Kitee and the Central Karelia Sports Car Drivers’ Club will host the sixth round of the Finnish Rally Championship in mid-August. The previous championship round, held in 2024, received excellent feedback, so the organizers are aiming to put on another top-notch event.
The roads of North Karelia are notoriously challenging for drivers, and the race day is no walk in the park. This time, there are eight special stages to be driven, with a total length of about 96 kilometers. The route includes familiar sections—though driven in the opposite direction from last time—as well as some new roads. Two of the special stages will be driven twice.
– The preparations are going really well, but with an event like this, there’s always plenty to do right up until the last night. The competition a couple of years ago went so well that the bar is set pretty high—maybe even out of reach, admits competition director Arto Pirinen.
“Let’s try to make this another successful event overall, where everyone has a good time and can go home in high spirits at the end of the day,” Pirinen continues.
This year, too, the service park will be set up at the Kitee Race & Event Park, which will be visited twice during the race day. One of the highlights of the day will be the spectator special stage held after the first service, which will start right at the corner of the service park, just like last time.
The service park and the special stage open to the public are free to the public, thanks to the race’s main partner, Fixus.
“Hopefully the weather will be on our side and we’ll have a large crowd visiting the rally center and the spectator special stage. There will be at least one concession stand serving spectators at every special stage, so it’s worth heading out into the woods to soak up the rally atmosphere,” Pirinen encourages.
There’s plenty going on around the race anyway, as the City of Kitee and the Superpesis team Kiteen Pallo are serving as key partners for the event; the festivities kick off as early as Friday evening with a pre-race rally at Kiteen Pallo’s home field. The first car will set off on the route at 9:01 a.m. on Saturday from downtown Kitee, and the leaders will arrive at Rantakenttä for a spectacular finish celebration in the early evening.
– In the competition’s additional classes, rally enthusiasts have been better accommodated, and they are offered a streamlined rally consisting of six special stages. “We’re trying to reduce the cost burden on drivers and lower the barrier to entry for participants,” Pirinen explains.
The contest rules will be published in mid-July, after which registration will open.
FOLLOW THE PREPARATIONS FOR THE FIXUS SM KITEE RALLY
Serieswebsite: www.rallism.fi
Event Facebook page: www.facebook.com/smrallikitee
Event Instagram: @smrallikitee
Text and photo: Timo Uimi / Fixus SM Rally Kitee Press Release
