Richard leads dusty Rocky Mountain Rally

Posted on 29. May, 2009 by Dean in Rocky Mountain Rally 2009

The Subaru Rally Team Canada pairing of
Pat Richard and Alan Ockwell took an early lead during the first day
of action at the 2009 Rocky Mountain Rally in Calgary. The pair head
into tomorrow's stages with a 17 second lead over Antoine L'Estage
and Nathalie Richard.

L'Estage and Richard started the day
first on the road in their Mitsubishi Evolution X. The pair were
slowed by having to sweep the loose gravel from the surface of the
road and quickly lost time to Richard and Ockwell.

After two stages, the teams were
reseeded with the Richard Ockwell pairing out front. The tables were
turned, and Antoine was able to claw back some time.

“It's not a huge difference between
first and second on the road,” said Pat Richard.

The Rocky Mountain Rally is the only
event in the Canadian Rally Championship where organizers provide
notes rather than letting teams create personalized notes.

“We could be a lot faster with our
own notes,” said Antoine L'Estage, “but we just can't commit the
same way with the notes we have here.”

The top five teams are all running on
two minute intervals, as opposed to the one minute gap given to teams further down the order – something that made a huge difference for
the brother sister team of Nick and Kelly Mathew. The pair started the
day in 11^th, but moved up to fifth after the reseed

“The two minute window was a huge
difference for us,” said Nick. “Partway through one stage, we
caught the dust of Warren Currie, but after the reseed, it was fine.”

The Mathew car finished the day in
fifth place, and are the top ranked novice, well ahead of second
place novice, Piotr Kadlubowski who sits one minute, 20 seconds
adrift.

Andrew Comrie-Picard and Robbie Durant
maintained a third place through the day. The Mitusbishi Evolution X
the pair are running is still in development, and has only been used
for the 2008 Rally of the Tall Pines in Bancroft, Ont. Durant has
been co-driving for Comrie-Picard in the US as part of the Rally
America and they are enjoying success they hope will translate across
the border.

For Pat Richard, this event represents
a milestone – ten years from his first rally.

“If you'd told me back then that I
would be leading this rally and working with such a great team, I'd
never have believed you,” said Richard. “I remember everything
from that first event.”

[1999: Rocket Rally - complete with roof rack!]

After three stages run on Powderface
trail, teams returned to Calgary for head to head racing action at
the Race City superspecial. Organizers opted to cancel the second
running, and the final match was that of L'Estage versus Richard. The
two were nearly even over the first interval, but Richard ultimately
won the stage.

In two wheel drive, the Mitsubishi
Lancer of Zbigniew Szewczyk is leading. In Group 2, Jan and Jody
Zedril are leading rivals Eric Grochowski and Leanne Junnila.

The lone retirement was Mark
Jennings-Bates, whose Subaru suffered a blown engine on the second
stage of the day.

Teams will trailer to the Skyline Ranch
service park in the morning, and the first stage starts just before
10am Mountain Time