The final stage has been run in the 2008 Rallye Baie-Des-Chaleurs. Ken Block maintained his lead to win his first Canadian event, also the first Canadian event that he has ever managed to complete.

Pat Richard and Alan Ockwell of Subaru Rally Team Canada had a day of difficulty. The two repeatedly damaged the rear differential and were unable to fight for the win. Despite the difficulty, when the car ran well, the two were able to win four stages.

“It’s been a mixed rally for us. The stages were really rough and they took their toll,” explained Pat. “It was great to get max points towards the championship.”

Ken Block is ineligible for points towards the Canadian title, and so first place points go to Richard and Ockwell. This moves the pair into a bigger lead in the Canadian Rally Championship.

Antoine L’Estage was clearly frustrated by how the rally had gone for him. Mechanical problems that had hit on Friday were simply too much to overcome, and though taking out huge amounts of time on the longest stages today, L’Estage was unable to get beyond third position. Second place points are awarded to L’Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard, keeping them in second place overall in the championship standings.

“Considering the problems we had, it’s a good result,” said L’Estage “The plan is just to win a fourth time in a row at Defi Ste Agathe.”

Further down the order, David Legault won out in his battle with John Cassidy when Cassidy stuffed on stage and lost time. His first finish in a Canadian National Rally also places him in the top ten. Simon Losier also dropped behind Legault finishing a minute behind, and Cassidy finished tenth, another minute and a half back of Losier.

Top two wheel drive honours went to Westerners Eric Grochowski and Leanne Junnila of Calgary. The pair were unable to finish the Mountain Trials rally just two weeks ago after breaking a driveshaft. This weekend, they have enjoyed a largely trouble free run.

“This is exactly what we needed. I’m really really happy, it’s been a tonne of fun,” said Grochowski.

Sadly, near the end of the event, Martin Gauvin was forced to retire after engine failure. Up to that point, Gauvin, the local favourite, was running well and setting top ten times.

Production three went to Jen Horsey and Elise Racette. After a difficult run during the day, the two were able to keep things clean and finish first in class in their Mitsubishi Lancer.

Three cheers for John Cassidy and Dave Getchell. The pair took top honours in the longest jump competition this year with a leap of 116 feet.

The next event on the Canadian Rally Championship is the Rallye Defi Ste Agathe, held North of Montreal. Run in early September, the weather can be absolutely amazing. If you haven’t made it out to a rally yet this year, start making plans for Defi. We hope to see you there!

It’s sad to have the rally Baie-Des-Chaleurs behind us. The fans are amazing, as are the roads. While the weather was cool and cloudy for most of the event, conditions could not dampen the spirit of the fans. The Camp Brule spectator area is a must for any fan of the Canadian Rally Championship, as is the massive jump at the end of the Camp Brule stage. It’s also great to see the local drivers shine here. With twelve entries from within the region, it’s no wonder the fans are so vocal. But fear not, the event isn’t quite done yet. With one of the best post-event parties still ahead of us, we’re bound to get some more great stories. Just don’t expect to see them here.

Again, a huge thanks to DC Shoes for their support, our coverage would not have been the same without their contributions. Be sure to make your entry in our Caption Contest – follow the link on the main page and email in your submissions. You have until Wednesday, so get cracking.

As crews get into the shorter stages there seems to be less punishment to the top cars. While gaps are opening up near the top of the order, other battles are still raging further down the standings.

Ken Block and Alex Gelsomino have opened up a steady lead after a mostly trouble free run today. The pair now sit in a secure first place, with a lead of almost two minutes, thirty seconds. Pat Richard and Alan Ockwell are safe in a second place position, about one minute ahead of the hard charging Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard. The Subaru Rally Team Canada car seems to have most of its troubles behind. “We’re still in it, and in second place, so I’m thankful,” commented Pat Richard.

Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard have clawed their way back up the order to secure third place after troubles last night dropped them down the results sheet. “We pushed really hard on the two long stages and made up a lot of time. There is no way we can catch Pat, so we will be third,” offered L’Estage. The result means Pat will keep a strong lead in the championship standings going into the second half of the season.

In eighth and ninth place respectively, John Cassidy and David Legault are less than thirty seconds apart. “We lost some time to Legault on one stage when we had a flat, but I think we’ve made it up on the second pass of the long stage, where we were a minute faster,” explained Dave Getchell, co-driver to John Cassidy. For all their speed, the pair had the longest jump, but it came at a cost. “It was the hardest hit in a car while not crashing,” started Getchell, adding “our heads just ping-ponged between the wings on the seat.”

Legault is driving the Mitsubishi EVO IV made an icon by Sylvain Erickson and is showing impressive speed. With about 13 kilometres to go, it will be difficult for Legault to catch the pair from Maine.

A closer battle is raging between Simon Losier and Martin Gauvin. Gauvin was running well earlier in the day until losing second gear and falling back. Now he holds only an eighteen second lead and the team is busily working on the transmission at service. Whoever finishes ahead will finish in the top ten.

The 2 Brits Racing brother sister team of Nick and Kelly Matthew have been driving well and are in fourteenth overall, and secure in position. The pair hit the longest distance on the first pass of the big jump and broke their suspension in the process. The service crew was able to make repairs and get the crew back on the road.

Jen Horsey and Elise Racette also had trouble with broken suspension and are currently back out on the stages, having had their crew fix all the damage.

Some teams have had problems, forcing their retirement. Zebe Szewczyk retired on the second stage of the afternoon with a broken transmission. Tim O’Neil was able to register for the regional portion of the event after failing to complete the stages yesterday, but when last we were at service, the car was again on the trailer.

Teams are out on the final three stages of the day. For some, it will be a matter of survival, and for a few, it will be the staging ground for a final push for position. We’ll have more news and photos soon!

Perhaps the most recognised image of the Rallye Baie-Des-Chaleurs is the jump at the end of the Camp Brule stage. The longest jump in North American rally, it is where heroes are made and dreams are dashed.

This year, there was a lot of excitement over distance markers letting fans know just how far the teams were jumping. Distances markers came out of a partnership between Flatovercrest.com and DC Shoes. Signs were in place up to the 171 foot distance Ken laid down in his Stunt Junkies appearance.

Many of the more experienced drivers took it easy on the first pass, to get a feel for the jump, while less experienced crews along with locals pushed hard off the bat. Here’s how it all boiled down on the first jump.

Nick Mathew – 114 feet
Vittorio Bares – 112 feet
Martin Losier – 110 feet
David Legault – 105 feet
Tim Penasack – 102 feet
Patrice Potvin – 100 feet
Ken Block – 96 feet
Pat Richard – 92 feet
Marc-Andre Drouin – 88 feet
Mathieu L’Estage – 84 feet
Leo Urlichich – 84 feet
Martin Gauvin – 84 feet

While Antoine L’Estage didn’t fly far, he did come in right after a struggling Pat Richard, virtually closing the two minute gap. L’Estage had said he would be driving at maximum attack today, and that’s exactly what he’s doing! Pat appeared to be having transmission problems and fought with the car to pull away from the control.

On the second pass, the top teams started to be more committed to the jump, while the mid field entries were more cautious. Ken came flying through first, besting his previous distance by nineteen feet. One crew were able to beat him. Hold your breath, here’s the top ten on the second pass.

John Cassidy – 116 feet
Ken Block – 115 feet
Bruno Carre – 110 feet
Bruno-Pierre Allard – 103 feet
Nick Matthew – 100 feet
David Legault – 96 feet
Martin Gauvin – 95 feet
Patrice Potvin – 92 feet
Pat Richard – 90 feet arriving with a disintegrated rear tire
Leo Urlichich – 90 feet

We’re heading to service to catch up with teams before hitting the final super special and the podium. Get ready for the finish of the 2008 Rallye Baie-Des-Chaleurs! We’ll have lots of photos and more news coming your way.

The action at the 2008 Rallye Baie-Des-Chaleurs has started immediately for both competitors and fans alike.

The first stage of the rally takes crews through the famous Camp Brule spectator area. One of the landmark spectator areas in Canadian rallying, the crowds here number into the thousands. Just short of ten kilometres, the road is rough in spots, and already drying out after yesterday’s rain. Next on the schedule is the Route Dee-Burton stage. Almost seventeen kilometres long, the stage starts out fast and flowing before tightening up and becoming more technical further from town. The third stage is the Robidoux stage. Starting on a fast and wide gravel road, teams turn off onto a tight and technical forest track that winds up and down a hill before rejoining the faster road below. It was at the start of Robidoux where we caught up with the competitors. The rally was already claiming its first victims.

“We’ve lost fifth and sixth gear,” explained Pat Richard. The Subaru Rally Team Canada car had developed transmission problems on the second stage, culminating in the loss of the two gears. At service, the Rocket Rally crew were able to replace the transmission and get the pair back onto the road. Their troubles were not to end there, however, as right off the start line of stage six, the propshaft failed and the car limped in two wheel drive for most of the stage.

Antoine L’Estage has also been having trouble. With a flat rear tire and an oil leak, the Concerto crew had plenty to keep them busy before checking into the time control. On stage three, a rear control arm on the Hyundai failed, causing the team to lose time on the stage before getting to service. With that repaired, Antoine and co-driver Nathalie Richard got back out on the stages only to have the car develop a boost leak. “It’s been a BAD day at the office,” offered L’Estage. “Normally, Friday night is where I win this rally, but now we have lost time, so I will have to go at maximum attack tomorrow.”

Ken Block, visiting from the US in an effort to further develop the new 2008 Subaru Impreza STI, arrived on a complete flat. He and co-driver Alex Gelsomino are also at the event for two-pass recce experience in preparation for upcoming PWRC events, but were not entirely satisfied with their efforts. “The second stage is really tricky, and hard to note,” explained Ken. Early into stage three, Ken swung wide and hit a bridge, damaging the body of his car and flatting a rear tire. Despite the difficulty, Ken was able to pick up the pace and move into first at the day’s end.

Andrew Comrie-Picard was doing well while having to re-adapt to his older EVO IV. “The brakes are totally different than my EVO IX,” explained ACP. After stage three, ACP found himself tied for first place with Crazy Leo Urlichich.

“We were going along and then we were missing a line in the notes, so that got pretty crazy. It’s going good,” smiled Leo, clearly happy with how his day was going. Unfortunately, reports have come in that Leo was at the side of a stage, and likely out with mechanical problems. ACP also failed to finish with an electrical problem forcing him out of the event.

Mathieu L’Estage was having issues with oil leaking from the rear suspension. Able to make it to service, L’Estage got help from the Losiers and drove well on the last three stages, moving up to third by the end of the night. “I will continue just like today, and get more time in the car.”

Having completed the treacherous Friday night stages, the remaining teams are getting a second chance tomorrow to push for a top result. Crews have about 100 kms of stages remaining, including two runs over the infamous jump. We’ll be sure to let you know just how far all of your favourites fly!

Here’s a list of some of the troubles other teams have had today.

Jon Nichols – Finished all six stages but melted a piston and withdrew.
Tim O’Neil – Spotted on stage one, with manifold or downpipe problems.
Zebe Szeczyk – failed to make a T left at the end of a 900 m straight. Back on road and still running.
Nicola Narini – damaged suspension on second stage, made it to service and repaired car.
Francisco Pereira – Hit a deer early and retired.

With such a leisurely start to the Rallye Baie-Des-Chaleurs, we’ve been rounding up some news for all you fans watching at home. So which do you want first, the good or the bad?

Ontario based driver Jaak Laan is awaiting a replacement motor today. This morning, the P4 Subaru developed a knocking noise, and the crew were able to source a new engine in New Brunswick. It’s on the way, but when we last spoke to Laan’s crew, they were unsure when it will arrive.

Crazy Leo Urlichich is awaiting his car and service truck after the truck had a breakdown in New Brunswick. Last work was that the team were trying to rent a truck to continue the trip and retrieve the stricken cube later.

Mathieu L’Estage is all smiles after repairing his EVO after the motor blew at a regional rally earlier this month. At the Planet Motorsport Black Bear rally, the timing belt failed and the heads exploded, sending shards of valves back into the turbo. Now the car seems to be running well, and Mathieu is eager to get to the competition.

Simon Losier has a new car, something he promised us at Rocky Mountain Rally in Calgary last month. An EVO VIII, the car is fully built, including a dogbox, stroker motor and lots of other goodies. While out testing a few days ago, Simon made the car a “little less pretty” in an off-road excursion, but the EVO is still ready to go, if a little more experienced.

This afternoon, fans were able to meet Pat Richard and Ken Block at an autograph session at the Subaru dealer here in New Richmond. It was a chance to ask questions of these two top drivers and get a good look at the cars they drive. If you weren’t able to make it, you can still get an autographed T shirt. Just check out our new caption contest here on Flatovercrest.com.

So far the weather has been good, and light winds and sunshine should be helping the roads dry out. Stages start today at about 6:30pm, and will include two passes through the famous Camp Brule spectator area.