Viv just finished a month long residency in Las Vegas with Def Leppard. Now he has to put down the guitar and put on his race suite as he gets ready to take on record breaking competition in the heated RC2 class in the American Rally Association’s National Series. Things kick off with testing in the Backroads of Appalachia on the challenging gravel roads of Owsley County, Kentucky.

Testing started off with several travel delays as a large snowstorm swept across the norther half of the United States, delaying crew and stranding Michael. What do you do without a co-driver? Viv pressed on through the first day getting used to being back in the drivers seat.

Day one was hot and dry. With the help of Nick and Dave Tippman, Viv was able to write some pace notes and the two teams set to sweeping the gravel off the stage roads. The TRF crew was hard at work dialing in the car for the conditions.

Kentucky no doubt gave a warm and friendly welcome. Volunteers were on hand to help testing run smoothly and Viv spent some downtime happy to sign guitars, CD’s and show off his car. The people really made this testing smooth, efficient and fun.

Day two began some real work. Michael and the rest of the crew were on hand and everyone was eager to start building pace and confidence. Car settings were dialed in for the expected conditions at 100 Acre Wood. New tweaks were added to the Mirage with the help of Mike at Innovative Tuning. Launch control and Viv’s favorite, antilag were implemented changing the characteristics of the RC2 and further dropping lap times. Smiles were all around and the confidence was high as the crews packed up and headed off to Missouri for the second round of the ARA National race in Salem, MO.

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A huge thanks to the partners of Backroads Appalachia, Owsley County Search and Rescue as well as the fine folks of the county for such a warm welcome and for providing such a wonderful place to prove out the car. As always thank you to the support of Thompson Racing Fabrication, Innovative Tuning, Michelin Tires, Stilo Helmets for the continued support.