RAmer: Widget Rally Team Olympus Rally preview

Widget Rally Team Prepares for Olympus Int'l Rally
Dave Hintz signs on as driver for event

Shelton, WA. The Widget Rally Team prepares to tackle the Olympus International Rally, part of the Rally-America national championship, on 19-20 May 2007. Dave Hintz (Enumclaw, WA), driver of a Subaru WRX prepared by Doug Chase at Chase Race Engineering and Eric Eaton at Frantic Four, will partner with regular Widget codriver John Dillon (Thousand Oaks, CA). It's the first time the two have been together in a race car.

Said Hintz, "It is an honor to join the Perforce Software Widget Rally Team. With my usual co-driver [Rick Hintz] volunteering for an extended overseas assignment, I was going to sit Olympus out. But then John Dillon called and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to do a rally with him." The Hintz brothers had a bit of bad luck at their last rally, Oregon Trail, when their engine blew up because of a broken wrist pin. Dillon's Oregon Trail ended early as well. While codriving for Ralph Kosmides in the Ruby's Subaru, they got a bit out of shape on a slippery downhill curve and found themselves hanging upside down in their seat belts after the car rolled. The crew was unhurt.

"Ralph and I planned to do Olympus together, but rolling the car put the kabosh on that, even though the car wasn't seriously damaged. I talked with a few people, including Dave, whom Ralph recommended. I've raced against him in the past, so I know how quick he can be. Any time a driver partners with a new codriver, there's a learning curve before the team can go fast safely. Hopefully we'll get up to speed quickly and challenge Gary [Cavett], Paul [Eklund], and the rest of the regulars for the regional wins."

Observed the driver, "The northwest Subaru teams will be tough to beat in the two regional events this weekend, but that is our objective."

-credit: wrt