Sam Albert and Krista Skucas didn’t disappoint as they rounded out a memorable season with victory on the Big White Winter Rally in their unique Ferrari V8 powered Subaru Impreza.
Joining fellow ARA stars Jeff Seehorn (Subaru WRX) and Jason Bailey (Ford Fiesta Rally3) on the Canadian Rally Championship event, the trio were the class of the field throughout the day. Bailey eventually finished second, while Seehorn lost the lead when he buried his WRX in a snowbank for 10 minutes on the final stage.
Albert endured his own frustrations with visibility in the final two stages seriously hindered as the inside of the Subaru fogged up and froze in the snow. To make matters even more interesting, eight of the world’s loudest and proudest cylinders combined to ensure he could hardly hear Skucas at times.
“This is a great way to end the year. We’ve worked hard on the car since earlier in the season. We’ve refreshed components, bearings and that kind of thing to build in more reliability. It worked. The car didn’t miss a beat.”
Sam Albert to DirtFish
Albert had built his event around a big push on the final loop, tuning his tire plan to optimize his opportunity later in the day. The plan was to run the Yokohama A034, build confidence in the car, and really charge in the final two loops of stages.
The biggest challenge for driver and co-driver was just being heard over the screaming of the Ferrari V8. They have plans over the winter to explore circuit-racing intercom (with noise-cancelling, in-ear monitors like open-wheel racers use). But judging by the crowd that came out to hear the Ferrari-Subaru, taming the engine is not an option for the team.