Points leaders Ralph Kosmides/Joe Noyes were a
DNF in their Toyota Supra with mechanical ills.
The other 2WD modified class - Group 2 - was also very
competitive, with four competitors fighting for the lead
right at the start. With the Kurt Thiel/George Thompson
VW GTI DNF at the Creek Crossing (bent suspension), the
Gerry Sweet/Stuart Spark Saab 99 transmission failure on
stage #5, and the points leaders Dave Peterson/Greg
Chaloupka have various mechanical problems slowing their
efforts, Rim of the World class winner Mike Whitman, with
co-driver Paul Gibeault, emerged as the victors in
Whitman's Datsun 510. Whitman now takes over the Group 2
points lead from Peterson, who finished third in class.
Second in Group 2 went to Chris Havas/Pete Pollard in a
VW GTI, a great accomplishment for Havas in only his
third national event.
The Production class was also very competitive, with the
Jim Anderson/Martin Depot Honda Prelude VTEC edging the
Kia Sephia of Lon Peterson/Bill Gutzmann by less than two
minutes. Defending class champion Tad Ohtake/Nigel Booth
were third in their Ford Escort GT.
In all, 23 of the 42 finished the event, with 35 of the
original 58 starters completing the rally.
In the two divisional events, the top two Group 5
national finishers split the honors, with the
Krolikowskis winning the Finger Lakes Divisional and
Davis/Greisler team winning the Tioga Divisional.
# # #
SUSQUEHANNOCK TRAIL PRO RALLY
FINAL STAGE TIMES
STAGE 1 STAGE 2 STAGE 3 STAGE 4 STAGE 5
STONY ASAPH MILL RIM BUTTERNUT
DRIVER/CO-DRIVER CAR # CROSSING RUN HOLLOW STOCK RUN I
------------------- ----- -------- ------- ------- ----------------
Choiniere/Becker 1 5.78 9.47 5.92 11.63 10.38
Karamanoglu/Bittner 18 5.88 9.61 5.90 11.90 11.08
Ayer/Jones 74 6.00 9.58 5.82 11.97 11.09
Merrill/Maxwell 3 6.13 9.91 5.95 11.91 11.71
Kreibich/Hendricksen 8 6.16 9.75 6.00 12.49 11.70
Landau/Marcus 7 6.18 10.06 6.01 12.40 11.92
Whitman/Gibeault 39 6.42 10.34 6.19 12.39 12.19
Krolikowski/Krolikowski15 6.37 10.23 6.13 12.43 12.21
Davis/Greisler 21 6.29 10.36 6.29 12.56 12.43
Anderson/Dapot 31 6.58 10.85 6.39 12.98 12.09
Havas/Pollard 52 6.57 10.85 6.31 12.88 12.15
Peterson/Gutzmann 22 6.68 10.67 6.49 12.78 12.54
Fry/Kennedy 45 6.41 10.85 6.46 13.32 12.13
Peterson/Chaloupka 42 6.98 11.01 6.79 13.03 12.74
Ohtake/Booth 66 6.88 10.85 6.50 13.07 12.63
Kotowski/Bulaj 43 6.74 10.85 6.63 13.04 13.01
Trepetin/Trepetin 23 7.00 10.85 6.69 13.40 12.96
Chambers/Roeth 50 7.00 10.85 7.15 13.57 12.66
Liebl/Binkley 53 7.00 10.85 7.16 14.69 13.34
Suddard/Thomas 36 6.56 10.85 6.59 13.06 12.27
Newey/Bradley 96 20.09 10.61 6.14 12.96 12.44
Watt/Casey 27 7.00 10.85 7.19 14.13 13.16
Healy/MacLeod 34 6.77 10.85 6.89 13.24 32.42
Kreisler/Erney 41 6.66 10.85 6.56 13.29 12.33
Stone/Goldfarb 12 6.01 9.88 5.97 12.11 DNF
Pizzagalli/Hauge 11 DNF
Frontinan/Cunningham 13 DNF
Beloussou/Russell 77 DNF
Maldenburg/Steencken 37 DNF
Elliott/Williams 19 DNF
Orisek/Orisek 25 DNF
Kemp/McGuire 14 5.99 9.76 5.98 12.31 11.81
Bryan/Walden 4 6.17 9.92 6.00 12.21 DNF
Thiel/Thompson 28 6.32 10.85 DNF
Kowalik/Wheeler 51 7.00 10.85 6.29 21.28 12.03
Sweet/Spark 20 6.29 10.42 DNS
Kosmides/Noyes 16 6.24 10.48 6.38 12.35 12.11
Curran/McGirl 49 7.00 10.85 DNF
Bohn/Dillon 54 7.00 10.85 6.74 13.20 12.47
Kreisler/Bonasera 44 6.99 10.85 6.97 14.01 13.24
Lahm/Brandt 29 6.42 10.52 6.33 12.47 12.61
STAGE 6 STAGE 7 STAGE 8 STAGE 9 STAGE 10
BEAR JOERG BUTTERNUT BEAR JOERG
DRIVER/CO-DRIVER RANDALL I LEBO I RUN II RANDALL II LEBO II
------------------- -------- ------------------ ---------- --------
Choiniere/Becker 15.24 10.18 11.56 15.57 10.20
Karamanoglu/Bittner 16.22 10.42 11.04 16.07 10.66
Ayer/Jones 16.45 10.70 11.27 16.33 11.34
Merrill/Maxwell 17.11 11.05 11.30 16.71 11.05
Kreibich/Hendricksen 16.78 11.41 11.90 16.64 11.19
Landau/Marcus 16.87 11.35 11.70 17.28 11.11
Whitman/Gibeault 18.30 11.94 11.34 16.58 11.15
Krolikowski/Krolikowski 17.17 11.57 12.02 17.46 11.37
Davis/Greisler 17.65 11.53 11.67 16.83 11.59
Anderson/Dapot 18.16 12.13 11.87 17.44 11.54
Havas/Pollard 18.50 12.16 11.88 17.44 12.03
Peterson/Gutzmann 19.26 11.79 12.27 17.58 11.51
Fry/Kennedy 18.55 12.17 12.51 18.04 12.13
Peterson/Chaloupka 18.57 12.41 12.39 17.63 11.51
Ohtake/Booth 18.71 12.56 12.35 18.07 12.25
Kotowski/Bulaj 18.68 12.75 12.99 18.32 12.50
Trepetin/Trepetin 19.14 12.94 13.21 18.23 12.31
Chambers/Roeth 18.95 12.58 13.00 18.42 12.65
Liebl/Binkley 20.71 12.55 13.21 18.60 13.29
Suddard/Thomas 18.11 12.04 12.65 18.05 11.89
Newey/Bradley 18.57 12.02 12.20 17.97 12.59
Watt/Casey 19.30 13.99 14.53 20.14 30.98
Healy/MacLeod 38.15 12.43 12.68 18.35 12.30
Kreisler/Erney 23.51 DNF DNF DNF DNF
Stone/Goldfarb DNS DNS DNF DNF DNF
Pizzagalli/Hauge DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Frontinan/Cunningham DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Beloussou/Russell DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Maldenburg/Steencken DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Elliott/Williams DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Orisek/Orisek DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Kemp/McGuire 17.56 11.98 12.40 18.06 DNF
Bryan/Walden DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Thiel/Thompson DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Kowalik/Wheeler 17.95 11.91 DNF DNF DNF
Sweet/Spark DNS DNS DNF DNF DNF
Kosmides/Noyes 17.50 11.87 DNF DNF DNF
Curran/McGirl DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF
Bohn/Dillon 17.74 12.19 DNF DNF DNF
Kreisler/Bonasera 19.26 12.48 DNF DNF DNF
Lahm/Brandt 19.08 12.09 DNF DNF DNF
6/03/96
For Immediate Release Contact: Andy Schupack
(717) 724-2086
(until 6/2 - 3:00 PM)
or
(401) 739-5677
CHOINIERE DUSTS SCCA/MICHELIN PRO RALLY FIELD AT STPR; LEADS
SERIES AT HALFWAY POINT IN PURSUIT OF FIFTH STRAIGHT TITLE
WELLSBORO, Penn. -- June 2 -- Paul Choiniere, from Shelburne, Vermont, and
co-driver Jeff Becker, have lengthened their SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally
series points lead by winning their second straight event in their Hyundai
Elantra as dust hampered the rest of the 58-car field at the 20th running
of the Susquehannock Trail PRO Rally.
Choiniere, who worked hard to gain the first-on-the-road position by
winning the first four stages, was able to have clear shot at the night
stages without any of the dust that plagued the other competitors.
"This is perhaps the fastest event on the PRO Rally circuit," said
Choiniere, describing the hard, twisty roads in the Pennsylvania State
Forests, "and we didn't want to waste our 350 horsepower stuck behind
someone else's dust. I think the teething problems we have had at
previous events are behind us as our Hyundai Elantra ran perfectly for the
entire event."
In second place overall and winner of the Production GT class was the
Eagle Talon of Selcuk Karamanoglu, from Bath, ME, and Yorgi Bittner.
Karamanoglu, the Production GT points leader, faced his toughest class
competition of the year. He drove another amazing rally, outdistancing
several Open class competitors again despite a more than 100 horsepower
disadvantage to those entrants. Selcuk won the class by more than six
minutes over the Mitsubishi Eclipse of Cal Landau/Eric Marcus, who were
troubled by brake problems early and could not catch up after that.
Third overall was the Audi Quattro of Pat Ayer, from Burlington, VT, Rob
Jones, with the Carl Merrill, from Ogunquit, ME, and Brian Maxwell in
their Audi Quattro S-2 fourth and the Audi Quattro of Bruno Kreibich from
Queens, NY, and Rod Hendricksen fifth. This was the first time that Audi
Quattro entrants have placed three cars in the top five positions in
several years.
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 - different from World Rally, where practice is allowed. At Rim,
the cars start at two-minute intervals and race against the clock over
12 stages which range in length from four to 10 miles. The teams
achieving the fast combined times wins.
35 of the original 58 starters finished the event.
The most hotly contested class was the Group 5 field, where the factory
Saab 900 turbo of Sam Bryan, from Kent, WA, and Rob Walden were leading
the class by more than a minute before a crank spark sensor failed on
stage five, forcing a DNF. The battle then turned to a dogfight between
the BMW M-3 of Rick Davis, from West Chester, Penn. and Ben Greisler and
the Dodge Shadow of Henry and Cindy Krolikowski, from Wyandotte, MI,
with the Krolikowskis nipping Davis/Greisler by less than 15 seconds
in the end. The two entrants were virtually tied going into the last
stage. Points leaders Ralph Kosmides, from Newport Beach, CA, and Joe
Noyes were a DNF in their Toyota Supra with mechanical ills.
The other 2WD modified class - Group 2 - was also very competitive,
with four competitors fighting for the lead right at the start. With
the Kurt Thiel/George Thompson VW GTI DNF at the Creek Crossing (bent
suspension), the Gerry Sweet/Stuart Spark Saab 99 transmission failure
on stage #5, and the points leaders Dave Peterson/Greg Chaloupka running
behind all day, Rim of the World class winner Mike Whitman, with co-driver
Paula Gibeault, emerged as the victors in Whitman's Datsun 510. Whitman
now takes over the Group 2 points lead from Peterson, who finished third
in class.
The Production class was also very competitive, with the Jim
Anderson/Martin Depot Honda Prelude VTEC edging the Kia Sephia of Lon
Peterson/Bill Gutzmann by less than two minutes. Defending class
champion Tad Ohtake/Nigel Booth were third in their Ford Escort GT.
The next SCCA/Michelin PRO Rally Series event is the Maine Forest Rally in
Rumford, Maine, July 26 - 28.