Pastrana Tops International Talent Pool to Win Hotly Contested 100 Acre Wood

masonrunkel
10 hours ago
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(Salem, Mo., March 16, 2026) ~ Subaru Motorsports USA’s (SMSUSA) Travis Pastrana and Rhianon Gelsomino emerged victorious over one of the most competitive fields in American Rally Association (ARA) history at the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood (100AW), held March 13–14 in the forests surrounding Salem and Potosi, Missouri, southwest of St. Louis.

The second round of the 2026 ARA National Championship, and the season’s first gravel rally, traditionally rewards fearless commitment and lightning-fast reflexes on some of the fastest roads in North American rallying. While the snowbound season-opening Sno*Drift Rally often levels the playing field for lower-powered machinery, 100AW favors outright speed, rewarding cars—and drivers—capable of carrying enormous pace across Missouri’s flowing gravel stages in and around the famous Missouri Ozarks and the scenic Mark Twain National Forest.

A record nine RC2-class entries and 13 total FIA-homologated cars highlighted a field that also included the American Rally debut of Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team (TGR-WRT) and multiple internationally successful drivers. Against that backdrop, Pastrana’s victory underscored both his experience on the event’s high-speed stages and the growing depth of competition across the ARA National Championship.

With sixth-gear straights, car-swallowing water splashes, the return of the iconic Cattle Guard Jump, and an entry list stacked with more talent than Winnie the Pooh ever had honey, the 2026 running of 100 Acre Wood delivered one of the most dramatic rallies in recent ARA memory.

Limited-Class Subaru Prevails Over Record RC2 Field in Rally-Long Fight

After a Parc Exposé in downtown Potosi, Special Stage 1 (SS1) opened the rally with an immediate shake-up. Britons Tom Williams and Ross Whittock shot into the early lead in the Standard Motorsports Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, but held the top spot by just 0.1 seconds over former WRC2 driver Sean Johnston and Cameron Fair in the Argonaut Motor Club–run Renault Clio Rally3. Rising star Lia Block and Alex Gelsomino sat third, just 0.5 seconds off the lead, in their RC2-class debut aboard the Rockstar Energy–backed Hyundai i20 Rally2.

SS2 saw Patrick Gruszka and Frenchman Florian Barral jump from fourth to first in their Green APU–backed Hyundai i20 Rally2, again by a razor-thin margin of just 0.6 seconds.

The lead changed hands yet again on SS4 when Johnston surged from third to first, placing the Renault Rally3 ahead of a field of top-tier Rally2 machinery.

Pastrana and Gelsomino appeared to take control on SS5, advancing from sixth to first overall with a 12.1-second stage win, but event organizers later nullified the stage results due to several issues that adversely affected competition. Reduced visibility due to dust was raised by competitors, but ultimately, lights inadvertently pointed at the stage road forced the event organizers’ hand in the decision.

The battle continued to shuffle Saturday morning. Gruszka reclaimed the lead on SS6 before Block moved into first on SS7. Meanwhile, Pastrana and Gelsomino surged from sixth to third during the day’s opening loop, passing the Element Rallysport Ford Fiesta Rally2 of two-time ARA Limited Four-Wheel-Drive (L4WD) champions Javier Olivares and KJ Miller before overtaking Gruszka and co-driver Barral a stage later. The move also placed Pastrana atop the combined LN4 class (which includes L4WD and Normally Aspirated Four-Wheel-Drive cars), ahead of Johnston and Fair before the first service.

After Pastrana moved into second by passing Block on the next loop, the fight for victory tightened dramatically heading into the final stages, with the top four teams separated by just 22 seconds.

Pastrana and Gelsomino made their decisive move on SS11, opening a 16.4-second advantage thanks in part to a punctured left rear tire that slowed Williams. Williams responded by winning the following stage, where the top-four finishers were separated by just 0.8 seconds—an illustration of the fierce pace throughout the rally.

On the final high-speed stretch—the ARA Power Stage, which awards additional championship points—Gruszka edged Pastrana by one second to claim the stage victory and five bonus points, while also moving up to second overall. Pastrana and Gelsomino, however, held on to secure the rally victory after one of the tightest rally-long battles in recent ARA history.

“At the end of the day, this was one of the greatest rallies in the history of ARA,” multi-time rally champion and action sports superstar Pastrana said. “Everyone was battling. There were four drivers with a chance to win going into the last stage, and we were all driving eleven tenths.”

The Subaru driver also highlighted the continued growth of the championship.

“Every single driver this year believes they can win, and everyone’s stepped up their game tenfold. That’s what ARA needs, and that’s what rally in the United States needs.”

Gruszka and Barral narrowly secured second overall and victory in the RC2 class by just 0.4 seconds over Williams and Whittock, 2022 ARA RC2-class Champions who impressed in their first rally together since 2023. Block and Gelsomino completed the RC2 podium, only three seconds further back, marking an impressive result in Block’s first Rally2 outing.

“After day one, after I don’t know how many kilometers at high speed, top of fifth gear, we were 0.2 in front of Pat (Gruszka),” Williams said. “Then Saturday, we managed to get into the lead and got quite a few stage wins, but unfortunately we got hit with a puncture and that was really difficult to claw back. In the end, Pat was 0.2 in front of us. Two tenths throughout the whole weekend at 100 Acre Wood, that’s insane.”

LN4 Podium Ends in Rare Tie

While the No. 199 Subaru of Travis Pastrana and Rhianon Gelsomino secured the LN4 class victory as well as the overall, the category featured a deep field of competitive cars and crews, highlighted by the impressive Rally2-beating performance of Johnston and Fair in their Renault Clio Rally3.

Strong early pace kept the Clio near the front of the overall standings, but the Renault lost ground over Saturday’s stages and soon began battling the DirtFish Women in Motorsport–backed Ford Fiesta Rally3 of Irish rallyist Aoife Raftery and Danish co-driver Ditte Kammersgaard for second in class.

After trading times across several stages, Johnston’s rally came to an end with a retirement on SS12, promoting Raftery and Kammersgaard into a comfortable second-place position for the remainder of the event.

The fight for the final LN4 podium position then developed between Roberto Yglesias and Krista Skucas of Pura Vida Rally in their Steven Redd Racing–prepared Ford Fiesta Rally3 and the Black Hole Rally Team’s NA4WD 2001 Subaru Impreza driven by Jacob and Michael Despain.

Both teams had spent much of the rally battling within the overall top five, but Johnston’s retirement opened the door for Yglesias to earn a podium in his L4WD debut while the Despain crew chased their pre-event goal of an LN4 podium finish.

After SS12, the Subaru held a 28-second advantage over the Fiesta. With just one stage remaining, it appeared only one crew could secure the final podium position—until the final times were posted.

Yglesias completed SS13 exactly 28 seconds faster than Despain, leaving the two crews tied on total rally time after 125 miles of competition across 13 stages and two days of racing.

Photo by Jacob Halfman and Danny Hommes

As a result, both teams shared the third step of the LN4 podium, a rare tie that underscored one of the defining characteristics of the ARA—where world-class FIA-homologated machinery and home-built grassroots cars can compete head-to-head on the same stages.

Toyota Debuts Highly Anticipated New GR Corolla

The highly anticipated American Rally Association debut of the Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team finally arrived at 100AW, as the team began its full championship effort with the all-new Toyota GR Corolla Rally RC2. Proven World Rally Raid Championship (W2RC) racer and Red Bull Athlete Seth Quintero and Finnish co-driver Topi Luhtinen piloted the car as the team continues developing the platform in real rally conditions.

Entered in the RC2 class, the GR Corolla immediately faced stiff competition in the largest field the category has seen in ARA history. Taking a measured approach, the crew treated the opening loop as a learning opportunity and still emerged seventh overall after the first set of stages.

The second day saw the Toyota gain pace, highlighted by a fourth-fastest time on SS6. The water crossing on SS7, however, forced the crew to stop on stage, where another competitor made contact with the rear of the car.

After returning to service and completing a thorough inspection and repairs, the Toyota rejoined the rally for the final loop as a Non-Competitive Entry (NCE). This allowed the team to continue running stages for development purposes, posting times comparable to fifth overall on the rally’s final two stages.

“We're getting there,” Quintero said ahead of SS12. “I was very humble coming into this, and I'm glad I was because it ain't easy, but I'm really enjoying it, and I'm loving every second of it. This is so dang fun. Just to be welcomed into this family is a really cool feeling. I know it's a tight niche thing, but to be here is really fun.”

TGR-WRT will now take the data gathered at 100 Acre Wood to continue refining the GR Corolla Rally RC2 as it develops its North American program throughout the 2026 season.

Lia Block Earns First ARA Stage Victory

One of the major storylines entering this year’s Rally in the 100 Acre Wood was Lia Block’s RC2 debut in the Rockstar Energy–backed Hyundai i20 Rally2.

Already the ARA’s youngest National Champion thanks to her 2023 Open Two-Wheel-Drive (O2WD) title, Block announced a full-season National Championship campaign in the i20 ahead of 100AW, once again joined by her legendary father’s longtime co-driver Alex Gelsomino.

Competing against the largest RC2 field the ARA has ever seen meant the bar was higher than ever, yet Block quickly proved she belonged at the front of the pack. Despite it being her first event in Rally2 machinery, she not only ran among the overall leaders but also secured her first-ever ARA overall stage victory.

On SS6, Block set the fastest time by 1.8 seconds over Subaru Motorsports USA’s Travis Pastrana and 7.2 seconds ahead of Tom Williams’ Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, marking a major milestone in her progression toward competing for overall victories in the series. And proving it was no fluke—as if anyone needed more proof—she topped the time sheets again on SS8.

Despite the strong result, Block emphasized that the weekend was primarily about adapting to the new machinery.

“It was my first weekend ever in RC2 in the Hyundai Rally2 car, so it was a very big change of speed coming from the Rally3 car and the rear-wheel-drive cars I’ve driven before,” Block, still only 19 years old, said. “The weekend was all about learning and improving every stage, which we certainly did and took some really big steps.”

Block also noted the increasing competitiveness of the ARA field.

“It’s pretty incredible to see how close the ARA championship has become in just the past couple of years. I think it’s the closest the championship has been in a very long time, so it’s looking like it’s going to be a great season with lots of competition.”

Stellantis Rally Cup North America Participants Win O2WD

100 Acre Wood also welcomed the first competitors of the Stellantis Rally Cup North America, a competition open exclusively to Peugeot 208 Rally4 entries in both the ARA National Championship and the Canadian Rally Championship (CRC). The Cup crowns the driver and co-driver with the highest points total from their best six finishes in 2026, including the double-points semi-final at the ARA’s Lake Superior Performance Rally in Michigan and the final at the CRC’s Rallye de Charlevoix in Quebec.

Cash prizes and a Rally2 drive with French-Canadian motorsport organization Team FJ are on the line. Missouri-based Argonaut Motor Club and Team FJ, official affiliates of the Cup, support entrants with arrive-and-drive Peugeot 208 Rally4 rentals and technical assistance, lowering the barrier for drivers pursuing a pathway to international rallying.

Competing in the Open Two-Wheel-Drive (O2WD) class, current Cup leaders Vincent Lalande and Simon Levac were joined by Danny Shalev and Betsy Nguyen as the first two Stellantis Cup teams to compete on U.S. soil. Their Team FJ-prepared Peugeot 208 Rally4s matched the specification of the car that won O2WD at 100 Acre Wood last year in the hands of Calle and Torbjörn Carlberg, giving both teams confidence heading into the event.

The Peugeots showed strong pace from the outset, but two early stage wins from 2025 ARA Ken Block Rookie of the Year Matthew Nykanen and co-driver William Ross in their 1998 BMW 328i left 18-year-old Canadian Lalande running second and Shalev fourth behind Irishmen Seamus Burke and Gary McElhinney’s 1977 Ford Escort.

Saturday saw Lalande begin to pressure Nykanen for the class lead, with the two crews trading stage victories from SS7 through SS9 before Lalande started to pull away.

“We were trading times all day,” Nykanen remarked. “On the more open, smooth stuff we’d pull time out of him, and in the rough stuff he’d pull time out of us.”

Nykanen held second until a drivetrain failure before the final stage forced his retirement, allowing Lalande to secure both the class victory and the Power Stage win. Burke and McElhinney finished second, while Shalev and Nguyen completed the O2WD podium in third.

“That dude can absolutely drive the heck out of that thing, props to him,” Nykanen said of Lalande. “He’s really earned that win.”

In the Limited Two-Wheel-Drive (L2WD) class, the seven-car field turned into a battle of attrition as only three teams reached the finish.

Henry Tabor and Dylan Hooker led from start to finish in their 2018 Ford Fiesta, winning nine stages to claim the class victory. William Tung and Michael Szewczyk finished second in their 2014 Ford Fiesta ST, while John Barnett and Lucas Laeser rounded out the podium in their 1987 BMW 325is.

Subaru Privateers Earn Awards for Performance

As part of Subaru’s continued support of the American Rally Association (ARA), the Subaru “For the Love of Rally” Award provides cash prizes to the top three non-factory Subaru teams among National entries.

At 100 Acre Wood, Jacob and Michael Despain earned the $1,000 top prize in their 2001 Subaru Impreza RS, adding the bonus to their LN4 podium finish.

Sno*Drift Rally winner Mark Piatkowski and co-driver Sara Nonack claimed the $500 second-place award for their performance in the Argonaut Motor Club–prepared L4WD Subaru WRX STI they campaigned at 100AW, marking the second time this season the pair has earned the Subaru award.

Completing the Subaru privateer podium, Cameron Gholson and Andrea Lauria’s L4WD 2012 Subaru WRX were the third-highest finishing Subaru National entry, earning the $250 prize.

Unamused Rallysport Earns Fourth 100 Acre Wood Super Regional Win

Running alongside the 100 Acre Wood National Rally, the 100 Acre Wood Super Regional rally offers locals and grassroots teams a similar two days of rallying through the Mark Twain National Forest, visiting 12 of the 13 stages, only excluding the National Power Stage.

While the National event was a nail-biting fight to the end, the Regional field was dominated by the NA4WD 2000 Subaru Impreza of Ryan Rethy and James Dallman, who took the rally win by two minutes and 43 seconds with nine stage wins.

The winged wagon is a well-known car to Missouri locals due to its standout performance every time it hits the stages, and with its performance this weekend, it’s sure to continue to be a mainstay.

Rethy and Dallman were also the recipients of the Ken Block 43VER Award presented by 43i, recognizing their standout performance during the event.

The award, presented at each ARA round, honors Ken Block’s legacy by recognizing a team that best embodies his “ain’t care” attitude, press-on-regardless mindset, and unwavering commitment throughout the rally.

For their efforts at 100 Acre Wood, 43i will cover safety equipment for the pair up to $1,430.

Not only did Rethy top the overall Super Regional podium, but the NA4WD class podium as well, with Dustin Peterke and Robert Judge’s 2000 Subaru Impreza in second, and Tyler Matalas and Dustin Sharkosy’s 1995 Subaru Impreza landing third in class.

Peterke also landed third overall, but he and Rethy were split by the O2WD class winners Mike Hurst and Michel Hoche-Mong’s V8-powered 1974 Ford Capri, who beat all but one regional entry despite only having rear-wheel drive.

Hurst’s class win comes in his 45th year of rallying, proving just how valuable experience on stage is, and chalking one up for the veterans of the sport.

Sean and Max Burke’s 1991 Honda CRX came in behind Hurst, taking second in the O2WD class after chasing the 1986 BMW 325 of Levi and Griffin Johnson, who retired on SS7 handing second to the CRX, while the beautiful 1978 Datsun 280Z of Bruno Pinillos and Rachel Bee rounded out the podium.

Chalking up another one for the wagons, the L4WD class was won by Nick Balzer and Dillon McKenna’s 2004 Subaru WRX Wagon. Just off the overall Super Regional podium in fourth after the final stage, the turbo-wagon was also a run-away victor in its class, overtaking Peter and Micheal Farrow for first on SS2, and then proceeding to win every subsequent stage of the rally for a margin of victory of over 13 minutes.

Scott and Elizabeth Crouch stayed behind them in second, piloting their 2002 Subaru WRX to a silver medal, while Drew Staples and Glen Ray recovered from a retirement on SS2 to take third place after setting a strong pace all day Saturday.

In the three-car L2WD regional field, Tevfik Peker took his first-ever class win, coming in his third year of rallying in his 2019 Ford Fiesta with Jamie Beliveau co-driving. Peker pulled into a one-minute lead on SS1, and never looked back, earning stage wins on every stage of the rally.

Matthew and Richard Shinn were running strong in second in their 2002 Ford Focus, but a retirement on SS10 brought their comfortable second place to an end. Greg Haley and Max Sutton moved into second as the only other finishers in their 1994 Volkswagen Golf, no small feat in a rally with a 35% attrition rate.

Complete 100 Acre Wood results: https://www.americanrallyassociation.org/event-results

Current 2026 Championship Standings: https://www.americanrallyassociation.org/copy-of-2025-championship-standings