Sno*Drift ProRally

Atlanta, Michigan
January 26-28, 2001

Sno*Drift Website * Entry List * Results ProRally w/Leg Times * ClubRally Results


Press Notes



MEDIA ALERT

SCCA ProRally Championship Round 1 -- Sno*Drift ProRally

First round (of ten) for the 2001 season.B  A record-breaking field of over 60
SCCA and FIA Performance Rally cars from across North America will race on
demanding snow-and ice-covered roads at the northern tip of Michigan's Lower
Peninsula.B  This televised event is sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of
America (SCCA).

When & Where:
January 26-27, 2001; Atlanta, MI; approximately 100 miles(160km) north of Saginaw, MI
Time zone at event: Eastern Standard Time (same as New York)

Headquarters Hotel & Saturday Press Room:
A-Win-Sands Motel; 11610B  M33 North; Atlanta, MI 49709B 
517.785.2337(switchboard)

Event and Media registration (Friday):
Atlanta Senior Center -- 2/10ths of a mile north of A-Win-Sands Motel on Hwy. M33

Schedule:
Friday, 26 January, 2001
12:00 noon - 10:00 PM 	Registration -- all parties -- Atlanta Senior Center
12:00 noon -  9:30 PM 	Scrutineering Atlanta -location TBA
 2:30 PM 		Media rendezvous for press stage, Atlanta Senior Center - Credentials 
			must be issued/reserved prior to this time
 3:00 PM   -  4:30 PM 	Press stage (location confidential)

Saturday, 27 January, 2001
 8:15	   -  9:00 AM 	ParcExpose  Montmorency County Tribune
 9:01 AM 		First car starts Sno*Drift ProRally Montmorency County Tribune
 2:00 PM   -  5:00 PM 	Dinner Break
 9:30 PM 		First car finishes Sno*Drift ProRally, Atlanta Senior Center
10:30 PM 		Awards ceremony Atlanta Senior Center

Format:
All events in the SCCA ProRally Championship consist of flat-out racing,
in any weather, on challenging forest, mountain or desert roads.B  SCCA
Performance Rally events follow a format similar to that used around the
globe.B However, most events do not allow for on-course practice (recces) or
pacenotes.B  Competitors generally see the course for the first time as they
race it.

At-speed competition takes place only on special stages using demanding
back roads closed by local authorities for the event.  Transits connect the
special stage sections together and are driven at posted speeds, with teams
fully subject to all traffic laws.

SCCA Performance Rally vehicles are production-based cars and trucks
from manufacturers around the world.  They compete both for the overall
victory and wins within a class structure that groups together vehicles with
similar performance capabilities.

Each vehicle carries a driver and a co-driver/navigator.  Using a
detailed route book and a specially designed rally computer, the co-driver
keeps the team on-course and advises the driver of any hazards ahead.B  This
role is as critical as the driver's skill, since the team is traveling at
full racing speeds over roads they have not seen, in any type of weather.

Selected entries (driver/co-driver):
8-time Overall Driver Champions Paul Choiniere & seven-time co-driver Champion Jeff Becker; 
Open Class Hyundai Tiburon

1999 SCCA ProRally Overall Driver/Co-Driver champions Noel Lawler and Charles Bradley; 
Open Class Hyundai Tiburon

1999 Production Class and 2000 FIA Group N Driver Champion Karl Scheible with Brian Maxwell;
FIA Group N Subaru Impreza WRX.

2000 Group 5 Driver and Co-Driver Champions Mark Utecht and Brenda Corneliusen-Lewis - 
PGT Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX

1999 Production GT Driver Champion Gail Truess with Pattie Hughes-Mayer; 
PGT Mazda 323GTX

1999 SCCA Group 5 Champions and 2000 FIA Group N runnerups Henry and Cindy Krolikowski;
FIA Group N 95 Subaru Impreza WRX-STi.

Additional news interest:
Very strong Open and FIA Class fields, 3 Libra Racing Hyundais, Mitsubishi Lancer Evos, 
plus four privately entered FIA group N Subaru Impreza WRXs.

The SCCA Sno*Drift ProRally competition is held in one day, and uses the Atlanta, MI 
headquarters for all services, making this one of the easiest press coverage events of 
the season.

Event Rank:
Sno*Drift is a full-points round for Driver & Manufacturer Championships in
the SCCA ProRally Series.

Interviews:
Drivers, co-drivers and crew will be accessible throughout the event,
including the Friday press stage and at the Parc Expose prior to the start of
the Saturday's activity. The service area is open to credentialed press at
all times of the event.

Visuals:
Prior to the event, action photography and video will be obtainable for members of the 
registered press at the press stage.B During the event, action photography and video 
will be possible from special viewing areas set up along the rally course, as well as 
other sites.B  A Press/VIP van will be available (weather permitting) for transport to 
and from these sites for those without transport of their own.

Media car rides:
Media will be given the opportunity to experience the intense excitement of
ProRally cars at speed during the press stage.

Media information:
Media relations will be able to provide driver and co-driver interviews,
event results and other information via telephone, fax and Email.

National Media Contact: 
Kurt Spitzner - SCCA Pro Rally Championship
303.779.6622;B 303.694.3654 Fax (USA Country Code: 1)B mobile: 303.204.0375
Email: werace4u@aol.com

Regional Media Contact: 
Corinne Young Sno*Drift Public Relations
734.525.4890
email: PR@sno-drift.org
pager: 313.990.2885

Web sites:
SCCAProRally: http://www.sccaprorally.org/
SCCASno*Drift ProRally: http://www.sno-drift.org



SCCA ProRally Championship Round 1 - Sno*Drift

Atlanta, Michigan: The season opening round of the 2001 SCCA ProRally Championship starts tomorrow 
morning with record setting field of performance rally cars from the US, Canada and abroad. The Rally 
starts at 9:00 AM Saturday morning, immediately following a Parc Expose of all the rally cars at the 
Montmorency County Tribune building.

Selected late entries, news

Tomorrows event is the largest in the history of the Sno*Drift SCCA ProRally, with 60 entrants on the 
start list.  Along-side the Championship dominating Hyundais of Paul Choiniere & Noel Lawler are 
seven Mitsubishi Lancer Evos including Open Class podium contenders Garen Shrader and Michael Fennell, 
and a world-class Subaru Imprezas, featuring four UK built WRX-Sti. 

The season is starting with plenty of intrigue and last-minute preparations, and more than its share of 
bad kharma for Team Hyundai.  To offset the onslaught of Mitsubishi's and Subaru's, Libra Racing boss 
John Buffum had planned to run 3 Hyundais at Sno*Drift.  Last week, new team member Doug Shepard's 
Elantra was withdrawn with engine management woes. Yesterday, after a short, and completely successful 
test session, the brand-new motor in Noel Lawlers Tiburon locked up.  Still listed on this morning's 
start-order, the team is hopeful that this is just a temporary deep-freeze glitch, and they will be 
able to get Noel back in top shape for tomorrow's start.

After months of Internet rally newsgroup speculation,its official - Prodrive is here. Announced this 
morning, Vermont SportsCar owner Lance Smith confirmed his company has forged an alliance with the 
world-renowned Prodrive Ltd, constructors of FIA World Rally Championship Subaru automobiles.  
Fielding two Subaru Imprezas, the cars will be entered in all 10 SCCA ProRally Championship events 
this season.  Entered in two classes, 2000 SCCA ProRally Group N champion Karl Scheible will be at 
the helm of the Prodrive Gr N specification car, and former British national Rally Champion 
Mark Lovell will be piloting the teams SCCA Open class entry. Brian Maxwell, of Toronto, Canada will 
co-drive with Scheible, and Steve Turvey, also from the UK, will co-drive with his long-time rally 
partner Lovell.  Further confirming Prodrive's serious attack on the championship, the team's support 
truck was shipped in from the UK, and there will be no less than 17 Prodrive crew members on hand to 
handle any service situation.

The Saturday afternoon and evening schedule has been revised slightly from the media alert sent last 
week.  The dinner break is now set at 1:30 - 4:30 (1/2 hour earlier) and the first car finish time is 
now set at 9:11 (approx 20 min earlier).  See the event website listed below for complete details.

Weather forecast:  The aptly-named Sno*Drift The forecast for the event is classic northern Michigan:  
bone-chilling, high-humidity, well below freezing temperatures, coupled with light breezes and nearly 
constant snow flurries throughout the day and night will keep crews shivering and drivers on their 
toes.  Without any significant snowfall in over three weeks, most of the roads are hard packed snow 
and ice.

Press Room Reminder:  The Press Room is scheduled to be open continuously from 10:00 AM - 8:30 PM on 
Saturday.  Due to the relative brevity of the event, we will not be posting our usual Leg One results.  
The next release you receive will be the final results, posted via our regular e-mail distribution.

Contact: Kurt Spitzner - SCCA ProRally Championship Marketing and Media Manager
Direct inquiry Email: werace4u@aol.com
Time zone at-event: Eastern Time (GMT -5 hours)
Press room phone: 517.785.2337 (hotel operator will transfer call to room)

Information regarding the start order list: Car# = number on vehicle.  Most Cars with numbers under 
200 are Pro entries.  Cars numbered over 200 are generally ClubRally (regional) entrants, with first 
digit denoting their home division (2,3 = West coast, 5 = Central US, 8,9 Eastcoast). 
Class = Open - fastest; are cars with considerable modifications; P(Production) - slowest; are cars 
very near showroom stock configuration.  G5 - two wheel drive high HP cars;  G2 - two wheel drive lower 
horsepower cars; GT - high horsepower production (stock) cars.  Pro seed only shown for clarity. Cars 
with no seed listed are entered in the ClubRally support events only.

Sno*Drift SCCA ProRally Championship Round #1
27 January, 2001
Start Order (subject to revision)

Car#   Start   Seed   Class Driver             Co-Driver           Car
   4       1     0    Open  Garen Shrader      Michael Fennell     1995 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
   3       2     0    Open  Noel Lawler        Charles Bradley     2000 Hyundai Tiburon
   2       4     0    N     Karl Scheible      Brian Maxwell       2000 Subaru WRX STi
   6       5     1    Open  Peter Lahm         Matt Chester        1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
   5       6     1    Open  Doug Shepherd      Pete Gladysz        1992 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX
  14       7     1    N     Mark Lovell        Steve Turvey        2000 Subaru WRX STi
 115  	   8     1    Open  Seamus Burke       Frank Cunningham    1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
  44       9     1    N     Henry Krolikowski  Cindy Krolikowski   1995 Subaru WRX-STi
  71      10     1    G5    Bryan Hourt        Drew Ritchie        1999 Honda Civic
 116      11     2    G2    Thomas Lawless     Brendan Lawless     1993 Honda Civic
 160      12     2    Open  Eric Eaton         Kenny Almquist      1999 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS
 107      13     3    Open  Tim Paterson       Scott Ferguson      1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
  76      14     1    GT    Gail Truess        Pattie Hughes-Mayer 1988 Mazda 323 GTX
  83      15     2    GT    Mark Utecht        Brenda Lewis        1992 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX
  21      16     2    GT    Chris Czyzio       Eric Carlson        1991 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX
  82      17     2    G5    Mike Hurst         Rob Bohn            1988 Pontiac Sunbird turbo
  63      18     2    G5    Tad Ohtake         Bob Martin          1997 Ford Escort ZX-2
  43      19     3    Open  Kurosh Jahromi     Tony Lumino         1993 Ford Escort Cosworth
  64      20     3    Open  Sylv. Stepniewski  Adam Pelc           1987 Audi 4000 quattro
 551      21     3    Open  Mark Sarnecki      Rick Hansen         1998 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS
 928      22     3    Open  Dean Fry           Greg Usavage        1990 Subaru Legacy 
 565      23     3    N     Russ Hodges        Jimmy Brandt        1995 Subaru WRX-STi
 971      24     3    GT    Brendan Cunningham Paul McClean        1990 Eagle Talon
 992      25     3    GT    Bruce Perry        Phil Barnes         1990 Eagle Talon TSi AWD
 950      26     4    GT    Shane Mitchell     Paul Donnelly       1992 Eagle Talon
  55      27     3    G5    Brian Vinson       Richard Beels       1997 Toyota Supra turbo
 151      28     4    Open  Carlos Lopez       John Atsma          1990 Eagle Talon 
 185      29     4    Open  Jon Bogert         Daphne Bogert       1988 Toyota Celica
 589      30     4    Open  Alec Ellsworth     Steve Kaczkowski    1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
  42      31     4    G2    Eric Burmeister    Mark Buskirk        1986 VW Golf GTi
 559      32     5    Open  John Rek           Bob DuPree          1995 Audi S-2
 173      33     5    N     Patrick Lilly      Eoin McGeough       1995 Subaru Impreza
 555      34     5    G5    Colin McCleery     Jeff Secor          1991 VW GTI
  15      35     5    G2    Brad Hawkins       Adrian Wintle       1996 VW Golf GTI
  41      36     5    G2    Art Burmeister     Randy Moore         1988 VW Golf GTi
  84      37     5    G2    J B Niday          Allan Kintigh       1987 VW Golf GTi 
 505      38     5    G2    Jon Hamilton       Josh Westhaven      1981 VW Rabbit 
 540      39     5    P     Scott Carlborn     Dale Dewald         1992 Jeep Comanche
 942      40     5    P     William Tremmel    Peter Coleman       1986 VW Jetta GTI
 904      41     6    N     John Drislane      Declan Heagerty     1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV 
 594      42     6    G5    Wiktor Biegalski   TBA                 1990 Mitsubishi Eclipse
 553      43     6    G5    Jerry Brownell     Jim Windsor         1983 Chevrolet Citation X-11
 526      44     6    P     Ken Kovach         Dave Bruce          2000 Ford Focus ZX3
 539      45     6    P     Ryan Brooks        Shanti Traskowski   1995 Acura Integra 
 518      46     6    Open  Dennis Martin      Chris Plante        1990 Mitsubishi Eclipse 
 502      47     6    Open  Paul Dunn          Rebecca Dunn        1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
 583      48     6    Open  Michael Reeves     Donald Reeves       1991 Toyota Celica All-Trac
 930      49     6    G2    Greg Gilfeather    Don DeRose          1974 Porsche 914 
 811      50     6    G2    Matthew Johnson    Eric Adams          1988 VW Golf GTI
 533      51     6    P     Tom Young          Jim LeBeau          1995 Dodge Neon ACR

Start Order ClubRally Support Event (subject to revision)     
 527      52   	      Open  Chris Gilligan     Joe Petersen        1992 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX
 519      53          GT    Scott Harvey Jr    JeffHribar          1990 Eagle Talon
 544      54          Open  Daniel Malott      Matt Malott         1990 Eagle Talon TSi AWD 
 548      55          G5    John Zoerner       John Shepski        1985 Dodge Omni GLHT
 578      56          G5    Anthony Grinnell   Kim Young           1991 Chevrolet Beretta GTZ
 546      57          G2    Phil Schmidt       Steve Irwin         1987 Toyota MR2
 569      58          Open  Mike Purczycki     Marc Searight       1982 Jeep Scrambler 
 976      59          G2    Russell Rosendale  Robin Winter        1987 VW Golf 
 558      60          P     Jim Cox            Kaarii Louise Cox   1989 Chevrolet S-10

For further information, please visit these Web sites:

SCCA ProRally: http://www.sccaprorally.org/ 
SCCA Sno*Drift ProRally: http://www.sno-drift.org



For Immediate Release 
January 27, 2001 

SCCA ProRally Championship - Round 1 - Sno*Drift 
Ice-Ace Choiniere takes Hyundai to Top Podium Finish 

Atlanta, Michigan, Driving a brilliant race with an "absolutely perfect" 
setup on his Hyundai Tiburon, eight-time SCCA ProRally Overall Driver 
Champion Paul Choiniere with seven-time Co-Driver Champion Jeff Becker skated 
away from the field, finishing nearly two minutes ahead of US rallying 
newcomer Mark Lovell and his Prodrive Subaru Impreza WRX.  Seamus Burke and 
Frank Cunningham, in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV, were in the hunt from 
stage one, and finished a mere 30 seconds behind Lovell.   
 
A steady snow fell through much of the night and morning, coating the thickly 
frozen roads with 2 inches of white powder, presenting drivers with the 
slickest conditions imaginable, or so they thought.  The sun came out 
mid-afternoon, and briefly turned much of the powder into water, lubricating 
a surface that was difficult to stand on, much less drive.  As night fell, 
the roads actually improved somewhat, with the hardening ice providing more 
traction than the drivers had experienced all day.   
Noel Lawler and Charles Bradley's bad luck continued into the start of a 
second season, but at least this time misery had company; with the 1999 
Overall Driver and Co-Driver Champions being joined by Garen Shrader and 
Michael Fennell, who lost their engine at the pre-event press stage.  This 
was Shrader's career first-on-the-road start. 

Mark Lovell:  "I still haven't stopped shaking" exclaimed the former British 
National Rally Champion, "this is the hardest driving combination that I've 
ever encountered:  driving blind, on ice, with no studs - an amazing event, 
I've got a lot of respect for the drivers here." 

Seamus Burke:  "A good start - we're planning on running at least seven 
championship rounds this year, and we're have our new Evo VI at Chattanooga 
in March."   

Brian Vinson, debuting his ex-Ralph Kosmides G5 championship winning Toyota 
Supra turbo; had a short day, earning the first time-bar of the event.  The 
2000 season's Production class champion moved up a bunch in horsepower this 
year, but is now also driving possibly the most challenging vehicle to manage 
in the snow in the series.  Fortunately, damage to the car is apparently nil. 

Mark Utecht and Brenda Corneliusen-Lewis, reigning Group 5 Champions debuted 
their new Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX in fine style, finishing 6th overall and 1st 
in Production GT, with a generous 2 plus minute lead over the Gail 
Truess/Pattie Hughes-Mayer Mazda 323 GTX.  The team is the second in a row to 
win the SCCA Overall 2WD (Woodner Cup) Championship and switch to 
all-wheel-drive.  Henry and Cindy Krolikowski were the trendsetters in 2000, 
importing the first Prodrive Subaru Impreza WRX's into the country.  The 
Krolikowskis had their best finish to date since making the switch last June, 
coming home a very respectable 5th overall, and 2nd in Group N.  This good 
showing was despite a harrowing double 360 spin and brief off road/lakeside 
excursion mid-event that left the couple shaken, clearly stirred, and the WRX 
just slightly narrower in the middle.   

Tad Ohtake, a Ford engineer that enjoys a good rally every now and again 
proved that the time off hasn't slowed him down a bit.  Driving a 
supercharged Ford Escort ZX2, Ohtake rounded out the Top 10 overall, and was 
also the top finishing 2WD entry, taking Group 5 honors. 
In Group 2, Michigan resident Eric Burmeister enjoyed a rare-in-rally 
competition, 10-minute window over a hard-charging Matthew Johnson, a North 
Carolina native with considerably less cold-weather experience.  How hard was 
Johnson charging?  Making his SCCA ProRally debut, seed 6 Johnson started 
50th on the road, and finished 19th, the most places gained by any competitor 
this weekend. 

Hyundai jumps to an early lead in the Manufacturers Championship with Round 1 
overall points at: Hyundai 20, Subaru 15, and Mitsubishi 12. 

After this traditional early season start, the SCCA ProRally Championship 
will take a brief hiatus, resuming the action in Chattanooga, Tennessee, for 
the Cherokee Trails Rally 15-17 March.  An internationally listed FIA event, 
this new addition to the SCCA ProRally schedule will also feature SCCA 
ProRally and SCCA ClubRally action, over three days in the Smoky Mountains of 
east Tennessee. 
 complete results will be posted on the Sno*Drift website: 
<http://www.sno-drift.org> 

royalty free/public domain photography of this event is available at 
www.rallysport.net/sd01 <http://www.rallysport.net/sd01> 

 

The SCCA name and logo is a registered trademark of the Sports Car Club of 
America, Inc.  ProRally, ClubRally and RallyCross are service marks of the 
SCCA. 


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