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13 May 2001 - For immediate release
For more information, contact: John Dillon
Widget Rally Team
P. O. Box 1231
Thousand Oaks, CA 91358-0231
Phone: 805.906.7797
Widget web site: www.WidgetRacing.com
e-mail: John @ WidgetRacing.com

Rim of the World Rally Disappoints Team

Alternator Failure Strikes Again
Despite Problems, Team Remains Optimistic for Season

Palmdale, California  The Rim of the World Rally, traditionally one of the toughest events on the U.S. rally circuit, returned to Palmdale, California on May 4th and 5th. The M&M Motorsports Team looked forward to Rim after their disappointing run in Oregon three weeks earlier where they lost an alternator.

"We were looking forward to a strong showing in our own back yard, and Lauchlin [O'Sullivan, from San Francisco] has plenty of experience with these roads as well," reported co-driver (navigator) John Dillon of Thousand Oaks. "Optimism ran high that we could achieve a good result here."

Unfortunately, the alternator failed again on the first night's stages, leaving the team stranded out on course and while the crew waited anxiously in the service area for news of the Eclipse. Even before the electrical failure O'Sullivan and Dillon had problems to contend with. On the first stage (sponsored by Sport Compact Car magazine) they lost the right front tire and had to change it during the transit out to the forest.

"Naturally we're all very disappointed," noted crew chief Tom Laeng. "We've put a lot of effort and energy into the car and thought we had the electrical problems solved." Thanks to the committed efforts of the crew, the car was repaired and the team returned to action on Saturday, competing at the ClubRally (divisional) level.

O'Sullivan described the Saturday stages this way: "We had a pretty quick run on the Del Sur South stage, but overheating problems kept us from reaching maximum speed. We saw several other cars parked on the side with similar problems so we tried to balance our desire to go fast with our need to save the car." Despite his conservative approach, the power steering pump let go on the northbound running of Del Sur. The pump leaked fluid all over the alternator, shorting it out.

"Once again we were sidelined by electrical problems," noted Dillon wryly, "but despite the problems I think Rim was a worthwhile weekend. We established some contacts for the future, the support crew proved they could work under adverse conditions, and best of all we've reaffirmed our committment between the team members for the rest of the season."

The M&M Motorsports team, based in Big Bear, California, currently campaigns a 1994 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX in the PGT category, a class that restricts modifications to allow only basic safety gear, slight suspension improvements and a few other minor changes. Several business partners support the team's rally effort, including Porterfield Enterprises for brakes, Direct Signs for graphics, Clutch Masters, Berdoo Transmissions, Budget Auto Works, Fleet Glass, CTX Mortgage, and Shults Dot Com. Additional sponsorship is being sought to help complete the season.

Prior to the start, the in-car crew showed why sponsors are interested in the M&M team by demonstrating their presentation skills. O'Sullivan was interviewed on a local TV station while Dillon provided a web interview. (You can hear the interview by pointing your RealPlayer browser software to www.rallyusa.com/dillonpre.ram.)

Laeng and the Eclipse will sit out STPR, the next ProRally, because of knee surgery and a major rebuild effort for the car, but O'Sullivan and Dillon are working hard to try and rent a vehicle for the race. "The season is less than half over," said the driver, "and there's plenty of opportunity for us to recover from our little setback at Rim." The co-driver chimed in, saying "Rim left us disappointed, but not discouraged. We've got the dedication and motivation to continue to 'Rally On.'" With the team currently third in the national points championship, optimism remains high that the national PGT championship can still be earned.

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