DETROIT, MI -- Eric Burmeister and Mark Buskirk took their VW GTI rally car to victory this weekend in the Group 2 class at the Sno*Drift ProRally in Atlanta, Michigan. The team was yet again plagued by brake problems for the third consecutive rally, but overcame the drama to drive smoothly through the ice covered roads.

The day started with gremlins at 8:30am when a freshly rebuilt caliper locked up on the way to the start. The team pulled over to let it cool and it freed up. On the way to the first stage, the caliper seized yet again. Once more, with some time to cool, it freed up again, but did not instill much confidence in Burmeister's mind for the race.

As the stages got under way, the team had no more problems and managed to build quite a lead on the field. By the mid-day break, they had an 8 minute lead over the second place Group 2 car.

"Now we're in a holding pattern," explained Burmeister. "We can't throw away an eight minute lead unless we do something really stupid...which it seems is easy to do on this glare ice."

The pair cruised home to victory in the evening stages, but not without some drama. On the transit to the second to last stage, the questionable caliper froze yet again. This time it did not want to free up for them. Just before the stage start, Burmeister reached down and yanked the pedal back breaking the brake light switch. This caused the brakes to free up by pulling the cylinder back.

"I knew the brakes weren't locked up now, but I couldn't take a chance on using the fronts again for the rest of the race," said Burmeister. "We just used the transmission and hand brake to slow down and control the car and didn't touch the brake pedal again until the car was on the trailer. Let me tell you, fourth gear slides into corners with only a hand brake can get a little hairy!"

At midnight when the rally came to an end, Burmeister and Buskirk were victorious in Group 2 by nearly ten minutes. The result was due to a group effort by the whole crew: Chris Whiteman, Mike Paulin, Art and Pat Burmeister, and Jerry and Brenda Barbaret.

Says Eric, "We couldn't have done this well without the Quaife differential and Nokian tires on the car. Both were key to a victory on the ice."

This result gets the season started off with a championship lead for Burmeister Rallysport. The next race is in Chattanooga, Tennesee. Stay tuned to SPEEDVISION for air dates of this and all the rallies on the SCCA ProRally calendar.

ABOUT THE SERIES:
The SCCA ProRally series is a "stage" or "performance" rally series that stretches across the nation. Sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America and televised on SPEEDVISION, this form of motorsport is growing by leaps and bounds in the United States. Competitors race flat out against the clock for hundreds of miles on a course of backroads closed to public usage. A co-driver or navigator tells the driver where every jump, dangerous turn or other obstacle is to the hundredth of a mile. There is no practice and the pair has not even seen the road prior to competition.

Burmeister Rallysport can be reached at: (313)792-2397 or e-mail Eric Burmeister at: lurch3@prodigy.net

For information on Nokian Tyres, go to: http://www.nokiantyres.com

For information on the SCCA ProRally series, check:http://www.sccaprorally.org

For information on the Sno*Drift ProRally, check: http://www.sno-drift.org