Big fights lie ahead on the roads of South Estonia

About

South Estonian Rally has always been a thriller in the past, offering second to second fights throughout every class and close fights for the overall victory. The fast and flowing roads of Võrumaa are definitely a favourite amongst many drivers and spectators.

The 16th edition of the rally promises to be no different – this year, the rally is a part of two national championships: it’s the 6th round of the Estonian Rally Championship and the 5th round of the Latvian Rally Championship. It’s also a round of the Estonian R2 Challenge (EMV6).

Guide

Rally HQ(Same location with the Service Park):

• A1000 Market, Pikk tn 2a Võru
  • GPS: N 57.84204 E 027.02273

Podium (TC0):

• Downtown Võru (Vabaduse tänav 10a)
  • GPS: N 57.84634 E 026.99920

The rally will begin on Friday, 24th of August, when the first car goes through TC0 and across the podium at 18:45. First stage, 8.24km “Saue Auto”, will be run twice (SS1/2), with the first run starting at 19:08 and the second at 19:31. Then the rally moves back into the city, where two runs(SS3/4) of the 1.07km long Võru City stage will be run.

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25th of August will be the proper long day of rallying. Special stage 5, 10.18km long “Võrumaa Autokool”, will begin at 9:52 in the morning. Then we move on to the 6th stage of the rally: 14.38km long “Milrem”, beginning at 10:18.

After a quick service break and regrouping, the crews head back out into the repeat of the first two stages of the day, SS7 “Nordauto” beginning at 12:12 and SS8 “Grossi Toidukaubad” at 12:38.

Another service break and a regroup lie ahead and after exiting regroup, the crews will do the final three stages: Stage 9, 13.82km long “Citroen”, beginning at 15:27 and then the longest stage of the rally, Stage 10, which is also the Powerstage: 14.87km long “Aegaon Watches”, beginning at 16:08.

After a quick refuel, the final stage of the rally, Stage 11, 13.82km long “A1000 Market”, begins at 17:01.

Final podium begins at 18:15.

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Rally passes are sold in Olerex gas stations across Võru and they cost 10€ a piece. A handy spectator guide can be found in Autoleht, which will be sold in stores across Estonia from the 22th of August.

Rally radio is Ring FM, which can be found on tune 101,7 mHz or http://www.ringfm.ee

 

Statistics

Throughout the years there have been many winners, but noone could match Ivar Raidam, who has a total of 5 victories across 9 starts. What’s more impressive is that Ivar scored a podium with each start!

Margus Murakas, who last drove here in 2011, is leading the statistics of Most starts: 11. Margus also has the most stage wins, 23, and most stages done whilst in the lead: 24.

Surprisingly, Markko Märtin still leads the table of fastest final average speed: 125.8 km/h back in 1997. Georg Gross got near the record in 2017 with 124.1 km/h.

Links

Supplementary regulations: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/LR2018.pdf

Official timetable: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/timetable.pdf

Rally Guide 1 (Stage videos): http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/Rally%20guide1.pdf

Rally Guide 2: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/Rally%20Guide2.pdf

Provisional entry list: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=27&race_id=407&

Rovanperä and Solberg stars of South-Estonian Rally 2017

The Estonian and the Latvian rally championships continue from the 25th to the 26th of August with the 15th edition of the South-Estonian Rally. What makes this years’ South-Estonian rally even more special is the fact that for the first time ever in the history of the rally, it will be a part of two major championships.

With that said, both championships are looking fairly promising right now,as they are being led by some really fast drivers. The current overall leader of the Estonian Rally Championship is Georg Gross, who will be showcasing his Ford Fiesta WRC ’16, and the Latvian Rally Championship is currently led by Kalle Rovanperä, who will be out there to give a proper fight for the overall victory in his TGS serviced Škoda Fabia R5. Siim Plangi will also be the one to watch. Both prototype rally cars from Kaur Motorsport with Egon Kaur and Priit Koik driving will also be starting the rally.

Raul Jeets, winner of the rally in 2011, who also last did a round of the Estonian Rally Championship back in 2014, is now back and looking forward to getting more kilometers under his belt in the Škoda Fabia R5.

Fierce competition ahead in the front-wheel drive class aswell: Martins Sesks and Ken Torn have already had their fair share of fights along the season, with the Latvian staying ahead by 15 points after Tartu Rally. Oliver Solberg will do his first start in Estonia but that doesn’t rule him out from having a victory here: his first starts in Latvia showed that he has the speed it takes to win. Mārtiņš Sesks is going on a defensive mission this rally because he leads the junior championships of both countries.

One surprising entry is the head of TGS Worldwide and ex-WRC driver Toni Gardemeister, who will also face some great competition in the rear-wheel drive class.

It’s looking to be a spectacular rally this year with the Võru city stage being re-introduced since 2009. A total of 11 stages will be run throughout two days, totaling at 127kms.

For more information, check out my preview of South-Estonian Rally 2017: https://karlip1.wordpress.com/2017/07/24/title-fights-continue-at-south-estonian-rally-2017/

Title fights continue at South-Estonian Rally 2017

SUMMARY

Lõuna-Eesti Ralli, or in english South-Estonian Rally, is a legendary rally in Estonia. The rally goes back to the year 1991, when the rallies in Baltics were still dominated by rear-wheel drive cars. Eight different winners across 14 rallies, with the list including such names as Ott Tänak, Urmo Aava and Markko Märtin, with Markko just recently taking his second victory. So if you manage to win this rally then you should compare yourself to the best drivers in the world.

Great roads, great pace, lots of action – these are the words that charactarize South-Estonian Rally. This year is no different: the 2017 edition, run from the 25th to the 26th of August, will stay on roads around Haanja, providing everyone, both drivers and spectators, with enjoyment.

Kalle Rovanperä, leader of the Latvian Rally Championship, will be the one to watch. (kaasujalka.fi photo)

Many crews are expected to attend to the rally, mainly because this years’ edition is part of both the Estonian and the Latvian Rally Championship. With both of them still having their titles undecided, the South-Estonian roads and spectators will see some thrilling fights.

South-Estonian Rally 2017 will be a two-day rally, consisting of a total of 11 stages, of which 4 will repeat. The ninth stage of the rally will also be the Power Stage.

The start and finish podium will be located in central Võru city, address Vabaduse tänav 10a.

SPECTATORS

Rally passes, 7 EUR pc., will be sold in Olerex gas stations from the 21st of August and the official rally programme can be found in Autoleht magazine sold in stores around Estonia from the 23rd of August. The official rally radio is Ring FM, which is transferred on radio frequency 101,7 MHz in South Estonia.

Another driver to watch is Georg Gross, who will also try to extend his lead in the Estonian Rally Championship. (Raivo Remmelgas photo)

Supplementary regulations: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/L-Eesti%20Rally%202017.pdf

Rally guide: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/Ralli%20Juhis_%20Rally%20Guide.pdf

IMPORTANT LOCATIONS TO REMEMBER

• HQ: Pikk tn 2a, Võru
  • GPS: N 57.84204 E 027.02273
  • Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/MK1WtRv1CK32

• Scrutiny:  Roopa 6. OÜ VAIEST
  • GPS: N 57.83021 E 027.02804
  • Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/XAeCMx5trFN2

• Service: Pikk tn 2a, Võru
  • GPS: N 57.84204 E 027.02273
  • Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/MK1WtRv1CK32

• Trailer park: Räpina maantee 11, Võru. Võru Betoon OÜ.
  • GPS: N 57.84402 E 027.01869
  • Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/cAGhrbegQ3F2

• Start/Finish podium: Vabaduse 10a, Võru
  • GPS: N 57.84634 E 026.99920
  • Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/NmFNxAz1G9w

Kaur Motorsport launches 2017 attack

It’s looking to be a great season ahead for the Estonian Rally Championship. Looking back at last year, we got the announcement of Georg Gross and Raigo Mõlder coming back together for a programme in 2017 with a 2016-spec Ford Fiesta WRC, which sounded so refreshing for every Estonian rally fan.

Gross/Mõlder took third at Rally Sarma 2017. Photo: Rando Aav

Now that we’re done with the winter season, which concluded with Rally Alūksne 2017 in January, we’re headed straight towards the loose stuff. The first proper introduction to the gravel season will be Harju Rally, which promises to be one very exciting rally!

We have one team, though, which has lots of tough work ahead – and that’s Kaur Motorsport. To be precise, they are building Proto cars, based on a Ford Fiesta, for both Egon Kaur and Priit Koik. But it’s not been an easy ride at all – slight delays have hampered progress and there are worries whether the team will be ready with the Proto cars for Harju Rally 2017.

Egon Kaur & Priit Koik will do their first 2017 rallies in these Fiesta Proto rally cars.

The full name of these cars will be ‘Ford Fiesta Proto’ and they’ll be visually looking like M-Sport’s Ford Fiesta R5 – but the difference comes in what’s under the hood. Since Kaur Motorsport has the parts of their previous Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions, they will put them to good use in their custom built Protos. The suspension, however, will be very similar to the R5 / WRC-class cars. When comparing speeds, Egon said that these Prototype Fiestas could make out to be even faster than the R5 cars.

Also, as a separate announcement, Egon and Priit have announced a small co-driver switch: Egon will now be co-driven by Annika Arnek, whom with he last drove together in 2015 and Priit Koik will be co-driven by the fresh Estonian Rally Champion, Silver Simm!

The popular opinion nowadays is that R5 cars are more ‘budget-friendly’, but really, for quite a big margin of rally teams, they are still very expensive. To make something fast, but at the same time at a significantly smaller budget, Egon and his colleagues thought that they’d make something right in the middle – a Prototype rally car.

Kaur MS received their first body in early April. First rally should be in late May.

When will we first see these Prototype Fiestas in action? Hopefully by the end of May, at Harju Rally 2017. The team is working hard around the clock to ensure that the cars will be ready, but not everything is up to them.

There are also rumours of other teams also working on some Prototype rally cars for the Estonian Rally Championship – but who could they be? We’ll see, stay tuned!

Karli.

Märtin triumphs in South Estonia

The 14th edition of the South Estonian Rally hosted the 4th round of the Estonian Rally Championship. A total of 54 crews took on the technical and spectacular roads of Võrumaa. 

First day of the rally consisted of four special stages, totaling at 19,62 kilometers. It was a dominating day for Egon Kaur and Silver Simm (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX), who won all four stages to grab an early lead of the rally. Markko Märtin and Kristo Kraag (Ford Focus RS WRC ’03) were left trailing by just 6 seconds with Rainer Aus and Simo Koskinen (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) being third, a further 12 seconds behind Kaur.

Raivo Remmelgas Photo

After the first day, Kaur said: “It’s a pleasure to see that we can compete against Markko, but once he gets up to speed, there’ll be no stopping him,  because it’s a lot of work to keep our Group-N car on the road here.”

First stage of the second day went just as Kaur had predicted: Märtin took the matters into his own hands and won the first stage by 6.6 seconds, also making him the new leader of the rally by 0.6 seconds.

Whilst Märtin and Kraag took off in the lead, it was still a fight for Egon Kaur and Silver Simm: Rainer Aus and Simo Koskinen were trailing them in 3rd, 18 seconds down.

But that fight was cut short, as the seventh stage of the rally was the end of the road for Rainer Aus and Simo Koskinen after rolling their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX.

Rainer Aus retires in SS7.

 

“It was an OK day because we had a better tyre choice and that made us feel better in the car. The feeling and the grip wasn’t there yesterday for us and if you don’t have one of them you won’t have the other one too,” Markko told rally.ee. “Most of the roads here are pretty known to me and some places I remembered, but one stage was totally new for me. What was surprising about this rally was that I didn’t remember the roads being so technical, there were basically no straights at all.  Driving here was pretty hard work, the feel for driving a WRC car won’t come by itself and we had to work for the victory.”

Märtin and Kraag went on to win the rally by over a minute over Kaur and Simm, with Aiko Aigro and Kermo Kärtmann (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI) in third.

Full results of the rally can be found here: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=47&race_id=346&lang_id=2&

The Estonian rally championship continues at the end of August(26.08.2016-27.08.2016) with Tallinna Ralli.

Markko Märtin to take on the roads of South Estonia

The Estonian Rally Championship continues with the South-Estonian Rally this weekend, where a total of 56 crews will take on the stages. The legendary far-south stages of Estonia have always offered a great spectacle for both the drivers and the spectators.

Surprising the whole Estonian rally audience, Markko Märtin will start the rally in his usual trusty Ford Focus WRC, co-driven by Kristo Kraag. Registering for the rally on the last day of registrations, it sure was a big surprise for everyone, no previous hints were given.

Märtin’s last drive at this rally was back in 1997, when he drove a Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD and took a victory with over a minute lead.

For more information regarding the rally, take a look at the official supplementary regulations PDF file: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/Suve%20juhend.pdf

To see the full list of registrants, click here: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=27&race_id=346&lang_id=2&

Estonian summer rallying goes back to Haanja

Introduction

 

The South Estonian Rally is back in the Estonian Rally Championship calendar. Run for the 14th time, the rally has a history of having spectacular roads and providing lots of action for both the drivers and the spectators.

Run on the high-speed, mountainous roads around Haanja, the rally will take place from 12th to 13th of August and it will be the 4th round of the Estonian Rally Championship aswell as the 4th round of Alexela Dmack Trophy.

Lõuna Eesti Ralli 2009 – Sebastian Lindholm / Pertti Lahtinen

Registration

 

The Formal part of the rally is underway and registrations for the rally have been open since the 14th of July and are going to close on the 7th of August.

The Entry form can be found on the Estonian Autosport Union website, here: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=28&race_id=346&

Supplementary regulations for the rally can be found here: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/Suve%20juhend.pdf

 

Lõuna Eesti Ralli 2009 – Egon Kaur / Erik Lepikson

Locations

 

HQ: Kubija Hotell (Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/A8LbZo6YWXw)

Scrutineering: Roopa 6 (Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/sMoooUEWnQk)

Service Park: Pikk 2A (Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/5Hfb5rbMb9A2)

Podium/Start: Vee 6a (Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/MPKLk5b8aRF2)

Prize giving ceremony: Club Capital, Vabaduse 8 (Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/TJr4XPUqDWC2)

 

Lõuna Eesti Ralli 2008 – Urmo Aava / Kuldar Sikk

Timetable

 

Publication of the Entry List(with Starting Numbers) – 8th of August – Location: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=27&race_id=346&

Administrative checks, team entries – 11th of August – Location: HQ

Recce Part 1 – 11th of August – Location: SS1/2 – SS3/4 – SS5/7 – SS6/8

Recce Part 2 – 12th of August from 8 AM to 12 AM (8:00 – 12:00) – Location: SS9/11 – SS10/12

Scrutineering – 12th of August from 8 AM to 4:30 PM (8:00 – 16:30)

Day 1 Startlist – 12th of August – 5 PM (17:00)

Day 1 of the rally will begin on the 12th of August, when the first car will roll off the Starting ramp at 18:00. Start list for Day 2 is gonna be published at 23:00 – Location: Service Park & autosport.ee

Day 2(13th of August) begins 9:00 in the morning and the rally finishes with the first car driving onto the finishing ramp at 19:15.

Prize giving ceremony – 13th of August 10 PM (22:00) – Nightclub Capital

 

Hat-trick for Kruuda in West-Estonia

The 2016 Estonian Rally Championship season continued with the West-Estonian Rally, or Lääne-Eesti Ralli in Estonian, from the 10th to 11th of June. It was the third rally of the championship, just after Neste Harju Rally and also the 3rd round of the Alexela DMACK Trophy Estonia.

First off, about the overall rally. It was a spectacular fight for the absolute lead throughout the event, you could even measure the lead with a measuring tape at times. But through all of it, the winners were Egon Kaur and Silver Simm, driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9.

Back in the order, it was the third victory in a row for Gustav Kruuda and Ken Järveoja, driving a Ford Fiesta R2 serviced by CRC, in the Alexela DMACk Trophy Estonia. It was a tough battle throughout the event, with the crew swapping leads a total of 3 times with Ken Torn, also driving a Ford Fiesta R2. After a fierce battle, the crew on top were Kruuda and Järveoja, staying ahead of Torn and Mesila by just 1.6 seconds.

 

Gustav Kruuda said:

“It was a difficult rally, it went just as we thought with Ken, the gaps were very small. ”

“Every little mistake could cost you big time. Like for instance, on one stage we had an overshoot on a junction and we lost more than 5 seconds there. It was a fun fight with Mr. Torn, the gaps were always so small and stages were simple enough to get the time back.”

“In the end, we won the rally and increased our lead in the DMACK Trophy Estonia series.”

 

Ken Järveoja, co-driver of Gustav, said: 

“It wasn’t one of my favourite rallies, for sure.”, said Ken.

“The event organisation for a first time was good. Service was ok, but most stages were boring, only SS7/9 stood out.  The timetable was too stretched for the drivers, maybe it was okay for the spectators. Overall I think that rallies like these should be done in one day if possible.”

Ken also praises Gustav on his development “Gustav has developed quite well,” he says.

“You can see that in the times we set and in the driving style. He’s quite sturdy and he knows that you need to work hard. As we can see, all the hard work has paid off so far.”

 

 

After 3 rounds of the DMACK Trophy, the points standings are as follows (click to enlarge):

 

 

Võrumaa Winterrally promises excitement

Run for the 9th time, Võrumaa Winterrally was first run in 2008 as a rally for the youth and has since become a great, exciting rally – great for spectators in the forests and at home!

This years’ rally will be quite a spectacle, as for the first time Võrumaa Winterrally will be hosting the Lithuanian Rally Championship and its great drivers. The rally will be the 2nd rally in the Lithuanian Rally Championship, or LARC, in short.

There’s also quite some action to follow in the Estonian Rally Championship.

A LOOK BACK

Last year, there was much discussion about the weather and if the Winterrally can be held at all and, luckily, the weather changed in the week before the rally and we got a lot more than we asked for. The roads were covered with snow and the rally had the green light.

It was Estonia’s own Sander Pärn, who took the victory last year, with Siim Plangi 2nd and Timmu Kõrge 3rd. Pärn led from start to the finish.

Pärn/Morgan on their way to winning Võrumaa Winterally 2015. Foto: Rauno Paltser

2016 PROGRAMME

The documentation side of the rally will begin on the 18th of February, where the crews will be given the necessary documents to start the rally. Also on the 18th, the crews will start recceing the stages. From 10:00  to 14:00, the crews will recce SS 4/6 and SS 7/9. From 14:30 to 19:00 they will recce SS1/2 and SS8/10.

On the morning of 19th, the crews will do the final recce of the rally with SS 3/5 from 9:00 to 12:00.  The first day of the rally begins at 18:00 at the Freedom Square in Võru.

20th Feburary, the second day of the rally, will begin at 9:00, when the first car leaves service. It all concludes with the Podium at 19:00 in the evening taking place at the Freedom Squre in Võru.

A more detailed programme and maps of the event will be published in the magazine Autoleht on 17th February.

If the competition is cancelled or postponed due to Force Majeure, the Organiser must communicate this at 12:00 on 15.02.2016 at the latest.

The Afterparty of the rally can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1677538155859774/

The Rally Pass will cost 7 EUR and they’ll be sold at the week preceding the rally at Võru Olerex.

STATISTICS

Overall length of the rally: 421,61 km

Total amount of stages: 10

Total length of Special Stages: 114,04 km

Surface: Snow, ice

No. of stages run twice: 5

Total recce km: 57,02 km

Powerstage: SS10 – 10,87km

DOCUMENTS/LINKS

Supplementary Regulations: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/public/calendar_file/TALVERALLI%20JUHEND%20ver%2002%20(2).pdf

List of registered crews: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=27&race_id=342&

Registration form: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=28&race_id=342&lang_id=2&

See you at the rally!

All about training for Gustav Kruuda

Rally championships of Estonia and Latvia were opened by Rally Sarma 2016 in Latvia, and one of the winners of the rally was Estonia’s Gustav Kruuda, Karl Kruuda’s little brother.

Gustav’s class, R2, had big competition, from the quite experienced Nikolay Gryazin to fresh Estonian Dmack Trophy champion Miko Niinemäe, but he kept them all behind him from day 1. Gustav had a chat with rally.ee and told them next:

“Actually, our time from the very first stage came as a surprise for us,” said Gustav Kruuda, who managed to up themselves to 8th position overall by the end of day 1: “I saw some mistakes in my driving, that’s why it was so surprising.”

Gustav Kruuda / Ken Järveoja. Foto: Indrek Allik

Gustav said that the secret to his success may be the extensive training pre-rally:

“Before Sarma I did a lot of training, it developed me and I gained confidence. I got 150 kilometers of training in the rally car and I did lots of driving on ice with a road car.”

He adds that getting used to the car is very important and, in comparison, he highlighted Ken Torn, who was competing in the Fiesta R2 for the first time:

“The Fiesta is a stranger for Ken, he had just 5 kilometers of testing for the rally. It’s tough getting used to the car from the first ignition. No doubt Ken is fast, but the car is different.”

The second day of Sarma was tougher for Gustav and Ken as they had to start from the front, which meant more loose surface:

“Today we had to start from the very front of the list and, because of all the loose snow, it was tough to make good times. Then later on we tried to increase the lead and on the last two stages we managed to control the situation and take a smooth victory!”

All in all, it was a controlled rally for Gustav: “We only did some smaller mistakes. There were no moments of panic. Surprisingly good start to the season!”

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Gustav and Ken made it to the finish in overall 9th position, winning in 3 classes: LRC3, EMV3 and R2.

Rallipaus: Miko Niinemäe kiire uusaasta

Seekordse Rallipausi teele jäi meie oma värske Eesti meister Dmack Karikasarjas, 22-aastane Miko Niinemäe, kellel on 2016. aastaks suured plaanid.

Mis me ikka passime, kohe asja kallale!

Legend: “K” olen Mina, ehk intervjueerija, ja “M” on Miko, ehk intervjueeritav!

 

K: Hiljuti saite koos teiste Baltimaade rallisõitjatega testida M-Spordi uut Ford Fiesta R2T-d. Kuidas see auto tundus ja mis emotsioonid tekkisid? Võrdle uut Fiestat enda Peugeotiga, mida tooksid välja?

M: “Uue Ford Fiesta R2T testimine oli täiesti uut moodi kogemus, mis üllatas nii võimsuselt kui juhitavuselt. Kuna eelmise generatsiooni Fiesta R2 oli vedrustuse poolest ja selle arvelt ka juhitavuselt väga hea auto, siis eeldasin ka uuest autost esmalt head juhitavust. “

“Sõiduomadustelt oli uus auto veelgi parem kui eelmine, seega see suuri üllatusi ei pakkunud. Kuid 1-liitrine kolmesilindriline turbomootor pakkus küll võimsa ja täiesti uudse „feelingu“.”

Baltimaade paremik testimas Poolas uut Ford Fiesta R2T-d. Foto: BMP.lv

“Võrreldes Peugeot 208 R2-ga on uue Fiesta mootor suure väändemomendi ja väga suure vedrustuse eelisega, kuid Peugeoti on võimalik enam seadistada, tänu millele noor võidusõitja saab palju kogemusi ralliauto seadistamise osas. Samas teeb sadade võimaluste olemasolu ideaalse seadistuse leidmise palju keerulisemaks.”

K: 2015 oli teile suurte õnnestumiste aastaks, juba neljandal karikasarja etapil suutsite kindlustada tiitli. Keegi tegelikult ei osanud oodata seda, et tuled nii võimsalt tagasi. Kas kiirus tuli ka endale üllatusena ja kas enne seda aastat oli ka mingeid muutusi sinu mõtteviisis ralli suhtes või tuli see kiirus naturaalselt?

 

M: “Võin öelda, et aasta esimese ehk Sarma Ralli esimese katse võit, kus oli uus auto ja sisuliselt täieliku uuenduskuuri läbinud legend, oli tõesti ootamatu. Teadsin, et olime teinud Martiniga kõvasti tööd selle nimel, et nö tagasituleku hooaeg kujuneks edukaks, aga selline edu oli ootamatu.”

“Olen oma peas selle riputanud töö ja vaeva varna, seega ei usu ma naturaalselt kasvanud kiirusesse, pigem olid abiks suhtumine ja enesekindlus.”

K: Uusaasta on kohe-kohe uksele koputamas. Mis on sinu uusaasta lubadus ja kas eelmise aasta oma sai see aasta täidetud?

 

M: “Eelmisel aastal olin ilmselt liiga hõivatud uue võistlusauto ettevalmistamisega, et midagi kindlat selleks aastaks lubada. Üldiselt luban endale alati, et annan endast parima ja seda ilmselt ka nüüd. Luban, et annan endast alati parima nii võistlustel kui igal muul ajal.”

Miko Niinemäe – 2007. a. Tallinna Noortesprint

 

K: 2016 ja aasta esimesed rallid on peaaegu kohal. Kui kaugel on teil plaanid järgmise aastaga seoses? Ja kui on väga kindlad plaanid juba, siis mis need on?

 

M: “Hetkel on plaanis osaleda vähemalt kolmel ERC etapil, Eesti meistrivõistlustel ja võimalusel Läti meistrivõistlustel. Ausaltöeldes otsime tegelikult siiani toetajaid, et järgmisel aastal Eesti lippu kõrgel hoida väljaspool Eestit ja pürgida rallimaailmas kõrgemale, seega 100% kindel veel kogu plaan ei ole.”

“Kuna eesmärk ERC sarjas vähemalt kolmel võistlusel osaleda on seatud, siis teeme selle nimel igapäevaselt tööd, et need eesmärgid ka täita.”

K: Mis mõtteviisiga lähed järgmine aasta suurematele rallidele vastu? Kas McRae või Loebi stiil?

 

M: “Ma loodan, et sõidame ka järgmise aasta Niinemäe/Valter stiili. Tegelikult usun, et Martin hingab kergendatult kui ütlen, et järgmise aasta rallidele lähme vastu sama moodi nagu sel aastal.”

“Ehk lähme sõidame nii nagu oskame, aga jälgides enda enesetunnet ja kuulates kainet mõistust, et vältida võimalikult palju vigu. Sel aastal ühe suurema vea omalt poolt tegin, aga ka need õppetunnid on õpetlikud.”

2011. a. WRC Akadeemiast tuldi tagasi suurte kogemustega

 

K: 2015. a. Saaremaa Ralli oli Sinu ja Martini jaoks 15. ralli koos. Kas on meeldejäävaid mälestusi/juhtumeid eelnevatelt aastatelt ja ka asju, mida võiks unustada? Näiteks kibedaim kaotus?

 

M: “Mälestusi, mida Martiniga jagada on juba kuhjaga ja kindlasti on ka neid mis trükimusta ei kannata.”

“Ilmselt eredaim mälestus on selle aasta Eesti Juunioride Meistritiitli kindlustamine Tallinna Rallil, kuid meenutades Sarma Ralli 2015 võitmist tulevad siiani külmavärinad, sest sellega kaasnes ülisuur pingelangus ja saime lõpuks tõestust, et töö on kandnud vilja.”

“Minu jaoks on kõige kibedamad kaotused need, kust ei ole midagi õppida või analüüsimiseks koju kaasa viia ning nendele mõeldes tulevad meelde kaks kaotust korraga.”

“Esmalt Sarma Ralli 2012 katkestamine liidrikohalt tehnilise rikke tõttu, kui olime Martiniga esimesel ühisel võistlusel. Teisena sel aastal jällegi tehnilise rikke tõttu Rally Estonia teisest kohast ERC Junior arvestuses ilma jäämine, kus olime tõesti ületanud uuesti nii enda ja ka paljude teiste ootusi.”

K: Pane endale kokku üks perfektne ralli. Sina valid auto ja ralli.

 

M: “Tänasel hetkel arvan, et perfektse ralli kaardilugejaks oleks kindlasti Martin Valter, autoks ükskõik milline tänapäeva WRC auto ja ralliks kas Asooride Ralli või Rootsi MM ralli.”

“Perfektne ralli peaks minu jaoks lõppema võiduga, mis on saavutatud konkurentsitiheda võistluse käigus ja minu jaoks oleks väga oluline ralli lõpus koheselt näha oma pere ja lähedaste emotsioone.”

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Miko Niinemäe senine karjäär statistikas:

 

Alustatud Rallisid: 45

Katkestamisi: 12 (26.7 % suhe alustatud rallide ja katkestatute vahel)

Esimene ralli: Võru Noorteralli 2008

Enim kaarti lugenud kaardilugeja: 15, Martin Valter

Esimene kaardilugeja: Rasmus Niinemäe

2015. a. kiireim ralli: Võrumaa Talveralli 2015, 118.1 km/h

2015. a. ja karjääri ABS parim tulemus: Neste Oil Harju Rally, 4. koht

Klassivõite läbi aastate: 8 – Esimene võit 2009. a. Saaremaa Rallil, 1. koht A6

Dmack Trophy katsevõite 2015. a.: 36

Domineeritud ralli omas klassis: Võrumaa Talveralli 2015, 8-st katsest võidetud 8

Enim starditud auto: Citroen C2 R2, 28 korda

Veel rohkem infot leiab Miko Niinemäe eWRC andmebaasi lehelt: http://www.ewrc-results.com/profile.php?p=12587

Round 2 for Pärn in 2016

After winning Drive DMACk Trophy in 2014, Sander Pärn was awarded with 7 rallies in WRC-2 2015 season, but after just 3 rallies with DMACk, the season came to a halt, as the driver and the team decided to not continue the season. Pärn has decided to restart his prize season of 7 rallies and he will do them again in 2016.

Sander Pärn gave Estonias Public Broadcasting (ERR) an interview, in which the driver talked about his next years’ plans. Here’s what he had to say:

“This year had only done 3 rallies out of 7, when we, together with my mentor Markko Märtin, DMACk and M-Sport, decided to not continue this season and continue it next year.”

“It will be a lot better to continue next year. The tyres, DMACks, will get better, and the Fiesta R5 will get upgraded. And I will also be more experienced and more ready for it.”

Pärn will have to pay for the three rallies they did in 2015 and then the prized three rallies will carry on to next year, adding to the 4 unused rallies, making a total of 7 rallies under DMACk in 2016.

To add to the challenge, Pärn also has a new co-driver for 2016: scotsman Stuart Loudon.

Pärn on his new co-driver:

“We’ve already done lots of recce practice. We were at Rally RACC Spain and at Rally GB to practice co-operation in making notes.”

Maximum out of 2015 for Volver

It’s been an up and down season for team ASRT driver Karl-Martin Volver: a season full of learning, finding new limits and sometimes even going over the limits. First proper year for Volver in rallying has brought the youngster his first title with many wins and podiums.

Being only 16 years old, it’s not easy driving against more experienced folk, but Volver has proved that it’s possible and that it’s also possible to fight with them for podium positions.

It’s been almost over a year since ASRT picked up this young, only 16 years old, hope and gave him a chance to do a full season of rallying in a Peugeot 208 R2 vTi. Thanks to them, Volver took part in both Latvian and Estonian rally championships, being successful in both countries.

The Estonian Rally Championship has come to a conclusion with the 48th Silveston Saaremaa Rally, that took place from 9th to 10th of October. This was a rally to remember for Volver and Margus Jõerand, his co-driver, who secured their first ever rally title.

Winning Saaremaa in class EMV4 meant that they also took the title in the class, with the final total being 111 points, just 14 points ahead of their closest competitor, Sultanjants.

Volver @ Saaremaa Rally. Photo: Remo Kuningas

Volver after Saaremaa Rally:

“Overall it went very well. We didn’t take any unecessary risks because we had to finish this rally. We didn’t have any big  moments either during the rally, which was great.”

“We’re very happy to have finished our first Saaremaa Rally with a victory in our class. We’d like to thank our fans, sponsors, team and everyone else who helped us reach our goals. I’m truly very happy.”

 About next year’s plans, Volver plans to contest more ERC rallies and also do some local rallies in Estonia.

.. a look back: 

2015 was an impressive year for Volver and Jõerand: the season started with Rally Aluksne in Latvia, where the crew had their first start in the new ASRT serviced Peugeot 208 R2 VTi. First start, first class victory for the crew since Rally Strugi Krasniye in 2014.

For all of the next rallies, Volver gave the other, more experienced, crews a big fight in their class, but it all came with a price: driving on the limit and going over it. Rally Talsi was a rally to forget, as the crew had a big accident, in which co-driver Margus Jõerand got injured and was forced to skip the next rally, Harju.

Volver took on Harju Rally with a new car, Ford Fiesta R2, and a new co-driver,  Marten Madissoo. Even though half of the things were new for Volver, it didn’t stop the crew from taking a victory in their class and a 7th position overall!

After a calm and careful Rally Estonia, the crew went on to Rally Tallinn, where the crew rolled after clipping  concrete block on SS1. Then came one of the fastest rallies of the season, Tartu Rally, where the crew achieved 2nd in their class, EMV4.

“Calm” Rally Estonia. Photo: Edgars Leonovs

It all concluded with Saaremaa Rally, where the crew secured their title in EMV4 with a victory in the class and a 9th position overall.

Statistics of 2015:

Started rallies: 12

Started, but not finished rallies: 3

Class victories: 4

Fastest rally: 118,3 km/h – Võrumaa Winterrally 2015

1st in EMV4, Estonian Rally Championship

4th in LRC3, Latvian Rally Championship

2nd in ABS, Estonian Rally Championship (458 Pts)

Closest victory in class: Neste Oil Harju Rally 2015, EMV4, 1.1 seconds ahead of David Sultanjants

Top 4 stage time at ERC Rally Liepaja 2015, SS6. 17.7 s to Kajetanowicz, 3.1s ahead of Berkis

Total domination for Niinemäe

The Estonian DMack Trophy has a new champion in 2015, Miko-Ove Niinemäe and Martin Valter, who, with four wins in a row already in the championship, have secured the title after Rally Tallinn 2015.

The championship, also called Estonian Junior Championship, is run between drivers aged 17-25 and in 1.6 litre front-wheel drive cars. For equality, all cars have to run on DMack tyres.

The champion and his Peugeot 208 R2 after Rally Tallinn 2015. Photo: instagram

The winners, Niinemäe-Valter, won all four consecutive events and they also managed to gather lots of stage wins, which give you extra points in the championship. All this gave them enough points to be out of reach for the other competitors, handing them the title even with two more events to go, Tartu Rally and Saaremaa Rally.

Niinemäe and Valter managed to gather a total of 131 so far, which is a staggering 83 points ahead of their closest competitor, Kevin Kuusik, with 48 points.  In third place are Kenneth Sepp – Tanel Kasesalu with 41 points.

Miko Niinemäe:

“I’m very pleased with the result and, to be honest, we didn’t expect to take the title so early into the season. Taking a long break from rallying before this season made it a lot more difficult, but before the season we did a lot of work and all of it has paid off.

Of course we calculated before the rally that we could take the title here, but we tried to not think of it too much. In that sense the first three rallies were a bit easier.

I’d like to thank my team for an excellent car, my co-driver Martin Valter, Urmo Aava, who helped with the setup of the car, my family, who have been a lot of help and support and finally all of my supporters, who made this season possible.”

Tartu Rally 2015 promises excitement

This year’s Tartu Rally is, for the first time, a part of both the Estonian and the Latvian Rally Championships and this combination alone is bound to bring a lot of excitement to look forward to. From the 25th to 26th of September, a total of 10 stages will be run, of which 2 will be run inside the city of Tartu. All of the other stages will be in the vicinity of the city.

The rally kicks off in the evening of the 25th with 2 runs of “HOFFMANN SERVICE”, starting at 17:00. Then the crews head out towards the two runs of the city stage, “TARTU LINN”, whichs kicks off at 19:00.

At 18:00, motorcyclists will perform a stunt show on the Tartu City stage, followed closely by Supermotos.

Winners in 2014, Lukyanuk/Arnautov, in action. Photo: motorsport.ee

The real action starts on the 26th of September, with the crews having to tackle the remaining 110km of stages, the longest of them being two runs of Piigaste with 26.7km’s in length.

Rally passes will be available in Olerex fuel stations in Tartu, Põlva, Võru, Põltsamaa and Aovere from the 23rd of September. One rally pass will cost 15€ when bought pre-rally, on the stages it’ll be 20€. Rally pass will also grant access to the Tartu Motoshow and a 50% off to the official afterparties in club Vabank.

The full rally guide will also be available at the Tartu Motoshow from the 25th of September.

This years’ Rally Radio will be by Xltrax, which can be listened to online HERE: http://www.xltrax.ee/

More information:

Tartu Rally website: http://www.tarturally.eu/et/

Tartu Rally on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TartuRally

Entry List: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=27&race_id=328&

Itinerary: http://ewrc-results.com/harmonogram.php?e=20472&t=Tartu-Ralli-2015

Documents/Notice Board: http://autosport.ee/rallyreg/?page=41&race_id=328&

ERC dream over for Lukyanuk and Chervonenko

After many impressive performances in the European Rally Championship for Lukyanuk and Chervonenko, it’s all over  for them as their cooperation ends before SATA Rallye Azores. The pair together achieved a Top 3 finish in Jännerrallye 2015 and a very impressive 6th at Circuit of Ireland.

Yevhen Chervonenko announces with deep regret that the cooperation between the pair has ended in June.

Lukyanuk: “Unfortunately, our cooperation with Cherovnenko ended for reasons beyond our control: difficult economical situation and health problems for Yevhen.”

Cooperation between these two has sadly come to a halt

“I’m trying not to be discouraged and won’t stop rallying. We will find ways to continue our performances in rallying at the highest level. I can’t say any more, but me and Alexey Arnautov are starting “Samsonas Motorsport Rally Utena 2015″ in preparation for WRC Neste Oil Rally Finland.”

The crew are also trying to find additional funding to attend one of the most exciting rallies in the ERC – Rally Estonia, which is traditionally held mid-July and acts as a great warmup for Rally Finland.

But it’s not all sad news and planning for Lukyanuk – they are 100% confirmed to start WRC Rally Finland, driving a Ford Fiesta WRC, under Academy Rally!

Rallipaus: intervjuu Roland Poomiga

2015. a. rallihooaeg on suure hooga käimas ja peagi alustatakse juba kruusarallide hooajaga Eestis, nimelt Neste Oil Harju Ralliga. Kaks esimest EMV rallit on juba läbi ning peale Võrumaa Talverallit tuli veidike pikem paus sisse. Pausi ajal otsustasin võtta ette ning küsida mõningaid küsimusi ühelt noorelt ja andekalt Eesti rallisõitjalt. Seekord sattus teele ette Roland Poom.

Tere Roland. Räägi veidike eesolevast hooajast. Mis plaanid, rallid, kaugemad minekud?

Roland: “Tere. Selleks hooajaks konkreetseid plaane hetkel veel ei ole. Peale võru rallit on juba päris pikk paus sisse jäänud ja hetkel ei oska täpselt öelda, kus on järgmine ralli.”

“Vahepeal käisime hoidsime kätt soojas Narva rallisprindil vana hea Lada Samaraga.”

“Hetkel üritan saada eelarvet kokku, et sõita veel kuni 4 rallit see hooaeg, ehk siis Eesti rallid ja ilmselt enne Tallinna rallit Leedus 300 Järve rallil. Harju rallil see aasta ei stardi kahjuks.”

On plaane ka suuremale pildile saada? Näiteks ERC?

Roland: “Nagu igal sõitjal, on ka mul see plaan koguaeg olnud. Eks see kõik oleneb finantsilistest vahenditest, millal suuremale pildile jõuda.”

“Minul on eesmärgiks hetkel ERC juunioride sari, kus võiks ideaalis 2016 hooaeg sõita 3-5 rallit, kuid loomulikult tuleb mõelda reaalselt ja vaadata, kas on võimalik see eelarve kokku saada ka. “

“Selle hooaja eelarve otsimise kõrvalt tuleb tegeleda juba ka järgmise hooaja planeerimisega. Julgen väita, et see on ilmselt üks keerulisemaid töid “

Kuidas Citroenilt Fordile minek siiamaani olnud on? Mida on veel plaanis seoses autoga?

Roland: “Citroenilt Fordile minek läks üsnagi valutult, kuigi aega võttis siiski paar-kolm rallit, et saada õige hoog üles.”

“Teatud sõiduvõtted, mida Citroeniga sõites kasutasin, olid Fordiga sõites üleliigsed.”

“Eelmise hooaja Saaremaa ralliks olin kiiruse kätte saanud ja tundsin end autos juba mugavalt. Eesti sõitude jaoks hetkel auto vahetust plaanis ei ole.”

Valutu Saaremaa 2014 (Anna Kolomiets foto)

Kui kaugesse tulevikku vaadata, mis on visioon?

Roland: “Ma usun, et kõige odavam viis ennast suuremasse pilti saada on läbi ERC sarja, seega olla ERC sarjas tehasetiimi sõitja, tundub reaalne plaan. Sealt edasi on juba lihtsam liikuda WRC sarja poole. “

“Ma arvan, et ei ole ühtegi noort võidusõitjat, kellel ei oleks selliseid tuleviku plaane ning unistusi, sest ilma nendeta ei ole võimalik tippu jõuda..”

Vahest saab ka kahe rattaga hakkama..

Pane kokku endale perfektne ralli. Sinu valida on asukoht, auto, tiim, jne.

Roland: “Ma olen suur Volkswagen grupi autode fänn, niiet Volkswagen Polo R WRC oleks kindlasti auto, mille ma valiksin.”

“Asukohaks ma võtaksin tänaseks WRC kalendrist eemaldatud Uus-Meremaa ralli nende mõnusate looklevate teede pärast. See oleks minu jaoks perfektne ralli, kuid ausaltöeldes Fiestaga Saaremaa kadakate vahel sõita on ka väga mõnus.”

Pea igal rallisõitjal on ka omad iidolid. Kes on sinul, miks?

Roland: “Jah, ka mul on omad iidolid olemas. Kindlasti üks iidol on Markko Märtin, sest need emotsioonid, mida see mees Eesti rahvale pakkus, olid väga võimsad ning ma arvan, et see tundub loogiline, et ühe noore Eesti rallisõitja iidol on Eesti läbi aegade edukaim rallisõitja.”

“Ma tean, et ma ei ole väga originaalne, kui ma ütlen, et mu teiseks iidoliks on Sebastien Loeb. 9 kordne maailmameister, 78 MM ralli võitu.. Rohkem pole ilmselt vaja öelda.”

Kunagi oli teil plaanis minna Soome võistlema. Oli vist isegi suurem kampaania plaanis. Mis sellest sai?

Roland: “Jah, see plaan oli mul olemas ning isegi sain juba end registreeritud rallile. Tegime Rakvere Põhjakeskusega koostöös suurema kampaania, kus kõigi toetajate vahel loosisime välja kaardilugeja kohad testipäeval.

“Kui me olime 2015 hooajal juba 3 rallit järjest katkestanud, saime aru, et ei suuda oma jõududega enam autot hooldada, sest kiirus oli kasvanud ning auto vajas üha rohkem hooldust.”

“Suhtlesime toetajatega ja leidsime, et meil oleks targem see raha panna uude autosse, sest Citroeniga ei oleks me seda Soome MM rallit suure tõenäosusega lõpetanud. Paar nädalat hiljem saime tänu Egon Kaurile ja Allan Ilvesele Soomest vana Andreas Ambergi Ford Fiesta uuteks omanikeks. Fordi hooldab Kaur Motorsport.”

Kõigil on omad hetked olnud, mis kauaks meelde jäävad. Mis on sinul üks seik, mis eriti meeles?

Roland: “Otseselt ralli ajal selliseid seike olnud ei ole, aga näiteks peale 2013 Rally Estoniat, kui katkestasime generaatori probleemide tõttu esimese päeva, oli vaja auto tagasi servicesse saada. “

“Panime auto sleppi ja hakkasime tõmbama öösel, kui viimane katse oli läbi saanud. Vahepeal oli vihma ka sadama hakanud ja meil autos voolu polnud, et kojamehi käima panna. Lasin kaardilugejal rooli hoida ja läksin ise akna kaudu välja, võtsin kojamehe akna pealt ja hakkasin sellega siis klaasi puhastama ise auto küljeakna augus istudes.”

“Eks selliseid lõbusaid seiku ole teisigi olnud, kui on pidanud kähku midagi välja mõtlema.”

auto24 Rally Estonia 2013 (fotodarius.lt)

Kus asuvad sinu nn. “juured”? Ehk ala, mis esimesena sidus sind autospordiga ja kuidas läks?

Roland: “Kuna mu suguvõsas ei ole keegi autospordiga mitte kuidagi kokku puutunud, siis minu sattumine autosporti oli pigem juhus.”

“Väiksena hakkasin naabrimehega koos rallisid vaatamas käima, enda peret ralli ei huvitanud. Mõned aastad hiljem suutsin kuidagi isa ära rääkida, et jääraja auto saada, siis olin 14 või 15. “

“Sealt peale hakkasin autospordiga tegelema. Enamused jääraja võistlused, kus osalesin, võitsin ära ja siis hakkas suur töö jälle peale, et isa kuidagi nõusse saada, et ralliauto ehitada.. Nii see on läinud ja tänaseks juba osa perest on ka suured ralli fännid.”

Sinul on ka palju rallisprinte selja taga. On sealt ka midagi, mida meenutada?

Roland: “Esimene rallisprint oli Narvas 2012 aastal. Ega keegi meist ei teadnud, kuidas korralikul EAL-is registreeritud võistlusel asjad käivad.”

“Asi hakkas kohe registreerimisega pihta: mul ei olnud isikut tõendavat dokumenti kaasas, siis ma veel ei teadnud, et mingit tehnilist kontrolli toimub, võistlus jalanõud olid koju ununenud ning lõpuks rajaga tutvuma läksime kolmekesi koos vanaisa ja isaga.”

“Huvitaval kombel keegi selle kohta midagi ei öelnud, kui kolmekesi istusime esi istmetel väike bussis. Eks see suur õppimise võistlus oli. Järgmistel võistlustel oli õnneks asi juba selge ning aasta lõppes meistritiitliga rallisprindis.”

Rallisprintidel sõitsid sa Lada Samaraga. Räägi veidike autost ja sellega saavutatust.

Roland: “Samara sünni kohta midagi erilist öelda pole, see käis lihtsalt ja valutult.”

“Ostsime valmis kõik jupid ja keretööd tehti teiste poolt ära, meie panime ainult kokku.”

“Auto jäi 2012. oktoobris seisma, aga juba sel nädalal on võimalus, et auto ostetakse meilt ära.”

“Peale seda on auto sõitnud Avo Vaheri käes Viru Rallil VIP autona ja nüüd 2015. a.  mai keskel käisin sõitsin selle autoga oma viimase sõidu sealt, kust alustasin, ehk Narva rallisprint.”

“Sõitsime seal põhimõtteliselt originaalvedrustusega, niiet võidu peale sõita polnud võimalik. Kohaks oli äkki 4. kui ma õigesti mäletan. ”

“Samaraga kahjuks palju sõita ei jõutud, aga siiski saavutati sellega Rallisprindis meistritiitel ja 2012. a.Viru Rallil E9 klassis teine koht. Sealt edasi juba hakkasime sõitma Siim Plangi vana Citroen C2 R2-ga, mille leidis meile Simo Koskinen. ”

Müüa: Lada Samara 1.6

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Suured tänud Rolandile selle vestluse eest ja edu eelseisvaks hooajaks ka minu poolt! Ma arvan, et sellest mehest hakkame tulevikus rohkem kuulma.

Roland Poomi rallikarjäär eWRC andmebaasis: http://www.ewrc-results.com/profile.php?p=31458

Roland Poomi fännileht Facebookis: https://www.facebook.com/Poom.Udevald

New city stage addition for Rally Estonia

This years’ FIA European Rally Championship round auto24 Rally Estonia has strengthened its grip around South Estonia and now features a new city, Elva.

On the 18th of July, a new city stage will also be run in Elva which will be followed by a concert by the legendary Suzi  Quatro.

That makes it two city stages planned for Rally Estonia this year: on friday, 17th of July, in Tartu and on the 18th of July in Elva. Both stages will be free to watch for everyone and tens of thousands of spectators are expected to line the stages.

Toomas Järveoja, Elva city major: “We’re happy to host a very well organized autosport event here in Elva,  it’s the biggest in the Baltics, having almost up to 30 000 people spectating last year. The pre-, during and after publicity of the rally was worldwide and that’s positive for the local companies and businesses.

That was also confirmed by the Estonian Insititute of Economic Research last year, who concluded that the rally brought in a total of 3 million euros to the local economy.

The city stage will bring a lot of autosport fans to Elva. It’ll be a great day here, filled with autosport and other entertainment, with a Suzi Quatro concert ending the day.

I’m sure that auto24 Rally Estonia will be a positive influence for Elva, which will have a lasting effect for years to come. Elva awaits all fans and drivers!”

Tänak/Mõlder – auto24 Rally Estonia 2014 / Photo: Jaanus Ree

Urmo Aava, auto24 Rally Estonia director: “We’re glad to have this cooperation with with Elva city, which will bring autosport closer to the people.

The addition of Elva to the rally is very important to us, it will widen the operational area for auto24 Rally Estonia in South Estonia and help boost the local economy. There’s much praise for the people of Elva, who saw the potential in the city stage.

Last years’ city stage in Tartu showed that rallying brings lots of people out to spectate and even the drivers got a good emotion from the stage.

Elva city stage will be an attractive stage for both the spectators and the drivers.”

—

Text in Estonian: autosport.ee / http://autosport.ee/meedia/node/920

Translated by: Karlip

Opportunity of a lifetime for Lukyanuk

Russian crew Alexey Lukyanuk and Alexey Arnautov have been offered the chance of a lifetime: a World Rally car drive on a World Rally Championship round.

So far of the revealed plans we’ve found out that Lukyanuk will drive a Ford Fiesta RS WRC serviced by M-Sport World Rally Team at WRC Neste Oil Rally Finland.

The crew Lukyanuk and Arnautov got the invitation to drive the rally from the head of  “Academy Rally” team, Mihail Lepehov, who has a lot of experience on WRC level, as he was the one who supported Evgeniy Novikov’s career – the first Russian pilot driving for a factory team.

Lepehov: “Academy Rally had the chance to give one crew a drive on a World Rally Championship round and we decided to offer the chance to Alexey Lukyanuk. I know that Lukyanuk really wants to drive a machine like that so I decided to give him the chance.

Of course we selected Neste Oil Rally Finland. It’s a classic rally and a favourite for the Russian fans. Every rally driver wants to do the rally of a 1000 Lakes, it’s one of the most popular in the world. We invite all our fans and crews to support Lucas! ”

Lukyanuk: “A year ago I couldn’t even dream of such an opportunity. I’m very happy to get back into the car again with Alexey Arnautov, whom with we won the Russian and the Estonian championships last year. We have a lot of experience and we have worked together for a long time. To be honest, we’ve already started preparing for the rally: training, studying onboards. And we hope to find the budget to do some rallies in Lithuania or Finland as a preparation for Neste Oil Rally Finland. I am very grateful to Academy Rally and Mihail Lepehov for the chance!”

Lukyanuk and Arnautov last took part in Neste Oil Rally Finland in 2013, which was also their WRC debut. They managed a top 8 stage time and a victory in class “3” with a 16th position overall in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 N4.

Text: alexeylukyanuk.com

Translated: Karlip

New name for Harju Rally in 2015

The Estonian Rally Championship season will continue in about a month and a half with the newly named Neste Oil Harju Rally, which, like the first time it was run last year, will be taking place on the gravel roads surrounding Tallinn from 29th to the 30th of May.

Harju Rally was first run last year and it was quite a show. In the scorching hot weather, a total of 80 crews took part in the rally. It was a big show, with Karl Kruuda also debuting the Peugeot 208 T16 R5 in Estonia. On the 1st of April, the organizers of Harju Rally and the representatives of Neste Oil signed an agreement, which means that Harju Rally will now have a name sponsor and will be renamed to Neste Oil Harju Rally 2015.

“Harju Rally was first run in 2014 and, because of the positive experience and feedback we got from the rally, we decided to give the rally our support. Estonian autosport is definitely on the rise, there’s a new generation of young and talented drivers incoming. Rally is quite a spectacle and a very exciting sport, where in an instant everything can change. Beside the skill of the driver and the co-driver, there’s also luck. That’s the excitement we’d like to offer to the spectators in cooperation with the organizers,” said Neste Oil general manager Ivar Kohv.

“The 2015 edition of Harju Rally will be like a new start for us organizers. It’s not just the year that’s changing, it’s also the name of the rally – Neste Oil Harju Rally 2015. We’d like to offer our greatest thanks to Neste Oil for trusting us and seeing the potential and ambition in us to do something big. Neste Oil is a big company that thinks ahead and that’s what we are also trying to do, to grow and get stronger with each year. It’s difficult to think big without a sponsor,” said Janno Hert, a member of the Harju Rally organizing team.

This years Neste Oil Harju Rally 2015 will be the 3rd rally in the Estonian Rally Championship calendar and it will be the first gravel round of the season. The rally HQ and the Service Park will be situated in Jüri. Rally start and finish will be in Rae conty, Peetri village. The first stage of the rally will be a Super Special Stage, run just after the workday ends so everyone can enjoy it. On the 2nd day of the rally, the cars head out to 9 long stages.

Neste Oil Harju Rally will be an event to watch with the whole family.

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/harjurally

WEBSITE: www.harjurally.ee

Ivar Kohv — Janno Hert

Jeets takes on Ireland

Raul Jeets and Andrus Toom have confirmed their entry for ERC Circuit of Ireland rally. Here’s what Raul had to say before the rally.

“For sure it’ll be a tough challenge because it’s a difficult rally. There are asphalt rallies in our plans this year and the Irish rally will give us the experience. At last years Rally Masters Show in Moscow, we got our first 40 kilometers on tarmac and a general feeling of how the Fiesta R5 behaves on tarmac. Because it’s a new rally for us, we’re not gonna make any conclusions yet. We’ll be having a pre-rally test on Monday and it’ll be important to get precise notes during recce.  We’ll just drive and see how it goes. Our team, MM-Motorsport, will be big help for us because of their experience on tarmac. We’d like to thank our supporters and fans, who follow what we do.”

Circuit of Ireland will be the second rally out of the 5-7 planned for Raul and Andrus in 2015. Their first start was at Liepaja and the most important rally for them will be home rally auto24 Rally Estonia in the summer.

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Eestikeelne artikkel: http://www.autosport.ee/meedia/raul-jeets-ja-andrus-toom-stardivad-fia-erc-euroopa-autoralli-meistrivoistluste-etapil-iirimaal

 

Experience and stability key for Gustav Kruuda

Gustav Kruuda’s goal for this season is to get more experience and to achieve a stable speed. He still gets words of advice from his brother, Karl Kruuda.

“It’s likely that we’ll be driving the whole season in a Ford Fiesta R2 and mostly on home soil. We’ll be getting experience and learning new methods of driving to find a stable speed,” said Gustav Kruuda about his plans. “I’ll be doing rallies in Estonia and Latvia, no plans to go into the wider world just yet,” said Kruuda, who had his first event in Latvia this year at Sarma.

It was Sarma, where Gustav got his first snow experience. “We had a small test on a fast section before Sarma. The first stage of the rally was very surprising because it was much tighter than in the tests! It’s a different world driving on snow and ice compared to gravel. It’d be pretty cool to drive on snow once I get to know it better,” said Kruuda, who  thinks that the Liepaja rally stages were fantastic. “The stages were pretty cool, I liked the 36 km stage the most because it had tempo changes. The stages were fast and quite similar to the roads in estonia.”

Rally Liepaja didn’t go very smoothly for Gustav, who rolled his car there. “It was my own mistake, snoozed a bit,” he admits.

“We won’t be doing the whole Latvian rally championship season and we won’t take any points there. It’s not our objective to get a place at the end of the season, what’s important is to gain experience and to be pleased. I don’t know what rallies we’ll do in Latvia, but we will do some for sure.”

“We’ll try to be competitive in Estonia. I’d be pleased if we could manage to stay in the top 6 fastest and not to just be fast on a couple of stages,” said Kruuda, who is currently holding 3rd in class 2WD 2000 of the Estonian rally championship.

Gustav is waiting for a go at the gravel roads of Southern Estonia, where they hold Rally Estonia. He says that this rally has the best organization and that it’s held on fast, flowing roads. “I think South Estonia has the best roads in the world! It’s a home rally for me.” He adds that he’s driven and spectated there many times and even tested with his mentoring brother. “Karl gives me advice how to make better and more precise notes. He helps me a lot. Sometimes he sits by my side and tells me what to do. He’s a lot of help for me.”

Karl Kruuda says that his brother is good in theory but lacks driving practice and that his driving style needs polishing. “Gustav has come to a lot of rallies with us, he knows how things are done. Doesn’t matter whether he drives at home or outside, he doesn’t fear. He’s got lots of will but lacks the experience. He needs to practice more and drive.”

“It’s been a pretty stable development for Gustav so far,” adds Karl. “I still teach him sometimes. Urmo Aava has sat next to him and so has Sander Pärn. I’ve been driving 4WD cars for a long time now, so maybe I can’t give advice on how to drive a 2WD car so well now. He gets the bigger picture and is a great student. If you tell him something, then he immediately picks it up and gets that it’s a positive thing that will help him drive faster.”

How used has Gustav gotten to the Ford with the couple of years? “It’s a great car! Specially great for learning how to drive. The speed won’t get too high, but you still get some. You get to learn how to maintain a trajectory and overall how to rally. There’s still a long way to go until we can take the maximum out of this car. It can do a lot even though it’s small and has less power.”

“When I was 14 years old, I drove 300 – 400 km on circuits. We needed the experience to learn how a car handles. With the year and a half there’s been a lot more progress than the  year before.

When asked if Gustav wanted to get into a similar car to that of Karl’s, the answer was a straight No. “If i’d step up to a faster car too early then it’ll be bad for the growth. I’ll try to take the maximum out of this car first.”

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Original article: Rando Aav, rally.ee -> http://rally.ee/?a=a009&b=10212

Translated by Karlip

Fast season ahead for female co-driver Annika Arnek

This season will be a busy one for Egon Kaur and Annika Arnek, who have teamed up and decided to fight for the Estonian rally title together. 27-year old Annika is one of those women who loves speed and cars. Rally.ee caught up with Annika and sat down with her for a chat. 

For Annika, the first close-up with a rally car was back in 2012. “I was a spectator of rallies for years, because the cars and the speed have always been my favourite things,” said Annika, whose first proper co-driving experience was beside Alar Tatrik.

“I ended up in the co-driving seat by chance. I heard from an acquaintance that Alar was looking for a co-driver and I was asked if i’d like to try. My answer was a straight, without thinking, “Yes”. Alar taught me what I had to do and we had some practice in the forests. Our first start was Rally Estonia in a 0 car.”

In 2013, Sander Siniorg was looking for a co-driver. “Sander was looking for a co-driver and I decided to give it a shot. The first time we met was at Narva Rallysprint. Sander looked surprised, though – I guess nobody had told him his new co-driver was gonna be a female,” smiled Annika.  The pair together now have a long history of rallies and trophies.

There was a myth floating around that Annika decided to co-drive for Egon because of Sander’s many accidents. Annika says that this was not the reason but admits that there are some accidents she remembers too well. “I vaguely remember some accidents. For example, at Rally Estonia 2013, we went off and parked the car at a 90′ angle on a tree. Also driving into a sauna at Harju Rally 2014, the last one was the most painful one.”

“If I was asked to co-drive for Sander again i’d do it,” said Annika. “Co-driving for Egon was an important step to develop forwards. It’s a bit difficult now, but very exciting.”

“Egon’s pacenotes are more precise and there’s more to read. Also there’s big speeds which you have to get used to. The more kilometers the better the feeling gets.”

Do you feel like there’s more discipline in the car now that there’s a good looking female in there? Annika says that in situations like these, gender doesn’t matter. “Sander swore very little and that at very tense moments. On the stages you can’t think about who’s next to you – the information must come through!”

–

Big thanks to rally.ee for their article(http://rally.ee/?a=a009&b=10211)

Translated by Karlip

Tänak and Mõlder at the rally of their lives

Rally Mexico. What a strange, strange rally. For the last 2 years, the rally has offered us some amazing happenings, and it all started with Nicolas Gilsoul getting the brilliant idea to pour corona into the cooling of the Hyundai i20 WRC back in 2014, which eventually ended up getting Hyundai their first ever WRC podium since their return to the arena.

Now, the 2015 edition of the rally also offered us something water related, but this time, in much greater form. The first victims of the rally on Stage 3 were Ott Tänak and Raigo Mõlder, and it was a biggie. Tänak wanted to cut a corner straight, but instead broke the front right wheel in the compression, making the wheel point directly out of the road. What happened next was a story to remember for years.

As the car hurled towards the water, Ott and Raigo were already preparing themselves for a biggie. With the belts unbuckled really quickly, the crew manage to get out of the car unharmed, with Ott only having the intercom cable stuck to his helmet for a longer duration after getting out of the car. In the midst of all this, Raigo managed to save his pacenotes. Amazing, considering the reaction time and the time they had to get out of the car. The car sunk in just seconds after they went off..

Here’s an onboard look at the off:

Subtitles from the video:

Raigo: “Right flat over crest, don’t cut”

Raigo: “And stop 5 minus over crest”

Raigo: “30 into 2 right minus-”

Ott: “Uh oh”

And what happened later is already history.

The story’s gone viral everywhere and the car has now been named the TiTänak. The bonnet of the car has been signed by all the mechanics and will now go into a museum.

Lukyanuk wins Rally Yakkima 2015

Rally Yakkima 2015, the 7th round of the Russian Rally Cup, took place on 28th of February in the forests of Sortavala. One of the crews taking part in the rally was Alexey Lukyanuk and Vadim Leluh in an older Group-N Subaru Impreza.

Despite the difficult economical situation in the country, up to 50 crews had found their way to the rally.  The organizers were worried about the warm weather, but the stages stayed snowy and very slippery.

On the first section, Lukyanuk and Leluh won all 3 stages and managed to get a lead of 36 seconds over their closest competitor, Dmitry Polyvanym. But on the second section, the crew had to fight some technical issues and began to drop time. Fortunately for them, the 36 second lead they managed to get on the first section was enough to hold Polyvanym back and take the overall victory!

Vadim Leluh: “When we were heading to the first stage of the second section, we got stuck behind a grandpa doing 37 km/h and we couldn’t pass him. We barely had time to reach the time control, but I ran and we made it. Then, on a longer corner in Stage 4, we heard a bang and then even more sounds in the back. We lost drive in the rear wheels. We thought of stopping but decided that, as long as the car goes, we go, and drove the front-wheel drive Subaru to the end. As we were getting used to the new situation, we only lost 4 seconds on the last stage!”

Despite losing about 15 seconds in the last section, the crew maintained their lead and won the rally by 16 seconds.

Leluh added that Lukyanuk has a very busy schedule training other Russian drivers and managed to have a weekend free. “We decided to race together and get training for ourselves too. It’s good and useful. For me, it was a training session before Rally Gorniy Len.”

Here’s the final results of the rally:

1.  Lukyanyuk Alexey / Vadim LELYUH 40: 54.8;

2.  Polyvany Dmitri / Revenko Andrei +16,0;

3.  Osipov Alexander / Andreev Alexander +34,3;

4. Arshansky Juri / Soskin Mihail +0,9;

5.  Negoda Alexey / Yasiuk Cyril +28,0.

Photo: Lina Arnautova

 

 

Reflections of Võrumaa Winterrally 2015

The 8th edition of Võrumaa Winterrally 2015 offered great, fast-paced action with a new winner in a new car. Sander Pärn and James Morgan dominated the rally, taking 4 stage wins and leading from Stage 1. A total of 77 crews took the challenge, and i’ve brought out 3 crews(who actually have a PR) in particular.

Võrumaa Winterrally 2015 was full of surprises for all the crews, especially that the weekend of the rally, and the days before, didn’t look too good with all of the weather predictions being mostly above 0 degrees. Once the crews met with the roads, though… it was a different story

Ice. Ice everywhere. Photo: Vorobjovs Racing

It all kicked off with the Recce. Almost everyone had an off road excursion, including Pärn. One of the safer crews out there were Janis Vorobjovs and Andris Malnieks, who helped lots of crews out there.

“The rally roads were great, but very difficult to recce, because even when going at 30-40 km/h, it was very slippery. This meant that many drivers slid into ditches or sat sideways in the middle of the road. The stages were full ice, with water on top. But the liaison roads were salted and well driveable,” said Andris Malnieks on recce to go4speed.lv, co-driver of Janis Vorobjovs.

Photo: 4rati.lv/Vorobjovs Racing

For Janis and Andris, the rally was just to get some mileage into the car and finding problems.

” In this rally the goal was to continue testing our new car in a racing mode and find problems which can appear in a just-built car. We made more then 80 kilometrs in a racing mode and can say that the goal is reached. It will definitely help to prepare for the summer season of Latvian rally championship. We drove safely, becouse we are not fighting for Estonian rally championship points,” said Janis Vorobjovs after retiring on SS7 due to a broken oil cooler.

For Sander Pärn and James Morgan, the rally was a big learning experience. New car, faster notes, new driving style. Moving from a 2-wheel drive car to a 4-wheel drive is always difficult, but Sander mastered it and was fastest throughout the rally, leading from start to finish and taking 4 stage wins.

Photo: timoanis.eu/Sander Pärn

„I am happy that I was able to trust my pace notes and that our co-operation with James worked. It‘s good to know that we had enough speed to win this event. We did not have to drive 100 % flat out and was always in a dictating role throughout the rally,“ said Pärn.

„Its a great feeling which comes with the victory of the rally. It’s always a pleasure to compete in Estonia in front of the local fans and friends. The atmosphere in the car was relaxed and the road conditions on the stages were suprisingly good,“ added Pärn.

The Fiesta R5 for Pärn was prepared by MM-Motorsport and it was the first rally for Pärn’s new partner, Tartu city’s heating supplier GIGA.

The fastest 2-wheel drive crew in the rally was Karl Martin Volver and Margus Jõerand, who, despite a puncture, managed 8th overall in the rally and 1st in 2WD 2000.

“It was a rally with very tough competition, but we managed to keep the pressure on til the end,” said Karl Martin, who was driving an ASRT serviced Peugeot 208 VTi R2.

“Okay, there’s still things to learn about the car, but I think i’ll be friends with it by summertime.”

“I mostly liked the first and the last stages. Specially the stages driven in the dark, they were excellent. Very technical and fast, I liked it. There were no errors in the pacenotes so it all went well. We had a huge moment in the 6th stage, but we managed to recover well,” said Karl Martin about the rally.

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From a spectators point of view, the rally was excellent. You could say things about the organisation and the safety on the stages, but all went well. Our stages were 1/3 and 5/6, which we throughoutly enjoyed watching. Hopefully, the stage of 5/6 will be used next year too, it was just super spectacular with its crests and the corners after the crests.

Also a thanks to Margus Kiiver! Helpful, as always!

Thanks for reading!

Karlip

Lots of action ahead for Saaremaa Rally 2016

The Estonian Rally Championship season is coming to an end. Before Saaremaa Rally, we had Tartu Rally, which was a decider for many championship categories.

Egon Kaur and Silver Simm, driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, took their first victory at Tartu and along with that, they clinched the Group-N Title in the Estonian Rally Championship.

Miko Niinemäe and Martin Valter won 2WD 1600 class at Tartu, which secured them the title in that category.

Gustav Kruuda took his first ever trophy victory after winning the Estonian Drive DMACk Trophy.

This year’s Saaremaa Rally is no different from previous years – exciting stages, fast drivers and lots to watch for the spectators at the stages and online. Run from the 7th to the 8th of October, Saaremaa Rally consists of a total of 10 stages, totaling at 120 kilometers of great stages.

Note: before making plans of visiting Saaremaa, book a Ferry ticket between Kuivastu and Virtsu here: http://www.praamid.ee

The Entry list for Saaremaa is already looking very interesting: Miko Niinemäe will debut a Škoda Fabia R5 at the rally – this would be the first ever rally for Niinemäe and Valter in a 4WD car.

Miko Niinemäe said:

“We’re feeling calm, there’s lots of preparations needed before Saaremaa. I haven’t done a rally in a 4WD car before. This was made possible by a couple of good supporters, who made us a nice surprise.”

Niinemäe/Valter – JERC winners, Rally Estonia 2016

“This rally will be a look into the future, so we hope that you can see us in the R5 again, but we can’t promise anything right now.”

After a year in a RWD Lada 2105, Timmu Kõrge will be making a return driving a Ford Fiesta R5. Last drive in a 4WD car for Kõrge was at Rally Estonia 2015. For Kaido Kaubi, Kõrge’s co-driver, it’ll be the first time co-driving in an R5 car.

Kõrge/Pints – Rally Estonia 2014

Another driver to debut in an R5 car is Kaspar Koitla. After losing out to Rainer Aus in the last stage of Tartu, Koitla will be looking to take back what’s his, or even more.

After a great result at ERC Rally Liepaja 2016, Siim Plangi and Marek Sarapuu will be looking for their first victory at Saaremaa.

Get more information from the Saaremaa Rally website: http://saaremaarally.eu/site/index.php/en/index.html

Tartu Rally to offer something new for everyone

The 6th round of the Estonian Rally Championship, Tartu Rally, will be run on the roads of Tartumaa and Põlvamaa from the 23rd to the 24th of September 2016. This year, the organizers promise the rally stages to be about 40% newer in comparison to previous years. 

The rally will kick off on the 23rd of September at Raekoja plats, located in central Tartu. The opening ceremony starts at 4:15 PM with singer Merka and some cheerleaders. At 5 PM, the opening ceremony continues with the first rally crews driving over the podium and head towards the first stage, which has a start time of 5:43 PM. The first stage is closely followed by SS2, starting at 6:03 PM and then the day ends with the Tartu city stage , starting at 19:23.

Saturday will be a full day of rallying, beginning with a 2.65 km long city stage in Põlva.

The rally will conclude with podium celebrations taking place at central Tartu, Raekoja plats, at 06:30 PM.

For the drivers, it will be a drive for the prize, as the winners will be given special prizes from the sponsors.

Information about the rally will be broadcasted over radio Ring FM (www.ringfm.ee) and it can also be listened to at specific spectator points and at the Service Park.

Rally passes will cost 10 EUR and are sold at Tartu Favora gas station. Tickets to the stages are 5 EUR. Kids measuring under 1 meter get free access to the stages.

Full guide for the spectators will appear in the magazine Autoleht, for sale in stores all over Estonia from the 21st of September. Maps will also be available on the website of Tartu Rally from the morning hours of the 23rd of September.

Service Park will be located on the grounds of Tartu Näitused,

Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwaldi 60.

Tartu Rally’s official webpage: www.tarturally.eu

Tartu Rally on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TartuRally