(December 6, 2024) ~ The American Rally Association’s 2025 West and Central Region Championships kick off early this weekend as two rallies over 1,900 miles apart both take place on Saturday.
The Ridge Rally in Tehachapi, California and the Nemadji Trail Winter Rally in Duquette, Minnesota will ring in the new year for the ARA as a combined 46 teams head into the holidays on the exciting stages of the ARA.
Ridge Rally Takes Competitors to the California Desert
For the third year in a row, the Ridge Rally will take place in Kern County, California, weaving over 90 miles of stage roads through 4000 ft of elevation change in the Jawbone Canyon, Kelso Valley, and Piute Mountain areas.
The small town of Tehachapi will play host to the 32 teams competing in the rally as they tear through the hard-packed gravel and tarmac roads of the Ridge Rally.
The 2025 itinerary features 12 stages split into three unique out-and-back loops with hour-long service breaks in between.
The first car leaves the Jawbone Service Area Saturday at 8:45 AM to tackle the Jawbone Cyn and Oakley stages before turning around and running them in reverse for a four-stage opening loop.
The middle loop consists only of the 13.86-mile Oakbone stage run in both directions before another service prepares teams for the six-stage final loop of Onyx, 50/50, and Plute Mountain, all being run both directions.
From there, competitors finish their over 12-hour day with podium celebrations at the Jawbone Service Park.
A wide variety of cars are entered in the rally ranging from desert trucks to Volvos, but starting first on the road will be the Lancer Evolution IX of George Plsek and Ole Holter.
Plsek’s 30 years of rally driving experience all began at the 1994 Gorman Ridge Rally, and with the impressive performance of the O4WD Evo, he and Holter are strong favorites to win.
The closest competition in the O4WD class is expected to be the 2004 WRX of Brett and Hunter Livingston, and the 1997 WRX of Sean Dorrough and Andrea Lauria, both of whom will be ready to pounce at the top spot on the podium if the opportunity presents itself.
Second on the road and ready to battle for a podium finish is 2023’s NA4WD class winning David Peretz, co-driven by John Verbeck in their 2004 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS, but matching their speed factor is the 2001 Impreza of Trenton Koury and Matthew Michell, which means the NA4WD battle is expected to be extremely tight.
“Matt and I are excited to run these fast roads together!” said Koury. “The car is feeling good and we installed powerful new lighting in anticipation of these night stages. The whole team is really looking forward to some great battles in this rally, especially with such a full field for our Southern California Regional event.”
The E36 BMW of Jonathan Compton and Brie Moore will be starting sixth on the road and looking to potentially play spoiler to their 4WD competitors.
With an L2WD Class win at 2022’s event, the pair are excited to ente the rally again, this time in their new O2WD build.
“Ridge Rally is always a highlight of our season,” Compton said. “With an amazing variety of roads, great competition, and seamless organization - all in a spectacular setting - Ridge promises to be a quality event.”
“We’re fired up to get back out on stage together after Olympus,” Moore added, “and are looking forward to seeing the West Coast rally family too!”
Compton and Moore will have a set of six competitors in their class randing from the 1973 Ford Ranger of Flynn Baglin and Andres Bautista to the 1993 Volvo 940 of Alexander Jardevall and Alix Hakala.
We are excited to run the ridge rally for the first time - and in our new whip,” said Baglin. “The truck had the first outing with our team in Prescott this year and we weeded thru the typical gremlins that come with a new ride.”
“Feeling confident that we will be smiling the whole time and look forward to some great racing.”
“Prescott was our first shakedown for the Rally Ranger.” Bautista added. “We just ‘run what we brung’ so to speak, with the sole goal to take it slowly and learn from the truck.”
“And learn we did. Many fine tweaks and adjustments were made during reprep in an effort to open up some more potential from the Ranger: safety, reliability, stability and uh…more speed/power (queue Tim Allen grunt)!”
“Considering these newly introduced factors which we will need to learn and respect, we will have a similar conservative approach as we did at Prescott. However, if and once we build up confidence and rhythm, I think we are both eager to ‘increase the speed and let ‘er breathe’ - as well as roosting some corners.”
“As for the event, stoked, as always. Happy to see friends of old as well as friends of new in the (local) rally community. Jimmy and Ryan have done an incredible job each and every year with this event and this year I expect no different.”
“You can tell they take pride in what they are doing by trying a new headquarters for the rally - which is closer to stage start/service, new service area - to allow for more elbow room in service, new stage layout/configuration - despite limited roads - to keep the schedule interesting year to year.”
“My hat goes off to them and all the volunteers/personnel it takes to put together these stages to enable our smiles per miles.”
The three-car L4WD sees the 2002 WRX Robert Shibao and Dillon McKenna starting first on the road with the competing teams of Michael and Jared Thomas piloting a 1997 Impreza, and Donnie Smith and Jane Lien in their 2007 Outback Sport.
In the L2WD class, last year’s O2WD winners are looking to move to L2WD, as Chris Miller and Crystina Coats debut their 1994 Volkswagen Golf at Ridge Rally.
“Chris and I are looking forward to it,” said Coats. “We've enjoyed the beautiful roads at Ridge Rally so much that we're coming back for our third year in a row. The last two years we competed in O2WD, placing 2nd overall in 2023 after a motor failure in 2022.”
“For 2024, we're excited to jump into L2WD to test our mettle in a new (to us) car that Chris has been working hard on for the last couple of months. It would be great to grab some points for the west regional title for 2025, but we don't have specific expectations and are ready to have a lot of fun!”
Five other teams will be competing in the L2WD class, including the 2010 Honda Fit of Radek Wlodarczyk and Cindi Carlson, and the 1995 Honda Civic of James Besing and Sean Spring.
Ridge Offers First Rally Outing for Young Drivers with Fathers Navigating
Ridge will be an incredibly special event for the teams of Elijah and Jeff Kleeman, and Brandon and Tobias Panek, as both feature young athletes driving for the first time, their fathers in the co-driver’s seat, and a car’s first time on stage!
Elijah and his father Jeff will be piloting the No. 443 Subaru WRX at Ridge. After years of Rallycrossing and off-roading, Elijah is ready to take on his first rally.
“I've been getting out to every rallycross I can in NorCal and SoCal for the last couple years, having fun in the dirt and slowly modding the car,” Elijah explained. “Last August I took the first big step in the process to get it ready for stage by getting the roll cage installed, and after a year of getting all the details figured out, I'm super excited to finally make it to Ridge.”
“I've been dreaming of doing stage rally for as long as I can remember, but didn't really know what it took to get into it until I met the Rodnoc crew. Watching the official Subaru team and VSC, it always seemed like something that needed sponsorships, a huge budget, and a dedicated team to get into. Through rallycross I got to meet the local rally community, and they've been supportive and encouraging the whole way showing me how someone new can get started with just a bit of required safety gear and prep.”
“My dad has taken my family out for off-roading fun since I was little, we spent quite a few thanksgivings in Glamis with motorcycles and dune buggies. He's also been a fan of rally for as long as I can remember, might've started with the bugeye WRX wagon he got in the early 2000s that's been the daily driver ever since.”
“Shortly after I learned about rallycross near me in NorCal, it seemed like a natural fit for him as well, and I found the Rodnoc events closer to my dad that we could both go to. Since then, we try to go to every event, and have both gotten pretty competitive in our respective classes.”
“We're stoked to have the opportunity to do this together, I think we'll pair up pretty well as we're learning all the ins and outs of getting through a rally. As our first event, we're focused on being safe, and surviving the day while having fun. I'll be back for trophies after I have a couple more events under my belt and get past the Novice restrictions.”
Brandon and Tobias Panek will also be tackling ridge in a Subaru, this time a 2007 WRX STI. While it is Brandon’s first time as a driver, he’s been co-drivings since before he graduated high school.
After four years of experience being in charge of pace notes, he’s ready to take the next step and get behind the wheel.
“Well,” he said, “it’s been quite a journey.”
“Just about three years ago we purchased an ‘07 STI with no prior knowledge of turbo engines. The first year was a real battle of getting the engine working properly though all of the misfires and electrical issues.”
“Me and my father don’t always see eye to eye but this project has given us good common ground and something we can both be exited for!”
“We both definitely had some nerves last night but tonight… I think I’m in for a delayed reaction.”
While both teams will be using the event to learn their cars and get comfortable on stage, they will also be competing against in the O4WD class on equal ground.
Nemadji Trail Winter Rally Brings the Heat in the Minnesotan Winter
While the competitors at Ridge Rally are carving through the desert, the 14 teams entered in the Nemadji Trail Winter Rally will be doing their best to stay warm in the freezing weather of Duquete, Minnesota.
With a four-stage, 33-mile itinerary, any time lost will be difficult to make up by the end of the final stage meaning every corner counts.
The rally begins at 1:00 PM on Saturday after recce takes place in the morning. Competitors will embark on an out-and back loop of the Nemadji Trail stage before a quick 20-minute service and a repeat of the first loop brings the event to an end at 5:16 PM with podium celebrations in Duquette.
14 teams will be competing across three classes at this year’s Nemadji Trail, including last year’s winning driver, Silas Himes, this time co-driven by Aleutian Hatfield in theri 2008 WRX STI L4WD build.
While Himes is first on the road, fellow L4WD competitors James Randall and Andrew Rausch are ready to first for the top spot after two class wins in 2024 at The rally in the 100 Acre Wood, and the Ojibwe Forests Rally in their 2015 WRX, but they’ll need to adapt to the challenges presented by doing recce on the same day as the rally.
“We are excited to start off the 2025 season with a rally that is close to home,” said Randall. “This event provides a new challenge for us since there really isn’t any time for Andrew and I sit down and review stage notes before the start of rally.”
“There are some very competitive teams signed up for the Nemadji Trail so we will need to keep focused and drive fast. The 2024 season was a good season for us and we are hoping to keep that momentum going through 2025 as well.”
L4WD also includes the 1991 Eclipse of Robert Dupree and Jason Hack, as well as the 2002 Subaru Impreza of Peter Farrow and Jackson Sedivy.
Half of the field will be made up of NA4WD competitors, with seven cars entered. Steven and Katie Gingras are favorites to win the class, and possibly the rally overall in their 3.0L 1994 Impreza after winning the event in 2022.
“Nemadji is tough little rally!” said Stephen. “It is only four stages totaling about 40 miles. The road is awesome fun, smooth and fast!
“Why is it tough? Because the race is so short there is very little time to get accustomed to the road surface and practiced up. By the time you start feeling comfortable about pressing the limits the race is over. You need to be pressing hard from the start.”
“Throw in the unknown changing road surface with each corner being different and it is true test of how fast you can drive. One corner could be bare gravel and melted while the next corner is snow covered and glare ice!”
“Based on long range weather forecasts we prepared for a snow/ice rally. Now the weather looks to be warming up so we may be using soft gravel tires”.
“This is my first time back in the drivers seat since Headwaters and we have a new suspension. This going to be very good test just to stay near the top and I can’t wait!”
2024 Central Region NA4WD Champions Aidan and John Hicks will be right there with the rest of the top cars in their 1996 Impreza. After finishing just off the podium in 2023, the pair will be pushing hard to earn a podium of better in 2024.
Connor Himes will be competing in his second event as a driver with Eliot Prusi at his side after winning Nemadji Trail as a co-driver in 2023 with Silas Himes. The pair will be in a 2001 Impreza, and searching for their first podium together.
Other NA4WD teams include the 1995 Impreza of Tyler Matalas and Tim Sword, the 2000 Impreza of Jack Nelson and Isaac Zink, and more.
The final class represented at Nemadji Trail will be the O2WD class which has two teams entered.
The 1988 Chevrolet S10 of Scott Parrott and Shawn Silewski will be making its first appearance since Ojibwe Forests Rally in 2023, while Michael Goldenstein will be making his first start as a driver in his 1989 Honda CRX co-driven by Brent Lucio.
For more about Ridge Rally and Nemadji Trail Rally, be sure to follow along on the ARA Website and social medias.
~Mason Runkle for the ARA