Perhaps you are wondering "who in the hell is this Ken Block guy and what's up with Chuck's mancrush on him?" Well, there's not an altogether straight answer to this question but it starts with my newfound passion for the World Rally Championship. I have always been aware of rally racing peripherally, and am familiar with the general history of the evolution of cars prior to Group B to the present, but didn’t start following WRC full time until about halfway through the 2009 season when I was able to get access to footage through the internet. Long story short, I was hooked from the first stage I watched and just can't get enough!
Ken Block comes into the picture because he is the first American to drive in the WRC and score points since 1988 and although Ken understands he will probably never win a rally, much less the championship, that still hasn’t dampened his passion for the sport. I could bore you with the details of Ken’s background but the short version is that he is 42 years old, the founder of DC shoes and discovered a passion for rallying in his mid-30s. Ken raced in the American Rally Championship for about 5 years then made the switch to WRC fulltime in 2010. I believe he has a 3-year contract with Monster Energy drink and look to see him make rapid improvements through the rest of this year and into the next. Ken has a great attitude and is just what the WRC needed for a personality. Following Ken gives me the emotional investment that makes following any sport that much more fun and I look forward to him winning a stage outright before the end of the year!
As for the WRC itself, this is a great time to be getting into it as it is on the upswing. Since the worldwide economic downturn of 2007, the championship has degraded to only 2 manufacturer’s with only Ford and Citroën fielding factory vehicles. BMW is bringing the Mini Countryman into the series mid-season and Saab, Toyota and VW are making noises of rejoining the championship. Along with that, a Russian billionaire has purchased North One Sports, which provides coverage of the WRC, and has promised much improved coverage of the championship.
All in all, this is a fantastic time to be getting involved with the WRC and I’d be more than happy to provide you guys with the videos so you can follow along as well. There have been only 2 rallies thus far and I will reupload Sweden and Mexico to my FTP so you guys can have access to them to catch up. Rally Portugal is this coming weekend and I will upload those files as I get access to them. In any case, if you want a more in-depth history on the championship, I have 35G worth of WRC year-end reviews going back to the early 80s so just give me a shout.
Ken Block comes into the picture because he is the first American to drive in the WRC and score points since 1988 and although Ken understands he will probably never win a rally, much less the championship, that still hasn’t dampened his passion for the sport. I could bore you with the details of Ken’s background but the short version is that he is 42 years old, the founder of DC shoes and discovered a passion for rallying in his mid-30s. Ken raced in the American Rally Championship for about 5 years then made the switch to WRC fulltime in 2010. I believe he has a 3-year contract with Monster Energy drink and look to see him make rapid improvements through the rest of this year and into the next. Ken has a great attitude and is just what the WRC needed for a personality. Following Ken gives me the emotional investment that makes following any sport that much more fun and I look forward to him winning a stage outright before the end of the year!
As for the WRC itself, this is a great time to be getting into it as it is on the upswing. Since the worldwide economic downturn of 2007, the championship has degraded to only 2 manufacturer’s with only Ford and Citroën fielding factory vehicles. BMW is bringing the Mini Countryman into the series mid-season and Saab, Toyota and VW are making noises of rejoining the championship. Along with that, a Russian billionaire has purchased North One Sports, which provides coverage of the WRC, and has promised much improved coverage of the championship.
All in all, this is a fantastic time to be getting involved with the WRC and I’d be more than happy to provide you guys with the videos so you can follow along as well. There have been only 2 rallies thus far and I will reupload Sweden and Mexico to my FTP so you guys can have access to them to catch up. Rally Portugal is this coming weekend and I will upload those files as I get access to them. In any case, if you want a more in-depth history on the championship, I have 35G worth of WRC year-end reviews going back to the early 80s so just give me a shout.
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