When Travis Pastrana claimed his first Global RallyCross win
a few months ago in New Hampshire, the team looked forward to the September 29th
event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway along with one more mystery event that would
serve as the series finale.We now know
that the final race of the 2012 Global RallyCross season will be held on
Tuesday October 30th in front of the Las Vegas Convention Center –
right along with the opening day of the 2012 SEMA Show.
The biggest challenge for the Global RallyCross series has
been getting attracting new fans but with races alongside the popular NASCAR
series’ this year along with a television deal with ESPN – GRC has reached a great
many people in the US this year.Having
a season finale in front of the 2012 SEMA Show will put the event in an area
packed full of every major automotive media outlet in the world so coverage for
that final event should be incredible.
The most important bit of news for Dodge Global RallyCross
fans is that with this final race being added – Travis Pastrana is mathematically
still in the hunt for the 2012 GRC championship.Pastrana currently sits in 10th
place with 34 points while series leader Tanner Foust sits out front with 62
points.While it is a long shot, Pastrana
could gain a total of 42 points in the two final races in Nevada (20 points for
winning an event, 1 point for winning a heat race) which would give him 76
points on the season.The tough part is
that top drivers in the series like Foust, Ken Block, Samuel Hubinette and
Brian Deegan will have to struggle to not maintain their top spots.It won’t be easy for Pastrana but it is
possible and the Mopar universe is behind him as he finishes off his first
season in the Dodge Dart Global RallyCross race car.
I will be at the 2012 SEMA Show in Vegas which means that I
will be fortunate enough to be on hand for the 2012 Global RallyCross season and
you can all expect a firsthand account of the season ending shootout for the
championship.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
