Rally XS was great. But isn't it always. Everyone is ready for the fight. I my eyes Burns looks alittle worried about his chances on tarmac against such competition.

Even Didier said the winner would be either Panizzi, Loeb, Sainz or Martin.

I'll be out of town. Up in Porland this coming Friday thru sunday. I've already told my wife we have to be back home no later than 6PM for the race.

 

bump

 

Whatever the outcome it will be a great rally. I liked the little portion of the Rally XS with the different tyre choices and the amount of seconds it could cost you if you went with the wrong ones.

 

i really love the Richard Burns piece. With him back at the 17 and under club wherehe learned to drive. Sure wish i had that kind of opportunity. The kids were having a ball. It made me like Burns the wat i did several years ago all over.

 

the spot on Burns driving at the under 17 club was awesome. it was wonderful to see a WRC champ giving rides to kids in a car club, like he was just a normal everyday guy -- with great car control, who happens to be really fast. it would be wonderful if there were opportunities for that sort of thing here, i would have loved that when i was younger. the look on some of the kid's faces after a spin with Burns were priceless.

the tire segment was rather edducational. everyone knows that the wrong tires can cost you time, but it's interesting to see just how much they can affect stage times. i was surprised that the wet tire had so few cuts in it, and yet it was able to move water very effectively. i'd imagine that if you were handy with a tire cutter, you could cut yourself a pair of Falken Azenis that would work very well in the rain, as it appeared that the wet tire wasn't that differant from an Azeni in terms of number of cuts.

Bushido, did you watch Rally XS before making your picks? After watching the segment with Didier Auriol making his predictions, it was worth noting that his predictions weren't that far off from what you and i had forecast.

i can't wait until sunday...

 

Ya i made my pick before watching the show. I don't blame him for not mentioning Petter either. I just can't make a list without him being up twards the top.

and the rain weather tires they showed... You said it had "so few cuts" and you're right. But man thoses things weren't "cuts" they were "valleys" They looked about 3/4 inch wide and over an inch deep.

I'll be driving to Potland for the weekend. Leaving 4am Friday morning.So i'll talk about the winners when i get back. later

rich

 

the rain tires were really intriguing. they had a couple of massive cuts along the tires rotational axis, and then a couple of cuts running across the tire. i'm guessing that there were maybe eight to twelve sizable cuts running crosswise, with probably four to six shallow sipes in between each large cut. i wouldn't have thought that a tire like that would be able to move enough water to cut through a puddle, but obviously i was wrong. to my eye, it looked like the cut pattern would be pretty easy to replicate given a set of DOT race tires and a tire cutter. it'd certainly be an interesting experiment for those with the dough for it.

i'll be interested to see how Petter does this weekend. i love watching him drive, and it's even more entertaining to watch him finish on the podium, due to his colorful celebrations. as much as i know he'd love to win on tarmac, i just think he's out gunned by the tarmac experts. that said, i'd put a couple bucks on him doing very well in GB.

 

Sebs gonna win it all , just my prediction, we'll see.

 

NO way, Panizzi has more experience and I expect sebs to be in the top 5 though. But again, JMHO

 

i just finished watching rally San Remo about an hour ago -- watch out Mr. Burns!

seriously, San Remo was a great rally even though the results weren't exactly what i'd expected. i'd picked Panizzi to win in San Remo, because he's owned the place for the last three years. if he'd had one more stage on intermediate tires at the end of day three, Loeb wouldn't have been sipping on champagne. as it was, he did well to pick up a couple of places and find himself on the podium at the end of the event.

if Panizzi is the king of tarmac, then Loeb is his heir apparent. the kid hauls @$$ on the black stuff, and beat the holy living crap out of the best in the world despite mechanical issues, a brush with a wall, and running slicks in the rain. right now, i'm betting that Loeb will win the championsip this year. there are two tarmac events left, and Loeb is far better than Burns or Sainz on tarmac, and they're the closest to him in the championship.

Gronholm didn't win it, so he binned it. Vintage Marcus.

Marko Martin was really impressive, and did better than i figured he would in spite of a rash of problems ranging from a time penalty resulting from a late exit from the service park to his engine overheating. my guess is that the fight for the championship next year may come down to a three way tie up between Martin, Loeb and Solberg.

damn, i can't wait until Corsica...

 

what a great race. Although i was yelling at the TV when Petter ran out of fuel on his way to the next place. What a $hitty way to go out. And Markko, he would have been right up there if he hadn't had overheating problems and that time penilty.

Burns better figure something out quick. Because points in GB alone will not safe his championship hopes.

Right on for F. Duval. I had a feeling he'd finish up in the points.

 

you're right, runnint out of petrol is a crappy way to retire from a rally. if you're going to go out, you might as well do it right and bin it big time on the stage, or have a huge mechanical failure.

speaking of retirements, i was surpised to see that McRae didn't crash out. my guess is that he was driving to finish, specifiacally in one piece.

Burns is in serious danger of loosing the championship if he doesn't come up with a lot of speed on tarmac in about two weeks. Loeb is sitting in second, just two points down from Burns. a win in Corsica would put him ahead of Burns even if the englishman finished on the podium. right now, it looks like it's Loeb's championship to win.

 

I agree totally. The wife will just be thrilled. More reasons for SPEED to show is face on camera.

 

Loeb gets my vote for most improved driver (on a top team). I think women like him for his driving ability, his French accent, and his slight resemblance to actor Russell Crowe.

--
0==WW==0
"…axles of evil…" - george w. bush

 

i don't know that i'd call Loeb the most improved driver of the season. remember that he won on tarmac last year, and was only contesting part of the WRC calender. i'd nominate Marko Martin for the most improved driver award (if there was one).

oh, and i thought that women liked Loeb because of his french accent, and the fact that he is an ex-gymnast...