Riding on BFGoodrich tires, defending
2011 Rally America National Champion
David Higgins won this past weekend's
Sno*Drift Rally in Northern
Michigan.
Driving a five-door 2012 Subaru WRX STI
rally car, Higgins led from the start
and clinched15 of the event’s 24
stages.
He finished nearly two minutes ahead of
his closest rival.
The biggest challenge was keeping his
STI on the track’s treacherously icy
roads, according to Higgins, who says
the variable and slick road conditions
amounted to “the toughest rallying” he
has ever encountered.
The Sno*Drift, round one of the six-
event Rally America National
Championship, challenged nearly 70 top
teams with more than 130 miles of snow
and ice-covered roads.
Constant changes in weather and road
conditions, coupled with several stages
run in total darkness, made the event
“notoriously challenging” as spiked or
studded tires were not allowed --
making traction extremely elusive; a
recent thaw and subsequent freeze
turned many of the stage roads into
sheets of smooth ice.
“The icy roads combined with lack of
spiked tires makes this one of the
toughest rallies and a challenge I
think that is unique in rallying
anywhere in the world,” says
Higgins.
“Mentally it’s very draining, as you
are constantly on the edge all weekend
with the knowledge that any small
mistake could just end the rally,” he
explains. “The grip levels would go
from variable to non-existent in a
flash.”
For more information, visit www.bfgoodrichtires.com
.
