SCCA: Wild West ProRally Press Notes 5
19 June 1999
Wild West ProRally Press notes Page 5 31.) The switchover to two-minute starting intervals to deal with the heavy dust did produce one logistical problem. The change made it impossible to get the necessary Emergency Medical Technician from his previous post to Stage 6 in time to run the stage. Therefore, cars will transit what was to have been the last stage of the evening. 32.) Mark Williams, John Buffum’s navigator did the last ProRally (Susquehannock Trail) with Mexican national champion Gabriel Ortiz-Marin, where he had to give instructions in Spanish. Just to have a little fun with Buffum, Williams started out today’s event giving him instructions in Spanish. He says that it got a rather puzzled look from Buffum. 33.) Teams are beginning to arrive back at the headquarters hotel. Noel Lawler has had a great evening. “Just havin’ fun and keepin’ it between the ditches” he says. Maybe so, but he’s nearly two minutes clear of teammate Buffum. Running first on the road, Lawler found the stages very slippery due to loose gravel, and felt that he was losing a great deal of time on the first pass through the set of three stages that was run twice. However, he was surprised to find that he was only a couple of seconds faster the second time through, even though the traction was greatly improved. 34.) Buffum is still having overheating problems. The crew looked things over earlier and concluded that he could continue. However, they have installed a special sensor, according to navigator Mark Williams. They’ve put an overflow bottle down by his feet. He says that when he can feel his feet getting wet, they know to slow down and take it easy for a while. 35.) Like so many others, Ralph Kosmides, had considerable problems with the dust, especially after catching Buffum. He also found the roads hard to read and a lot rougher the second time through. The car is running well, though, and he has a positive outlook for Saturday’s nine stages. 36.) On Stage 4, Gail Truess and Cindy Krolikowsky saw the tail of a red car sticking up out of the underbrush. Thinking that it was Kosmides and Noyes and that they may have been hurt, they stopped to check. It turned out that the car was a leftover from the previous running of that stage, and everything was okay. The stewards will make a time allowance to account for their stopping to render aid.