STPR

[Dave Conner <conner@cfm.ohio-state.edu>]

ESPN2 will air the STPR tonight at 6:30 PM eastern time.

If you see a guy holding a green flag signalling the driver to start, that
could be me.  Of course it could also be someone else, since I did that for
stage 1 and there are twelve stages.  This was my first time at a ProRally
event and I could be hooked.  I owe a big thank you to Mike Burke, fellow
Ohio AudiOwner and ProRally driver extraordinaire for steering me toward a
great experience.  I helped as part of his crew and also volunteered as  a
worker assisting the event organizers.  Mike did a great job representing
the four rings, driving his '86 4kq.  First, he finished the
race...something fully half of the 80 drivers entered did not do.  And
second...he turned in some great times.  And I know he had a grand time.

There was some truly awesome machinery entered in this race.  And Wellsboro
was crawling with more Audi's than I've ever seen in one place before.

The most awesome moment for me was at the start of Stage 1, where I had the
honor of working the green flag.  Standing at the start line I could hear
the cars lining up around a bend in the road, but couldn't see them.  The
first car to come throbbing into view had four rings on the grill.
Although I'd never seen it in person, I immediately recognized the
Sprongl's S2.  It stopped inches away while I gave the countdown.  At zero
the car roared into action, giving me an incredible shower of rocks and
dirt, and proceeded to tear up the hill like a "scared cat".   This
sequence was repeated for the next 80 minutes as the
rest of the cars were sent on their way at one minute intervals.  

I  found time to spectate too, and that was also an unforgettable
experience.  While TV cannot come close to capturing the sight and sound of a
ProRally car in full flight, I do think the ESPN show will be worth
watching.  And if you've never attended one of these races, you might want
to look for an opportunity to do so.

bye,
Dave Conner  

Columbus, OH 
87 5KS
89 100E
86 4KCSQ
91 200Q Avant