Detroit Region SCCA
Sno*Drift
Coefficient 3
Divisional Pro Rally
Saturday, February 8, 1997
Table of Contents
Rally Review posted to Rally-L
For Immediate Release
Contact: Andy Schupack - (401) 739-5677
MICHELIN PRO RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP OPENS IN A FOOT OF SNOW AND SUB-ZERO TEMPS;
"SNOW SHOES" SPRONGLS SCORE WIN IN AN AUDI QUATTRO S-2 IN MICHIGAN EVENT
ATLANTA, Mich -- February 9 -- It was only seven degrees Fahrenheit as the 26 Michelin PRO Rally championship competitors headed into the upstate Michigan night, but the Canadian Audi Quattro S-2 team of Frank Sprongl and Dan Sprongl, from Mississauga, Ontario, swept to a five minute win in the SNO*DRIFT PRO Rally - the opening event of the season.
The Sprongl brothers, who have won every American snow rally they have entered since 1993, are making a concerted effort to unseat six-time PRO Rally champion Paul Choiniere, who missed the inaugural 1997 event as his new Hyundai Tiburon is not ready.
The Ford Escort Cosworth team of Carl Merrill/Lance Smith gave the Sprongls a battle early, but dropped out of the event halfway through with engine problems. Production GT class winners Steve Gingras/Bill Westrick were second overall in their Mitsubishi Eclipse, while Cal Landau/Eric Marcus finished second in Production GT and third overall, also in an Eclipse.
In the other classes, Tad Ohtake/Bob Martin were first in Production and fourth overall in their Ford Escort GT; Mike Villamure/Rene Villamure were winners in Group 5 in their VW Beetle; and Gerald Sweet/Stuart Spark won the Group 2 class in their Saab 99EMS.
The 1997 Michelin PRO Rally Championship, an SCCA series, consists of ten events, is sponsored by Michelin Tire Corporation, and sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America. The next event on the schedule is the Doo Wops PRO Rally in Olympia, Washington, March 14 - 16.
Results
| Car No. | Driver/Hometown | Co-Driver/Hometown | Make/Model | Class | Division | Time
(min.1/100 min.) |
| 11 | Frank Sprongl
Mississauga, ONT | Dan Sprongl
Mississauga, ONT | Audi Quattro S-2 | Open | National | 99.68
|
| 14 | Steve Gingras
Elk River, MN | Bill Westrick
Orion, MI | Mitsubishi Eclipse | Prod.GT | National | 104.70
|
| 7 | Cal Landau
Coraopolis, PA | Eric Marcus
Dayton, OH | Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX | PGT | National | 106.79
|
| 66 | Tad Ohtake
Dearborn, MI | Bob Martin
Goodrich, MI | Ford Escort GT | Production | National | 114.69
|
| 33 | Tom Ottey
Columbus, OH | Pam McGarvey
Columbus, OH | Mazda 323GTC | Open | National | 115.03
|
| 19 | Jon Kemp
Attica, NY | Gail McGuire
Avon, NY | Audi 4000 Quattro | Open | National | 118.86
|
| 21 | Brian Pepp
Marquette, MI | Dean Rushford
Ishpeming, MI | Eagle Talon | PGT | National | 120.90
|
| 22 | Chris Czyzio
Flushing, MI | Tom Beltman
Hudsonville, MI | Mitsubishi Eclipse | Prod.GT | National | 124.65
|
| 24 | Mike Villamure
Westland, MI | Rene Villamure
Flat Rock, MI | VW Beetle | Group 5 | National | 126.60
|
| 15 | Mike Hurst
Pendleton, IN | Lynn Dillon
Evansville, IN | Pontiac Sunbird | Group 5 | National | 127.60
|
| 27 | Gerald Sweet
Oakridge, NJ | Stuart Spark
Woodcliff Lake, NJ | Saab 99EMS | Group 2 | National | 133.35
|
| 23 | Mike Purzycki
Fenton, MI | Roger Papineau
Owosso, MI | Jeep CJ8 | Open | National | 141.87
|
| 20 | Rob Bohn
Noblesville, IN | Todd Houtz
Indianapolis, IN | Mitsubishi Eclipse | Prod.GT | National | 143.18
|
| 151 | Douglas Davenport
Indianapolis, IN | Al Kintigh
Brooklyn Park, MN | VW GTI | | Divisional | 143.65
|
| 13 | Wayne Prochaska
Lake Orion, MI | Annette Prochaska
Lake Orion, MI | VW Golf | Group 2 | National | 146.79
|
| 30 | Gail Truess
Brooklyn, MI | Paul Truess
Brooklyn, MI | Chevy Citation | Group 5 | National | 153.91
|
| 5 | Henry Krolikowski
Wyandotte, MI | Cindy Krolikowski
Wyandotte, MI | Dodge Shadow | Group 5 | National | 159.10
|
| 25 | Jay Kowalik
London, OH | Jeff Wheeler
East Liberty, OH | Honda Civic | Prod. | Michelin | 159.10
|
| 145 | Eric Schroeder
Indianapolis, IN | Jennie Mynhier
Indianapolis, IN | VW Jetta GLI | | Divisional | 160.58
|
| 42 | Art Burmeister
Sterling, MI | Randy Moore
Tawas City, MI | VW GTI | Group 2 | National | 171.69
|
| 96 | Bruce Newey
Atlanta, GA | Matt Chester
Atlanta, GA | Toyota Celica Turbo | Group 5 | National | 185.20
|
| | DID NOT FINISH |
| 17 | Sakis Hadjiminas
Floral Park, NY | John Bellefleur
Thornhill, ONT | Audi Quattro 200 | Open | National | DNF
|
| 28 | Al Kaumeheiwa
Brighton, MI | Craig Sobczak
Marquette, MI | Dodge Neon | Prod. | National | DNF
|
| 18 | Ivan Orisek
White Plains, NY | Olga Orisek
White Plains, NY | Audi 4000 Quattro | Open | National | DNF
|
| 29 | Marvin Luman | John Astmas | Dodge Omni | Group 2 | National | DNF
|
| 2 | Carl Merrill
Ogunquit, ME | Lance Smith
Colchester, VT | Ford Escort Cosworth | Open | National | DNF Engine
|
Press Notes
Michael D. Bodnar, PR Chair
DATE: February 8, 1997
LOCATION: Atlanta, MI
AUTO RACING COMES TO ATLANTA 1997 SNO*DRIFT PRO RALLY
#1 Atlanta and Montmorency county will host the first round of the 1997 Michelin Pro Rally Series on Saturday, February 8. Pro Rallying has been a popular form of auto racing in Michigan since the mid 60's when rally "stage" racing first began in the United States.
For those unfamiliar with Pro Rally, the sport is one of the most demanding endurance autosports for high performance machines and their drivers. The event is run in "stages." "Special Stages" or speed stages are closed roads on which competitors race to achieve the fastest time. "Transits" are driven at legal speeds on public roads used to connect the special stages.
Each rally team consists of the car, driver, co-driver (or navigator), and the service crew. Drivers are experts in car control, able to race under any conditions, rain, snow, ice, night or day. The co-driver is the key to success, he or she is equipped with precise course directions and highly accurate rally computers indicating exact mileage allowing the co-driver to "navigate" the team briskly through the course.
Rally cars are street legal production cars with special safety equipment. The fastest cars are custom racing machines equipped with four wheel drive and as much as 400 H.P. However, classes are arranged to allow competition between front and rear wheel drive cars, dividing engine sizes between under two liters (Group 2) and from two liters up to five liters (Group 5). Production and Production GT classes include cars stock from the manufacturer with only safety enhancements allowed.
Popular rally cars include, Dodge Shadows and Omnis, Chrysler Neons, Ford Escorts and Mustangs, Mitsubishi Eclipses, Mazda Rx-7's, Volkswagens of all types, Audis, Hondas, Hyundais, Saabs, Toyotas, Porsches, and many others.
The SNO*DRIFT PRO RALLY is expected to be one of the most exciting events of the season. The element of snow and changing road conditions require extra concentration for the teams. Spectators are guaranteed to be amazed at the speed and precision that drivers are able to maintain through the twisty Montmorency county roads.
#2 Saturday February 8, 1996 marks the return of Pro Rally racing to the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The event will begin at 12 noon from the A-Win-Sands Motel on Route 33 in Atlanta, Michigan. The early entry list includes 23 top drivers.
Rally fans will be disappointed to hear Paul Choinere and Jeff Becker will not be able to make the event in their new 1997 Hyundai Tiburon. Team manager, and rally legend John Buffum, explains that the engine was leaking oil at last weeks Canadian rally and there would not be time to make sure the engine was right before this weeks event. In the Hyundai teams absence, look for the Canadian National Champions, Frank and Dan Sprongl to lead the event.
There will be five classes of cars competing and each will have tough competition. The Production GT class (stock, 4wd cars) has the largest number of "new" competitors; many of these drivers have years of experience but have not driven four-wheel drive cars in competition.
#4 ENTRY LIST: The Seeded draw will be held Friday, February 7, 1997.
- Carl Merril Ford Escort Cosworth OPEN
- Carl's last minute decision to make the trip to snowy Michigan will add an extra level of excitement to the event. After winning last week in Canada, Carl will be fast and confident.
- Frank Sprong/Dan Sprongl 93 Audi Quattro OPEN Mississauga, CAN
- Canadian National Champions, experts in the snow, without Paul expect the Sprongls to lead the event.
- Tom Ottey/Pam McGarvey 89 Mazda 323 GTX OPEN Columbus,OH/Columbus, OH
- A top driver, using his "old" car, a threat to the Sprongls. In 96 had mechanical trouble with his Hyundai Accent at almost every event.
- Ivan Orisek/Olga Orisek Audi 4000Quattro OPEN White Plains,NY
- Very competitive team, with a highly modified car including a turbo-charged engine.
- Mike Purzycki/Roger Papineau 82 Jeep CJ8 OPEN Fenton,MI/Owosso, MI
- This past divisional Champion will bring a great old vehicle out of moth balls to compete, this team will be fun to watch.
- Jon Kemp/Gail Mcguire 89 Audi 4000Quattro OPEN Attica,NY/Avon, NY
- A Competitive driver in a good car expect the team to finish well.
- Steve Gingras/Bill Westrick Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT Elk River,MN/Orion, MI
- Possible future (97) production GT champ, top GT cars are able to beat some of the more powerful OPEN class cars.
- Cal Landau/Eric Marcus 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT Coraoplis, OH/Dayton, OH
- 2nd place in production GT 1996, class winners in 1995 they will be right in front of or behind Gingras.
- Rob Bohn/Todd Houtz 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT Noblesville, IN
- Experienced co-driver moving into the left chair, competitive car, a future contender.
- Chris Czyio/Tom Beltman 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT Flushing, MI/Hudsonville, MI
- Moving from Group 5, has been very fast with two wheel drive, will be learning to transfer his skill to four wheel drive.
- Brian Pepp/Dean Rushford 90 Eagle Talon PGT Marquette, MI/Ishpeming, MI
- Also new to PGT, Pepp was very fast in his Rx-7 before going swimming with it in the 1995 Lake Superior Pro Rally.
- Tad Ohtake/Bob Martin 91 Ford Escort GT P Dearborn, MI/Goodrich, MI
- 1995 Production champion, very fast, possible a top 5 finish, sat out the 96 season.
- A.K. Kaumeheima/Craig Sobczak 95 Dodge Neon P Brighton, MI/Marquette, MI
- Won production class in an extremely competitive `96 Lake Superior Pro Rally, He and Tad will trade places throughout the event.
- Jay Kowalik/Jeff Wheeler 96 Honda Civic P London, OH/E. Liberty, OH
- New to production class, the team is learning to be fast, watch for this team to challenge the front runners as the season continues.
- Henry Krolikowski/Cindy Krolikowski Dodge Shadow Gr5 Wyandotte, MI
- `96 National Champions, bet on them to be the fastest two wheel drive car, possibly beating several of the four wheel drive cars.
- Mike Villemure/Reny Villemure 72 VW Beetle Gr5 Westland,MI/ Flat Rock, MI
- An amazing car -- beautifully pre-pared, these drivers take turns driving different events and either is capable of beating the big names on a good day. They beat Krolikowski's once last year, can they do it this year?
- Mike Hurst/Lynn Dillon 88 Pontiac Sunbird GT Gr5 Pendleton, IN/Evansville, IN
- Mike will be driving Lynn's newly pre-pared car to shake out the bugs. Although a fast driver, Mike will play it conservatively.
- Wayne Prochaska/Annette Prochaska 87 VW Golf Gr2 Lake Orion, MI/Lake Orion, MI
- Competition is always stiff in Group 2, however, expect Wayne and Anntte's conservative style and well prepared car to lead the class.
- Gerald Sweet/Stuart Spark `78 Saab 99EMS Gr2 Oak Ridge, NJ/Woodcliff Lk, NJ
- This car probably has more rally experience than any one competing, the experienced driver will could win the class.
- Douglas Davenport/Alan Kintigh 85 VW GTI Gr2 Indianapolis, IN/Brooklyn Pk, MN
- A relative new comer to rallying, the team has been competitive in recent events.
- Art Burmeister/Randy Moore 87 VW GTI Gr2 Sterling, MI/Tawas City, MI
- Although short on experience they have proven to be fast in the past, look for this team to move up in the ranks.
- Eric Schroeder/Jenny Mynhier 84 VW Jetta GLI Gr2 Indianapolis,IN/Indianapolis, IN
- A relatively new team with lots of potential and a well prepared car.
- Gail Truess/Paul Truess Citation
- Always a competitive driver look for her to compete with the best.
#4 Organizers and Workers: A Pro Rally event requires an enormous number of volunteer workers to run successfully. Each race stage requires between 3 and 4 volunteers at the start and finish and any number of marshals to make sure traffic is controlled at intersections along the route. Ham Radio Operators are also placed along the route to ensure a quick response in case of a mishap. Workers are typically rally fans for years, some participate in their local event while others travel around the country helping at many events. Snowdrift has attracted workers from as far as Minnesota, New York, and Pennsylvania.
#5 Rally fans will be excited to see Carl Merril's Escort Cosworth compete today. After winning last weeks Canadian National Rally and not damaging the car, Carl decide to make the trip to Michigan. Fans can look forward to stiff competition between the Escort Cosworth team and the Audi Quattro of the Sprongls.
#6 The weather for Sno*Drift should be ideal. Roads are plowed with an ice/gravel base. The start of the race greeted drivers with bright sunny skies and 30 degree temperatures. A light dusting of snow, which fell over night will hide the icy spots, keeping the drivers on the edge of control.
#7 The first 4 stages of the SNO*DRIFT PRO RALLY are widely varied. Stage one, Lockwood Lake road is a 1.62 mile sprint with just enough curves and hills to challenge the drivers and allow them to adapt to the snowy conditions. Stage 2, Avery Lake Road starts with similar road conditions as Lockwood lake, although a bit faster; the road then 2.5 miles into the 4 mile stage the road becomes narrow and twisty, the end of the stage is run along the edge of Avery Lake with only an occasional tree to separate the road from the partially frozen shore. The third stage Harwood Hills, tests the driver and navigator skills with blind corners, off camber corners and one of the tightest hairpins in PRO Rally. Last in the first segment is The Ranch, 8.3 miles of "road" on Henry Joy's property, Lockwood Lake. The mix of terrain on The Ranch disturbs the drivers rhythm and confuse the navigators sense of timing. A mix of fast wide roads abruptly changing to "winter two tracks" barely wide enough to drive down with corners that hide behind the snow banks. The rough road conditions on The Ranch make it a tough stage to successfully travel.
#8 After the first four stages 3 drivers have each captured a stage win. The Sprongls were fastest on stages 1 and 4, but Tom Ottey/Pam McGarvey won stage two and are second fastest. Carl Merril Won stage three and holds third place. Tad Ohtake in the production Escort has steadily moved up in the field, now in 6th. As predicted the production GT cars of Gingras and Landau are battling for 4th and 5th and first in class. The Group 5 cars are struggling in the icy conditions with Mike Hurst/ Lynn Dillon in 7th. Group 2 is lead by Gerald Sweet in the SAAB 99 EMS.
#9 Stages 5-7 are a repeat of Avery Lake, Harwood, and The Ranch. Normally in a rally the second time a stage is run, drivers improve their times dramatically. Snow and Ice prove to change the "norm." Only three drivers improved their times on Avery Lake, The Sprongls who had a bobble on their first run, the Pepp/Rushford Eagle Talon who lost time stuck in a snow bank at the spectator point and Cal Landau who improved by 3 hundredths of a minute. A couple teams were consistent including the Davenport/Kintigh VW GTI who tied their time exactly, Hurst/Dillon only losing a hundredth of a minute and Gingras/Westrick 7 hundredths.
The beautifully sunny skies and mild temperatures being enjoyed by the workers and competitors have allowed a very slick layer of ice to form just beneath the light dusting of snow received over night. After the first run of these stages, the second is far more difficult than the drivers expect and they are finding this out by trial and error. Harwood Road had the same effect on times, most of those who improved did so because they were stuck behind someone who planted their car in a snow bank on the first run. Of the top 5 finishers on Harwood only Tom Ottey improved his time and by only 8 hundredths of a minute.
The Ranch has proven to be difficult and frustrating for many competitors. In the narrow sections if a car gets stuck there is no way around. Rallyists typically help other rallyists, The Ranch leaves no choice, if you want to proceed you have to help remove your obstruction. The second tour of the ranch left many competitors pushing each other through the stage just to finish, notable incidents included Carl Merrills 7 minute loss in the deep snow and the Oriseks Engine failure lining up almost the whole field behind them. The Sweet/Spark SAAB gets the consistency award duplicating their time exactly over the 8.34 mile stage.
#10 After 7 stages The Sprongls have a 1 minute lead over the Ottey/McGarvey Mazda 323, close behind are the production GT cars of Gingras/Westrick and Landau/Marcus. Carl Merrill is 7 minutes behind the Sprongls. Tad Ohtake has secured his lead in Production class by 17 minutes and is 8th overall. The Villemures in their beautiful bug have taken over the lead in Group 5 by 10 minutes over the Hurst/Dillon Pontiac Sunbird. Sweet holds on to a significant lead in Group 2.
#11 Drivers and crews will have an hour and a half to Service before stage 8 in Atlanta, Michigan. The service area is adjacent to the headquarters A-Wind-Sands Hotel at the BP gas station. Although some teams are pressured for time many enjoy the convenience of the local restaurants and warm hotel rooms.
#13 The second half of the rally will move north and west of Atlanta running three stages twice and then one more trip south east to The Ranch before finishing in Atlanta. The north loop starts on Meaford Road and continues onto Mills, this stage is ideal for winter rallying, barley two cars wide and mixed with tight corners, hills, and short straights drivers will be able to challenge their skills and develop a rhythm. A short section of Rouse road is the second part of the loop. Rouse is the rhythm road, wide with linked and banked corners this is a drivers delight any time of year. Although this section of road contains almost no straights it is fast. The last stage is the fastest of the rally. Camp 8 starts wide and straight, even with the icy conditions speeds exceeding the legal limit will easily be achieved on the first half of this stage. To slow things down the road ends by twisting and turning its way to the finish, gentle hills add to the challenge.
#14 After the first trip through the north loop 10 stages are complete and the score board is becoming solidified. The Sprongls are out in front with a comfortable lead over Gingras. The Landau/Westrick team is chasing Gingras closely. The Ottey/McGarvey 323 holds onto fourth after a slow run down Mills, and Tad Ohtake is in 6th O/A right behind the Czyio/Beltman Eclipse. The Villumures have managed to use their Group 5 horse power to edge in front of the Group 2 SAAB of Sweet/Spark by 6 minutes.
#15 Stage 12 brings a special note: The Douglas Davenport and Allan Kintigh VW GTI earns 3rd place beating cars with twice the horse power and twice the traction, congratulations.
#16 The second trip around the north loop has not changed the first nine positions, the Group 5 power of Hurst/Dillon has allowed them to edge out the Sweet/Spark SAAB for tenth by only 2 seconds. The rest of the field continues to change positions with each stage.
#17 The return to The Ranch proves to be exciting. Rallyists love challenging roads and the ranch provides it. Twenty four cars have made it this far, however only 21 will be able to finish the entire event. For a rally the attrition rate is considered good. Only one car is actually a victim of contact with a solid object and even these circumstances are odd for a rally. Because of the spacing allotted by the one minute start intervals it rare for two rally cars to come in contact. While attempting to pass the stuck VW GTI of Burmeister/Moore, the Kaumeheiwa ("K")/Sobczak Neon touched a front tire to the rear end of the GTI breaking a steering joint and retiring the car. At least 4 other cars were pulled from the snow on the final stage and the final standings are:
#18
O/A Cls Driver/CoDriver Car Class
--- --- ------------------ ------------------------- -----
1 1 Sprongls 93 Audi Quattro OPEN
2 1 Gingras/Westrick Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT/O4
3 2 Landau/Marcus 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT/O4
4 1 Ohtake/Martin 91 Ford Escort P/U2
5 2 Ottey/McGarvey 89 Mazda 323 GTX OPEN/O4
6 3 Kemp/McGuire 89 Audi 4000 Quattro OPEN/O4
7 3 Pepp/Rushford 90 Eagle Talon PGT/O4
8 4 Czyzio/Beltman 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse PGT/O4
9 1 Villemures 72 VW Beetle Gr 5/O2
10 2 Hurst/Dillon 88 Pontiac Sunbird GT Gr 5/O2
11 1 Sweet/Spark 78 SAAB 99 EMS Gr 2/U2
12 4 Purzycki/ Papineau 82 Jeep CJ8 OPEN/O4
13 5 Bohn/Houtz 91 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX PGT/O4
14 2 Davenport/Kintigh 85 VW GTI U2
15 3 Prochaskas 87 VW Golf Gr2/U2
16 3 Truess's 83 Chevy Citation G5/O2
17 4 Krolikowski's 87 Dodge Shadow G5/O2
17 2 Kowalik/Wheeler 96 Honda Civic P/U2
18 4 Schroeder/Mynhier 84 VW Jetta GLI U2
19 5 Burmeister/Moore 87 VW GTI U2
20 5 Newey/Chester 92 Toyota Celica Turbo G5/O2
DNF Merrill/Smith 95 Ford Escort Cosworth OPEN
DNF Hadjiminas/Dill 88 Audi 90 Sport OPEN/O4
DNF Oriseks Audi Quattro OPEN/O4
DNF Kaumeheiwa/Sobczak 95 Dodge Neon P/O2
DNF Lummen/Atsma 85 Dodge Omni U2
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