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Pacific Forest Rally
June 13 and 14, 2003
Merritt, BC, Canada
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Round 5 of the Canadian Rally Championship
presented by Subaru and Yokohama Tires
Another Rally Win for McGeer
June 15, Merritt, B.C.- Tom McGeer
from Georgetown, ON claimed his third win in a row
at the Pacific Forest Rally in Merritt, BC on Saturday.
The fifth round of the Canadian Rally Championship
presented by Subaru and Yokohama was the toughest
win for McGeer in his Subaru WRX.
Mitsubishi drivers Sylvain and Philippe
Erickson from Gatineau, Quebec lead the rally from
the second special stage.
Going into the final stage of the
Rally, McGeer and co-driver Jeff Becker from New
York were pushing hard to close Erickson's 30-second
lead. McGeer, driving flat out, slid into a tree.
He was able to recover and finish the stage with
only minor body damage. Erickson wasn't as lucky.
A crash just 4km from the end took him out of the
rally.
Only 15 of the 38 cars that entered
completed all 13 stages of the Pacific Forest Rally.
Janusz Komorowski and co-driver Tomasz Karzynski,
both from Calgary, AB finished second. Gord Olsen
from Brooks, AB and co-driver Dave Shindle from
Falls Church, VA won the Group 2 class, placing
third overall.
McGeer's win puts him firmly in the
lead for the Canadian championship. With 72 points
he has a 37-point lead over Komorowski and Patrick
Richard who are tied for second with 35 points.
Erickson is close behind with 32 points. McGeer's
rivals all failed to earn points at the Pacific
Forest Rally.
Defending Canadian Rally Champ, Patrick
Richard from Vancouver, B.C. suffered from differential
problems in the early stages of the rally. During
the first service, Richard's crew changed the transmission
in his Subaru WRX Sti in 16 minutes. The new transmission
seemed to be working fine and Richard set the fastest
time on Stage 5, beating Erickson by 12 seconds.
But as Richard crossed the finish line he noticed
smoke coming from the engine. He was able to safely
stop the car and put out the fire, but it was the
end of the rally for Richard and co-driver Ian McCurdy
from Whistler, BC.
The Canadian Rally Championship continues
with Round 6 at the Rally Baie Des Chaleurs July
3rd-5th.
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Photographs of the Top Ten Drivers
are available for download at http://www.morisoncom.com/pfr
Additional Photos are available here
http://www.pacificforestrally.com/photos.htm
For more information contact:
Paul Westwick at 604-617-4132
Or check out the rally website: http://www.pacificforestrally.com.
A complete listing of results is available
at
http://www.rallyscoring.com/results/Resu2003/Pacific2003/index.htm
Attached Photo Credit:
Keith Morison
Morison Communications
www.morisoncom.com
403.282.0837
--
Bill Westhead
Media Liaison
2003 Pacific Forest Rally
mailto:bill@rallybc.com
ph: 604-707-3305
http://www.pacificforestrally.com
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