Pastrana was able to race to the summit just in time, before the weather rolled in. :: Red Bull Photofiles

Travis was, on avaerage, travelling at 72 miles per hour, roughly 115km per hour! This is pretty amazing considering the car is going faster than a typical highway speed limit. Another interesting fact, Travis was climbing the mountain at just under 5 metres a second, to reach the summit, almost 2 kilometres from sea level.

This time trial differs from a standard Rally America event since Travis and his co-driver, Marshal Clarke, had to figure the rally notes by themselves. In true Travis spirit, it wasn’t all serious. Watch the video below to see the latest gags between the two auto pilots as far as notations go, such as the “Jiggy Jiggy” and the “Shright” (Short Right).

Travis finding it difficult to keep his WRX on four wheels! :: Red Bull Photofiles

After a few mechanical issues Travis lined up against former rival from their FMX days, Brian Deegan. Travis did not have to run through any heats during Rally Racing since he qualified second behind Tanner Foust. After struggling off the line, his co-driver/reporter mentioned Travis being confused which is understandable, the course was very difficult to follow, even for spectators!

Once Travis had began to head back out of the stadium he was still in reach of Deegan but carried too much speed and slid into the soft dirt on the shoulder of the track which forced him off the track, braking just in time as to not damage the car more or the surroundings. Tanner Foust ended up winning that event, with Deegan in second. In a later interview Travis mentions “the motor was done before I took off”. Bad luck for the 199.

More mechanical issues, with Team Subaru swapping out multiple engines and other parts such as transmissions – one engine swap results in a fire in the engine bay! This was not good news as Super Rally is only a few hours after the Rally Racing, with BMX Big Air in between. Team Subaru ended up installing the back-up motor of the back-up motor, that is, they had tried 3 new engines which all failed. Travis’ car was done for the day and since his Subaru teammate, Dave Mirra, has already been knocked out, he was going to drive his car (#40).

X Games/ESPN Wouldn’t allow this thus Travis wasn’t even able to roll up to the start gate. This allowed Carl Decker to fill in TP’s spot. Travis was disappointed saying “At least I qualified first!” as he left. It isn’t all bad news, Travis can still go for Gold on the last day of X Games in Speed and Style. If he wins he’ll leave X Games with 2 Gold medals!

Bad luck for former teammate, Ken Block, he suffered mechanical issues too and didn’t win a medal either!

Here is the Rally Racing quarter final against Brain Deegan:

At X Games 16 he plans to enter 5 events, 1 more than X Games 12 – except this time he has a broken collarbone, but that hasn’t stopped Travis before and it seems it won’t now as he plans to throw down the TP Roll or Backflip 360. He attempted it last year but over rotated the backflip part of the trick causing him to fall 40 or so feet to solid ground causing more back problems for the already injury stricken athlete.

The events which Travis is entering as of this moment are:

• Rally Racing
• Rally SuperRally
• MotoX Best Trick
• MotoX Freestyle
• MotoX Speed and Style

Travis’ previous history suggests he’ll score high in all these events but he hasn’t entered an FMX contest since 4 years ago and faces some steady competition from his fellow Rally racers – we can however expect a show like no other; that is Travis Pastrana.

For an up-to-date X Games 16 Invite List, check out the ESPN page here.

Travis hit the take off ramp at roughly ninety miles per hour and flew for a good 5 seconds, probably the slowest 5 seconds of Travis life, but landed relatively safely, if you call slamming into concrete barrier a safe stop. Travis went a little too far on the jump, and didn’t have enough distance or grip to stop saying the landing barge was “Slick as ice” to ESPN announcer Tes Sewell.

Travis, going huge like always. The official jump distance was 269ft! Garth Milan/Red Bull Photofiles

Travis sounded like he was scared for just a moment when he hit the brakes and started sliding at over 50 mph, “putting it sideways” – probably to not totally destroy the car. He did however, in usual Pastrana fashion, start celebrating straight after, jumping out and climbing to the top of the barge to address the thousands of fans surrounding the jump from the water’s edge.

One thing was missing though – a backflip, which is when Travis decided to backflip himself off the barge, 4 stories up into the nice and cold water. Not to worry though, the emergency rescue crew consisting of jet skis, boats, divers and lift bags will take it as a success. This also makes it the 3rd successful year of Red Bull’s No Limits events – Robbie Maddison’s Long Jump on a Dirtbike, then in 2008  Robbie’s jump on and off a replica of the Arch de Triumph in Las Vegas with Rhys Milan (almost) backflipping a truck.

Now we will have to wait and see if fellow Subaru team mate and DC Shoes co-founder, Ken Block will step up and reclaim his record which Travis beat by 98 ft!

I think his mother, Debbie Pastrana, is just happy Travis made it out alive. Chris Tedesco/Red Bull Photofiles

Ken Blocks rolled his car during Stage 3

Travis Pastrana has sailed to victory once again, winning the Rally America series for the fourth year consecutively. There is still 2 rounds to go in the series before it officially ends but it is mathematically impossible for anyone else to win the championship.

Travis came into Ojibwe Forests Rally with the championship lead and left it with the championship. Fellow Subaru team mates, Ken Block and Dave Mirra weren’t as fortunate as Travis, Ken rolling his car during stage 3 and Dave Mirra DNFing. Travis had an 8 second lead over Andi Mancin securing the win.

Travis goes into the next two rounds of the Rally America championship with no pressure however Ken Block (3rd) will have to fight for second place against Andi Mancin (2nd) and ACP (4th) to salvage the rest of the championship.

Travis wins again!

Championship Rankings

• Travis Pastrana
• Andi Mancin
• Ken Block

]]> http://travispastrana.net/travis-wins-4th-consecutive-rally-america-title-and-wins-ojibwe/feed/ 1 http://travispastrana.net/travis-at-x-games/ http://travispastrana.net/travis-at-x-games/#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:53:59 +0000 http://travispastrana.net/?p=579

Travis mid way through the Toilet Paper Roll. He is about half way going into the second rotation.

Well this year wasn’t the best for Travis. He returned to the motorcycle once again for MotoX Best Trick and was ready for his 4th year in Rally. The hype was huge to say the least with Travis attempting his new trick. The most talked up trick for years was the Backflip to 360 also as the 720 Rodeo or as Travis called it the “Toilet Paper Roll.”

Travis hadn’t attempted this trick to dirt or even practiced in weeks since he came to L.A. early for the Red Bull Toasted event just days prior to X Games. He was still confident saying he is “1 for 5, which was about how I was with the double back[flip].” Unfortunately for Travis he didn’t quite land it however on the bright side he was able to walk away and was in good shape for Rally; that EVS padding held up well! Travis was one of many who crashed with only Kyle Loza, Blake Williams and Todd Potter landing with a trick and Willy Watts not landing any trick(s). Travis ended up fourth at the end of the night.

Travis was, as usual, a favorite to win. He dominated every race he was in which is no surprise, last year he got Gold and before that he got Bronze and another Gold. First race he was up against ACP but fortunately for Travis (and unfortunately for ACP), ACP nudged a water barrier which cost him crucial seconds. Next round Travis was up against Brian Deegan of the Metal Mulisha. Brian had previously had turbo troubles and the affects still lingered to the next round because for some reason his team didn’t fix his car! Apparently a hose had slipped of and needed to be reattached. Brian without a turbo obviously couldn’t match Travis in a primed Subaru USA car. Brian couldn’t make the jump and was disqualified; Brian got a bit emotional in the car. Ken Block had fallen to the same fate as Brian, not doing the jump and getting booted from the competition.

Travis and his custom steering wheel from Red Bull :: PhotoCredit: Subaru USA Rally

In the final it was Travis against Kenny Brack (not Bartram). Travis and Kenny were neck-and-neck for most of the race but Travis had a slight advantage. On return to the stadium Travis came into the corner with too much speed for the terrain; a slippery concrete-dust mixture which forced Travis to lose control and wedge the car in between the barriers on either side of the track.

Travis’ face expressed disappointment obviously after losing another gold medal to such a small error. After review of a replay Travis can be seen smiling after he crashed with his face in his palms. In classic Travis character he was in good spirits, congratulating Kenny Brack and thanking his team for such a good effort.

Travis now has 2 Golds, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze medal from the Rally car event and is the only competitor to race in at every X Games Rally Car event in the 4 years it has been held (2006 – 2009). Travis missed out on a medal by one spot in best trick which would have been the first time a rider gets a medal without doing a trick. Best of luck to Travis next year!

A quick word on the championship. Travis is in the lead by 42 points over team mate Ken Block.

1. Travis – 106 points
2. Ken – 64 points
3. ACP – 63 points

It seems the fight is now for second place to fourth place, separated by 4 points between them!

Travis' Silver Medal :: PhotoCredit: Subaru Rally USA

Travis jumping his Rally Car for the 2006 X Games

Red Bull is the sponsor behind all big things; X Fighters and Des Nations for example. For the past 2 years they have done something huge on New Years Eve and now it’s Travis’ turn! Previously in 2007 Robbie Maddison set the Long Distance Jump Record on a Motorcycle and in 2008 Robbie and Rhys Millen set records for the Highest Jump on a Motorcycle and the First Backflip in a Truck (kind of) respectively.

This year Travis is still off the motorcycle and in the Rally Car for the longest jump ever! Subaru USA team member Ken Block is renown for his car jumping antics but it seems Travis wants a bit of the action! Travis plans to jump his Subaru WRX further than any man on this earth this New Years Eve. Red Bull No Limits will again air LIVE on ESPN. Check your local TV listings for the air times closer to the date.

• MotoX Freestyle
• MotoX Best Trick
• MotoX SuperX
• Supermoto
• Rally

Travis has declined all the invintations but 2; Rally and MotoX Best Trick. According to the ESPN Action Sports FMX Blog, Travis has something big planned for MotoX Best Trick. He could however, give his place in the event to Jim DeChamp like he did last year.

Travis said he did not go through in competing in those events because he has no chance at winning. With X Games only a month away, Travis will be in the foam pit everyday. He has 17 days to master his trick for the Best Trick competition.

Travis and Christian charge for the lead :: PhotoCredit: RallyAmerica.com

Travis is going well at the fourth stop of the 2009 Rally America Championship. As of now, the 4th stage, Travis is 4 seconds behind Tanner Foust (1st) and 6 seconds in front of ACP and teammate, Ken Block. Travis’ results from previous seasons put him as a favourite, winning here last year however he bit the dust 2 years ago.

This is stage 4 of 16, so Travis still has 75% of the Rally to get a decent lead over the rest of the field. To receive live, stage-by-stage updates of the Rally, visit www.rallyamerica.com

Bad news for Ken Block though, he had turbo troubles although Team Subaru USA fixed them although more problems arose with the car and he eventually pulled out. This means Travis moves up and Ken moves down since he got no points for this Rally. Travis still doesn’t have the championship lead yet, he is in 2nd place to ACP who was able to keep the top spot Perhaps Ken Block has a feeling of Deja vu, last year he had the same problems with cars and didn’t finish enough Rallies.

Championship Standings

1. ACP
2. Travis Pastrana
3. Tanner Foust

Check out Rally America for the detailed wrap up of other drivers.