Forestburgh, New York — A private sponsor will pay in full the entry fee for three teams that will enter the International Rally New York on October 31 - November 1, 2008.

In order to qualify for the sponsorship, the driver of the team must be competing in his first or second season of stage rallying. Any team with a driver who had never competed in a stage rally prior to January 1, 2007 qualifies for the sponsorship with one exception: This sponsorship is not open to teams that are eligible to share in the $12,000 subsidy offered by the United States Rally Championship for participation in the final round of the Championship.

Interested teams are urged to submit their applications by e-mail directly to the sponsor at cellamet@citlink.net promptly by Thursday, October 2, 2008 at 12 noon. The application should state the names of the driver and the co-driver, the car, the car class and all contact information, and must describe the team’s qualifications. If more than three qualified teams apply for the sponsorship, the sponsor will select three teams out of the pool of applicants.

The generous sponsor is Mr. Robert Cella, a retired engineer and a resident of Sullivan County, New York. Robert is a HAM radio operator (AC2RC) and has been assisting Rally New York events for some time. In addition, he is already sponsoring a young local driver Eric Hansen.

The regular entry for the International Rally New York ends on October 2 at 8:00 pm. The entry will close on October 23. The International Rally New York (www.RallyNewYork.com) is the final round of the United States Rally Championship. The all-gravel Rally will take place in the beautiful Catskill Mountains during the autumn foliage merely 90 miles northwest of New York City. The Rally is headquartered at Villa Roma Resort in Callicoon, New York. The Ceremonial Start will take place at Villa Roma Resort on Thursday, October 30 in the evening. The special stages are located in Sullivan, Ulster and Delaware Counties of New York. The Super Special stage and the Ceremonial Finish will take place at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Walton, New York on Saturday, November 1.

The United States Rally Championship (www.usrallychampionship.com) is the largest rally championship in the United States with fifty percent more competitors than any other similar US rally championship and includes both gravel and tarmac events. The United States Rally Championship events are conducted according to the international rules. Most United States Rally Championship events allow reconnaissance and pace notes.

The United States Rally Championship is taking bold steps to make national competition more affordable and accessible to a larger number of rally teams. This is the second season of the new Championship structure that minimizes or, for many teams, eliminates the need for repeated cross-country travel during the Championship season by providing competition on each side of the country. The final round of the Championship at the end of the year counts both in the Atlantic Division and the Pacific Division and together with the results from all previous rounds decides the top spots in the Championship.

The International Rally New York is also the final round of the New York Rally Championship that provides meaningful regional competition for rally teams in the Northeast of the United States.