PRESS RELEASE
______November 21st, 1999______1
PAGE OF 3_______
FROM : C.A.R.S.
CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF RALLYSPORT
TO : sports desk
SUBARU CANADIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
presented by
YOKOHAMA TIRES OF CANADA
EVENT :
Rally of the Tall Pines
LOCATION :
Bancroft, Ontario
1999 final standings: 1- Frank Sprongl 2- Sylvain Vincent 3- Tom McGeer 4-John Paynter 5- Y. Barbe 6- Jon Nichols 7- É. Tremblay, M. Racine 8- Havas 9- J. Smith
Class Champions : Open : Frank Sprongl
Production GT : Sylvain Vincent
Group 2 : Jon Nichols Prod. Sport : Bruno Laverdière
Prod. 1750 : Ilana Rosenshein
Champion Manufacturers : Open : Audi
Production GT: Subaru
Group 2 : Volkswagen Prod. Sport : Toyota Prod.
1750 : Suzuki
Co-Driver standings: 1- Dan Sprongl 2- Dominique Cyr 3- Trish McGeer 4- Clarke Paynter 5- Eric Tremblay 6- Mike Koch 7- Luc Piché 8- J-F Guité 9 Bob Burton
Best Novice Driver : Bruno Laverdière
Best Lady : Dominique Cyr
2000 SCHEDULE - SUBARU CANADIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
January 28-30
Rallye de Quebec
Quebec, Quebec
February 11-13
Rallye Perce-Neige
Pembroke, Ontario
May 20-21
Bighorn Rally
Edson, Alberta
May 26-27
Rocky Mountain Rally
Calgary, Alberta
July 7 8
Rallye Baie des Chaleurs
New Richmond, Quebec
Sept. 29 - Oct.1
Rally of the Voyageurs
Parry Sound, Ontario
November 3 5
Rallye Auto Charlevoix
Pointe-au-Pic, Quebec November 24-25
Rally of the Tall Pines
Bancroft, Ontario
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tall Pines: a Rally For Pride!
Bancroft, Ontario. Under overcast skies, with drizzle and rain
coming down, Frank and Dan Sprongl managed to clinch their sixth Rally
of the Tall Pines in a row, the final event of the Subaru Canadian Rally
Championship, presented by Yokohama Tires. In front of largest crowd in
Pines history, they delighted the fans in their Audi Quattro S2 with unbelievable
speeds and raw driving talent on the treacherous road conditions. Two Subaru
Impreza WRXs, those of Tom McGeer and Sylvain Vincent followed closely.
37 teams left the friendly East Ontario community for this late Fall
Classic to be fought over 11 stages and 190 kilometres of pure speed.
Podium Pictures Season
Tom McGeer, driving the factory-sponsored Subaru WRX, started the day
out slowly, but regained confidence and chipped away at Vincents second
place. Back in Bancroft late Saturday night, it was Sprongl, McGeer, Vincent
on the podium, with McGeer operating a last minute sprint to overtake Vincent
who still earns GT title and 1999 vice-champion status.
Yves Barbe, in his Eagle Talon, finished fourth, and an outstanding performance by US competitor Nick Robinson in a Group 2 Honda Civic rounded out the top five. Robinson hustled his Civic to finish well in front of many all-wheel drive competitors. With his new Golf GTi, Jon Nichols finished second in Group 2 and a distant 10th overall. But he had such a strong season that he again wins class championship.
Jean-Marc Alcaraz, after debuting his new 400 horsepower Mazda 323GTR at Charlevoix, had clutch problems. Until he was forced to bow out, Alcaraz was also a contender for a podium spot with a number of blazing runs through the first four stages. Look for some serious competition from the DCA Express Mazda next year.
All Titles Sewn-up
John and Clark Paynter's first place finish in GT class meant that
Subaru took first place honours in the manufacturers championship for 1999.
Newcomer Bruno Laverdiere was on a roll; not only did he end the season
with a first place finish in Production Sport class, he was given an award
for being top novice. Congratulations were also in order for Dominique
Cyr, wife and co-driver of Sylvain Vincent. She was awarded the Joan McAlpine
trophy for being the top lady in Canadian rallying for 1999. Ilana Rosenshein
rounded out the roster of winners for 1999, clinching the championship
in Production 1750 class with her Suzuki Swift.
The Subaru Canadian Rally Championship is presented across the country eight times, between February and November. It is sanctioned by the Canadian Association of RallySport and supported by Subaru Canada and Yokohama Tire. The first rally of the season is Rallye de Quebec, in Quebec City. Additional information is available from the CARS website at www3.sympatico.ca/rally.cars or the Rallye de Quebec web site at www.oricom.ca/rallyeqc/
For Information: Michel Poirier-Defoy: 450 491 2480
lpindfoy@sympatico.ca
CARS: Mr Terry Epp: 905 640 6444
RESULTS
SUBARU CANADIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
Presented by
YOKOHAMA TIRES OF CANADA
EVENT : RALLY OF THE TALL PINES
# TEAM
CAR
HOMETOWN CLASS
FINAL
1 Frank / Dan Sprongl Audi Quattro S2
Mississauga, On Open
134:28
2 Tom McGeer /J. Bellefleur Subaru Impreza WRX
Georgetown, On Open 137:46
3 Sylvain Vincent / D. Cyr Subaru Impreza
WRX La Plaine, Qc Open
139:09
4 Yves Barbe/P. Bazinet Eagle Talon
Laval, Qc Open
143:44
5 N. Robinson/ C. Lindquist Honda Civic
Plain City, Ohio Gr2
145:49
6 John & Clarke Paynter Subaru
Legacy Halifax, NS
GT 147:39
7 Tom Lawless / C. Hegarty Eagle Talon
Maspeth, NY
Open 151:00
8 G. Healy / M. Kreisler Subaru Impreza
Saugerties, NY GT
151:02
9 K. Scheible / G. McGuire Volks New Beetle Spenceport, NY
Sport 153:01
10 Jon Nichols/ Mike Koch Volks Golf
GTi Montreal / Ottawa GR2
156:01
The high points:
- Sprongls motored on to sixth Tall Pines victory in a row.
- The two Subaru WRXs exchanged second place all day
- Nicolas Robinson put on show with his Group 2 win
- Largest crowd ever for this Fall Classic hosted by Bancroft
- Paynters gave Subaru the manufacturer title in the GT class
- Four American crews round Top Ten positions
The low points:
- Jean-Marc Alcaraz had clutch problem on his Mazda GT-R
- Numerous competitors were plagued with flat tires, unusual for Pines
NEXT
RELEASE : Tuesday, January 25th : Rallye de Québec