21 Apr Rematch of Seconds set for Oregon Trail Rally

Article written for American Rally Association here.

Portland, Oregon (April 21, 2017)

The American Rally Association heads to the Pacific Northwest for the Oregon Trail Rally, April 21-23. The three day event features a variety of surfaces, mixing dirt, gravel, and tarmac with high speeds to test even the most skilled drivers. Adding to the challenge this year, heavy rains have turned normally dry dusty stages to mud.

The rally kicks off from Portland International Raceway on Friday night. Four crowd-pleasing special stages make use of the track and it’s access roads, running through the evening and under the lights.

On Saturday, OTR travels up the Columbia River Gorge to the open hills of Dufur, Oregon. The sweeping dirt and gravel stages near Dufur are, traditionally, some of the fastest on the calendar. This year, storms throughout the week have turned large portions of those stages to rutted mud, good news for those who like to make waves in the water splash on Deere Run. Saturday also features the Boyd jump with its spectacular view of Mt. Hood. For 2017, ARA will be live streaming the jump on our Facebook page.

Sunday sees the rally ford the Columbia River and head into Goldendale, Washington. The morning showcases the Columbia Hills stage and the highest elevation of the rally, nearly 2500ft. In the afternoon the focus shifts to tarmac, featuring the brand new Goodnoe tarmac stage along with the return of last year’s fan favorite, Maryhill. The two stages will be run in succession, creating one of the only tarmac stage loops in the country.

Last year, the Oregon Trail Rally was a battle of seconds in multiple classes. Subaru Rally Team USA teammates David Higgins and Travis Pastrana battled at the front, producing one of closest finishes in OTR history, 9.5 seconds. In 2WD the story was the same, with Ryan Millen and Cameron Steely trading tenths throughout the event to finish 10.7 seconds apart. This year will see even stiffer competition, an Open class stacked with talent will take on OTR.

Subaru Rally Team USA returns with David Higgins/Craig Drew and Travis Pastrana/Robbie Durant, currently one-two in the championship standings. Higgins has won in Oregon six consecutive times and is coming off a win at Perce-Neige. Pastrana is coming off of a tough Perce-Niege, but has proven his speed against Higgins on multiple occasions. Expect this battle to be close.

Barry McKenna/Leon Jordan will be hitting the stages in their newly unveiled Ford Fiesta S2000 turbo. Oregon will be his first time in a 4WD car, so this weekend will represent a learning experience for the team.

Open class is rounded out by two returning Canadian entires, Boris Djordjevic/John Hall and David Nickel/Alex Gelsomino. Djordjevic suffered a series of mechanical issues last time out at Perce-Neige, but managed to bring the car home. Nickel ended his last rally after driving off the road and getting stuck in the snow. Both teams will be looking to improve and finish strongly at OTR.

Restricted Open 4WD will be a three way battle of freshly-minted late model Subarus.

Jeff Seehorn and Karen Jankowski are the favorites in this class. Last year, the pair competed exclusively in the northwest, finishing second in class at OTR and Olympus. This year, the team has a brand new build and a chance of an overall podium.

James Rimmer will be competing his second rally in the Dirtfish sponsored Subaru STI. Rimmer, stepped up from a 2WD BRZ last year at Big White Winter Rally, so this will be his first event with 4WD on dirt. With him is co-driver Michelle Miller, a Dirtfish instructor who won her class at the Mt Hood regional at OTR in 2015.

The Dirtfish sponsored car isn’t the only connection to the rally school in RO4WD, instructor Travis Nease and Krista Skucas will be back in a brand new 2016 Subaru STI build. That’s right, after years of service the pair officially retired their 2004 Subaru STI, Snowflake, at Perce-Neige with a podium finish.

P4WD is a class of one this weekend, but that one is exciting. Formula D drifter Matt Coffman will be competing in his first National stage rally. Coffman competed at the local level last year in Nevada to great success and is now ready to step up the challenge in the 959 Subaru. With him is co-driver Niall Burns, a rally veteran with several national podiums to his name.

2WD has been a hotly contested class for the past year. Cameron Steely/Preston Osborn and Ryan Millen/Rhianon Gelsomino are continuing their close rivalry at Oregon. Millen proved dominate at Perce-Neige, but Steely was in an older car. For OTR he is back in his Fiesta ST, expect this battle to be as close as it was last year.

Be sure to follow the Oregon Trail Rally on the ARA Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages for live updates all weekend long. Also be sure to download the ARA App on iOS and Android.

Download the free spectator guide to view the event schedule, stage maps, and spectator locations.

Photos: Subaru Rally Team USA (Top); Alex Wong (1); Matt Kalish (2,3)

About American Rally Association (ARA)

We are a member driven organization dedicated to the sport of stage rally by providing a transparent and inclusive sanctioning body. A 501 (c)(3) non-profit, ARA is lead by elected and appointed board members who deliver a framework for safety, competition, promotion, and educational forums for all aspects of the sport. The common goal of our members, volunteers, and organization is a thriving stage rally program in America.