DirtyImpreza.com Rally Team / Jackson Rally Win 15 of 16 Stages ALISO VIEJO, CA — This year’s running of the 2010 Gorman Ridge Rally found teams in unseasonably pleasant temperatures in Lebec, CA. The action was as hot as ever though as the DirtyImpreza.com Rally Team (DIRT) / Jackson Rally duo of Keith Jackson and Marra Estep pushed relentlessly over 16 stages to take a commanding lead from the very beginning. Their dominating performance tallied up 15 stage wins during the challenging single day event. This was Keith’s third year driving at Gorman Ridge and his experience was showing through fast stage times and minimal damage to the Open class 2005 Subaru Impreza WRX STi. “Marra and I have grown as a team and are getting faster every event. Two pass recce [reconnaissance] skills have dramatically increased over the last year.” mentioned Keith. This year’s event brought the introduction of a brand new “Maxey” stage which many found refreshing and exciting. When asked about the new section, Keith had this to say: “The new stage was fantastic. The overall terrain is smoother than a typical Gorman stage but still has a few famous skewed water bars that Gorman is known for”. Gorman has gained a reputation as being one of the rougher events in the west, however the roads were recently graded and in good shape. The race was not without its moments though, a couple of close calls kept the team on their toes. A hair-pin turn on Stage 3 was cut a bit too tight and the car got up on two wheels, causing some damage to the driver’s side rocker panel when it came down. This resulted in the driver door not opening and forcing Keith to use the window as an exit from the car. The panel was quickly pounded back down in service, allowing the door be used normally again. A crest on Stage 14 got RLLYSTI fully airborne with a hard landing, but the car emerged unscathed as later inspections showed no damage. The victory here put the team in strong contention for the USRC Open AWD championship point battle. Currently, Keith Jackson is first in the driver category and Marra Estep is first for the co-driver category. The final round on October 1st and 2nd at the Prescott Rally will determine the overall winners. Teams from all over the country will be traveling out to Arizona for the final event of the season. You can be sure that Keith and Marra will be in full attack mode to fight for the championship title!
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