Rally Acres!
One of the problems with a rally car, is that while the Rally itself is held on public roads, local law enforcement takes a rather dim view of practicing with the car on public roads. Fortunately, we have a solution. Mark Buskirk, co-driver for Eric Burmeister in the #42 VW GTI, (Burmeister Engineering Rallysport) owns a few acres of vacant land south of Grand Rapids, MI, referred to as 'Rally Acres'.
With a little coaxing, we're able to convince Mark to let us 'borrow' the land for a little practice. (Well, not too much coaxing. It's not difficult to convince a rally enthusiast to go drive in the dirt!)
We never seem to be alone out there, either. Here's Mark with his VW GTI getting the paint a little dirty too! Be on the lookout for 'Grommit' at future rallies!
For some strange reason, the garden that Mark planted in this corner of the field never seems to grow very well!
The 90 degree right turn at the end of this straightaway should NOT be taken too fast. Failure to heed this warning....
Will put you into the REALLY deep mud, as seen here! (And yes, the Co-Driver did this!) Fortunately, Rally Acres comes equipped with a tractor for just such an emergency!
From left to right, Jerry Brownell from Team YO!, Mark Buskirk from Burmeister Engineering Rallysport, and Colin McCleery from Sierra Rallysports. (Colin drove down to Rally Acres in his Jaguar XJS, but for some reason didn't want to drive it in the mud)