Sno*Drift

Press Notes by Ed Jacobs

1999 Michelin SCCA ProRally Championship Media Liason
from The Wind River Group

1. Good morning and welcome to sunny and crisp Atlanta, Michigan, home of the 1999 Sno*Drift ProRally, round 1 of the Michelin SCCA ProRally Championship. Primarily due to ongoing technical problems, as well as the need to meet with people who are at this event, we have not been able to post any reports prior to now. The technical problems really aren't resolved, but we will continue work around them.
2. Actually, a more appropriate greeting might have been (phonetically, because I don't speak the language) something approximating Gung Hee Fah Choi. Happy Chinese New Year!
3. It is very fitting that the 1999 series gets started today, the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit, a creature known for its speed and resilience. ProRally also is a resilient creature of speed and it, too, is at a new beginning.
4. The weather here is absolutely perfect for a winter rally. There has been some snow and cold throughout the week, but today is brilliantly clear and crisp, with temperatures expected to be in the mid-20s.
5. The roads are covered with ice and snow, with substantial banks on both sides in many places. There also are a number of places where the gap between the banks is little more than a car-width across.
6. According to rally officials, locals and drivers who participated in yesterday's press stage. Once the thin layer of snow gets worn off, these roads are going to get extremely slick in places. They're going to deliver some real surprises, especially for cars at the front of the field when they run a stage for the second time.
7. Last evening, the one car damaged on the press stage rejoined the field. The J.B. Niday/Leah Hoffa Fiesta missed a finish-control sign that had blown down and suffered significant front-end damage. However, a bit of creative cosmetic surgery made it possible for the team to start today, albeit with just two lights up front.
8. Thirty-eight cars started the rally, beginning at 10:01 this morning, in front of rally headquarters, the A Wind-Sans motel here in Atlanta. (Due to the lateness of this posting, the combined entry list/starting order will be posted after we get caught up on the notes.)
9. Two World Rally Championship-level supercars were near the front of the field, both Open Class Mitsubishi Evo IVs. Peter Lahm and Matt Chester were second off the line in theirs. Garen and Doc Shrader started 10th in theirs.
10. Cal Landau and Eric Marcus led the field away from the start line in their Production GT Mitsubishi Eclipse. Not far behind them, a pair of Mazda 323 GTXs set up to challenge Landau/Marcus for the class honors. The Gail Truess/Pattie Hughes car started sixth, with the Tom Ottey/Pam McGarvey 323 right behind them.
11. Waiting in line to start the event in his rented-for-this-rally Production Class Volkswagen GTi, Karl Scheible pointed out that this is the first time he has ever rented anything with a roll cage in it. However, as any experienced traveler would, he was quick to point out that he had "declined all coverages."
12. During the first service halt, comedian and "concerned citizen" Eric Marcus (Cal Landau co-driver) stopped by the press room to suggest that the roads were so slick and difficult to drive that perhaps rally officials should prevent anyone behind them from restarting the event "in the interest of their safety." Of course, he and Cal were first on the road at the time!
13. Garen and Doc Shrader found their Evo IV to be a quick ride in the opening going. However, they had to drive most of Stages 2, 3 and 4 on a flat, after getting a pair of flats simultaneously - with just one spare aboard. The mishap cost them a few minutes overall, and dropped them back to 16th on the first re-seed, but Doc was optimistic about their chances.
14. One of the better pre-event predictions about conditions was "He who goes off stays off." So far, that little bit of prophecy hasn't come true. However, as more and more stages are run, more and more people are talking about having been off or having helped pull people back on the road. Also, more and more cars are exhibiting bodywork that appears to have been "naturally rearranged."
15. A significant portion at the beginning of Stage 9 has been dropped. Most of McCormack Lake Road will be dropped, and the stage now will start where the original layout joined Lutz Road.
16. Carlos Arrieta, who is driving an Open Class Audi quattro with Dick Casey navigating, started rallying in Spain in 1963. The snow and ice doesn't concern him too much. What he does feel is a problem is the ice on off-camber turns.
17. Tim Winker (Group 2 Saab 99 with Brenda Corneliusen navigating), who has had his encounter with the snow and a bit of trouble changing a tire, describes the team's current approach thusly, "We may be conservative, but at least we're slow."
18. Karl Scheible, who is renting a Volkswagen Gti for this event, will be running a new Beetle later in the year when, as soon as the car is ready.
19. Eric Burmeister and Mark Buskirk (Group 2 Volkswagen Gti) retired at the spectator area on Stage 6, reason not given yet.
20. Brian Vinson/Richard Beels (Production Class Volkswagen Golf GTi) searched in vain last night for a two-cent seal for the clutch-actuation shaft. No one had one. So they rigged up a fitting, tube and funnel system to keep refilling the transmission. Near the midpoint of the rally, they figured that they had added 15 quarts of gear oil to their two-quart transmission. It's a pain in the neck; but, on the flip side, they figure that the underside of the car never will rust.
21. Toward the end of the dinner break, Pete Lahm (Open Class Mitsubshi Evo IV with Matt Chester navigating)looked out the window of the press room at the setting sun. Sitting roughly in fifth place at that point, and apparently thinking about the already icy roads and the sharp cold that soon would return, he said, "Now the fun begins,"
22. During an after-dark service halt Ken Stewart explained that his Open Class Chevrolet S-10 pickup simply wasn't getting any traction, which was making for a very long day. "I'd never done a winter rally," he said," and I wanted to do one before I got too old or quit. I think today's the day I got too old."
23. The attraction of a winter rally has brought workers from long distances. One drove out from Boulder, Colorado. Another, a sailor from Rhode Island, dropped the kids off with grandma and snagged grandpa to help with the driving out to the rally.
24. While they didn't come from there for this rally, there is a South African couple working the event. They really enjoy US events, and add that South African events are much more like our events than those in Europe.
25. The Group 2 Charles Sherrill/Mark Rea Honda Civic has come into service with moderate front-end damage -- mangled fender and bumper cover, etc. They had been running third in class earlier, before their troubles. They will continue.
26. Unofficially, after seven stages we have a pair of Production GT Mazda 323 GTXs running one-two. Tom Ottey and Pam McGarvey have the lead, hotly pursued by Gail Truess and Pattie Hughes. A little over a minute separates them. Interestingly, three of the four people in the two cars are ladies. John Kemp and Brian Maxwell (Audi quattro) have the Open Class lead, about 30 seconds behind.
27. Karl Scheible and Gail McGuire had the Production Class lead in their rented Golf GTi. They sat 12th overall, a very comfortable six minutes ahead of their nearest competitor, unofficially. Right behind them were the unoffical Group 5 leaders, Henry and Cindy Krolikowski, in a Dodge Shadow. Right behind them were the Group 2 leaders at that point, Wayne and Annette Prochaska, driving a Volkswagen Golf. Next came Mark Utecht and Diane Sargent, the Group 5 leaders with their Dodge Omni.
28. At that point, three vehicles were out of the event. First out was the Open Class Jeep Comanche of Scott Calborn and Dale Dewald, who had two flats on the first stage but only one spare. The other two dropped out after the fifth stage. In addition to the Eric Burmeister/Mark Buskirk Volkswagen GTi, the Open Class Audi quattro of Sylvester Stepniewski and Adam Pelc only completed five stages.
29. Update to a previous note: Garen Shrader (Open Class Mitsubishi Evo IV with father Doc navigating) reports that he did not get his two flats simultaneously on Stage 2. He got one flat (right rear) and put on the car's lone spare, then got the other flat in Stage 3 and had to limp on.
30. A number of drivers and co-drivers who had not been in their drivers' suits for several months were heard commenting on what they viewed as the odd phenomenon of Nomex shrinking when left in a dark closet unloved and unused for a few months.
31. The battle at the front between the two Mazda GTXs continued throughout the rally's middle sages. Ottey and Truess both were running very well in their lighter and nimbler mounts than were those in the bigger, heavier, more powerful cars. Ottey and Truess traded fast times, with Ottey generally just a few ticks quicker.
32. Update to a previous note: The Eric Burmeister/Mark Buskirk Volkswagen GTi retired on Stage 6 after hitting a bank and breaking a front strut. Driver and co-driver made repairs on the scene, in front of a spectator area. However, when they finished, they found that the force of the crash had pushed the wheel back against the body, and they were unable to continue.
33. During a night service halt, Production Class leaders Ken Scheible and Gail McGuire (Volkswagen GTi) commented on the slick conditions. Co-driver McGuire, who started in TSD rallying more than 40 years ago, described Stages 6 and 7 as like being in a demolition derby. At the time, they were several minutes ahead of their nearest rivals.
34. Scott Harvey Jr., son of one of rallying's well-known names from an earlier era, got caught out by ice on Stage 11. He and co-driver Al Zifilippo went straight off after encountering some of the ice. They centerpunched a tree and rumpled everthing on the front of the car virtually all the way back to the windshield. The crew is optimistic that the car will run again someday, but no more today.
35. After 10 stages, the battle between overall-leading Mazda 323 GTXs still was going strong, with Ottey unofficially about 90 seconds ahead, and the two cars one-two on the road. Third and fourth on the road went to the first- and second-place Open Class cars, respectively. Jon Kemp and Brian Maxwell (Audi quattro) had the advantage there, by about a minute, over Peter Lahm and Matt Chester in one of the Mitsubishi Evo IVs.
36. Back in Production, the Scheible/McGuire Volkswagen Golf GTi was enjoying roughly a 10-minute lead and cruising.
37. J.B. Niday (Group 2 Ford Fiesta with Lea Hoffa navigating) rolled on Stage 15 and wound up with the car lying on its side facing oncoming traffic. Next along was the Open Class Chevrolet S-10 pickup of Ken Stewart and Jim Dale, who stopped and helped get the car back on its wheels. The Fiesta had lost a window but continued on to the finish. With temperatures falling toward zero, driver Niday reported that it got really cold in the car. This was a sold car, however, and he was speculating that the well-wrinkled bodywork meant that the sale was off.
38. Twelve proved to be an unlucky number for Gail Truess. At one point on that stage, she could smell burning rubber. It turned out to be the belt that drives her Mazda 323 GTX's water pump. She got through the stage, but not before the engine overheated thoroughly. That ended the great battle for the lead that she and Pattie Hughes had been putting on up to then with the Ottey/McGarvey GTX.
39. At the end of the rally, Truess and Hughes stopped by the press room. Despite the disappointment of being knocked out while running so well, they were very upbeat. Hughes summed up their emotions pretty well when she said, 'Fun deal, fun rally. Watch the girls kick butt this year!'
40. With Truess and Hughes out, it suddenly was smooth sailing for Ottey and McGarvey. But not too smooth. Near the end of the event, five elk wandered across the stage not too far in front of them. Then, on the final stage, they got a puncture three miles from the finish. They elected to limp to the end and change the tire after the finish control. They did this, but watched their precious cushion over second overall melt away. In the end, they still came away victorious, first overall and first in Production GT.
41. Open Class winners Jon Kemp and Brian Maxwell (Audi quattro) were second overall, just over two minutes behind.
42. Karl Scheible and Gail McGuire won Production handily in the rented Golf GTi, nearly 10 minutes ahead of the second-place finisher in the class.
43. Right behind them came Group 5 winers Henry and Cindy Krolikowski (Dodge Shadow), less than three minutes in front of second in the class.
44. Wayne and Annette Prochaska were the Group 2 winners in an extremely tight finish. They brought their Volkswagen Golf GTi home a mere 14 hundredths of a minute ahead of the Suzuki Swift of David S. and David L. Cizmas.
45. Here is the finishing order for the first 15 finishers:
    1.) Tom Ottey/Pam Garvey, Mazda 323 GTX
    2.) Jon Kemp/Brian Maxwell, Audi quattro
    3.) Peter Lahm/Matt Chester, Mitsubishi Evo IV
    4.) Chris Czyzio/Eric Carlson, Mitsubishi Eclipse
    5.) Cal Landau/Eric Marcus, Mitsubishi Eclipse
    6.) Rob Bohn/Todd Houtz, Mitsubishi Eclipse
    7.) Garen Shrader/Doc Shrader, Mitsubishi Evo IV
    8.) Celsus Donnelly/Brendan Lawless, Eagle Talon
    9.) Brian Pepp/Jerry Stang, Eagle Talon
    10.) Karl Scheible/Gail McGuire, Volkswagen GTi
    11.) Henry and Cindy Krolikowski, Dodge Shadow
    12.) Mark Utecht/Diane Sargent, Dodge Omni
    13.) Brian Vinson/Richard Beels, Volkswagen Golf GTi
    14.) Jeremy Butts/Peter Jacobs, Plymouth Arrow
    15.) Wayne and Annette Prochaska, Volkswagen Golf
46. The next round of the Michelin SCCA ProRally Championship will be Doo Wop III & IV, Mar. 12-13 in Olympia, Washington.

OA Cl.  # Driver/CoDriver                Class    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   RP  Total
 1  1  79 Tom Ottey/Pam McGarvey          PGT   298  387  919  573  417 1001  579  779  435  554  773 1737  768  794 1823  898    0  12735
 2  1  80 Jon Kemp/Brian Maxwell          Open  314  402  980  550  453 1040  586  822  438  569  817 1751  758  829 1831  800    0  12940
 3  2  34 Peter Lahm/Matt Chester         Open  330  409  964  575  536 1013  588  817  445  574  831 1829  758  788 1778  753    0  12988
 4  2  21 Chris Czyzio/Eric Carlson       PGT   314  413  980  580  453 1048  594  848  455  588  849 1818  772  854 1860  785    0  13211
 5  3  13 Cal Landau/Eric Marcus          PGT   335  417  943  579  803  993  577  837  438  578  835 1789  743  868 1834  792    0  13361
 6  4  81 Rob Bohn/Todd Houtz             PGT   336  507 1057  586  518 1061  601  867  452  576  838 1817  777  842 1853  785    0  13473
 7  3  14 Garen Shrader/FR Doc Shrader    Open  328  442 1203  698  483 1067  595  881  455  591  819 1784  756  813 1809  774    0  13498
 8  5  68 Celsus Donnelly/Brendan Lawless PGT   312  482 1005  584  446 1161  581  834  454  550  814 1774  738 1256 1770  746  100  13607
 9  6  94 Brian Pepp/Jerry Stang          PGT   334  422 1016  598  447 1060  635  905  473  612  869 1879  780  892 1860  830    0  13612
10  1  61 Karl Scheible/Gail McGuire      P     344  450 1052  630  481 1161  669  931  495  633  863 1912  811  876 1963  836    0  14107
11  1  44 Henry/Cindy Krolikowski         G5    331  434 1002  596  873 1161  629  892  475  604  886 1924  799  891 1990  846    0  14333
12  2  83 Mark Utecht/Diane Sargent       G5    326  449 1055  609  474 1709  679  900  480  626  910 1952  792  898 1947  808    0  14614
13  2  55 Brian Vinson/Richard Beels      P     805  494 1112  652  491 1195  661  918  488  622  921 2087  846  885 2035  886    0  15098
14  3 575 Jeremy Butts/Peter Jacobs       G5    351  469 1449  632  482 1498  639  942  489  614  874 1977  824  889 2019  852  100  15100
15  1 113 Wayne/Annette Prochaska         G2    321  675 1041  636  481 1178  667  904  475  619  862 1975  970  910 2450  996    0  15160
16  2 591 David S/David L Cizmas          G2    344  496 1109 1207  496 1448  643  906  475  609  858 1903  786  878 1958  858  200  15174
17  4  59 John Rek/Clark Bond             Open  363  507 1128  696  471 1310  734 1086  544  704  991 2058  871  923 2058  902    0  15346
18  3  41 Art Burmeister/Randy Moore      G2    360  558 1153  675  588 1260  678 1011  525  681  971 2155  928 1002 2141  911    0  15597
19  5  93 Eric Schroeder/Jeff Secor       Open  355  422 1080  681  773 1308  662  988  534  676  999 2175  908  935 2061 1113    0  15670
20  6  43 Carlos Arrieta/Dick Casey       Open  350  507 1137  678  614 1250  724 1073  557  711 1001 2210  953  978 2210  978    0  15931
21  3  36 Evan Moen/Ronald Moen           P     341  447 1144  607  868 1678  643  922  507  613  884 1935  832  907 1992 1434  200  15954
22  4  58 Roland McIvor/Brendan Bohan     P     372  502 1194  673  617 1310  682 1048  479  693 1026 2294  923 1024 2323 1015    0  16175
23  4  56 Douglas Davenport/Allan Kintigh G2   1024  521 1127  640  679 1352  689  983  530  638  943 1958  843  939 2127 1006  300  16299
24  5  63 Mark Lapid/Michael Busalacchi   P     380  485 1142  675  523 1674  688  941  505  653  922 2005  843  916 2058 1731  300  16441
25  5  69 Charles Sherrill/Mark Rea       G2    361  538 1143  730  562 1364  713 1059  554  705 1050 2570  993 1070 2433 1081  200  17126
26  4  87 Lynn Dillon/J. B. Lewis         G5    371  512 1326  654  491 4367  643  950  420  637  904 1975  831  867 1926  883    0  17757
27  5 548 John Zoerner/Gregory Reno       G5    397  524 1240  728  530 1350  744 1080  572  696 1027 2132  904  977 2239 1052 2000  18192
28  6 599 Tim Winker/Brenda Corneliusen   G2    372 1512 1247  737  600 1437 1492 1072  582  738 1095 2379  989 1070 2308  973  100  18703
29  7 117 Ken Stewart/Jim Dale            Open  383  511 1120  747 1006 1346  758 1206  649  833 1300 2634 1144 1517 2930 1130  300  19514
30  7 531 J. B. Niday/Lea Hoffa           G2    374  520 1393  704  629 1742  643  999  576  704 1021 2278  982 1889 3904 1382  200  19940
31  8 538 James Buchwitz/C O Rudstrom     G2    560  515 1230  687  748 4083  643 1048  529 1698 1046 2331  991 1424 2510 1052  100  21195
32  7  16 Gail Truess/Pattie Hughes       PGT   312  411  955  570  436 1022  592  805  434  556    -    -    -    -    -    -    0    DNF
33  8  64 Sylvester Stepniewski/Adam Pelc Open  333  478 1048  634  484    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -  200    DNF
34  9  70 Thomas Lawless/Sean Divine      Open  318  422 1226  656  488 1105  611  881  467  643    -    -    -    -    -    -    0    DNF
35  9  42 Eric Burmeister/Mark Buskirk    G2    355  447 1125  626  660    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -  100    DNF
36 10 540 Scott Carlborn/Dale Dewald      Open    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    -    0    DNF
37  6 570 Scott Harvey Jr./Al Zifilippo   G5   1307  541 1891  728  561 1352  702 1061  557  745    -    -    -    -    -    -    0    DNF
38 10 522 Johnathan Butts/Gary Butts      G2    374  507 1335  651  857 1193  712 1140  533  640  934  2052  901   -    -    -  400    DNF