Rumford, MAINE -- Officials for the New England Region - Sports Car Club of America (NER-SCCA) announced today that the legendary Maine Forest Rally will return to the forest and gravel roads surrounding Rumford, Maine on July 29-31, 2004. The SCCA-sanctioned ProRally event is expected to attract nearly 100 top rally teams and thousands of spectators from across the United States and Canada.

Voted SCCA's "Best ProRally" in two of the past ten years, the 2004 edition of the Maine Forest Rally will consist of 11 special stages, ranging in length from 1/2 to 22 miles, with a total stage length of 108 miles. Friday's rally will consist of 4 stages totaling 22 miles, while Saturday's rally will have 7 stages totaling 86 miles.

Most special stages will be run once, with some special stages repeated in various configurations; the last stage on Friday evening will be run in darkness for some of the slower competitors. All stages are on forest or gravel roads owned by the Wagner Management Company, International Paper Co. or Seven Islands Land Co. The roads used in the Maine Forest Rally range from medium-fast two lane roads to narrower and twistier one and a half lane roads; most of the stage roads in this year's Maine Forest Rally are of the latter variety.

Pre-rally spectator activities will take place at the Mexico Recreation Area just North of Rumford, ME on Route 5, including a Parc Expose' where the entire field of rally cars will be on display from 1pm to 3:30pm for spectators to enjoy. The Rally will start with the Mexico Recreation Area Spectator Stage at 3:45pm and then proceed directly to special stages 2 and 3; competitors will then return to the service area at the Thurston Lot - as in 2003.

Friday evening concludes with the challenging Concord Pond stage. Upon completion of the Concord Pond stage, teams will be free for the evening with no overnight Parc Ferme'. Event organizers are planning a "pizza party" for all event volunteers at the Sunday River Brewery in Bethel, Maine following Friday evening's stage events.

The Saturday morning restart for the Maine Forest Rally will take place at the Sunday River Brewery located on the corner of Route 2 and the Sunday River access road. The day's route will take competitors to the Magalloway and Parmachenee areas of Northwestern Maine, where the majority of the rally will be run.

Officials expect two short service stops for fuel only at the State of Maine DOT Lot on Rt. 16 west of Oquossoc, while one long service stop is scheduled for early to mid afternoon in the village of Oquossoc. The official finish of the 2004 Maine Forest Rally will take place in Oquossoc, with a buffet and awards party later that evening at Sunday River Ski Resort.

The Maine Forest Rally buffet and awards dinner will take place on saturday evening at the Sunday River Resort in the Grand Ballroom of the Grand Summit Hotel. The buffet will be open to all ticket holders. When the buffet is concluded, the doors will open for the awards ceremony and the public is welcome. Scoring for the event and the lounge will be located just outside the Grand Ballroom. Buffet tickets should be ordered in advance; however there may be a limited number of tickets available on a first come, first served basis at the event for $30 each.

Those interested in purchasing tickets for the buffet and awards dinner should contact the Rally Master, Ted Goddard. by sending a written request via fax to: 802-263-9540. Ticket orders for the Maine Forest Rally buffet and awards dinner will be accepted no later than July 19, 2004.

Lodging information is available in Rumford directly from the Madison, Linnell or Blue Iris Motels or from the Rumford Chamber of Commerce at 207-364-3241. For other lodging information, contact the Sunday River Ski Resort by calling 800-430-0767 and be sure to mention the Maine Forest Rally. Located just 15 miles west of Rumford, the Sunday River Ski Resort has over 200 guest rooms, so officials believe that everyone can be accommodated in a 20-mile radius of Rumford. In addition to the lodging in Rumford, the Riverview and the Norseman Motels in the town of Bethel, ME are also possibilities.

For more information on spectating at the 2004 Maine Forest Rally, be sure to visit the official event web site: maineforestrally.com , or contact the maine Forest Rally Press Officer, Paul Giblin, via E-mail at: paulgiblin@usa.net

Paul Giblin
Owner/Consultant
White Mountain Marketing Co.
PO Box 982, No. Conway, NH 03860
Home Office Phone:(603)356-5946
Cell Phone:(603)520-2407