Bemidji, Minnesota -- The Ojibwe Forests Rally ended in a heartbreaker for defending North American champion Pat Richard, whose dramatic comeback effort finished just miles from the victory podium with a mechanical failure.

After a tough start Friday evening with rear brake problems and a low start number, Richard managed to claw his ahead of rival driver Stig Blomqvist by the midpoint in the second day. He and his co-driver sister Nathalie Richard finished the challenging 20-mile tenth stage well ahead of the former World Rally champion, pulling into first place with a commanding 14-second lead.

But victory slipped from the duo�s grasp just minutes from the finish line Saturday when a mechanical failure left them unable to continue. Blomqvist and co-driver Ana Goni sped into first place. "My heart goes out to Pat," said third-place finisher Travis Pastrana, a motocross pro and X-Games medalist who has rocketed to the front of the field this year in just a handful of races. "He drove the rally of his life. But that's rally -- or so I�ve heard."

The result was a devastating blow for driver Richard, who was in the hunt for crucial points at this, the sixth round of the Rally America Championship.

The two Group N drivers have battled hard this season for top honors, pushing the limits of their competition Subarus at each rally. Before this race, just two points separated them in championship standings. Blomqvist is now firmly in the lead with 100 points to Richard�s 77 and with only two events remaining in the season, the deficit appears virtually insurmountable for Richard.

Second place overall went to the team of Matthew Iorio and Ole Holter, who had trailed the leaders throughout the race and finished more than two minutes behind the winner in their Open class Subaru Impreza.

Rally newcomer Pastrana, along with co-driver Christian Edstrom, claimed third place overall in their Group N Subaru WRX STi.

Headlights ablaze, some 43 competitors took to the start on Friday and Saturday as the skies dimmed and teams raced into the night through northern Minnesota�s lake and vacation country near the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Itasca State Park.

This rally is unique in the series in that much of the competition takes place after night falls, adding the additional challenge of darkness to the already formidable rally course.

Rally America is an official sanctioning body for the sport of Rally Racing in the United States. Rally racing originated in Europe nearly 100 years ago, and is a fixture on the European extreme sports scene. Rally racing is gaining momentum in the US and is rapidly becoming one of the most popular extreme motorsports in the nation.

The Rally America National Championship Series is on the OLN network at 2:30 PM Central time beginning October 2 and running through November 20.

Minneapolis-based Rally America, Inc. holds the sanctioning and marketing rights to the Rally America Championship. The next round, the Colorado Cog Rally, takes place August 17 and 18 in Steamaboat Springs, CO.

For further information:
J.B. Niday, Managing Director, Rally America, Inc. Tel: +1.763.553.2742, [email protected] www.rally-america.com