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As teams pulled into the first service of the day today, the long hours put in by crews overnight had apparently paid off. Many cars were sporting tarmac setups for the all tarmac stages run first, and those who had suffered problems yesterday were now in much better shape.

"My crew were up to three in the morning working on the car," explained Bruno Carre. "It’s not perfect, but it’s DAMN good!"

Things were not so happy over at the Musketeer Racing tent. "We replaced the turbo, but now we are only getting ten pounds of boost, so we are looking for a leak," shrugged Andrew Comrie-Picard. With continued problems, it would be very unlikely that ACP would be able to catch a very fast Antoine L’Estage. Antoine had been fast enough to win every stage in the event so far, and no one looked capable of stopping that trend.

Peter Thomson was unable to get all the sleep he would have liked, but "I got my waffle this morning, so that’s good," explained the Toronto driver. This year the organizers put services on either side of the tarmac stages, enabling teams to commit to a full tarmac setup, satisfying many drivers, Peter included.

Rejean Losier pulled into service with a wing missing and some heavy damage to the rear passenger corner of the car. "We tried a new way to finish a stage, we went past the flag backwards! It was a weeeeeee and then a BANG." The damage was thankfully really mostly cosmetic, and the team soldiered on.

Jon Nichols was still doing well, and clearly taking to the EVO, despite feeling desensitized. On Friday night, he had commented that the car was too quiet, and that he didn’t know what it was doing all the time. Today, his comments were a little more brief. "I’m scared shitless, this stuff (tarmac) is crazy!" breathed Nichols.

John Vanos had great difficulty with his tarmac tires, finding that they were not at all progressive when losing grip. A change to worn gravels also provided a change of spirit and the Vanos and Ockwell combo were soon seen in much better spirits.

For Leo Url, the rally had been a trying experience right from the start. Despite some very fast driving, the car would occasionally drop into limp mode, preventing engine speeds over 3000 rpm. Url discovered that by driving more smoothly, not launching the car and being a little more gentle with the shifter, the engine management would stay out of limp mode. Sadly, just as he learned this, the Russian ended his rally. In an attempt to avoid hitting a car that had crashed at the side of the road, Leo’s car rolled, putting him out of the rally.

In checking in with Western co-driver Leanne Junnila, it was discovered the pair were having a great time, and doing their best to adapt to tarmac. They have apparently been bitten by the Eastern rally bug, so it is quite possible we will see this pairing out at more events this side of the prairies.

In the early afternoon, teams drove out to the longest stages of the event, where the biggest gains and losses would be made. The new stages were fast and narrow, demanding the utmost of the drivers’ skill.

When returning for the last service to prepare for the final three stages, attrition was starting bite. Ian Crerar was out, after suffering two flat tires, and running out of spares. "It’s the logical result for our Campaign of Shame!" crowed Crerar. "One more DNF in the logbook won’t hurt." Mathieu L’Estage was also out, with gearbox problems. "We lost third, and then did three more stages and then lost all but first and second. We were doing well though, with top three times, I think we were even in third for a while." The Last Ditch pairing of John Cassidy and Dave Getchell were also out, with a hole in their cross pipe, and climbing oil temps. "A DNF is a lot more palpable than a blown engine, so we pulled out," explained Getchell. Mark Williams and James Drake, competing in the regional portion of the event crashed out on one of the morning stages, the car sustaining heavy damage, but the two occupants escaping unscathed. Andrew Comrie-Picard continued to suffer more drama, losing a shift linkage, and still down on boost. "We can probably hold second place," mumbled the usually engaging driver. Thomson also lost a shift linkage, getting stuck in third gear. Co-Driver Rod Hendricksen was able to effect some roadside repairs with some wire and zip ties that managed to hold through the long stage, getting the pair back to service for a proper remedy.

Antoine L’Estage appeared to be one of the few without problems, only losing an exhaust hangar, and losing his first stage of the event just before service. "Now we can take it easy, and let other people win some stages. We will just try to cruise to the finish."

That would not be the plan for John Vanos and Alan Ockwell. Due to much improved spirits and some new found speed, the pair were only thirty seconds shy of Peter Thomson, with eyes for the podium. "I don’t think we can catch him on raw speed, but if (Thomson) has a problem…" trailed off Ockwell. "We’ve got a target on our back though," added Vanos, referring to Henderson, who had until recently held fourth place before being overhauled on one stage by the Planet Motorsport car. Vanos would be unable to hold the lead, dropping back to fifth place by the finish.

The podium stayed steady – Antoine L’Estage, Andrew Comrie-Picard and Peter Thomson. This was the third year that L’Estage has won Defi, and will add to his championship points, stretching his lead a little further over Andrew Comrie-Picard. "We’re very happy to win," smiled Antoine, drinking the remains of his champagne. For Andrew Comrie-Picard, the tense weekend was all but very. ACP, along with Jen Horsey and the rest of the film crew are on their way to Montreal to catch a flight to Newfoundland to cover Targa, starting tomorrow. Peter Thomson drove a fairly relaxed rally, just getting back into the swing of things, and he’s certainly seems to have done just that. "I’m not as fast as I want to be, but I’m learning. The car has more in it," stated Peter.

The next round of the Canadian Rally Championship is the Pacific Forest Rally, in Merrit BC. Until then, keep your eyes on Flatovercrest.com for news and photos from Targa Newfoundland, and some exciting new content. Flatovercrest.com wants to thank Tim Chreptak for his invaluable assistance. Last night, the Flatovercrest.com crew suffered terminal laptop failure. Were it not for the loan of Tim’s laptop, this coverage would not have been possible.

The 2007 Rallye Defi Ste Agathe started with high hopes all around, and though only 15kms of stages were run, already the event has started to take shape. As expected, Andrew Comrie-Picard and Antoine L’Estage both lept off the start to try to best each other and gain valuable championship points.

st"I think to win here, you will need to be faster than usual on the short stages," commented Andrew Comrie-Picard. This year, the event is down in mileage, so the ability to catch up on the stages run on Saturday is not as big as in years past. Despite this need, competitors would need to be careful, "there are a lot of Little tricky bits in the new stage tonight," commented Antoine.

As expected, the pair quickly took up the one two positions, with Antoine taking the lead. In third place was Peter Thomson, at his first national rally in 15 months. Quickly a battle began to take shape for third place. After three stages, six teams were all within ten seconds of Peter Thomson. Thomson, the 2005 Canadian Rally Champion would have his work cut out to keep his third place position.

The damage started early, with Bruno Carre landing in a ditch after a jump on the first stage. The car sustained significant damage, but Carre was able to get it back to service, where the crew descended on the car. A visit by their service area afterwards showed many pieces that had not fared so well in the impact. A steering rack, two A arms, and a pile of lateral links sat atop the pile of replaced parts. The side of the car had also been gouged along it’s length, as if some massive animal had clawed the drivers side. Carre was able to continue and did finish the night, though his crew were up very late to get the car into better condition.

Others throughout the order also had problems. The Evo of Andrew Comrie-Picard started early on to show symptoms of some unknown trouble. As I left the service area for the night, the crew was debating whether the turbo or engine would need replacing. The car was not producing the power ACP was used to, and was also running hot. John Vanos had a leaky intercooler early on and was down on boost, but the problem was quickly resolved. "I’ve got enough power now," said Vanos, laughing "well, I should never say enough."

Randy Zimmer, back in a freshly painted car had also had some problems. "The lights were askew, so I tried to un-askew them, but not very well. It was fine if you could tell braking zones by treetops, but I can’t." A little more time and care in the service area, and the light problems were resolved.

Ian Crerar once commented his Porsche was a "hairball" to drive, and so when asked what feline waste his new car most resembled, the answer was quick. "A hairball on fire!" laughed the Ontario based driver. "This is the problem with being the funny man, everyone expects you to have good one liners!"

As the final stages were driven, and teams returned to service before heading to hotels, the top of the order remained largely the same. Flatovercrest.com took the opportunity to catch up with the man in the green Evo, Rejean Losier.

"The first stages at Baie were hard, but now I feel good with the car again. I am putting on a good show. There are so many young drivers though, so there is not much I can do, but I can help them!" smiled the affable Quebec driver.

Tomorrow’s action starts bright and early in the morning, and with many new stages tomorrow, the teams will be on their toes!

]]> http://flatovercrest.com/2007/09/friday-night-update/feed/ 1 http://flatovercrest.com/2007/09/preview-for-the-2007-rallye-defi-ste-agathe/ http://flatovercrest.com/2007/09/preview-for-the-2007-rallye-defi-ste-agathe/#comments Fri, 07 Sep 2007 06:24:00 +0000 Dean http://flatovercrest.com/?p=145 Tomorrow marks the start of the 2007 Rallye Defi Ste Agathe. The fourth round of the Canadian Rally Championship, this event could be a decider in one of the closest title battles in recent years. Antoine L’Estage has a slight lead over Andrew Comrie-Picard in the National standings, and fortunes at this event could easily see a swap of positions.

Defi is known for rough roads and plenty of dust. Conditions make attrition high, and driver error has caused its share of heartbreak. Matt Iorio drove off the road two years ago while leading the event. Sylvain Erickson had mechanical DNFs here for the past two years. This year, the event features some new stages, as well as some tarmac to keep the drivers on their toes, and the fans on their feet!

L’Estage will no doubt be looking for a win, not only to secure more championship points, but also to show appreciation to Hyundai for their recent sponsorship of the Quebec driver. Andrew Comrie-Picard, fresh of his ESPN X Games appearance will make it tough, as will a number of other drivers, all looking for a slice of the pie. Peter Thomson will be on hand after a long break from rallying. In the past, he’s had difficulty at this event, but with new stages on the roster, anything can happen. Also on the entry list are John Cassidy, Jon Nichols, Mathieu L’Estage and Peter Reilly. Sylvain Erickson will be on the sidelines for this event, after a tragic fire on his property destroyed much of his business.
John Vanos will be out in the new Planet Motorsport Subaru. Incredibly fast at the Galway Cavendish Forest Rally, an electrical gremlin sidelined the car on the third stage, the team’s first mechanical failure in over two years of competition. Vanos’ co-driver Alan Ockwell made his X Games debut last month in Los Angeles.  Randy Zimmer is also making a visit to Defi once again.

Making the long cross-country tow are the Western teams of Zbigniew Szewczyk/Tomasz Karzynski, Eric Grochowski/Leanne Junnila and Colin Armstrong/Ryan Warrington.

Two other notable absences should be mentioned.  Andrew Harvey and Warwick Patterson will not be at Defi, leaving the writing and photographic duties to yours truly. Instead, the pair are on their way to cover Targa Newfoundland Rally out on the Rock for the next week. This means that Flatovercrest.com will have over a week’s coverage of some of the best rallying in Canada. Sit back, and enjoy the coverage from the 2007 Rallye Defi Ste Agathe!