ProRally: Rim of the World Rally fact sheet

SCCA ProRally Championship - Rim of the World

Third round (of nine) for the 2000 season. SCCA and FIA Performance Rally cars from across North America will compete on demanding dirt and gravel roads along trails in the Angeles National Forest in southern California. This event is sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA). There are two ClubRally events for regional entrants included in the Rim of the World ProRally. The Friday night stages comprise ClubRally #1, and select Saturday stages comprise ClubRally #2. The ClubRally events run concurrently with the ProRally.

When & Where:
May 5-6, 2000; Palmdale, CA; approximately 50 miles (70 kilometers) north east of Los Angeles.

Headquarters Hotel & Friday/Saturday Press Room;
Event and Media registration (Friday afternoon):
Holiday Inn - Palmdale, 38630 5th Street West, Palmdale, CA 93551,
661.947.8055 main, press room direct: 661.273.0328
hotel located at junction of Hwy 14 and Palmdale Blvd
press registration will be in the main entrant registration area near the rear of the hotel.

Schedule:
Friday, May 05, 2000
8:30 AM - 12:00 Noon Media press event. See details below
1:00 PM - 6:00 PM Registration at Holiday Inn
1:00 PM - 5:30 PM Scrutineering - America's Tire Company, Hwy 14 & Avenue J,

Lancaster
6:30 PM - 7:00 PM Parc Expose - Holiday Inn, Palmdale
7:00 PM sharp Official Rally Start - Holiday Inn. Spectator RallyCross Stage at Start
11:55 PM approx First car finishes Day one of rally - Holiday Inn, Palmdale

Saturday, May 06, 2000
7:00 AM - 9:30 AM Racer's Breakfast at Holiday Inn
9::30 AM - 1:00 PM Fund raising RallyCross event for local charity ($20US donation) Parc Expose runs concurrently with this activity
12:15 PM Prize giving for Friday ClubRally winners
1:00 PM sharp Official day two Rally Start - Holiday Inn
4:15 PM approx Service break - Lake Hughes Community Club
6:30 PM approx Service and dinner break, re-seeding - Lake Hughes Community Club
8:00 PM sharp Restart day two of rally - night stages - Lake Hughes Community Club
10:00 PM approx First car finishes day two of Rim of the World ProRally - Holiday Inn
11:00 PM approx Provisional ProRally scoring posted - Holiday Inn
2:00 AM approx Press room closed

Sunday, May 07, 2000    

8:00 - 10:00 AM   Awards Breakfast - Holiday Inn - no press activity scheduled

Selected entries (driver/co-driver):
* 1999 Overall Manufacturer, Driver & Co-Driver Champions Noel Lawler & Charles Bradley; Open Class 2000 Hyundai Tiburon
* Sno*Drift & OregonTrail overall winners Paul Choinere & Jeff Becker; 2000 Hyundai Tiburon
* 1999 Rim of the World overall winners Garen & Doc Shrader; 1997 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV
* 1998 Group 5 Driver Champion (and 1999 runnerup) Ralph Kosmides with Ken Cassidy; 1996 Toyota Supra turbo;
* 1999 Production Drivers Champion Karl Scheible, with Russ Hughes, 1998 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V.
* 2000 Oregon Trail PGT winner Patrick Richard with Ian McCurdy; 1998 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS

Additional notes:

The Manufacturers Championship, which received a strong boost with the arrival of Mitsubishi at Oregon Trail, is expected to further heat up at Rim, with debut of Lee Shadbolt's Group A Subaru Impreza, and no less than five Mitsubishi Lancers. Hyundai's strong out-of-the-box debut of their two new Tiburons at Oregon Trail proved the company has done its off-season homework, and further development to keep them out front is expected in preparation for Rim.

The tire war is building - Oregon Trail had no less than 4 different tire companies finish in the top 10 overall, and this trend is expected to continue, with strong efforts from Pirelli, Michelin and Silverstone all expected to run at the front.

The Rim of the World Event is acknowledged as the most demanding event on the ProRally Championship schedule, with a history of high attrition. Rough twisting roads, choking dust and fickle weather in the high elevations quickly wear down drivers and equipment.

Event Rank:
This rally is a full points SCCA ProRally Championship event, and has long been a fixture of the championship, the 2000 event marks its 17th running. Drivers at this event earn points towards the national championship, and supporting manufacturers (Hyundai, Toyota, Subaru and Mitsubishi) earn points towards overall and class MFG Championships.