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Rally Challenge defined...
To a rally driver it's an all out, middle
of the night race on an unknown dirt road, trying by sheer
concentration to blend a high-strung, production based race
car and the road into an unbeatable stage time.
To a co-driver it's the thrill of the world's
greatest amusement park ride, combined with the challenge
of performing with great mental accuracy under the most physically
demanding conditions.
For the spectator it's a view of the most
exciting and demanding of motor sports. At most events, it's
a view for only those who are willing to travel to remote
areas and endure long, dark waits for the pleasure of seeing
the cars go by once, then move all over in order to see them
again. Not so at the 2007 Subaru Rim of the World Rally Challenge!
At Rim this year, all the action is being brought to the AV
Fairgrounds on the Super Special Stage. High speeds can be
reached on the straightaways, with the team achieving the
fastest combined times over all the competition stages winning
the event.
The US Rally Championship Series consists
of events that run around the country, in conditions from
the muddy, rainy forests, to the hot dry areas of Southern
California, and pit Subarus, Mitsubishis, Audis, Fords, Dodges,
Toyotas, Volkswagens, Mazdas, Chevys, and other marques against
each other. The series is sanctioned by the National Auto
Sport Association (NASA).
Rallying concurrently with the national
competitors are the regional-level California Rally Series
(CRS) cars. These are mostly local or regionally based rallyists
who compete in their own local championships alongside the
national competitors. Many are from this area and take their
"hobby" very seriously, competing hard in most of
the locally run events in the popular California
Rally Series. For those with a desire to compete in a
larger area without the expense of running a national program
there is the Western States
Rally Championship (WSRC), which includes events from
Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Nevada and Colorado.
Like what you see? Want to see more? The
CRS would like to get you involved in rallying locally. There
is plenty of camaraderie, fun and excitement on a rally schedule
that runs from February through December. Help is always needed
to work the courses, help with timing and scoring, HAM radio
operation for communications and a hundred other chores that
make a rally happen. Or maybe you yearn to get in a car at
speed as a driver or co-driver in a real rally. It's all done
with volunteers who, like you, watched a rally for the first
time and got hooked on the excitement.
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