The Rally America season officially started this last
weekend with the first rally event in Michigan at the Sno*Drift Rally. Subaru
Rally Team USA driver, David Higgins and his co-driver, Craig Drew, lost last
year in a heart wrenching defeat by Antoine L’Estage in the final stage during
the event. This year, David Higgins and his crew trailed Antoine L’Estage by nearly
8 seconds midway through the first day.
By nightfall, Higgins knew that he had to drive as well as possible on the slippery roads. Because of snowy and icy conditions, there is little grip for the rally cars as they're driving as fast as possible without the aid of studded tires or chains. With only specialized snow tires, the drivers have to be at the top of their game to keep control of their cars and push them as far as they can go without crashing.
Nighttime driving is especially difficult because out on the stages there are only lights on the vehicles to help guide the way. Snow can be flying around because of winds and dropping temperatures can make for even slicker conditions. However, Higgins drove admirably and shaved even more time off, giving him a twenty-six second lead over the nearest competitor at the end of the first day.
Higgins won 16 of the 20 stages in the Sno*Drift Rally and
came out on top after two days of driving the 130-mile course. Higgins won ten of eleven stages in the second day, resulting in a spectacular win which took 
him on to his 19th straight podium win with over two minutes between him and
the second place finisher.
Overall, Subaru vehicles are the performance vehicles of choice for Rally America events, with nearly half of all 58 entrants driving Subaru vehicles.
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