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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 13, 2004 |
For more information, Contact: John Cassidy Last Ditch Racing E-mail: John@lastditchracing.net Website: www.lastditchracing.net |
Bangor, Maine, USA -- Maine based performance rally team Last Ditch Racing completed the hot and dusty Maine Forest Rally, Round Six of the 2004 SCCA ProRally Championship Presented by Hot Wheels®.
Friday's stages saw the team climb from a 24th position start to 14th at the end of the night. Said driver John Cassidy, "We were pushing, as we knew the stages were rough and we thought we could put a little distance between ourselves and some of the other teams."
Saturday's stages were once again hot and humid, creating concerns for all the teams. SS5, Megalloway West, once again bit the LDR crew. 2003 saw the team loose a right rear wheel on the stage, driving out on three wheels. Cassidy and co-driver Dave Getchell found themselves in a ditch early in the stage. The team were able to drive the car out of the ditch, but only after several minutes. Once back on stage, it was clear that the right rear tire was flat. The team elected to change it on the stage, but the car fell off the jack. Luckily the team had a second jack in the car and got the car up after two more attempts. Said Cassidy, "We had a choice of driving it out and risking more damage to the car. Despite the lost time, I think we made the correct choice."
The result of loosing time on SS5 was that the team had to run further down the order for the rest of the day. "Given the dusty conditions, this was an issue for us," said Cassidy. The team caught a fellow competitor on a mid-day stage and broke three of their four headlights and damaged the windscreen after trying to pass the car for nearly two miles. "Catching competitors in the dust at the speeds we were running this year was very difficult and dangerous, but we really had no choice."
Despite their issues on stage, Cassidy was pleased with the team's performance. "The car was perfect and Dave and I were posting times quicker than last year. We brought the car home in one piece and we're ready to head back up to Canada to continue our championship season there at the Rallye Defi. St. Agathe/Duhamel."
Last Ditch Racing would like to thank their 2004 team partners:
For more information on Last Ditch Racing, please visit www.lastditchracing.com
For more information on the Maine Forest Rally, please visit: maineforestrally.com
For more information on the Rallye Defi. St. Agathe/Duhamel, please visit: www.rallyedefi.com