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SCCA: Hyundai makes US rally history - finishing 1,2,3 at Ojibwe Forests

28 August 2000

SCCA® ProRallysm Championship - Round #6 - Ojibwe Forests


Bemidji, Minnesota:  The SCCA Ojibwe Forests ProRally came to an exciting and 
historically significant conclusion this evening, with Hyundai making up for 
its slow season start with a stunning sweep of the top three positions - the 
first in the manufacturers' history.  Paul Choiniere, the 7-time SCCA Overall 
Champion, assumed the lead early in the event from teammate Noel Lawler, who 
remained in the hunt for the top spot the entire event.  Team boss John 
Buffum, drove an Elantra, and maintained a solid third position throughout.
   
Key Notes & Quotes:
¨   Patrick Richard; #162 Subaru:  "These are the best stage roads I've ever 
driven.  The roads are so smooth and the conditions and turns were so 
consistent, you almost didn't need the route instructions!"  Richard had a 
brilliant drive all day, loosing out to a resurgent Steven Gingras by only 12 
hundredths of a minute.

¨   The Mitsubishi and Subaru armada that hounded the Hyundai team ran into 
troubles late in the day, with several leading entries falling by the 
wayside.  Included in that list are Peter Cunningham, Seamus Burke and Mark 
Nelson, each of their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo's suffering completely different 
yet terminal mechanical maladies.  Paul Eklund's and Lon Peterson's Impreza 
turbos both ran into mechanical ills, (although Eklund did manage to finish 
the event) and Russell Hodges Prodrive WRX-Sti wound up on its roof.  
Nevertheless, Mitsubishi still managed to claim the next three positions, 
with Shepard, Shrader and Scheible. 
 
¨   Garen Shrader; #4 Mitsubishi:  "I definitely get pumped up by the people 
- the spectator stages were full of fans, and that definitely helped me keep 
my pace."  Shrader confirmed the successful partnership with 1998 co-driver 
overall champion Michael Fennell announced last month in Maine at with a 
solid 5th place overall finish, just 32 seconds behind the Mitsubishi of 
Shepherd and Gladysz.

¨   Close battles were fought in several classes, with Production GT and 
Group 5 being particularly tight.  Mark Utecht, working hard to back up his 
decisive win over Ralph Kosmides at Maine Forest lost by a mere 10 seconds 
(unofficial) to Brian Hourt, himself making up for a mechanical DNF at Maine.

¨   The widest margin of victory today was in Group 2, with the Bob 
Nielsen/Brett Corneliusen VW Golf Gti winning the popular class by nearly 6 
minutes over the VW Golf of Eric Burmeister/Mark Buskirk.  

¨   With Hyundai's strong finish, the manufacturer has finally managed to 
edge ahead of the Mitsubishi and Subaru independents, with the unofficial 
overall standings now at: Hyundai 102, Mitsubshi 85, Subaru 76 and Toyota 57.