The Gorman Ridge Rally, presented by Subaru Western Region, is the fourth event in the 2011 United States Rally Championship. Taking place Saturday, Aug. 27, the rally celebrates its 21st anniversary. Gorman is also the sixth event in the California Rally Series.
As traditional forest stage rallies slowly began to fade into obscurity in many parts of the U.S., Gorman’s flexibility in venue continues to provide both a challenging and exciting course inside the Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area in Lebec, Calif. The event’s headquarters will be at the Holiday Inn Express in Lebec.
Building on the success and good feedback from last year’s event the course will once again use the new stages from 2010. The route is all dirt road surfaces, which are generally smooth and hard packed with occasional rough or sandy spots. There are always a fair number of washouts and waterbars.
For many years Gorman drivers navigated the roads inside the Angeles National Forest, until the event’s permit application renewal was denied. Organizer Ray Hocker hopes the rally can return to the forest roads in the near future.
“We are really happy with the relationship we’ve built through the many years with the staff and administration at Hungry Valley,” Hocker said. “We were a good forest user and had a perfect safety record for over 30 years. Every year we did thousands of dollars of road upkeep and repair on the forest roads.”
Topping off the entry list is Mitchell Williams of Denver, Colo. He is currently the leader in the USRC’s All-Wheel-Drive Championship standings for the Pacific Division, leading with 360 points after his victory at the Idaho Rally in June, driving a Subaru Impreza STi. Rebecca Greek, also of Denver, will co-drive for Gorman as his Checkpoint Racing teammate, Alix Hakala, will be on vacation.
“Rebecca is a very seasoned co-driver. She’s done a ton of events around the West Coast and typically runs with Todd Morberly,” Williams said. “She’s a good friend of mine and I’m looking forward to competing with her. We’ve been racing side by side for years now so I know she’s good.”
Greek navigated for the youngest driver in this year’s Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb, Savannah Rickli, 17, in this year’s Pikes Peak. The women finished with an impressive seventh place in the Time Attack 2WD class in a MINI Cooper S, competing against some of the best in the sport such as Rod Millen and Jeff Zwart.
With the Subaru WRX STi well represented, the competition looks fierce in the Open AWD entries for this year’s Gorman Ridge Rally. Coming back strong after disappointing DNFs are the teams of Jon Burke, San Francisco, Calif., and Tucker Heiner, Mountain View, Calif. The Up Two Mountains Rally team is back after attrition took them out on Stage 4 at the North Nevada Rally. Doug Chernis, Mesa, Ariz., and Craig Macnair, Phoenix, Ariz., are raring to go after their DNF at High Desert Trails. Chernis owns RaceTechnik, a race
car shop in Arizona and has assisted motor sports competitors across the board gain victory- now it’s his turn.
In the USRC Open 2WD class, hot contenders to watch are the team of Bill Holmes, Malibu, Calif., and Sean Gallagher, Santa Ana, Calif., points leaders in the CRS Group 5 class, in a Ford F-150 Raptor. Last year’s
overall winners at Gorman, the team took the overall win at this year’s High Desert Trails rally and lead the standings in the CRS-5 class.
Condor Rally Sport has three Volkswagen Golfs entered in the USRC Production 2WD class. This team, based in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., shows rally is truly a family affair. Tony Chavez and his wife, Raquel Salas, are joined by Chavez’ daughter Sandra who is co-driving for her boyfriend Rene de la Trinidad. Al Chavez, Tony’s brother, is driving the third car.
Tony Chavez’s motor sports career began in his native Peru, road racing in the 1970s, and after moving to the U.S., began his rally experience in 1991. Sandra Chavez started co-driving for her father at age 14 in Mexican rallies. Once she was old enough to compete in the States, she joined her father for a few events. Al Chavez will also show some Peruvian flair as he was a successful go-kart and road racer. He too competed in U.S. rally in the early ’90s in a Datsun 510.
Tony Chavez credits his wife, a sociologist and professor, for the success of building a three-car team. The couple won their class at High Desert Trails in April.
“Rallying for us as a couple has allowed us to bond in a completely different environment,” Chavez said. “She enjoys rallying, enjoys the friendly atmosphere, the fact that many women are involved and that it can
be a family sport.”
Gorman Ridge Rally is infamous for its barbecue. This year it will be during the rally’s mid-point and provided by the Boy Scouts. Post-event beer is provided by Karl Strauss Brewing Company.
The event also features live scoring, presented by RallyData.com, available through the event’s website at www.gormanridgerally.com.
Condor Rally Sport has three Volkswagen Golfs entered in the USRC Production 2WD class??