Rally racing is a cross-country competition against the clock, not the racer in the other lane. This weekend is the Fox Marquette Subaru Lake Superior Performance Rally On closed-off sections of back roads, intensely racing through the woods of Marquette, these rally teams are getting ready for the iconic Mount Marquette Stage. “The LSPR rally is really iconic…to have this championship come down to this round is just unbelievable it’s gonna be quite the show this weekend”, said Motorsport Director Dan Anctil.
This is the last rally of the season and the top teams in the country will be here in town this weekend to compete in the national championship. Big names like Travis Pastrana and Brandon Semenuk are set to compete in this weekend’s race. The ski lifts are operational, carrying spectators to the top of Marquette Mountain and celebrating the end of the rally. “We finish with a big party at Marquette Mountain ski hill afterward and there’s a period where they sort out times and things like that but then we’ll have the champagne sprays and the podium celebrations and everything right there at the mountain this year”, said LSPR Co-Chairman Eric Carlson.
The intensity for these drivers is reaching a high level this weekend. “The concentration level and intensity that the drivers are focusing on these roads is amazing. To go 100 miles an hour in the woods takes a lot of concentration and a lot of skill”, says LSPR Co-Chairman Steve Gingras. As we near these colder months, Steve says these roads are slicker. These tracks are buried in the woods with all the elements which means these drivers have to constantly be reevaluating their scene and adjusting their driving style.
The safety of the drivers is not something the performance rally takes lightly, as these cars are flying through leaves and trees, they’re also equipped with a GPS transmitter that not only monitors the driver’s location on the track but also checks their accuracy throughout the race and points made.
Being street legal, today the cars are going through their safety checks to make sure they can actually make it to the track. To rev up the excitement, Eric says all but one of the classes in the national championships are up for grabs this weekend, and it’s also including the top class with the fastest guys. At the end is a big celebration you don’t wanna miss.
