Sno*Drift Rally winner and ARA National Championship leader Mark Piatkowski is on the hunt for a faster car to maintain a title tilt – but he says his feet remain firmly on the ground.
Subaru driver Piatkowski won the Michigan event for the second time in five years last weekend, but his most recent victory came after rally leader Lia Block hit trouble two corners from the end and Javier Castro was excluded.
“It was a crazy rally,” Piatkowski admitted. “We pushed hard all event long trying to beat some Rally3 and RC2 cars, and realistically this is the one event where that’s even possible in our car.
“Sno*Drift is one of those rallies where you need speed, patience, and a lot of things to go right. I’m proud of the result, but I’m also realistic. Rallying is unpredictable, and this win doesn’t happen without issues elsewhere in the field.
“I feel gutted for Lia and Javier. I’ve been on the receiving end of penalties before and it’s never a good situation. In this sport, a successful weekend isn’t always just about fast stage times. They both had mechanical issues that led to penalties, and we were there to take advantage.
“When you’re running against drivers like Travis Pastrana and Lia Block, you know the level is high. Being in that mix is motivating, but it also shows how fine the margins really are in rallying.
“We had a rally-long battle with Javier, trading stage times, and we honestly enjoyed it. The icing on the cake was bringing the car home in one piece without a scratch. That’s a successful Sno*Drift weekend to me.”
Piatkowski runs a NA4WD-specification Subaru, but he’s hoping to find a faster Impreza as the season unfolds.
He added: “Leading the National championship after an overall win sounds like a breakthrough, but the reality is more complicated. Even results like this don’t suddenly open doors to faster or purpose-built cars. My goal is still to find a way into a faster car and continue a championship run. Right now, that path is incredibly narrow, even when you’re winning rallies.”
Piatkowski followed his 2022 Sno*Drift win with a host of top-six results later in that year. The second round of this year’s series is next month’s 100 Acre Wood Rally in Missouri.
