Everything you need to know about the 2022 Olympus Rally

The latest ARA National and Regional event has huge entry lists and a revised itinerary

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The 2022 American Rally Association presented by DirtFish National championship makes its way out to its first West Coast event this weekend for the DirtFish Olympus Rally.

Famous for being the final world championship rally to host Group B in 1986, Olympus has been a long-standing event with a ton of history, known for its wet, deceptive, and challenging stages, as well as some of the most beautiful views in US rallying.

And this weekend will feature a triumphant return of top-level WRC machinery to former WRC stages, and is sure to be one of the most exciting Olympus editions in a long time.

As well as exciting high-end cars, almost 40% of the competitors are alumni of, or staff at the DirtFish Rally School, making it a huge homecoming event for the DirtFish family.

Looking ahead to this challenging weekend, here’s everything you need to now to keep up to date on the DirtFish Olympus Rally.

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Entry Breakdown

National

For the first time since New England Forest Rally last year, five of the biggest names in US rally history will face off this weekend at Olympus. Ken Block will once again pilot the Hyundai i20 WRC that he came within four miles of winning the 100 Acre Wood Rally with, while Barry McKenna, Brandon Semenuk and Travis Pastrana will all be chasing him down in an attempt to beat the most intimidating car the ARA currently has.

10-time US rally champion David Higgins will also be returning to put his name in the hat, but this time behind the wheel of ERA Motorsport’s Citroën DS3 R5. While it’s an uphill battle for him to win in a lower class vehicle, Higgins remains a favorite as RC2 class cars have outdriven Open class cars at Olympus before, and the conditions are very similar to what the Manx rally driver is used to in Wales.

The RC2 class will be rounded out with Black Rifle Coffee Company (BRCC) athlete Tom Williams with Ross Whittock alongside him, as well as ERA’s Kyle Tilley looking to take down his temporary team-mate Higgins.

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‘Texas’ Dave Carapetyan and Danny Norkus return after their LN4 class win at 100AW, while West coast native Matt Dickinson and El Diablo Rally Team attempt to hold BRCC off on their home turf. With a stacked LN4 field including Matt Brassfeild, Phil Wearn, Tony Torchia, Dylan Murcott, Will Graham and more, this class remains up for grabs as we head into the weekend.

O2WD is sure to have one of the best battles of the year so far as reigning champion Seamus Burke returns in his Ford Escort MkII V6 with Gary McElhinney sitting passenger-side. Burke will face off against Michael Hooper in a fresh-built Lexus IS350 rally car, and home-town hero Derik Nelson in his turbo Subaru BRZ for the 2WD class win, but Brad Morris, Dave Clark, and even Lia Block all stand as competitors who could pull an upset.

Finally for the L2WD cup. Current champion Roberto Yglesias and co-driver KJ Miller stand out as favorites in the most restricted ARA class, but the Acura RSX of Alex Ramos and Sarah Freeze is sure to be hot on their tail, as Nick Allen, Paul Dickinson, and Nathan Odle will be too as they all fight for a win.

Class Number Crew Car
O4WD #97 Barry McKenna/Leon Jordan Ford Fiesta WRC
O4WD #43 Ken Block/Alex Gelsomini Hyundai i20 WRC
O4WD #1 Travis Pastrana/Rhianon Gelsomino Subaru WRX STi
O4WD #180 Brandon Semenuk/Keaton Williams Subaru WRX STi
O4WD #30 George Plsek/Ole Holter Mitsubishi Evo
O4WD #430 Lucy Block/Michelle Miller Ford Fiesta
RC2 #75 David Higgins/James Fulton Citroën DS3 R5
RC2 #688 Tom Williams/Ross Whittock Ford Fiesta Rally2
RC2 #18 Kyle Tilley/Martin Brady Ford Fiesta Rally2
L4WD #725 Dave Carapetyan/Danny Norkus Subaru WRX STi
L4WD #489 Matthew Dickinson/Chris Kremer Subaru WRX STi
L4WD #270 Will Graham/Oliver Smith Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X
L4WD #729 Dylan Murcott/Andrew Sims Subaru Impreza STi
L4WD #343 Matthew Brassfield/Kristi Berg Subaru WRX STi
L4WD #26 Robert Sanders/Boyd Smith Subaru WRX
L4WD #226 Tony Torchia/Rebecca Ruston Subaru WRX STi
L4WD #89 Wolfgang Hoeck/John Dillon Mitsubishi Lancer Evo
L4WD #919 Phil Wearn/Keegan Helwig Subaru WRX STi
L4WD #366 Michael Glover/Glen Ray Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #964 Vivian Campbell/Michael Hordijk Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #200 Jason Mumme/Christopher Ellinger Subaru Impreza
O2WD #25 Seamus Burke/Gary McElhinney Ford Escort
O2WD #227 Derek Nelson/Jennifer Daly Subaru BRZ
O2WD #423 Michael Hooper/Clausia Barbera Lexus IS350 Gravel Spec
O2WD #116 John Hill/Darren Curran Ford Escort
O2WD #945 David Clark/Jamie Willetts BMW M3
O2WD #386 Brad Morris/Ryan Scott Mitsubishi Mirage
O2WD #42 Jason Bailey/Shayne Peterson Ford Fiesta
O2WD #239 Will Hudson/John Hall Ford Fiesta
O2WD #857 Lia Block/Matthew James Ford Fiesta
L2WD #135 Roberto Yglesias/Kyle Miller Ford Fiesta ST
L2WD #15 Alex Ramos/Sarah Freeze Acura RSX
L2WD #84 Nick Allen/Stefan Trajkov Ford Fiesta
L2WD #604 Nathan Odle/Elliot Odle Lexus IS250
L2WD #64 Paul Dickinson/Dylan Whittaker Ford Fiesta

Regional

This year’s ARA Regional entry is huge with almost 60 competitors looking to score points in the first ARA West event of the year. The field is scattered with cars of all kinds, and competitors of all skill levels. Let’s waste no time and get right into it.

The top driver for speed will be Sam Albert, with his co-driver Krista Skucas. Andy Miller and Josh Gierman will be hunting, with these two crews being the favorites in regional competition.

Albert, an Open class driver, will also be competing against the likes of Mark Tabor and Garret Buban to be top driver in class.

Miller and Gierman both sport NA4WD Subarus, and look to hold off the rest of the naturally aspirated field as Spencer Crabb, Alex Chadney, and Matt Turner are just a few of the competitors looking in the class.

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WHAT HAS BEEN MODIFIED ON BLOCK’S HYUNDAI?

The ARA has mandated tweaks to the i20 Coupe WRC to make it legal for US rallying

L4WD is likely to be a tight battle between David Defrain and Andrew Reavis, bringing another classic match-up between Subaru and Mitsubishi, but with six other competitors in the class there is the possibility that anything could happen.

The entry for O2WD has 19 cars battling for top spot. Tyler Hendricks, Julien Sebot, Todd Hartmann, Wayne Conrad and Chase Hovinga lead the pack with just two speed factor points separating the five. The diverse field sees everything from an RX-7, to Volkswagen turbodiesels to Volvos and Ford Fiestas, and is sure to be one of the most exciting class battles of the weekend.

L2WD however will be much smaller, but still full of low-grip fun, with Hooptie X head Eric Frentress returning  in his 2006 Toyota Yaris after his debut at Oregon Trail Rally last year. Chuck Brazer will be his navigator. Locals Matt Tabor and Kris Saada are aiming to battle him for the win in a class that has four new drivers.

Class Number Crew Car
O4WD #457 Sam Albert/Krista Skucas Subaru WRX STI
O4WD #232 Mark Tabor/Kathryn Hansen Subaru Impreza WRX STi
O4WD #619 Garret Buban/Elizabeth Cordara Subaru Impreza WRX STI
O4WD #442 Adam Kohorn/Cody Crawford Subaru Impreza
O4WD #438 Victor Bartosek/Donald James Flagg Audi Quattro
O4WD #369 Jacob Sturgeon/Maribel Plaza Subaru Impreza
O4WD #760 Brett Livingston/Hunter Livingston Subaru Imprezza WRX STi
O4WD #146 Ron Binckley/Aidan Wilson Subaru Impreza WRX STi
NA4WD #621 Andy Miller/Shaun Tracy Subaru EZ30R STi
NA4WD #71 Josh Gierman/Joe Bulanov Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #307 Spencer Crabb/Peter Crabb Subaru 2.5RS
NA4WD #819 Matt Turner/Dylan Hooker Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #458 Alexander Chadney/Niels Kroeze Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #240 Dan Sperry/Zak Thomas Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #347 Michael Honn/Brian Donnelly Subaru Impreza 2.5RS
NA4WD #268 Jeffery Olmstead/Ann Hanson Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #802 David Alspaugh/Colin Katagiri Audi Coupé Quattro
NA4WD #114 Jeffrey Kulawiak/Michael Kulawiak Subaru Impreza
NA4WD #972 Cooper Anderson/Ethan Curtis Subaru Impreza
L4WD #979 Andrew Reavis/Phil Clarke Subaru Impreza
L4WD #312 David DeFrain/Nolan Abell Mitsubishi Evo
L4WD #297 Steve Greer/David Bush Subaru Legacy
L4WD #502 Brian Stark/Jan Nielsen Subaru Impreza WRX TR
L4WD #462 Jordan O'Connell/Peter Roque Subaru Impreza WRX
L4WD #656 Jack Swayze/Makisa Upton Subaru Impreza
L4WD #231 Krsiten Tabor/Janice Tabor Subaru Impreza WRX
L4WD #454 Justin Nelson/Serena Scrivner Subaru Impreza STi N12
L4WD #105 Milton Gouveia/Betsy Nguyen Subaru Impreza WRX
O2WD #831 Tyler Hendricks/Dalton Schaefbauer Volkswagen Golf
O2WD #425 Julien Sebot/Steven Harrell Ford Fiesta
O2WD #51 Todd Hartmann/Shawn Callahan Volkswagen Golf GTI
O2WD #622 Wayne Conrad/Nik Mead Volkswagen Golf TDI
O2WD #662 Chase Hovinga/Shelly Smith Volvo 242
O2WD #96 Garth Ankeny/Russ Kraushaar Toyota Starlet
O2WD #501 Christopher Miller/Crystina Coats Ford Focus
O2WD #100 Larry Clark/Robert Gobright BMW M3
O2WD #203 Doug Heredos/Amy Kluge BMW M3
O2WD #269 Sage Van Tilburg/Anthony Johnson BMW 325is
O2WD #192 Javier Olivares/Andres Bautista Ford Escort GT
O2WD #447 Jennifer King/Stacy Masters BMW M3
O2WD #21 Peter Guagenti/Robert Culbertson BMW E36
O2WD #416 Brian Heidsiek/Dominick Brooks BMW 318ti
O2WD #628 Matt Weaver/Alex Staidle Mazda RX-7
O2WD #399 Robert Shibao/Brandon Panek Mitsubishi Mirage
L2WD #271 Matt Tabor/Susan Zukowski Mazda 3
L2WD #957 Eric Frentress/Chuck Brazer Toyota Yaris

Itinerary

At 122 stage miles, Olympus will be the longest rally of the season so far. Parc exposé takes place in Downtown Shelton, WA at 8am on Saturday morning, with the first car hitting the stages at 9:50am.

Saturday consists of two loops of three stages each, followed by back-to-back runnings on the famed Nahwatzel stage which clocks in at over 15 miles.

Sunday will be shorter, starting just as early with a quick parc exposé at Ridge Motorsports Park, where service will also be both days. There will be two loops of stages, each consisting of Dayton, SIP SuperSpecial and the infamous Wildcat.

Unfortunately, due to stage conditions, Wildcat has been declawed already as the first six miles or so have been deemed unusable due to deep mud. But the remaining 12 miles are sure to cause problems for competitors as the second running of the test will also be the powerstage, where drivers can score up to five extra championship points for a win.

Saturday April 23

SS1 Kuhnle Up (7.14 miles) 0953
SS2 Schafer Long (10.73 miles) 1023
SS3 Deckerville Reverse Short (6.27 miles) 1056
SS4 Kuhnle Up (7.14 miles) 1323
SS5 Schafer Long (10.73 miles) 1353
SS6 Deckerville Reverse Short (6.27 miles) 1426
SS7 Nahwatzel (15.46 miles) 1628
SS8 Nahwatzel (15.46 miles) 1837

Sunday April 24

SS9 Dayton (8.80 miles) 0853
SS10 SIP Super Special (1.45 miles) 0931
SS11 Wildcat (11.47 miles) 1034
SS12 Dayton (8.80 miles) 1306
SS13 SIP Super Special (1.45 miles) 1344
SS14 Wildcat (11.47 miles) 1447

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