SCCA Pro Rally Championship announces new event for 2001
20 December 2000
DENVER, CO: The second round of the 2001 season will be an all-new addition to the Sports Car Club of America's ProRally Championship. Headquartered in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the International Cherokee Trails Rally will include three days of intense competition in the Cherokee National Forest. With a 3-day format and nearly 180 stage miles in the route book, the event is under consideration by the FIA for full international status. When & Where: 15-17 March; Chattanooga TN; approx. 95 miles northwest of Atlanta, GA. SCCA Event Rank: Cherokee Trails is a full points SCCA ProRally Championship event. Drivers earn points towards the national championship, and supporting manufacturers (Hyundai,Subaru, Mazda and Mitsubishi) earn points towards overall and class Manufacturers’ Championships. Historical Background: The Cherokee Trails Rally marks the return of SCCA Performance Rally to the Southeastern US after a five-year hiatus. Run in 2000 as an SCCA ClubRally, the event earned high marks from entrants, spectators and industry observers, and earned its national status for 2001. For the first time in the United States since 1987, this performance rally will be run under FIA rules, which will include reconnaissance (recce) and pace-noting. Vehicle class structure will follow FIA conventions, in tandem with the nationally recognized SCCA classifications ProRally Championship Contact:     Kurt Spitzner - SCCA ProRally Championship Marketing and Media Manager Pre-event: 303.779.6622 (country Code: 1) Email:werace4u@aol.com Cherokee Trails ProRally Contact:        John Shirley – Clerk of the Course Kendall Russell – Rally Manager/Organizer Pre-event: 865.671.1133 direct inquiry Email: krrally@cs.com Time zone at event: EasternTime (GMT – 6 hours) Event website accessible through the sccaprorally.org website listed above About the SCCA ProRally Championship:        SCCA Performance Rally, comprised of the national SCCA ProRally Championship, the regional SCCA ClubRally Championship, and local SCCA RallyCross events, starts its 28th consecutive season on January 26-27, with the aptly named Sno*Drift ProRally in northern Michigan. Performance Rally is a globally recognized sport, with millions of fans worldwide. The sport is a unique test of endurance for both the participant and the machine, and thrives in environments where traditional racing activity never treads. Typical SCCA ProRally events will feature fields of 40 - 80 production-based automobiles, and cover hundreds of miles over a 12-24 hour period, with much of the competition under the cloak of darkness.