ARA Central and Western Regional Championship Events Launch 2026 American Rally Season in Wild Style
- masonrunkel
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(BURLINGTON, Vt., December 10, 2025) ~ With three weeks remaining before the end of the year, the 2026 American Rally Association (ARA) season was already off and running as of December 6, as the official start of both the Western and Central Regional Championships showcased the diversity of American Rally.
Separated by nearly 2,000 miles, the doubleheader weekend featured a combined 45 teams and 174 stage miles across 18 stages, with California’s Ridge Rally showcasing the stark beauty of the Mojave Desert, and Minnesota’s Nemadji Trail Winter Rally offering a winter wonderland replete with snow-covered forests.
Both rallies delivered fierce competition, unpredictable drama, and thrilling moments, launching their respective championships in style and offering an exciting preview of what lies ahead in the 2026 ARA season.
Watson and Triplett Survive Brutal Ridge Rally for First Career Win
California’s Ridge Rally, held in Tehachapi December 6-7, expanded to a two-day format for the first time, and the 140-mile, 14-stage rally saw 31 cars take on the desert mountain roads of Jawbone Canyon, Kelso Valley, and Piute Mountain.
Although the skies were clear and temperatures in the 60s, heavy rain ahead of the event created massive ruts across both high-speed special stages and transits. The result was a rally where vehicle durability, precision car placement, and a fair bit of luck were required not only to win, but simply to survive. Of the 31 starters, just 10 cars reached the final control, and only eight completed both days without retiring.
Right from the opening stage, one of the top pre-event favorites, the Limited Four-Wheel-Drive (L4WD) 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX of KJ Miller and Sara Nonack, surged into the lead by 4.8 seconds over the Naturally Aspirated Four-Wheel-Drive (NA4WD) 2001 Subaru Impreza of Trenton Koury and Matt Mitchell, before breaking a rear axle on SS2 and surrendering the top spot.
Koury and Mitchell went on to build a commanding lead, stretching their advantage to more than five minutes by SS8, before they too retired on SS9 with front suspension damage. Their exit opened the door to a three-way fight for victory among the NA4WD 2002 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS of Fritz and Brooke Croy, the Open Four-Wheel-Drive (O4WD) 2010 Subaru Impreza WRX STI of Charles Watson and Ben Triplett, and the L4WD 2002 Subaru Impreza WRX of Arto and Mary Ylikangas.
“We knew it was going to be a challenging race after we saw the damage from the storms on recce,” Said Mary Ylikangas. “We ran stage one with no boost due to an inner cooler hose blowing off which set us up for a slow start, and then a high speed spin on stage three, plus electrical problems killing our auxiliary lights on stage five and six made the weekend even harder. A flat tire on stage eight and a bent control arm on stage 10 did not help matters.
“Thanks to our crew during services, we were able to keep the car on the road. We had a good battle with Watson and Triplett and were happy with our first place in class and second overall. Despite the setbacks, we had a really good rally and did our absolute best. Ridge Rally was one of the most challenging yet rewarding competitions we’ve been a part of and can’t wait to come back.”
After inheriting the lead, the Croy entry held the top spot for two stages before retiring following an “off-course excursion” on SS11. Watson and Triplett seized the lead with three stages remaining and held firm under heavy pressure from the Ylikangas entry, continuing to exchange stage wins and split times throughout the final loop.
By the finish, it was Watson and Triplett standing atop the podium, claiming their first career overall rally victory in one of the toughest events of the season.
“Ridge Rally last year was the first time Ben and I entered an event together and the first event in my STI's logbook, so we were excited for our first repeat event,” Watson said. “We had a long re-prep (frame damage and swapping in a new engine) after an impact at Prescott, where we were battling Arto Ylikangas for first place. At that event, Arto closed a 45-second gap in a single night stage and really showed what an exceptional driver he is. Our expectation for Ridge was to push for a class win, but we didn’t think we’d be fighting for overall position.
“The attrition due to mechanical issues was the biggest factor on day one, and we found ourselves sitting in third overall with Arto only 14 seconds behind. By the final leg of day two, two-thirds of the competitors had DNF'd, and Arto and I had an 18-second gap in first and second overall.
“We ran SS13 within 0.3 seconds of each other's times, which was unbelievable. We couldn't risk a DNF on the final night stage as there were four or five unseen potentially race-ending ruts, but Ben had marked them all in his notes as ‘double caution,’ so we slowed down to transit speeds in a couple corners. We had full trust in each other and were able to bring home the win, limping the car back to parc ferme with major suspension damage after a brutal weekend.”
Behind them, the Ylikangas duo also had plenty to celebrate, winning their class and finishing second overall in their first event after moving from O4WD to L4WD.
Despite seven L4WD cars starting the event, the only other finisher in the class was the 2005 Subaru Impreza STI of Jordan O’Connell and Anthony Campbell. Surviving the war of attrition, O’Connell and Campbell claimed second in class.
The final spot on the overall podium was taken by the O4WD 2018 Subaru WRX of Elijah and Jeff Kleeman. The pair entered the final stage just 0.6 seconds behind the O4WD 1995 Subaru WRX STI Type RA of Matt Johnson and Nicky Zannis, before a hard push on the final test vaulted them onto the podium for their first-ever overall top-three finish in ARA competition.
"This was our third stage rally, second finish after the Oregon Trail Rally earlier this year. We were looking for redemption this weekend, as we tried Ridge last year but had an engine failure on the second stage and couldn't continue.
"The Sorrel Peak Climb looked pretty hairy during recce due to the ruts, quite a challenge finding the least sketchy path.” Said Elijah Kleeman. "It did get a bit easier through the weekend as other cars rounded off edges, but I still had to be careful.
"Coming downhill was particularly challenging, much harder to see the ruts going down, and totally different at speed vs what we thought was safe during recce.
"Near the end of Saturday, I noticed the rear end getting squirrely, something clearly broke, but I wasn't sure what it was. We were able to get through the stages and back to service at a reasonable pace, and found that both of our rear trailing arms had been ripped apart.
"We were on the fence about retiring, as we weren't sure we could repair it, and I didn't have spares, but Arto and Benji encouraged us to push through and try to get it fixed. We were able to find some friends nearby who helped us weld new parts all night. Huge shoutout to Eric and Jen for the beefier parts and hosting us all night. We got back to the hotel at 6:00 a.m., had just enough time to shower and get back out to service for day two."
Durability proved similarly decisive in the two-wheel-drive categories. Jonathan Compton and Brie Moore’s Open Two-Wheel-Drive (O2WD) 1995 BMW E36 led the class from SS1 through SS11 before a sudden late-rally fight for the lead developed when Jason Angell and Maribel Plaza’s 1983 Mazda RX-7 jumped ahead by just 2.1 seconds.
The very next stage proved catastrophic for both teams — the BMW retiring with brake failure and a broken CV joint, and the Mazda sidelined by fuel issues — opening the door for Ridge Rally Assistant Chairman James Veatch III and co-driver Jenna Cooper.
Despite retiring on the first day, Veatch and Cooper ultimately inherited the O2WD lead in their Lexus SC400 and held it through the end to claim their first class victory since switching to the Lexus.
“I was excited to compete in Ridge, as it is our home rally, and the last rally to end my first year ever as a co-driver, and Jimmy’s first year as driver.” said Cooper, “And what a rally it was, with lots of ruts from the recent heavy rains and snow.
“Honestly, it made Jimmy and I a stronger team, having to work harder with the road challenges, make sure I was spot-on with my notes, and Jimmy became a professional tire swapper. It was very rewarding to see the SC400 survive and all of Jimmy’s hard work and driving pay off to get us our first win.”
Second in O2WD went to the only other finisher in the six-car class: Benji and Gerardo Carvallo’s 1989 BMW 325i survived the brutal conditions to finish ninth overall.
Unfortunately for the Limited Two-Wheel-Drive (L2WD) class, all three entries were forced to retire on day one, unable to return for the second day of rallying. Despite an impressive show of speed—the 1994 Toyota Celica of Eric Frentress and Geoff Budd briefly led both two-wheel-drive classes during the rally—simply reaching the finish proved a monumental task.
The next round of the 2026 ARA West Regional Championship will be Prescott Rally in Prescott, Arizona, now moved from its traditional September slot to March 27–28, 2026.
Father And Son Battle for Win at Nemadji Trail Winter Rally
Meanwhile, in the frozen north of Duquette, Minnesota, 13 teams braved nine-degree temperatures and snow-covered roads at the Nemadji Trail Winter Rally, battling both conditions and each other across 33 challenging miles of rally action.
The four-stage rally saw plenty of drama despite its relatively short competitive distance. With less time to recover, every mistake added up quickly, and competitors had to be sharp through every corner to avoid rally-ending errors.
With family-run teams, Minnesota locals, and the “rally-curious” MINI USA program from LAP Motorsports filling the field, the one-day 2026 ARA Central Regional season opener promised to deliver.
After a morning of reconnaissance on the single out-and-back “Nemadji Trail” stage, competitors climbed into their cars for the first stage start at 1:00 p.m., ready to take on one of the few winter rallies on the ARA calendar.
Right from the start, the battle for the lead shaped up as a clear fight between father-and-son drivers Silas Himes and Connor Himes.
Silas and co-driver (and daughter) Guinevere Himes took the early lead in their purple L4WD Subaru Impreza WRX STI, holding a seven-second advantage over Connor Himes and co-driver Elliot Prusi’s NA4WD 2001 Subaru Impreza, while another father-and-son pairing, John and Aidan Hicks, sat third after SS1, just 13 seconds off the lead.
On the second stage, Silas and Guinevere Himes extended their advantage by another nine seconds over Connor Himes and Prusi, while the Hicks’ car went off the road and lost more than 25 minutes after getting back on stage just before the Sweep vehicles reached them.
In their place, the L4WD 2002 Subaru Impreza of Peter Farrow and Jackson Sedivy climbed from seventh to third, improving their pace after de-beading a tire towards the end of SS1.
On SS3, Connor Himes fought back, taking a stage win and closing the gap to his father to just 9.2 seconds with one stage to go. SS3 also featured a strong run from Luis Perocarpi and Mark Wells in the L4WD LAP Motorsports John Cooper Works MINI Countryman, taking third-fastest on the stage in only their second rally together — and their first snow rally — in a car much closer to stock than many of their competitors.
With one stage remaining, Silas and Guinevere Himes claimed another stage win to seal the overall victory at the snow-covered event, making a strong opening statement in the 2026 Central Regional Championship standings.
“I’m pretty grateful to be able to pull this off with my family,” Silas Himes said. “My daughter Guinevere co-drove for her first time and was excellent! No doubt she’ll have a future in the sport should she choose. I was sad to see Aiden and James go off, but it looks like things will be fine for them.
“The roads were tough. Lots of grip under braking and accelerating, but practically nothing once we started sliding. We just stayed very conservative and it worked out. The volunteer turnout was huge and much appreciated.
“All of this wouldn't be happening without the support of my wife Sarah. It's an indescribable feeling having my family with me. And, of course, it won't be long before Mr. Connor will be out-driving me, which is just fine with me, as it's an honor to have such a fine fellow as your partner! And... We are fairly certain that Charlotte [Himes] and Josh [Nykanen] had the most fun out there!”
Just behind them, Connor Himes and Prusi finished second overall, and first in the highly competitive NA4WD class.
“Nemadji was a blast!” Connor Himes said. “We were fortunate to have a little more snow this year and able to find grip in some of the dirt and snow on the outside of the road. Elliot was spot on with the notes which helped a ton.
“The first three stages were great, but unfortunately, we ended up with a couple spins on stage four. The road was phenomenal, and I was glad to get another shot to chase my dad down again.”
Second in NA4WD went to Jonah Becken and Peyton Reece’s 2006 Subaru Impreza 2.5i, who overtook third-place NA4WD finishers Tyler Matalas and Jake Robinson’s 1995 Subaru Impreza LX on the final stage to claim second by just 1.7 seconds.
Third overall went to second-place L4WD finishers Farrow and Sedivy, who held their pace after moving into the position following SS2.
“The weather was the biggest challenge,” Farrow said. “Nine degrees at race time makes everything more difficult. Nemadji was snow covered and slippery, forcing the crews to hug the woods to find grip. At least two wheels off on every turn was mandatory!
We de-beaded a tire at the end of SS1, but it didn't hurt us too badly. Despite the challenging conditions, it was a blast. Credit to all the volunteers braving the arctic weather to make the rally possible. Very appreciated!”
Just three two-wheel-drive cars were brave enough to take on the slick Nemadji roads. Coming out on top, the O2WD 1987 Volkswagen Golf GTI of Josh Nykanen and Charlotte Himes was the fastest two-wheel-drive entry on every stage, while also securing an impressive fourth-place overall finish, just 34.5 seconds off the podium and ahead of five finishing four-wheel-drive entries.
“For once we didn’t have any real mechanical issues,” Nykanen said. “It was my first time driving a front-wheel-drive car in the snow, so SS1 was a bit of a learning curve. On SS2, I was feeling a little too confident and had a couple of spins. We just kept finding the inside line, where the grip was, and made it work.”
Second in O2WD went to the other LAP Motorsports/MINI USA entry, the MINI Cooper John Cooper Works (JCW) Edition of Cristian Perocarpi and David Quillen, who were also making their first attempt at snow rallying in a near-stock vehicle.
The lone L2WD entry, the 1986 Volkswagen Golf GTI of Nino Ortega and Michael Goldenstein, suffered a minor off on SS2 that left the car beached in the snow just off the side of the stage, bringing their rally to an early end.
The next event for the ARA Central Regional Championship will be the national championship season opener, Sno*Drift Rally in Atlanta, Michigan, on February 6–7.