Off to Finland on a little holiday

[s class]

I love watching rallying, and its been my dream to see an event of the WRC (World Rally Championship) live.  WRC is the highest level of the sport.  Think of it as the loose-surface equivalent of F1. 

The current formula allows for production model cars, fitted with 2 litre turbocharged engines.  Some modifications to the production car are allowed, such as a modest relocation of the engine (weight balance issues), 4-wheel drive, brake and suspension upgrades, and sequential gearboxes.  There is a limit of 300hp imposed, but the cars never get dynoed by FIA.  Manufacturers therefore usually quote their cars' performance figures ar 298 or 299hp, but everyone knows that the true figures are closer to 400hp. 

FIA has clamped down, and 2009 is the last season for these monsters.  Next year will be 2000cc normall aspirated, with 2011 being for 1600cc.  I decided I had to break the bank and go this year.  Further, 2009 is quite likely the final season for Sebastian Loeb (French) who is surely the greatest rally driver of all time, having exceeded 50 WRC wins.  His closest rivals in this statistic are past greats Tomi Makinen (Fi), Carlos Sainz (Spain), Juha Kankkunen (Fi), Colin McCrae (GB), each with a wins tally in the 20 to 30 range. 

The Finnish rally (previously known as the 1000 Lakes, and before that Jyvaskyla Suurajot [lit: Great Race]) is run on loose, damp gravel surfaces and is the fastest event of the calendar.  Speeds approach 200km/h on gravel forestry roads, and the cars leave the ground on the so-called yumps.  Finland is widely regarded as the spiritual home of the sport, and many of the world's greatest past and present drivers grew up in the Jyvaskyla region, where the rally is based. 

Link

I cant wait!.  It should be awesome.  I will have my laptop with me, and on some days I'll have wireless access, so I'll put up some piccies. 

[koan]

Fantastic, enjoy your trip! Finland would be my choice for one time visit.

I love the rallying, the skill and commitment of the drivers amazes me.

Seb's gone off the boil a bit recently, not a good season to end on.

koan

[s class]

You are right that Loeb is off the boil slightly, but the upside of this is that, unusually for him, he is only 1 point in the lead for the championship race at this late stage.  So at least there should be a good fight at the top of the leaderboard. 

[samuli]

I wish you a good trip. I am a Finn, but I have to admit I've seen Jyväskylä Rally only once somewhere late 90-ties. It is indeed impressive to see them going full speed sideways a long long gravel curve which includes a jump (which means landing full speed sideways on a narrow dirt road in between pine trees)... That time the famous fastest stage was called Ouninpohja, I am not sure if it is still in the program. Since 1950-something it has been won by a non-Finn only few times, you know these guys who grew up in Jyväskylä, they know every stone and pot-hole by heart...

There is another interesting Rally event in Finland, the Arctic Rally, which today is only a shadow of its glory days. This is held in Lapland in January and in the late 70-ties it was in FIA's World Rally Car Championships calendar. That time it had the longest stage of the WRC series, over 100kms long in the middle of nowhere stretching up to the northest parts of Lapland above the arctic circle. This means no daylight and often -40C temperatures, naturally with lots of snow and ice. The pilots told that it was more surviving than racing agaist a clock. Intrestingly enough the rally was won by a Porsche 911 in 1978 or 1979.

[s class]

Ouninpohja is indeed known for separating the men from the boys - sadly it is not being run this year.  In the late 90's Tomi Makinen won the event a few times.  Given that he now prepares cars for other competitors, he will be there at the service park, and there is a remote chance I may meet him.  Yes, I am going to go autograph hunting....

In terms of local pride, Sebastian Loeb will be out for a win, but Finland doesn't always go his way.   

[samuli]

You may double your changes by hanging around in the local nightlife. I remember running across some ex-rally drivers with some nhl players at some pub's terrace in Jyväskylä. These Finnish sports stars are known to appreciate a beer or two...

[nathan]

why didnt you come to Perth when we had a stage annually!
im not even sure if we have it any more or if those bloody victorians stole it!

[Big_Richard]

why didnt you come to Perth when we had a stage annually!
im not even sure if we have it any more or if those bloody victorians stole it!

Perth ?! Where the F is perth?! 

[s class]

Nathan, I still plan to come to Aus in the middle future - but the wife has cold feet about the whole emigration thing at the moment.  But no worries, I'll get her to come round. 

We went to Canada in March to 'check it out', and I had two promising job interviews.  I think though the cold weather in Canada has made Aus start to appeal more to my wife. 

[koan]

why didnt you come to Perth when we had a stage annually!
im not even sure if we have it any more or if those bloody victorians stole it!

No we didn't steal it, Australia missed out on hosting a round for a couple of years. I thing there is a round in QLD this year or it might be next year.

koan

[oscar]

FIA has clamped down, and 2009 is the last season for these monsters. 

Sometimes I wish they'd let engineers just do their thing and keep pushing the envelope.  Sure there'll be classes for different levels of cars and points for each class but why not let the engineers have free reign and see what they can build each year. 

Anyway, have a great time sclass and make sure you find a solid tree to hide behind.  I can't believe the control they have considering how thin the tracks are and the speeds to get up to.  We don't get much rally on free to air TV here but I remember this one clip of McCrae being interviewed by some lady in the nav's chair whilst he demonstrated his driving style.  Fabulous to watch and almost unthinkable that anyone could drive like that let alone talk whilst working that hard.

[koan]

Sometimes I wish they'd let engineers just do their thing and keep pushing the envelope.

They did that many years ago, Group B cars were pretty much open go, the class only lasted a few years. They were 500 BHP, fast and difficult to drive. There's the occasional bit of footage of B cars in the WRC coverage.

I think all areas of motor sport needs to be throttled back as technology advances, not only in the HP department but the clever electronic controls that reduce the required skill level of the drivers. 

The WRC or FIA (who ever makes the rules) might also be trying to get more manufacturers to take part. Its Citroen  vs Ford these days, Subaru dropped out end of last year, Suzuki tried last year but not this year. Years ago there were far more makers racing.

koan

[OzBenzHead]

[...] It will now be running on the East Coast of Australia, where over four days and nights the rally will take competitors across 340 kilometres in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales (close to the Queensland border).

Indeed, it will be in my neck of the woods this year, on my birthday weekend.

My local car club will be making an appearance at the related Show'n'Shine at Murwillumbah on the Sunday. I'm planning to tail the rally for about 50 km in my Finnie.

Of course, the Northern Rivers being rather heavily "green", there's been a considerable amount of anti-rally fuss made; however, most of the fuss does appear to have been made not by genuine tree huggers but by mean-minded nimbys who have, for convenience, turned temporarily green, and who just don't want a little noise passing their lifestyle acreages (where, for reasons that defy understanding, they insist on building only a couple of metres back from the road when their properties are miles deep).

[s class]

Having a good time here.  The weather is very pleasant, the beer is strong, and the women are beautiful.  Last night I spent an evening with a member of m-100.cc looking at hius cars and drinking beer on the marina in Lappeenranta.  Finland is great. 

[s class]

OK so I've seen the rally.  Jyvaskyla region really is the home of rallying.  The local spectators go beserk for their heros.  The drivers are really committed.  I also spent some time and drove some of the back roads myself that are famous past rally stages.  In many cases the roads are narrow, and the trees right up against the road.  The surface is it appears permanently slightly damp clay type dirt, hard packed with a loose covering.  This loose covering is the gravel that is 'swept' by the front runners allowing skilled drivers later on to follow the cleared tracks and set fast times.  The roads are very smooth in general, free from ruts or corrugations.  There are however very occasional nasty stones sticking up, almost invisible - and these are what catch out all drivers except those who know every detail of the stages.  Driving these roads, and getting out, feeling the dirt has allowed me to understand the sport SO much better than before.  It is a pilgrimage that is essential to anyone that considers themselves to be a rally fan.  I only now truly appreciate this.  Standing quietly in these roads, the silence is incredible - and one is strongly aware of the 'spirit' of rallying in the place.

This morning I got to meet my hero Tommi Makinen.  He achieved multiple back-to-back world titles in the late 90's driving group A and then WRC Mitsubishi Lancers.  I visited Tommi at his workshop, and he entertained me for about 45 minutes, in discussions, and in looking at the workshop.  He is somewhat shorter than I imagined, very lean and fit.  Soft spoken, very humble and almost shy.  In his workshops I saw Subaru group N4 rally cars in various stages of construction, plus an engine on the engine dyno.

It will take some time for this experience to sink in properly.  Photos to come, probably only this weekend.