Photo by Philip Amdal  PRELUDE VTEC POWERS JPIII RS TO VICTORY AND NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN OLYMPIA, WA When the team arrived in Olympia, Washington on November 7, there was only one thing left for the 1996 season. Only one event would determine who would be the National Champion. After two years of finishing 2nd in the points race for the Production class driver's title, JPIII RS Owner/Driver Jim Anderson came 3,200 miles to win. There was no saving the car for another day, no holding back... rule changes in 1997 would push the Prelude into the Production GT class where Four-Wheel-Drive is a must to be competitive. This event was to be a no-holes-barred fight to determine the 1996 Champion. Lon Peterson was the only other Production entry in the rally and had gained his points lead by winning three rallies uncontested during the year at events held on the left coast. However, Peterson is a very experienced and quick driver, even in the little Kia Sephia and has extensive knowledge of the forest roads on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. Though down on power, the Kia's light weight makes the car very quick in tight, twisty, rough, and slippery conditions while the Prelude VTEC excels on smoother, flowing, high speed roads. This was the first time to Washington State for JPIII RS, so the roads were all unknown.

This event was to be a no-holes-barred fight to determine the 1996 Champion.

This final round of the 1996 Michelin/SCCA PRO Rally Series was held on the Simpson Timber Co. forest roads near Shelton, Washington over 2 days. The roads were all very wet from heavy rains early in the week. The course had a lot of standing water making driving a little more hazardous than usual. The temperatures were very mild dropping into the 40's Friday night and reaching the 60's on Saturday.

Martin Dapot was back in Navigator's seat during this, the most important rally of the year. Off-road truck racer and former rally competitor Dave Turner came up from sunny Southern California to put on overalls and be our one-man service crew. The rally consisted of 294 total miles including 132 Special Stage miles over 14 stages. 5 stages were run Friday night, with the remaining 9 run Saturday. 48 crews left the starting line at the Little Creek Casino in Shelton on Friday night to run the first 5 stages of the rally. They turned out to be the roughest stages of the year. The roads were very narrow with large pot holes that could not be avoided. Even with the car raised as high as the drive shafts allow, the skid plate still dragged the big rocks (that some twisted individual called "gravel') that covered many sections of the roads. Large drop-offs along with mist and fog slowed progress, and Jim decided to persevere and survive the Friday night leg of the rally and then attack on what would be hopefully better, faster roads on Saturday. To compound problems, the Vehicle Speed Sensor cable joint had sheered again, causing the Honda to lose gobs of horsepower. Peterson was in full attack mode, and finished the night with a 30 second lead in class and 10th overall. Dave and Jim worked well into the night to get the VSS repaired and the car completely checked for the final day. The JPIII Team would have its day on Saturday. Saturday stages were a big improvement over Friday night's, but were a bit tricky and rough in some sections. The roads were much more suitable for the Prelude and we were able to use it's 190 hp to maximum effect. The Honda reached speeds of more than 100 mph on the bumpy gravel roads. The roads were still very wet and there were 4 very deep fords to cross, but the Honda Engine didn't miss a beat! After Stage 8 had been completed, the Honda Power had propelled Jim and Martin past the Factory-backed Kia team besting Peterson by a whopping 2 minutes in only 3 stages! Then the problems started for Peterson. The Kia started having rear brake problems and then the catalytic converter packed it inbreaking up inside the exhaust and Peterson's chances for a comeback were dashed. By the end of the rally, the lead was over 5 minutes. The Kia team was also penalized 2.5 minutes for speeding on a transit, so the margin of victory was just over 8 minutes! The team finished 1st in Production, 8th overall, equaling the best overall finish for the 3rd time this year.

Despite wet roads and deep fords, the Honda engine didn't miss a beat!

As a result of the win in Washington, the 1996 Production Class Driver's Championship belongs to the JPIII Rally Sport Team. The people involved with JPIII RS were all instrumental in bringing this first PRO Rally Championship to North Carolina. Without the assistance from each of these people and organizations, the championship would not belong to the JPIII RS Team.

Sponsors Navigators Crew American Honda Martin Dapot Chris Ford Honda Genuine Parts Anne Thomas (Ojibwe) Matt Johnson Hella Lights Tad Ohtake (Lake Superior) Mike, Dave and Suzanne White Honda Power Equipment, Mfg.   Team Honda Research Sturdivant's Tire and Auto   The Students of Michigan Tech Lightspeed Performance Parts   Dave Turner Thank You!!