RALLY: Doo Wop Pro Rally Race Notes
15 March 1999
Good morning and welcome to a slightly hazy but otherwise clear Olympia, Washington, home of the 1999 Crazee Espresso Doo Wop ProRally. This event will consist of two one-day rallies, Doo Wop III and Doo Wop IV. Combined, they comprise round 2 of the 1999 Michelin SCCA ProRally Championship. Yesterday's lingering rain is gone, and temperatures are in the low 40s, with a light breeze. Thirty-eight cars are expected to start the event.1.) These reports are being produced by "remote control" from Wind River Group's office in Ohio. So there will be some time lag in their generation. Rally/Solo marketing manager Kurt Spitzner is on the scene, reporting information back frequently by fax, phone and Email.
2.) Long periods of rain and snow over recent weeks have left the roads in the rally area wet, muddy and slick.
3.) The Forest Service has graded three of the stage roads in the past couple of days, making them very smooth, but leaving sizable amounts of loose gravel over the underlying slimy mud. Based on reports from yesterday's press stage, this gravel is somewhat larger than normal pea gravel, and is very sharp. Although there were no flats, many tires showed evidence of cuts from the gravel on the 1.5-mile stage.
4.) Olympia-area coffee-house chain Crazee Espresso has come aboard as sponsor the for ClubRally portions of this event. Crazee Espresso also sponsors Janice Damitio's Open Class Toyota Celica AllTrac.
5.) The event originally schedule to take place next on the 1999 Michelin SCCA ProRally calendar, the Little Creek Casino Wild West ProRally, officially has been postponed for environmental reasons. Weather is the underlying cause of the postponement. Both Doo Wop and Wild West take place in the same general area of western Washington. This winter, the effected counties have endured a combination of all-time record snowfall and an all-time record for consecutive days of rainfall. This produced very high levels of runoff and silting of area waterways. Doo Wop was permitted to run, but authorities felt that continued use of the roads would prolong or worsen the silting and interfere with the forthcoming salmon migration. Therefore, organized use of the area roads -- including commercial logging -- has been temporarily put on hold until after the migration.
6.) Wild West has been rescheduled for June 18-19. For a while, there was some debate about the date, but it now has been finalized.
7.) Following the press stage yesterday, Janice Damitio reported that her Open Class Crazee Espresso Toyota Celica AllTrac was well down on power. The crew worked on the car through the night but isn't sure that the problem is solved.
8.) Six-time overall series champion Paul Choiniere is here this weekend for his first series outing of the year. He's driving the same Hyundai Tiburon he piloted last year, but this will be his last time in it. He has a new car set to make its debut in what is now the next event on the calendar. That will be the April 30-May 1 Rim of the World ProRally, which will be based in Palmdale, California. Teammate Noel Lawler will take over the current car from Choiniere for the rest of the year.
9.) One car that is making its debut here is the striking new Toyota Celica AllTrac being driven by Nao Hirato. Not only is it the car's first event, it's also Hirato's first ProRally. He will compete in the Production GT class.
10.) A late entry has added Neville Green and Chuck Wiles in a Group 5 Mercury Merkur ZR4ti. The heavily subscribed class is beginning to look though it may be the most competitive in this event.
11.) Three cars are entered on Silverstone rally tires. These Japanese tires are little known in America, but apparently are quite popular in the Pacific Rim countries. The three Silverstone-equipped cars have been entered by the rallying Tabor family. There's Production Class Nissan Sentra for Jon and navigator Kevin Poirier, a Production GT Class Mazda 3233 GTX for Matt and Kristen, and Group 2 Toyota Corolla for Matt and navigator Chris Hoke.
12.) A total of 40 cars were entered for this event, but two have been scratched: The Group 2 Saab 99 of Nate Tennis and Nat Tharrington-Snow, and the Open Class Mazda 323 GTX of Doug and Sue Robinson.
13.) Defending Group 2 champions Dave White and navigator David Watts will not be taking the class victory here this weekend. Watts may go home with a trophy, but White will not. An infection in his right hand serious enough to require IV antibiotics has forced him to step aside for this rally. Friend and car-builder Guy Light will be taking his place. Light was a long-time frontrunner when he was active as a driver full-time. So this will be a combination to watch.
14.) Event chairman Ray Damitio is stepping down at the end of the weekend. Damitio founded this long-running series of rallies, now in its 11th iteration, and has built it into very popular group of events for Northwest rallyists. Diane Duran is expected to become the new chairperson.
15.) The drivers' meeting is held outdoors and, naturally, just as it starts rain begins to fall. The forecast is for hazy skies, but the Weather Channel's time-lapse doppler radar for the area suggests that people in that part of the state should start looking for their waterproof boots, rain slickers -- and canoes.
16.) At the drivers' meeting, crews are told that the snow has melted on Stage 1, but that it still may be wet.
17.) Crews also are advised that there was some apparent confusion about road-closure dates in one area. As a result there was active logging taking place on Stage 2 earlier today. However, that situation has been fixed.
18.) Drivers are advised that Stage 3 will be the fastest of the event, and that the very fast flying finish is downhill. This admonition is doubly important in the slippery conditions, because Stage 3 will be re-run as Stage 6.
19.) Corrections to the start order released earlier: Rui Brasil's car number is 92, not 2. David Watts is the co-driver with Guy Light in car 9, not Dave White.
20.) Following the end of Stage 1, the Group 2 Lancia Scorpion of Marc Thielke and John Allen retires with a damaged radiator.
21.) Chris Kouba and Cindy Beckman went off on Stage 1 in their Group 5 Mazda RX-7, ending up in a ditch. However, they were pulled out and are continuing.
22.) Greg Lingelbach and Steve Andrews withdrew their Mitsubishi Starion after Stage 2 with head-gasket failure. First to go was a radiator hose. About 20 seconds later the head gasket let go and they were finished.
23.) Late entrants Neville Green and Chuck Wiles had a big off in their Merkur XR4ti about 1.5 miles into Stage 2, but were able to get themselves out and continue.
24.) The Kouba/Beckman RX-7, which had been off on the previous stage, went off again on Stage 2. This time they were stuck in such away that people were calling for a chainsaw to get them out. However, the sweep vehicle was able to wiggle them free.
25.) Since this is a comparatively short, all-daylight event, there will be no re-seeding.
26.) By the time that Stage 3 is run, it is drizzling, but there is no wind.
27.) On Stage 3, the Group 5 Mazda RX-3 of Robert and Tammy Reeves gets crossed up in the mud and slides off into a berm. The co-driver's side is heavily crunched, but no one is injured. As they are trying to get their warning triangles out, the John Lane/Scott Huhn Group 5 Volvo 262 arrives on the scene and slides into the back of the Mazda. Everyone is okay and both cars eventually continue.
28.) Also on Stage 3, the Group 2 Volkswagen Golf GTi of Mike Mailman and Shelly Kruse found its way into a ditch. Sweep towed the car out and they rejoined the rally, running last; but the driver-side front suspension is badly bent and it seems questionable whether they will continue.
29.) The Reeves & Reeves RX-3, which went off on Stage 3, has a broken rear axle and has withdrawn from today's event. They have a spare, which they will install overnight, and will run in Doo Wop IV tomorrow.
30.) Defending Group 5 champion Ralph Kosmides and navigator Joe Noyes are getting half the fuel mileage they got last year, apparently due to a change of rear-axle ratios. Kosmides, however, is making a bit of a fashion statement with his Toyota Supra, running chromed wheels.
31.) The Rick Hintz/Marc Swalley Datsun 240-Z, which sports number 240, was missing its hood after Stage 3, as well as second and third gears. This historic car is a former Carrera Panamericana race car.
32.) A few times reported after Stage 2 show that Paul Choiniere was fastest, and was the only driver under seven minutes. Surprisingly, Carl Jardevall and John Elkin were second-fastest with their Group 5 Volvo 740T, edging past Rui Brasil and Carlos Tavares in their Audi S2 quattro and Laughlin and Farina O'Sullivan in their Audi 4000 quattro.
33.) The rain that has been on-again, off-again throughout the day returns as teams head to service after Stage 5. Kurt Spitzner reports that the Seattle-area crowd has pronounced that it now "officially" pouring, because the rain is falling so hard that it is bouncing six inches off the pavement.
34.) On Stage 5, Jeff Call and Brent Dille wound up on their roof in their Group 2 Volkswagen Golf GTi. While upside down, they lost all of their coolant. After sweep rolled the car back on its wheel, they refilled the radiator from a nearby stream and got back in action.
35.) Also on Stage 5, the Noah Third/Jason Lane Group 2 Volkswagen Rabbit nosed into a ditch and partially blocked the road. Sweep pulled them out and they, too, continued.
36.) The crew of the Mike Mailman/Shelly Kruse Golf, which went off on Stage 3 and damaged its left-front suspension, has replaced the bent parts. The team is continuing.
37.) Todd Hartmann and Peter Yeeles have retired their Group 2 Volkswagen Golf GTi after Stage 5. Differential failure is the cause.
38.) The big drama of the event so far took place at the end of Stage 5, as Paul Choiniere appeared at service on the end of a tow rope behind Rui Brasil's car. Choiniere stopped after completing the stage, and Brasil gave him a tow back to service.
39.) The cause of Choiniere's problems is the same as one of the problems he experienced in the final event last year: A thrown water-pump belt. The crew made repairs during the service halt. When asked if they were "back in it," team manager John Buffum replied simply, "For the moment."
40.) At the end of service, the 240-Z's hood has magically reappeared. Miraculously, so have its missing gears.
41.) The Jeff Call/Brent Dille Golf that rolled on Stage 5 has withdrawn from today's event due to a cracked radiator. The car will be back tomorrow.
42.) Gaill Truess and Pattie Hughes called in from the car after completing the event's final stage. They were in high spirits and wanted everyone to know that "All is well with Team Tango." Truess said that she had faced a bit of a learning curve, as she hadn't been on Northwest roads in 11 years, but felt that things were going well. She reported that the gravel was so bad on Stage 3 (the rally's fastest) that it backed the bonjo bolt out of one of the rear brake calipers. So they suddenly went from poor brakes to no brakes. But the crew made repairs and they signed off with "Life is good."
43.) Paul Choiniere finished Stage 6 but came into service on only about two cylinders. The crew reported that the engine was leaking a lot of oil, but replacing a freeze plug cured the problem. In addition, when they did a compression check they found two smashed spark plugs, as well as only 40 lbs of compression in the number-two cylinder. They immediately began tearing the engine down to make repairs. Choiniere expects to start tomorrow.
44.) Pete Lahm called in and reported that he and Matt Chester were going well in their Open Class Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV, as he learned how the supercar behaved on gravel. He reported taking off his left-side mirror on the same branch that ate Rick Davis' (BMW 318ti) at the end of Stage 6. Lahm reports that the car is running strongly and smoothly, but that he experienced brake problems early on. A change of pads helped the situation.
45.) Results arranged by overall position will not be available tonight. However, here are the final times for each car -- counting any penalties -- in hours, minutes and seconds. Choiniere/Becker 50:04; Brasil/Tevares 45:57; O'Sullivan/O'Sullivan 46:13; Jardevall/Elkin 46:49; Lane/Huhn 47:40; Walker/Walker 1:27.48; Lahm/Chester 49:01; Damitio/Trowbridge 48:55; Davis/Greisler 48:53; Kosmides/Noyes 49:06; Truess/Hughes 49:32; Reaves/Reaves DNF; Light/Watts 50:40; Malik/Edstrom 50:48; Beson/Bradley 53:03; Hintz/Chase 50:21; Shadbolt/Chizma 52:19; Dykes/Fuller 53:50; Hintz/Swalley 52:02; Dekovic/McFarland 54:12; Tabor/Tabor 52:23: Wright/Wright 53:35; Russell/Dillon 53:21; Third/Lane 1:07:41; Mailman/Kruse 1:25:55; Tabor/Poirier 54:53; Call/Dille DNF; Donison/Gibeault 56:31; unidentified/unidentified no score; Tabor/Hoke 57:05; Hirato/Swier 57:06; Thielke/Allen 57:39; Gaude/Maple 57:50; Koch/Warner 1:00:07; Green/Wiles 1:04:59; Hartmann/Yeeles DNF; Kouba/Beckman DNF; Lingelbach/Andrews DNF
47.) This ends reports for the day. Coverage will begin tomorrow, prior to the start of Doo Wop IV.
Day 2:
48.) Good morning and welcome to the second installment of the Doo Wops ProRally presented by Whitney Chevrolet. Our man on the scene, SCCA Rally/Solo marketing manager Kurt Spitzner, reports that the weather is slightly overcast, with temperatures in the mid-50s and spectacular views to be had.
49.) Today event is Doo Wop IV, the second portion of the Doo Wop ProRally. It is being presented by local auto dealer Whitney Chevrolet. There will be four stages today. The first two will use the same stretch of road, run in opposite directions. This is the road used for the famous Brooklyn Tavern stage, which will be covered in more detail later.
50.) Overnight, SCCA ProRally steward John MacArthur was kind enough to sort the total times for yesterday's activities and produce an overall order following the Crazee Espresso Doo Wop III. It is as follows (minutes/seconds/hundredths; hours also for last few entries):
1 Brasil/Tevares 45:57:00 2 O'Sullivan/O'Sullivan 46:13:00 3 Jardevall/Elkin 46:49:00 4 Lane/Huhn 47:40:00 5 Davis/Greisler 48:53:00 6 Damitio/Trowbridge 48:55:00 7 Lahm/Chester 49:01:00 8 Kosmides/Noyes 49:06:00 9 Truess/Hughes 49:32:00 10 Choiniere/Becker 50:04:00 11 Hintz/Chase 50:21:00 12 Light/Watts 50:40:00 13 Malik/Edstrom 50:48:00 14 Hintz/Swalley 52:02:00 15 Shadbolt/Chizma 52:19:00 16 Tabor/Tabor 52:23:00 17 Beson/Bradley 53:03:00 18 Russell/Dillon 53:21:00 19 Wright/Wright 53:35:00 20 Dykes/Fuller 53:50:00 21 Dekovic/McFarland 54:12:00 22 Tabor/Poirier 54:53:00 23 Donison/Gibeault 56:31:00 24 Tabor/Hoke 57:05:00 25 Hirato/Swier 57:06:00 26 Thielke/Allen 57:39:00 27 Gaude/Maple 57:50:00 28 Koch/Warner 1:00:07:00 29 Green/Wiles 1:04:59:00 30 Third/Lane 1:07:41:00 31 Mailman/Kruse 1:25:55:00 32 Walker/Walker 1:27:48:00 Reaves/Reaves DNF Call/Dille DNF Hartmann/Yeeles DNF Kouba/Beckman DNF Lingelbach/Andrews DNF