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| Subaru Rally Team Driver David Higgins will be looking to further secure his points lead with a victory at STPR. Photo Neil McDaid /Rally World News /Stock |
WELLSBORO, Penn. –
May 29, 2012
– Now that the Pikes Peak Hill Climb in Colorado, previously America’s oldest
rally-style event on dirt, is raced totally on paved roads, the 36th
edition of the Waste Management Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally® (STPR®),
presented by Citizens and Northern Bank, is now the continent’s longest
continuous gravel performance rally.
“Our
sanctioning body, Rally America
Directions
to the free spectator areas will be available in the free spectator guides and
can be obtained at the Wellsboro Chamber of Commerce or the Tioga County Fairgrounds
starting Wednesday, May 30, or online for download from www.stpr.org starting May 25. VIP Super Pass
The
Fairgrounds stages cost five dollars for admission each day. Advance sale
tickets are available at the Wellsboro Chamber of Commerce (info at
570-724-1926).
One
of the other changes made several years ago, the transition of STPR® to an
alcohol-free event, has helped enhance the family enjoyment of the rally for
everyone, and made the administration of the event, both in town and in the
woods, easier.
Citizens
& Northern Bank, Waste Management, Subaru of America
“With
our increased cost over the years, it is only because of the involvement of
these sponsors that we can offer the event with little or no cost to the
community and still be an economic force in the area,” Croucher said.
More
than 60 race cars, the infusion of millions of dollars to local area businesses
rivaling a national convention, and Rally America National Championship points
chase all highlight the arrival of STPR® to the state forests near the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon, again announcing
the coming of spring in Tioga County.
Follow
Along On Any Device
To
encourage interactivity with competitors and fans, social media sites include
STPR News and Announcements blog (http://news.stpr.org),
Facebook page (www.facebook.com/STPRRally),
and Twitter (www.twitter.com/stpr_rally
as well as various multimedia available through You Tube and Flickr.
During
the event, watch a live Twitter feed for rally updates and media notes with
links to the various news and multimedia sites.
Fans and competitors should use the hashtag #stpr12 to see STPR-related
tweets appear in the event feed.
Rally
America
What is STPR®
STPR®
was the last of the great endurance events on the national schedule maintaining
the one-day format and is designed with a high stage/transit mileage ratio and,
thanks to the outstanding cooperation of the Pennsylvania Department of
Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), some of the best and most demanding
roads in the country.
The Waste Management Susquehannock Trail
Performance Rally® presented by Citizens and Northern Bank is a National
Rally, approximately 267 miles long with approximately 117 miles of competitive
stages. The Sherwood Forest Rally is a Regional Rally, coefficient 2, which
includes Stages One through Eight and is approximately 47 miles. The Finger
Lakes Rally is a Regional Rally, coefficient 3, which includes Stages Nine
through 16 and is approximately 70 miles.
In
2008, STPR® changed to a new two-day format to better utilize new competitive
content, and give spectators more
daylight viewing options. The Super Special Stages at the Tioga County Fairgrounds,
sponsored by Subaru, and will run once on Friday and once on Saturday. STPR®
has six spectator locations to show the sport to maximum advantage in all its
exciting aspects to the public and media.
After
last year’s sold-out STPR® VIP
Super Pass
Starting
Friday afternoon with the Waste Management stages, where you will be escorted
to a private viewing area, to Saturday afternoon, when a bus will take you to a
secluded, private area to watch the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon stages, you can
get a view of the action previous reserved only for the working media. Food and
drinks will be served, and VIP
Super Pass
Plus,
there will be VIP seating for the stages both Friday and Saturday nights at the
Tioga County Fairgrounds. Bus
transportation will be provided to and from the Fairgrounds to all points. All this for only $50.00 per person per day,
however, children are not free, as the number of VIP Super Passes is
limited. Pick them up today at the
Wellsboro Chamber of Commerce and Tioga Publishing Company, or call
570-724-1926 for additional information.
Open Lite
Academy – New Entry Point for Rally
STPR will be
the inaugural event for the 2011 STPR – It was Higgins and Subaru
Subaru Rally Team USA’s David Higgins and co-driver Craig Drew won
the 2011 Waste Management Susquehannock
Trail Performance Rally presented by Citizens & Northern Bank (STPR) by a
narrow margin of 1.3 seconds over rivals Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard.
Higgins had a 37-second deficit halfway through day two after losing intercom at the start of Stage 8 and puncturing a tire on Stage 9, but came back to lead the rally by 2.5 seconds going into the final stage. This is the third time Higgins had taken the outright STPR win in his career, having won the event back in 2002 and 2003.
Higgins had a 37-second deficit halfway through day two after losing intercom at the start of Stage 8 and puncturing a tire on Stage 9, but came back to lead the rally by 2.5 seconds going into the final stage. This is the third time Higgins had taken the outright STPR win in his career, having won the event back in 2002 and 2003.
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| Although the Rally America Championship title is slipping further from the grasp of Antoine L"Estage, you can be assured that L'Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard will be in hot persuit of Higgins for the win at STPR. Photo: Neil McDaid , Rally World New /Stock |
The Rockstar Mitsubishi crew of Antoine L’Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard
finished in a close second place after controlling the rally lead up until the
second to last stage. The privateer driver set a blistering pace from the start
despite being down on power and went on to win six of the event’s fourteen
stages including both passes of the Super Special at the Tioga Fairgrounds.
The podium was rounded out by Ramana Lagemann and co-driver Chrissie Beavis, who once again placed third overall and first in the Super Production (SP) class. Lagemann nearly retired from the rally early on day two after running out of fuel on Stage 7 only three miles from the finish.
The podium was rounded out by Ramana Lagemann and co-driver Chrissie Beavis, who once again placed third overall and first in the Super Production (SP) class. Lagemann nearly retired from the rally early on day two after running out of fuel on Stage 7 only three miles from the finish.
In Two-Wheel-Drive (2WD) competition, Chris Greenhouse piloted his 1995 Plymouth Neon to his first-ever National class victory. Greenhouse and co-driver Billy Mann finished sixth overall with a 38-second lead over the second fastest team in their class and were the quickest 2WD crew on both passes of the Super Special. Brian Gottlieb and co-driver Pat Darrow placed second in class in their 1989 Honda Civic with a comfortable cushion of over one minute on
2010 Two-Wheel-Drive champion Chris Duplessis is the first in North America to build and field a Ford Fiesta R2, which made its
Higgins, L’Estage Favorites for 2012 Event
For the 2012 event, Higgins/Drew
come to Wellsboro after a decisive win at the Oregon Trail event in their
Subaru WRX STI, and their main rivals L’Estage/Richard, are down in the points
due to two straight DNFs, but look for those two teams to battle it out along
with Canadian champions Leonid Urlichich/Carl Williamson in a Subaru, Travis
and Terry Hanson, and Ramana Lagemann/Christine Beavis – both in Subarus.
2012
Points through three events
1,
David Higgins, 61
2,
Leonid Urlichich, 26
3,
Adam Yeoman, 25
4,
Travis Hanson, 24
5,
Ken Block, 22
6,
Antoine L'Estage, 19
7,
Lauchlin O'Sullivan, 19
8,
Andrew Comrie-Picard, 18
9,
Krzysztof Holowczyc, 14
Charity
Rally to Benefit Cancer SocietyOn Friday, June 1, the 23rd annual Relay for Life road rally will take place in conjunction with the STPR® event. This year’s event will benefit the Tioga Country chapter of the American Cancer Society and is opened to the public. Finger Lakes Region of the Sports Car Club of America organizes the rally.
A time-speed-distance rally designed for any legal vehicle,
within the legal speed limit, on high quality paved and unpaved roads in Tioga County
Assisting with the charity rally is a local Relay for Life
team, the Keystone Kops, headed by Shirley Spencer. This group of mostly
seniors, who have volunteered since 2006 with the rally, will staff the timing
checkpoints as well as other duties for the event.
Registration for the charity rally is from 11:00 a.m. –
1:00 p.m., with a class for newcomers to time-speed-distance road rallying at
12:30 p.m. – all at the Tioga County Fairgrounds. There is a mandatory drivers meeting at 1:00
p.m., and the three-hour event starts at 1:31 p.m. the fee for paid,
pre-registered competitors is $35/car before May 25 and $40/car after
that. More information is available at www.flr-scca.com/rally/2012.
STPR Bonus – Sunday Morning Against the Pros
On Sunday, June 3, enthusiasts will have the opportunity to
try their hand at RallyCross on the STPR® Super Special Stage at the Tioga
County Fairgrounds and to compete against some of the top stage rally
competitors.
Combining the features of autocross and a stage rally, a
RallyCross event lets drivers race against the clock on a dirt course. Total
elapsed time for a driver's multiple runs is used to determine the placings for
the event. The exciting aspect is that stock street vehicles are allowed to
compete. Safety equipment required is stock or better seatbelts and a Snell M95
helmet (loaner helmets may be available).
Organized by the Central New York Region of the Sports Car
Club of America (SCCA), the event begins at 10:00 a.m. with registration
opening at 8 a.m. with car tech and mandatory drivers' meeting prior to the
start. Competitors must be SCCA members, but a weekend membership is available
for only $10.
Further information, including online registration, is
available at http://bit.ly/K5PT5E and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/CNY.SCCA.Rallycross.
Deadline for online registration is Saturday, June 2.
Schedule
of Events – 2012 STPR®
All
Registration activities occur at the Tioga County Fairgrounds, Route 6 between
Mansfield and Wellsboro , Penn.
STPR® is an alcohol
free event!
Wednesday, May 30,
2012
7-9
p.m., Registration at the Tioga County Fairgrounds for competitors, service
crews, officials & scrutineers
Thursday, May 31,
2012
9
a.m. - Noon/2-5 p.m./7-9 p.m., Competitor Registration and Service Crew
Registration Hours NOTE: If you need special consideration, please contact the
Competitor Registrar.
9
a.m.-1 p.m./2:30-8 p.m., Volunteer registration for STPR® NOTE: If you need
special consideration, please contact the Volunteer Registrar.
3-8
p.m., Scrutineering for all cars. No
appointment needed. Team Crew at Scrutineering must be registered!
Friday, June 1, 2012
9-11
a.m. – Competitor Registration/Service Crew Registration
9-11
a.m. – Scrutineering open, no appointments needed. If you need Scrutineering
after this time please contact the Chief for special consideration.
9
a.m.-1 p.m./2:30 - 8 p.m. – Volunteer registration for STPR® NOTE: If you need special consideration,
please contact the Volunteer Registrar.
10:30
a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Novice seminar for new rallyists – Fairgrounds
11:30
a.m. – Parc Expose opens at the Green in Wellsboro
12:30
p.m. – All cars must be checked in to MTC/Mandatory Drivers meeting with Rally America
2:01
p.m. – The Waste Management Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally Phase 1 begins
(Sherwood Forest Rally Begins)
7
p.m. (approx) – Subaru Super Special Stage, sponsored by the Philadelphia Zone
of Subaru of America
9
p.m. (approx) – Meeting for all
Volunteers in the Registration building followed by Welcome Reception
Saturday, June 2,
2012
7-10
a.m. – Service Crew Registration on the Green at STPR® merchandise Tent
8:30
a.m. – Parc Expose opens around the Green in Wellsboro
9
a.m. – All cars must be checked in to MTC
10:01
a.m. – The Waste Management Susquehannock Trail Performance Rally Phase 2
begins (Sherwood
Forest Regional Rally continues)
12:50
p.m. (approx) – Scrutineering for cars wanting to RE-enter the second rally,
located near food pavilion – Germania Service.
Finger Lakes Regional Rally begins at Germania .
6.50
p.m. – First car arrives at fairgrounds. Begin 15 minute Service and Parc
Ferme.
8:15
p.m. (approx) – Subaru SSS begins
10
p.m.(approx) – Party at the Fairgrounds for all participants. Tickets are
required.
ASAP
after Rally ends – Posting of Provisional Scores
30
minutes after posting – Deadline for filing Scoring Inquiries & Claims
After
scores are finalized – Awards Presentation at the Fairgrounds
Source: STPR MEDIA
Photos: Neil McDaid
