[Vwdiesel] TDI/BioDiesel MotorSports

[Josh W]

For Immediate Release:

RallyVW Retakes the Lead at Maine

July 25, 2002
Marysville, OH - Team RallyVW recaptured the lead in the SCCA ProRally Production Championship at the Maine Forest Rally (MFR) this weekend.  MFR, which takes place in Rumford, Maine, is round six of the SCCA ProRally Series.  RallyVW driver Jon Hamilton is now in first place in Production Class after the grueling 2-day event.  His navigator for the event, Ken Sabo, is the second-ranked Production Class co-driver.

Hamilton entered the event narrowly trailing Jeff Field and his Toyota Celica GTS.  At the previous rally, Susquehannock Trail, the contestants forced each other out of the race, with Field retiring after a crash and Hamilton blowing a turbo with only one stage to go.

History seemed poised to repeat itself in Maine, as Field once again tried to carve his own road through the trees and Hamilton's car suffered a puncture at the beginning of the last stage.  But thanks to a 1.5-minute tire change, Hamilton and Sabo pressed on to recapture the series lead.  The pressure is now on Field, who may not be able to repair his battered Celica in time for the next event, Ojibwe Forest, which takes place in just two weeks.

Despite their competitive fervor, both teams displayed remarkable sportsmanship in the service area.  At one point the RallyVW crew, which included Jon Frush, "Bad" Andy Prior, and Pete "Drivbiwire" Baranko, helped push-start Field's Celica to keep him in the race when his starter failed.  Field's crew returned the favor by helping to repair a wayward bumper on Hamilton's Golf TDI.

RallyVW would like to thank Volksport, MotorsportVortex.com, AV Lubricants, Inc., TDIClub.com, Bildon Motorsports, Performance-cafe.com, and WaterWagens.com for their support.

Hamilton's Volkswagen Golf TDI, which is the only diesel currently competing in the ProRally series, runs on an environmentally friendly Soylect Biodiesel blend supplied by McWherter Petroleum.  Made from domestically grown soybeans that reduce both harmful emissions and dependency on foreign oil, biodiesel also fuels RallyVW's service truck.

Performance Rally takes place on real roads, usually dirt, gravel, or two-tracks in forested areas.  The terrain can change quickly.  The winding roads are peppered with washouts, large rocks, tight turns, and jumps.  The driver relies heavily on the co-driver, who reads instructions and maintains mileage calculations while the driver is pushing the car to impossibly fast speeds through the woods and fields.

For more information, check the team's website at www.rallyvw.com.

See also:
www.rallyracingnews.com/maine
www.scca-lol.org/rally/ojibwe/
www.scca.org
www.volksport.com
www.motorsportvortex.com
www.waterwagens.com
www.avlube.com
www.tdiclub.com
www.bildon.com