http://rally.racing-live.com/img/drapeaux/drap_fin.gif Time to get some home field advantage....Go Petter...Hopefully you can put a healthy DENT in the standings over Loeb....

Bill

If I have internet access, I'll post from the event! :)

Have fun KC. We are expecting a live video link :)

Go Petter and Miko. Subaru 1-2!!

I think Martin has a decent shot at winning, here's my hopes-

1. Solberg
2. Hirvonen
3. Martin
4. Gronholm
5. Sainz
6. Loix
7. Panizzi
8. Anyone other than Loeb (I like close points races at the end)
9. Loeb

So... is this this weekend or next?

next

I told Markko personally to keep the shiny side up. So he pulls and Argentine number. He won't be quick in Finland.

I expect Loeb/Gronholm to be the pace setters in Finland.

If Loeb can do it on Ice, he can do it anywhere

If I have internet access, I'll post from the event! :)

KC, wasnt' sure if you saw my message before. I'll record the event for you off of SPEED and send you the Tape. Send me a PM with shipping details if you want. Free to you:)

I think Petter can pull it off

of course, I wouldn't mind an off by Seb into the trees

Petter has a great chance of winning this one, and I wouldn't be surprised to have Mikko right up there with him. He drove really well in Argentina, I think he is getting a lot of confidence (Mikko). Plus we have the major advantage in Finland, both of our drivers love the icy stuff. :cool:

Shouldn't be any ice... Finland is gravel. It sounds like Mikko is gaining confidence quite quickly now that he has been turned loose. That could be a good thing or really bad thing in Finland. But either way it is going to be exciting!! w00t GO SUBARU!

Ya, I can't wait!
Hoping for a good SWRT result, and nothing against Seb, but I hope his car doesn't start... :lol: :lol:
Yumps! Yumps! And more yumps!

I wonder if we'll see any "special guests" in Finland as they've done in the past with such rally greats as Kankkunen, Vatenen, Alen, Salonen and even F1 pilot Mika Hakkinen...?

Almost time to go into bulletin-board-seclusion until Sunday night... ;)

Russ R

We need to catch that damned frenchmen! GO SWRT!!!
http://www.swrt.com/cpimages/504831.jpg

Word is that Petter's got the flu, and has been sick since Monday. :( Still, he set third fastest time on shakedown, so I guess it's not slowing him down that much.

The weather forecast for Sunday calls for rain. Go Pirellis!

Word is that Petter's got the flu, and has been sick since Monday. :( Still, he set third fastest time on shakedown, so I guess it's not slowing him down that much.

The weather forecast for Sunday calls for rain. Go Pirellis!

(Does a little rain dance) Yay rain!! Pirellis are atlest 10secs faster each stage in the rain.

Loeb and Sainz seem to be off the pace :)
w00t! Go the rain!! :banana:

Lets hope Prodrive has fixed the water Xing issue thats plagued Subaru of Late...

:)

Pirellis never let up in the rain.
Found out that SWRT will be using 205/65-15 gravel tires in Finland...


-Mark
www.MAPmotors.com (http://www.MAPmotors.com)

:eek: TOP seven are Finns! for stage 1 ! :eek:

Anyone speak Finnish? There is a net 'cast rally radio here: http://194.252.88.3/rswebjkl.nsf/sivut/radiokeskisuomi

They're interviewing Mikko right now. :) Unfortunately, I don't know Finnish. Some of it gets translated, though.

Petter sounds awful, but SWRT.com says he's feeling better. Happily, he interviews in English. :)

GO Petter!!!!!

He has to do it...we know he can...

loeb really seems to be off pace, had to look around to find what place he was in


wow, and some guy ive never heard of is in 2nd!??!?!

this rally sure will be different from the rest with the current results. Anything can happen i guess.

Petter is OUT.....Stage 4...off the road ....Retired....ahhhhhhhhh....sheeeesh...not a good way to make up points....

Bill

:( ****. I should have known better than to read this thread on Friday morning.

~~Quentin

read that, not a good way to start a Friday off

1 GRÖNHOLM Peugeot 51:00.0 0.0 (+0.0)
2 LINDHOLM Peugeot 51:12.6 +12.6 (+12.6)
3 TUOHINO Ford 51:26.0 +26.0 (+13.4)
4 MÄRTIN Ford 51:27.5 +27.5 (+1.5)
5 HIRVONEN Subaru 51:39.5 +39.5 (+12.0)
6 PAASONEN Skoda 51:41.2 +41.2 (+1.7)
7 SAINZ Citroën 51:48.2 +48.2 (+7.0)
8 DUVAL Ford 51:54.6 +54.6 (+6.4)
9 LOEB Citroën 51:56.2 +56.2 (+1.6)

weel al least loeb in 9th makes me :)

Yeah..maybe Loeb's engine will explode or something...*hopes*

And besides, Petter wasn't feeling well, give the guy a little slack :)...He'll be back...just watch last years tapes to get your hopes up.

From Rally-Live....Second retirement for Solberg
Petter Solberg had a perfect reliability record until Argentina. The Norwegian was the only driver to finish in the points in all the rallies until his retirement in South America. Solberg remained in second place in the championship but Loeb substantially increased his lead over the Subaru driver.

Solberg needed a good result in Finland to keep his championship hopes alive but unfortunately the Subaru driver didn't reach the end of the first leg. A contact damaged the front part of his Impreza, putting an end to his work day.

Subaru turned their hopes on Mikko Hirvonen to score points in Finland. The young Finn drove very well... until he went off the road in the short Super Special stage. Subaru will leave Finland without a single point.

Bah.......... :furious:

I was watching the live results when it showed him dissapear, and i scrambled to find out *** happened.

I actually got a bit sick when I found ou what happened.


Im surprised how many people are going off, and how loeb is on the leaderboard, maybe petter DOESNT have to worry if loeb isnt gunna get any points

maybe petter DOESNT have to worry if loeb isnt gunna get any points

Unfortunately Mikko going out moved Loeb into 8th place. Considering that he's driving for points not glory and that his main pressure is off, the chances of Loeb putting a tire wrong are fairly low.

http://rally.racing-live.com/photos/2004/finlande/diapob_109.jpg

Ouch!

Brutal!

were down were down.:(

damn you Loeb stay down! let's go Duval!!!1!!!!

1 GRÖNHOLM Peugeot 59:08.6 0.0 (+0.0)
2 LINDHOLM Peugeot 59:26.9 +18.3 (+18.3)
3 MÄRTIN Ford 59:37.0 +28.4 (+10.1)
4 TUOHINO Ford 59:51.0 +42.4 (+14.0)
5 SAINZ Citroën 59:59.9 +51.3 (+8.9)
6 PAASONEN Skoda 1:00:05.1 +56.5 (+5.2)
7 LOEB Citroën 1:00:09.8 +1:01.2 (+4.7)
8 DUVAL Ford 1:00:10.3 +1:01.7 (+0.5)

home field??

Petter is from Norway.

I think sombody is still thinking about Tommi, "The Flyin Finn"

Good catch, I never even noticed...

petter on the restart is killing everyone SS 12 - 15, 17. too bad he can't score points. ughhhhh

http://swrt.com/cpimages/592818.jpg
hi-res: http://swrt.com/cpimages/592817.jpg

Loeb in forth so far....:furious: Looks like he is going to win the championship, which I hope will not happen!


-Mark
www.MAPmotors.com (http://www.MAPmotors.com)

After day 2:


SS11 Vaheri M GRÖNHOLM / T RAUTIAINEN
SS12 Ouninpohja 1 P SOLBERG / P MILLS
SS13 Urria P SOLBERG / P MILLS
SS14 Ouninpohja 2 P SOLBERG / P MILLS
SS15 Ehikki P SOLBERG / P MILLS
SS16 Moksi - Leustu M GRÖNHOLM / T RAUTIAINEN
SS17 Himos P SOLBERG / P MILLS
SS18 Killeri 2 M MÄRTIN / M PARK


at least petter is kicking ass and taking stage wins away from loeb

D'oh... Subaru have the fastest car again, and score no points. When are Citroen gonna have some bad luck?
PS: If anyone has seen it Gronholms comments about only having 3 gears in the Pug are priceless.

Well guys... you GOTTA come out to this and see/feel the action. I'm typing from the hotel, about to go to bed.

I'll update late.. just want to say...



This is ****ING nuts to bee feet away from these cars!!!

Pics will go up when I get home.... and I have some CHOICE video. :D

--kC

glad your having a good time KC can't wait till you get back

Mikko te Suomi....Petter er Frå Norge..... Petter = Norway Mikko = Finland ...:)

*** man ... who the hell DNF on a super special stage like that. Prodrive needs to get rid of Hirvonen quick.

Is it true that the MitsuEvo team quit the rally season?

I am a racing fan just getting into rally...

thanks to Subaru...

Yeap.

Although it seems Suzuki is getting into rallying soon.

Love Gronholm's comment after loosing fourth gear - he was ~third fastest on the stages without fourth, and when he heard it he said "tell (team leader) 3 gears is ok!" Looks like the five speed trans did pretty good (until the car crashed).

Skoda did pretty good considering.

Tom

Loeb in forth so far....:furious: Looks like he is going to win the championship, which I hope will not happen!
Why not? He's earning it fair and square while everyone else is making mistakes. Both Petter's and Miko's offs in Finland were such amature mistakes it's shameful! Finland is such a unique rally that I can understand how the man leading the championship was so far off the pace. At the same time, he did the smart thing to do when you aren't comfortable with the roads- stay off the pace and wait for the rally to come to you. Martin played it really well too, especially considering his double vision issues.

Alex

*** man ... who the hell DNF on a super special stage like that. Prodrive needs to get rid of Hirvonen quick.

so you think you could do better? :rolleyes:

What Petter did was just as big a mistake. Mistakes happen, all the drivers have done something like that at one time or another, so back off!

I think SWRT is smart to keep Mikko, they are preparing him to be in top form when Petter starts winding down. You may recall they did the same with Colin McCrash (he used to total cars constantly) and Petter. If teams don't give the young guys a chance no new world champions are born.

I got to hang out with Mikko (for a photo shoot and to party) while in Mexico, he is a super nice guy and very enthusiastic and grateful to have a chance. Once he gets some good results under his belt his confidence will be boosted and you will see more good finishes.


http://www.morgansegal.com/images/mikko.jpg

I think SWRT is smart to keep Mikko, they are preparing him to be in top form when Petter starts winding down. [/IMG]

Considering he was fastest on the only stage Sunday where Petter wasn't fastest, I'd say Subaru is quite smart. Those other three stages Sunday he was 4th fastest. I'd be suprised if he doesn't get a podium finish or two by the end of the year.

On a different note, seeing Petter kicking butt on the last two days when he couldn't score anything sucked. Without the crash, he would have won. :mad: Ahhh, Shoulda woulda coulda.

Tom

so you think you could do better? :rolleyes:


:rolleyes:
We're talking about a professional driver here.

If someone actually deem me worthy enough to choose me to drive a WRC car, then yes, I wouldn't DNF on a super special by crashing head on into a guard rail.

:rolleyes:
We're talking about a professional driver here.

If someone actually deem me worthy enough to choose me to drive a WRC car, then yes, I wouldn't DNF on a super special by crashing head on into a guard rail.

My point is it is real easy for you to armchair quarterback :rolleyes:

^ agreed :rolleyes:

Pics: http://www.rallydecals.com/kcpics/rallyfinland2004

Most of the pics (other than Service Park) were by my wife... and at night, the priority of charging the Video Camera won out over recharging the still camera... so sadly not many stills.

But the video.... heh..

I have yet to review it all, but a spot or few from 4 stages and many of Sat Super Specials too.

Gonna get a video together, hopefully, this week of some highlights. :)

Oh... and might set something up for a trip next year. Most of those that I talked to over there say that Rally Finland is one of the most organized events of the WRC tour.... and I saw why. :) So I think a group trip might be in order for next year that I think I'm going to start working on after nationals.

HUGE thanks to John Felsteds recommendation of booking through Ultimate Rally World (http://www.ultimaterallyworld.com). Met many new friends and was invited to Ireland to watch some great Irish Rallying on some Tarmac... by some guys that have been doing it and organizing them for 20-30 years... it's in their blood. :)

More later... time to eat.

--kC

Why not? He's earning it fair and square while everyone else is making mistakes. Both Petter's and Miko's offs in Finland were such amature mistakes it's shameful! Finland is such a unique rally that I can understand how the man leading the championship was so far off the pace. At the same time, he did the smart thing to do when you aren't comfortable with the roads- stay off the pace and wait for the rally to come to you. Martin played it really well too, especially considering his double vision issues.

AlexIm just a die-hard Subaru fan....
But I do agree with you that the mistakes made by Mikko and Petter, made me blush! :(
Loeb is good in tarmac races too. Now, since they're comin up, I do expect him to do good. Hope Petter can keep up!

Alex, about that routebook....:lol:


-Mark
www.MAPmotors.com (http://www.mapmotors.com/)

cool pics KC, lookin forward to that video

Bummer about Solberg and Hirvonen. Did anyone hear what happened to the latter? It looked like something locked up, and he just drove straight into the guardrail.

Solberg was just going in too hot. Same for Rovanpera. The overleaf was interesting, how he was going 17km/h faster than Gronholm at the same curve? :eek:

Loeb will win the driver's title this year. He's such a smooth, elegant driver. When you look at his lines and cornering technique. They rarely show his in-car on the "Nick's Picks" segment, because it's so undramatic from that view. It looks like he's going to grocery store, rather than driving a stage in the World Rally.

Solberg's consecutive DNFs have put pay to his chances, because the Citroens don't break, and Loeb doesn't make the sorts of speed-induced mistakes that cause a driver problems. Sure Solberg was sick, but M. Schumacher drove the German GP with the flu, and look what he did. I think Solberg will be the first to admit that he just screwed up.

Tip top drive from Gronholm, too. All in all, a very nice rally, except for the absence of blue on the podium. It was good to see Markko Martin back, too.

Kevin

Bummer about Solberg and Hirvonen. Did anyone hear what happened to the latter? It looked like something locked up, and he just drove straight into the guardrail.


It appeared Hirvonen clipped a guardrail and damaged the suspension which caused him to go straight into the other guardrail at the next corner.


I would not go so far as to say, at this point, that Loeb is going to take the championship. It is only halfway through the season and Loebs lead is not insurmountable, it is rally anything can happen.

My point is it is real easy for you to armchair quarterback :rolleyes:


Isn't that what all sports fans do??? Why would this be any different?

You have to admit even Nicky was a bit surprised that a Super Special could have an effect on a rally outcome much less take out a WRC Driver :rolleyes: I guess the true test would be ask Mikko what he thought. Chances are he felt like a dumb ass...

Isn't that what all sports fans do??? Why would this be any different?

You have to admit even Nicky was a bit surprised that a Super Special could have an effect on a rally outcome much less take out a WRC Driver :rolleyes: I guess the true test would be ask Mikko what he thought. Chances are he felt like a dumb ass...

Mikko was very Embarrassed (link) (http://rally.racing-live.com/en/index.html?http://rally.racing-live.com/en/headlines/news/detail/040806221654.shtml) . I could not believe it either, but like I said, mistakes happen. Petter made a mistake too. Just because Mikko made a mistake is no reason to suggest that "Prodrive needs to get rid of Hirvonen quick". It was an uncalled for comment IMO

I guess everyone is an expert :rolleyes:

KC,
Nice pics !