The new 2010 Rally America Calendar now available with us on the cover from last year's LSPR rally.

We all know air travel is fair on a good day and wretched on a bad one. Yesterday was one of the worse travel days I have ever had so much so we almost didn’t make it to this weekend’s Lake Superior Performance Rally. How bad would that be to spend all this money, take precious vacation days off I (can you actually have a negative balance), and still not make it? Luckily I do fly a ton and have status on United so they finally got us to part way to Chicago this morning at 2am! So we had to rent a car and drive to Houghton today (8hr drive). Press on regardless right?

Luckily, our SRT4 and driver Doug Shepherd are already on the road to the event from the Detroit area. It has been pouring rain and cold ever since we landed this morning I suspect being from sunny California I better start getting use to it. It has been snowing and raining in Houghton where the rally takes place this weekend. Road conditions will be variable at best… clear, icy, and snowy every corner can be different at LSPR. This is why attrition is typically high at this event.

The last two years it poured rain but no such luck this year, snow is in the forecast. I read this morning that there hasn’t been this much snow on the ground at this rally since 1982. That’s what makes rallying so fun, you never know what you are in for! This is our third year in a row at LSPR (7th overall, 1st in class & 2wd in 2007, 5th overall, 1st in class, & 2wd in 2008). Even though this is our first event in 2009 I have run with the likes of Frank Sprongl and Lauchlin O’Sullivan this year already so I can’t wait to bring what I have learned this year with those guys to LSPR with Doug. Besides it was this event back in 2007 where Doug gave me a shot to co-drive for him, it has turned out to be the rally education of a lifetime and an absolute blast!

This is my first “Blog” ever… I am trying it out this weekend on a dare. Who know maybe it could be fun. We are in the middle of Wisconsin and the weather is getting worse so better run.

More later about my favorite rally in the US…

Karen Wagner
Co-Driver in CARS, Rally-America, CRS, NASA series

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