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Mountain Trials Rally
October 18, 2003
Merritt, BC

Round 5 of the
Western Canadian Rally Championship
Organized by the
West Coast Rally Association
Detailed Results

Media Release
Mountain Trials Rally
October 18, 2003
Merritt, BC, Canada
Round 5 of the Western Canadian Rally Championship
presented by Yokohama Tire (Canada)
Event:
Specialty Subaru Mountain Trials Rally, round five of the Western Canadian Rally Championship presented by Yokohama. Performance rally cars from around Western Canada and the Northwest United States will be racing on a tight, challenging gravel road course in BC's interior. This event is sanctioned by the Canadian Association of Rallysport (CARS) and Rally Pacific Motorsports (RPM), and is organized by the West Coast Rally Association (WCRA).
When & where:
October 18, 2003, Merritt, BC.
Headquarters & Press Room:
Friday, October 17, 2003 Saturday, October 18, 2003
17:00-20:30 09:30-18:00
Best Western Nicola Inn Railyard Mall Service Area
4025 Walters St. Garcia St
Merritt, BC Merritt, BC
http://www.nicolainn.com
Phone: 1-800-663-2830, or 250-378-4253.
Schedule (subject to change):
Friday October 17th
17:00-20:30 Registration (Best Western Nicola Inn)
17:30-20:00 Scrutineering & Technical Inspection (Best Western Nicola Inn)
21:00-21:30 Mandatory meeting for all seed 5 & 6 teams
21:30-22:00 Drivers' meeting and introduction of officials
Saturday October 18th
8:00-8:30 Late Registration & Scrutineering, by appointment only
9:30 Start of First Leg (Railyard Mall)
14:00-15:00 Lunch Stop
18:30 End of Rally
19:00 Dinner and Awards (Day's Inn)
Format:
Events in the Western Canadian Rally Championship consist of flat-out rally racing on challenging mountain and forest roads. No practice is allowed. Unlike circuit racing, competitors generally see the course for the first time as they race it. At every moment the driver and co-driver must be ready for what may be around the next curve!
Performance rallies consist of roads designated as "special stages" and "transit sections". Special stages are run flat-out against the clock and are closed to public traffic. Transit sections are the routes linking together the special stages in which teams must obey all traffic laws.
Performance rally vehicles are production-based cars and trucks from manufacturers around the world. They compete both for the overall victory and wins within a class structure that groups together vehicles with similar performance. Each vehicle carries a driver and a co-driver/navigator. Using a detailed route book and a sophisticated rally computer, the co-driver keeps the team on-course and advises the driver of any hazards noted in the route book. This role is as critical as the driver's skill, since the team is traveling at full racing speeds over roads they have never seen before.
Selected entries:
- Last year's winner of the Pacific Forest Rally, Scott Trinder, of Vancouver, with Bill Westhead co-driving, in an all-wheel drive Subaru Impreza 2.5RS. Scott Trinder currently sits tied for first place in the Production Over class (P4) entering this round. Throughout 2003, Scott has been consistently fast, winning the Production Over class at all rounds of the Western Canadian Series that he's entered. Besides running the Western Canadian series, Scott has also campaigned successfully south of the
border, recently winning the PGT class at the Wild West International Rally in Olympia, Washington by a margin of over six and a half minutes.
- Also tied for first in the Production Over class is Edmonton, Alberta native Maceij (ma-chey) Ogrocki in his all-wheel drive Subaru Impreza 2.5RS. Maceij and his co-driver/wife Danuta will be making their third appearance at the Mountain Trials Rally, having started here in a Honda Civic more than four years ago. The Ogrocki's have shown some signs of brilliance this season, making it clear they are hungry for the championship and setting a very fast pace in the process.
- Two-time defending Western Canadian Rally Champion, Janusz Komorowski, with an unknown co-driver in an (as yet) unknown vehicle. The reason for all this mystery is that Komorowski's last rally car, a powerful Open Class all-wheel drive turbocharged Mitsubishi Eclipse, was stolen. Despite this setback, Komorowski leads overall in the 2003 Western Canadian Rally Championship having had a very successful run here at the Pacific Forest Rally back in June when he finished second to some of the best rally drivers in Canada. Regardless of which co-driver and which vehicle he appears with, Komorowski is sure to challenge for the lead and, perhaps even the win.
- An interesting late entry has also been received by the very quick young American driver, Ross Foster of Washington, with co-driver Dave Kean in a brand new Group N class Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VIII. Foster has demonstrated some serious speed in his past outings here in Western Canada. His best result in BC came last year at the Mountain Trials Rally when he was third overall behind Trinder and Komorowski.
Of additional interest:
- As round five of six in the Western Canadian Rally Championship, teams will be viewing this event as the key to their championship hopes for 2003. Many of the teams that missed out the last round are expected to be here in order to cement their standing in the championship.
- One of the competitive stages will offer a rare combination of both paved (tarmac) and gravel roads. It's expected that this type of surface change on the route will produce some of the most challenging conditions for the rally teams.
- Growing interest in BC rallies has been demonstrated by the number of outsiders making the trip to Merritt. Competitors and volunteers from Alberta, Manitoba and the US help round out a healthy group of local participants. The community of Merritt has also responded to this interest by extending a warm welcome to these visitors
2003 Western Canadian Rally Championship:
Date Event Place Winners
March 23 Cochrane 100 years Rally Cochrane, AB J. Komorowski / M. Monette
May 17-18 Bighorn Rally Edson, AB J. Komorowski / M. Swann
May 22-24 Rocky Mountain Rally Calgary, AB J. Komorowski / M. Swann
June 13-14 Pacific Forest Rally Merritt, BC J. Komorowski/T. Karzynski
October 18 Mountain Trials Rally Merritt, BC  
November 9 Kananaskis Rally Cochrane, AB  
Contact:
Paul Westwick - Organizer
Pre-event: (604) 682-3296; e-mail: paul@rallybc.com
At event: (604) 617-4132
At event:
Andrea McLaren, Media Liaison
Ken Kwong, Event Spokesperson (604) 808-0536; e-mail: ken@rallybc.com
Spectator Guide
Will be available at registration
Additional Resources:
Canadian Association of Rallysport http://www.carsrally.ca
West Coast Rally Association http://www.rallybc.com
City of Merritt http://www.city.merritt.bc.ca
2003 BC Rally Supporters:
Specialty Subaru http://www.specialty.subarudealer.ca
Yokohama Tire http://www.yokohamatire.ca
Western Driver http://www.westerndriver.com
Driver's Edge Autosport http://www.ompwins.com
Total Autosport http://www.totalautosport.com
Wilkinson's Automobilia http://www.eautomobilia.com
Bill Westhead
Communications & Media Relations
2003 Mountain Trials Rally
http://www.rallybc.com
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