The 2006 Subaru Subie-Fest

By Sean Cahill

There are two things you'll notice a lot of in the Pacific Northwest, coffee and Subarus. This probably has something to do with our twisty mountain roads, wet climate, and penchant for year-round outdoor activities. Here Subies are about as common as pick-up trucks in the Midwest. However, you can't fully grasp the popularity until they all converge on one location.

The Pacific Raceways parking area was filled, as far as the eye could see, with all kinds of Subarus. The festival offered attendees and enthusiasts far more than your average car show. A RallyCross Competition gave attendees the opportunity to rip around an off-road SCCA rally-cross course, and it wasn't exclusive to Subies, either! Everything from Acura Integras to Toyota MR2's shared in the fun.

From mild to wild, the Subaru-only car show had some of the best and most unique Subies of the Northwest on display. Lifted wagons, lowered Legacies, turboed 2.5RSes, whatever tickles your Subaru fancy, at least one variation was present. The only Subaru not on hand, sadly, was the inimitable SVX.

A walk through "Vendor Alley" introduced show-goers to the best go-fast goodies, and most vendors had display vehicles on hand for attendees to drool over. If you're interested in making your Subie quicker, this was the place to be. The Vendors also sponsored a road course shootout, vendor-sponsored Subies ripped around the PRI road course and competed for the fastest lap time. Unfortunately, a vendor sponsorship was required to run that road course, but after it was complete, a $10 fee got you on the drag strip for unlimited runs. Fair enough!

For star power, Subaru Rally Team USA was on hand, displaying the #43 Rally Car. And X-Games bronze medalist Ken Block answered questions, signed autographs and dished with enthusiasts.

Overall, the First Annual SubieFest was a great success. Many props to the sponsors for a fun, interactive, and extremely fun car show. The next SubieFest will be held during April at Pacific Raceway International in Portland. Don't miss it!

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