Crenshaw Rally Team Wins 2024 CHCA AWD Championship

The 2024 season seemed to fly by for the Crenshaw Rally team as they entered their season finale at Pikes Peak International Raceway in hopes of solidifying a championship in the CHCA’s AWD Class. It was another ideal weekend for rallying and though the course for PPIR is more condensed than others on the calendar, plenty of spectators were in attendance adding to an already exciting atmosphere. 

The team suffered a shock failure in the previous Land’s End event and had to address the issue in the service park after setting up camp for the weekend. Their suspension setup is bespoke so sourcing the necessary parts can be difficult. Thankfully they were able to work with some spares they had and the car was soon ready for competition. 

The class turnout was thin compared to previous events but they looked forward to a close battle with friend and competitor Steve Bis in his professionally, ARA prepared Volkswagen Golf R. “We traded positions every run on practice day and were narrowly edged out by Steve for the fast qualifier spot on his last run as the course was seriously degrading”, reported Fraser. 

As competition in their class drew to a close for the day, they were able to head to the infield and enjoy some of the event. The vibe at PPIR is unique compared to the rest of the calendar. Nearly all of the other events are staged on isolated roads, off the beaten path. Pike’s Peak however is the one location with full accommodations and facilities which make it comfortable and fun for both competitors and fans.

The following morning, the track had been freshened up and graded. This would mean that it would be ideal to make the most of the early runs before the track would slow down considerably as it had the previous day. 

In Fraser’s words, they approached the day as follows. “Naturally, we put our heads together as a team and created a plan to push just a little harder in a couple zones where I knew we could make up a little time. This approach worked phenomenally for 4 or 5 corners where I could really feel us carrying extra speed, and then I sent the car right off the road, sailing through a fairly large patch of cactus and exchanging bits and pieces of the bodywork of the car for other random pieces of the landscape.” Despite the incident, they were still competing for a podium spot, not far off the Golf R for first place. 

As the day drew to a close, they managed to secure 2nd place. The points gained here meant they were also able to lock in 1st Place in the CHCA’s AWD class for the season!

Another heroic season for the Crenshaw Rally Team and their Turbo-M20 Powered E30 325IX. Another season punching well above the weight of a nearly 40 year old car, battling with modern, pro-built rally cars of all kinds. 

We at Team Condor are proud to support Fraser and his father Mike in their Rally/Hillclimb efforts. In no form of motorsport are parts tested harder than rallying and we are beyond stoked that our components are a consistent part of their success. Congratulations to Fraser, Mike and the rest of the crew on another great season!  We can’t wait to see what 2025 has in store.