Waste Management STPR Photo Contest Winners

Monday, July 13, 2009
It pays to volunteer! Two out of the three Waste Management STPR Rally winners were rally volunteers helping the event organizers with much needed manpower and also in an ideal position to take some great action photography.



1ST PLACE:

Longtime rally fan, Jeff Wernberg from Lake Orion, MI wins the STPR photo contest grand prize for a free subscription to Subie Sports magazine and a Driving Sport TV DVD.

Jeff first discovered rally racing when attending Michigan Tech University in Houghton, MI. MTU has long been known as “rally college” where many New England drivers received their education and where the Lake Superior Rally draws many of their student spectators.

When studying electrical engineering, Jeff saw a bunch of rally cars driving past the college and had to check out what was going on in the early 1990s. Since then, Jeff has been volunteering as a road marshal at every LSPR Rally. Jeff even makes it to STPR to volunteer his time every once in awhile and returned to the event after a 7 year hiatus.

The winning STPR picture was taken on the second running of the Waste Management stages. “This picture had the best sideways look and I loved the spraying gravel and dust,” explained Jeff, “It shows how fast the car was going through the corner.”

Without a doubt the judging panel agreed with Jeff’s photo assessment and awarded him top honors!


2ND PLACE:

After buying his 2004 Subaru WRX wagon, Kyle Thompson from Langhorne, PA, noticed that Subarus were significantly prevalent in rally sports. His interest in rally blossomed from that point after he began reading Subaru’s Drive magazine and Subie Sports Magazine’s rally articles. It wasn't long before Kyle recruited a few of his closest friends and they ventured to the Waste Management STPR Rally for the first time.

“I really liked the accessibility of the sport,” said Kyle. “Being able to meet the drivers and see the cars up close was awesome! Even driving to the stages was cool.”

Kyle particularly enjoyed seeing the older Subaru rally cars and watching Andrew Comrie-Picard slide his NOS Energy Drink Mitsubishi Evolution through the corners.

His second place picture was taken on the first running of the Painter-Leetonia spectator area. Kyle actually scouted out the viewing location a day before to gauge the best place to stand. “I chose this picture for the contest because it shows the spectators in the background and better sense of speed,” said Kyle.


3RD PLACE:

David Fuller from Waldorf, MD is another long time rally fan who volunteers his time to the STPR event organizers. Watching WRC competition on television while in college introduced him to the sport, but it was not until meeting a friend with a mutual rally interest that got him attending rally events.

Since then David has volunteered numerous times at STPR securing gravel roads and helping spectators at viewing areas. David’s dedication to the sport helps ensure the sport runs safely and continues to operate.

David took his 3rd place photograph at one of his road marshal volunteer positions on the second running of the Waste Management stages. David had to sort through 3,700 STPR pictures he took that weekend to find the right photo contest entry.

“This is my favorite picture! I love the color, sharpness, and composure,” exclaimed David, “I love Travis Pastrana’s color scheme and the rain earlier in the day kept the dust down to bring out the greens in the pic.”



The 1st place winner receives a 1 year subscription to Subie Sports Magazine and a Driving Sport TV DVD. The two runner's up both receive Rally America swag.