McRae's car hits enbankment as heavy rain mars test drive<\/p>\n
MEDAN, North Sumatra (JP): Despite heavy rain here the
\nMitsubishi, Subaru, Toyota, Ford and Seat Sport teams set out to
\ntest the route of the Gudang Garam World Rally Championship due
\nto start tomorrow.<\/p>\n
Colin McRae\/Nicky Grist, who drive under the 555 Subaru World
\nRally Team banner, had engine trouble after their car hit an
\nembankment during the official test drive in the plantations of
\nBatulokong, Deli Serdang.<\/p>\n
The incessant rain turned Special Stage 2, which is 12.4 kms
\nlong, muddy and slippery.<\/p>\n
All the teams tried out the track.<\/p>\n
The slippery road forced drivers to be extra careful.<\/p>\n
McRae and Grist tried their car after the other drivers but
\nonly 900 meters before the finish line, their car hit the
\nembankment.<\/p>\n
They were able to make it to the service area to be fixed by
\ntheir mechanics.<\/p>\n
It was the second accident for the 1995 world champions of
\nEngland.<\/p>\n
Their car hit a public transportation vehicle in Parapat
\nduring a survey last week.<\/p>\n
The Mitsubishi team will field Tommi Makinen\/Seppo Harjanne
\nand Richard Burns\/Robert Reid. Subaru will also field Kenneth
\nErikkson\/Staffan Parmander.<\/p>\n
The Toyota Castrol Team will field Didier Auriol\/Denis
\nGiraudet and Neal Bates\/Coral Taylor. Ford Motor Co. Ltd. will
\nfield Carlos Sainz\/Luis Moya and Juha Kankkunen\/Juha Repo. The
\nSeat Sport team, in a Seat Ibiza, will field Harri
\nRovanpera\/Voitto Silander and Erwin Weber\/Manfred Hiemer.<\/p>\n
A marshal said that Auriol had produced the best time in test
\ndrive.<\/p>\n
\"I don't think the slippery roads will be a problem. We have
\nto travel all the sections anyway,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Organizing chairman Indrajit Sardjono said that the rain would
\nnot make conditions too tough for the drivers despite the
\nslippery tracks.<\/p>\n
Medan's meteorology and geophysics office predicts the weather
\nin the area, from Sept. 10 to Sept. 22, will be cloudy. There
\nwill be rain and thunder most evenings in most areas.<\/p>\n
All Medan's hotels are fully booked during the championship.<\/p>\n
Henny Octaviani, public relations officer of Hotel Tiara, told
\nThe Jakarta Post that the hotel's 178 rooms have been booked
\nsince May.<\/p>\n
The Subaru and Indonesia Goro teams are staying at the hotel.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto's son Hutomo Mandala Putra is a member of
\nthe Goro team.<\/p>\n
The 151-room Garuda Plaza Hotel is booked until Sept. 21.
\nJournalists and the Malaysian team are staying at the hotel.<\/p>\n
About 7,000 local people as being employed in security during
\nthe rally. (21\/yan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mcraes-car-hits-enbankment-as-heavy-rain-mars-test-drive-1447893297",
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