MERRITT, B.C. (October 27, 2008) – Reigning Canadian champions Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard rebounded from a low point in the middle of the 2008 rally season to decisively claim victory in the Pacific Forest Rally here.
L’Estage and Richard, of St. Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, dominated the penultimate round of the Canadian Rally Championship in their Hyundai Tiburon for their second Canadian win of the season and a repeat of their 2007 Pacific Forest victory.
While competitors struggled with the changing surfaces and rugged roads of the two-day test, L’Estage and Richard took command of the event from the start and maintained their lead for the entire rally. Tires turned into a critical factor in the outcome of the event; the winning duo selected Yokohama A035E competition tires which held up to the punishment that derailed the efforts of other competitors.
Despite two wins and a third place finish, a repeat victory in the Canadian championship is out of reach for the team in 2008. But this victory and two wins in the U.S. keep L’Estage and Richard at the top of the North American Rally Cup standings as the Canadian series moves to Ontario for the final event of 2008, the Rally of the Tall Pines on November 22, 2008. The pair won Tall Pines, an event considered a winter rally notorious for its difficult and changing road conditions, on Yokohama tires in 2006 and 2007.
L’Estage and Richard rely on highly specialized Yokohama competition tires for the rugged mountain and forestry roads in the spring, summer and fall rally events, and on the popular Yokohama Ice Guard IG20 winter tires for ice and snow rallies.
Yokohama Tire (Canada) Inc. markets and distributes a full line of tires for high performance, passenger car, light truck, and commercial truck applications, as well as off-the-road tires for mining, forestry and construction applications. It maintains distribution centres across Canada to serve more than 700 independent tire dealers.
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