100 Acre Woods Rally 2010

[redleader36]

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A lot of the fwd guys were taking this hairpin way too hot and oversteering (or trying to plow straight through the intersection). This was a great place to see who had good control and a good line through such an disadvantageous corner.  Many of the awd guys were cutting the corner too wide and swinging into a dirt pile on the far oustide of the turn.

Spectator area 4 was our next goal.  The 100 Acre Woods course took the drivers through this exact spectator spot again and called the spot Area 4.  We just decided to stay, find a closer spot to stand, and wait the 1 1/2 hours till the cars returned.  We were not dissapointed.  We finally caught our first glimpses of the national guys.   5 minutes after the sweeper car tears through, headlights descend upon the trees to our right.  Pastrana's hatchback Impreza screams up the hill and swings a beautifull wide sweeping drift in front of the crowd.  It was a bit showy, but the crowd loves Pastrana!  Next L'estage's Evo tears up the hill and attacks the hairpin with beatifully executed line.  We hear the roar of Blocks ford next!  Block buzzes up the hill and shifts the car so far sideways, he is aiming his car right at a cameraman on the apex!  He cuts the corner SO TIGHT his bumper is 3 feet from the cameraman's toes.  I am sure he smiled for that picture!  Beautiful Turn!

After the last car, we made our way back to the hotel.

Day 2 we again headed down to the 2nd spectator area to beat the crowd for the first area.  We found a great vantage point after the apex of another hairpin.  This one was after a quick downhill and a dip, and before a curved uphill climb.  Again, the national guys did not dissapoint!  Pastrana was a bit flashy, and Block (now 2nd place) was amazing!  L'estage IIRC fell a bit wide on this turn and Bacon (Evo) looked about 2nd best through this turn!  I will let my videos speak here (should be uploaded this week or next).

We dodged up to Potosi in order to see the big Parc Expose there and to see the Super Special Spectator Stage.  In order to get there we had to navigate some of the funnest paved hill passes we have ever encountered.  Thansenite's Subaru did not dissapoint!

The Parc Expose was great!  All the drivers with their cars were laid out in a huge grid.  We got to snap a pic of Thansenite with Ken Block and a pic of myself with L'estage.

The Super Special stage was set up like a rallycross in a city park.  It has a huge taped off spectator area in the center and you can watch every car from start to finish.  Pastrana up first takes it a bit wide and flashy again.  He came around an uphill hairpin too tight and clipped a bad ditch with his back wheel.  This de-beaded his tire.  He hobbles across the finish line.  In rally you have to leave the control area without failure to complete a stage.  Also, there was 1 stage left before they could have a service break.  Pastrana parks his subie on the driveway exiting the park (just feet past the control line).  He and his Navigator start swapping his spare on when they notice damage to one of his control arms.  20 minutes later, it is confirmed that Pastrana is too late to the next stage's grid and has a DNF for the event.  I will let my vids speak for the rest of this stage again.

Lastly we stopped at the service area in Viburnum.  Every team had a service crew waiting to tweak/fix the cars.  They all have only 1 hour and were all very efficient during this hour. I have pics of Dave Mirra's subie tranny getting swapped out in about 15 minutes.  Also, i got to watch L'estage's team work on the Evo X up close.  We talked to him when there were just 5 stages left and he was in 2nd place.  He was happy because he was quickening his pace, but was also holding behind Ken Block by 20 seconds -- Ken was getting faster too!

We took off for home while keeping an eye on twitter for the latest news and standings.  Block (ford fiesta) ended up winning!  L'estage (Evo X) was in 2nd place by 21 seconds, and privateer Bacon (Evo XII/IX) was in 3rd by over 3 minutes.

[Lynium]

wait.. ken block was driving a ford...??? wtf??

from what i seen he was always in a subie..
first a sedan style, then later on in a hatchback kinda dealy...

I love his Gymkana vids on youtube!!!
they rock!!

[Xano]

Hes driving a new model Ford Fiesta this year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8lSbpAHRnk

[methylprop]

I have a huge flier for this at work, on my wall. I would love to go but, probably not going. There seems to be more people this year than last. Last year it was a big deal that ken block was going to be there. This year they have ken block, Travis pastrana, Dave mirra, and some other famous guy.

[Lynium]

dave mirra.. haha.. I didnt know he rallied.. I knew of him from the BMX world though. I used to love "Dave mirras freestyle BMX" for the old PS1.. I played that game for hours and ahours and MONTHS!!

did you know hte score onthat game wrapped around back to zero after a certain point? like 99,999,999 points I think it was, then back to zero...? hehe.. found that out, and was like son of a!! to get a score so far up there, then BAMM!! Back to zero..

I think I smashed a controller at that point... lol

ken block in the ford must have something to do with subaru pulling out of wrc.. or maybe that was jsut a rumor I heard about subies.. dont realy keep up on that stuff, just love watching rally races and a few other types when I come across em on tv.. dont actively keep up on that sorta stuff... lol

[dangina]

Hes driving a new model Ford Fiesta this year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8lSbpAHRnk

ghey. its still a fiesta regardless of whats done to it.

[Xano]

ghey. its still a fiesta regardless of whats done to it.

Nothing wrong with a fiesta.  same level of badassness as a Metro in my book, and thats a lot of badass.

[redleader36]

yeah, Mirra is driving for monster/team subaru.  Block wanted to step up to WRC and Monster World Rally Team and Ford offered him that chance.  There was no reason not to take it.  Mirra is kind of a rookie right now taking Blocks former spot on the roster.

I will defend that 2011 Fiesta!  Block is an amazing driver and that Fiesta has hundreds of thousands of dollars of parts into it!  No other driver looked as refined and pointed as Block did driving around those hairpins.  (This was probably because Pastrana was showing off and drifting through every spectator area )

I am waiting to see how Block does with the big guys at WRC Mexico this next week!

[kroon1ca]

Ford has always had a really strong rally presence. I see no problem with Ken Block driving a Fiesta.

[Navy_Mech2]

RS200 Evo. Nuff said.

[Praizewood]

RS200 Evo. Nuff said.

Oh mano! The closest thing to the rs200 we average people will ever own is probably a mazda az:


Of course far from same performance

[Xano]

but the body is identical except for the front end haha, put more power in it and some appearance goodies, and you got an RS200 there

[Lynium]

Ive always been a ken block fan... but.. having said that, I have nothing to put towards this, or know nothing about him aside form Utube vids.. hehe.. people were talking bout it at my last round of school.. a few of them were into the rifting and such.. (One guy even bought an s13 all done up for drifting and brought it in so we could allign it. (Another guy gave us the specs, and I did most of the allignment since I had been doin em for a few mnths before school, the other 2 in my group were greener than a leprachaun)) but ken blocks gymkana vids, and the video on the ski hill and that big ass jump showed me enough to say hes worthy of it, and of the right mind.. hehe

Of all the s12 cars I've seen, I have to sayt the rally version is probably my favorite. I had always wanted to do mine up something like that, however, Im more involved int autocross and hopefully, if I can find it, drifting, so a rally setup isnt that ideal for me.

I used to rally around in the talon when I had it, and that was great, I'd honestly probably do best at that over the others, but once again, aside from obscure backroads, and random fields, where the hell would I get involved in something like that???

Man, I gotta move!

If I understand it, over near to Devon, AB, Canada, they have rally cross, drifting, and autocross etc.. between the city and devon, Id be in heaven.

For the past couple years, Id always had the idea of moving there. (Its also closer to get my oldest boy every 2nd or so weekend, and closer to all my friends n family.)

The biggest thing is, I want to keep my current job and finish my apprentiship, and become a journeyman before I go anywhere. Hopefully in the next 3-5 years I can live there.. lol

the old lady knows all this and doesnt think of it as a bad idea.

By that time, I should alos have a good foundation of a vehicle at least half way there for those sports hehe..

but for now, all I can do is watch kickass vids of people such as ken block and the others and dream... *Sighs*