Subaru Rally Team USA's Mark Lovell and his co-driver Roger Freeman finished first overall in the SCCA ProRally class during June's running of the 2003 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in their WRX (see page 144). It's just the sort of accomplishment everyone at Subaru and everyone on the team could cherish.
But two weeks later, at the Oregon Trail SCCA ProRally, both Lovell, 43, and Freeman, 52, were killed when their car hit a tree moments into the first special stage of the event. Lovell and Freeman had been rallying together for 20 years with significant success, including the 2001 Overall Drivers Championship for 2001. Both British subjects, Lovell is survived by his wife Julie, and sons, Oliver and Thomas, while Freeman leaves his wife Alison, daughter Becky, and son John, behind.
In the close-knit world of rallying, this tragedy is a deeply felt one. Our heart goes out to everyone at Subaru, its Rally Team and the rallying community at large. We will, as we hope everyone will, strive to remember these two men for the full lives they led.