COLCHESTER, VT, USA -- Coming off two straight overall victories in the US-based Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) ProRally Series, Vermont SportsCar and the SCCA ProRally team of Karl Scheible from Spencerport, New York and Russ Hughes from Leroy, New York are heading to the Maine Forest SCCA ProRally atop the National points championship.

Claiming two overall victories at two of the toughest events in the nine-event SCCA ProRally series, the "Rim of the World Rally" in southern California and the "Susquehannock Trail ProRally" in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, the team of Scheible and Hughes are indeed focused on the tasks at hand. Their original mission when the season started in January was to capture the new SCCA Group N Championship, but after five events, the duo find themselves in a position where they might not only meet their original goal, but capture the coveted SCCA Overall ProRally Championship as well!

Heading into the challenging Maine Forest Rally in Rumford, Maine on July 28th & 29th with a slim, but impressive, 22-point advantage over the factory Hyundai team of Paul Choiniere and Jeff Becker, Karl Scheible and Russ Hughes know full well that the pressure and the spotlight throughout the rally in Maine will be on them. Choiniere and Becker are no strangers to victory themselves, however, having captured the overall US SCCA ProRally Championship no less than seven times in recent years.

However, the Vermont SportsCar-prepared Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V that Scheible will be piloting in Maine has proven to be nothing short of incredible this season. Car owner Lance Smith and his Vermont SportsCar North American Rally Team are as meticulous as they come when it comes to preparing their Mitsubishi for battle. Every nut and bolt on their car is touched and gone over not once, but twice - nothing is taken for granted. This desire by the entire team to achieve nothing short of perfection has been one of the key factors that has allowed them to perform as they have this season.

The other key factor for the team's success this year is the relationship between the driver and the co-driver. Close friends since they were classmates in school, Scheible and Hughes are naturals at this sport. They understand each others quirks and what makes each other tick. They understand the mechanics of the rally car as well as what it takes to prepare the team for each event. And one of the most important things they both understand is that "to finish first, you must first finish". Introduced to the rugged sport of rallying many years ago by Karl's father, the two New Yorkers have combined their talents this season to become a major force in the SCCA ProRally Series that definitely needs to be taken seriously by the other top teams in the championship.

Their mission in Maine is simple - to remain focused. A tough job for most, however not for this pair. Both are successful businessmen with a keen ability for being able to remain focused on the mission at hand. This sense of purpose, combined with the meticulous efforts of the Vermont SportsCar North American Rally Team, led by 20-year rally veteran Lance Smith, should, if they're lucky, be the formula for success once again in the far reaches of northern Maine.

"The Maine Forest Rally is a tough event," stated Smith recently, "We've all worked long and hard to get to this point and it's starting to pay off. Heading to Maine with the overall points lead in the SCCA ProRally Series is a wonderful feeling - something we've all looked forward to for years. The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V has performed without question all season and Karl and Russ have also done a tremendous job in the car at each rally. We certainly hope that the combination of a well-prepared car, competent driver and co-driver and talented service team will pay off for us once again at the rally in Maine."

The Vermont SportsCar North American Rally Team is based in Colchester, Vermont and receives corporate support from the following international corporations: Lazer Digital Services, Flower City Printing, Ohlins Suspension Systems from Sweden, Hella Lighting Systems, New England Racing Fuels/Sunoco Race Fuels, Compomotive Motorsport Wheels, Stack Instruments, Goodridge Components, Aearo Peltor and MOMO Automotive Accessories.

For more info regarding the SCCA ProRally Series, the team of Scheible and Hughes or Vermont SportsCar, please contact Paul Giblin, Director of Marketing & Public Relations for Vermont SportsCar at 603-383-4088 or via e-mail at: paulgiblin@usa.net. Please visit the team's web site at: WWW.VTCAR.COM for the latest in team news and sponsor information.

Vermont SportsCar
23 Hercules Drive
Colchester, VT 05446
Tel 802-655-3533
Fax 802-655-6693
E-mail info@vtcar.com
Web www.vtcar.com