The check of the race was somehow comical: early morning, a crowd of people – someone wears sport trousers, somebody in a jumpsuit, and some people differed and went out on skates. The picture was: the gates are opening, the racing people with media people all rush on ice, someone is slipping, someone is making an interview and slipping…

The start of the first special part of the road was inside, and I remembered a stadium for “super special” in Cardiff on a World Championship. Meanwhile, Danil has passed by fast and I was thinking that Vertunov has some problems, – Danil ran back in the service zone. What’s up? I heard that something has steiled up, but did not understand what. I felt dry in my mouth and heavy in my stomach.

Meanwhile, we stand on the start, Ira is very nervous and I am calming her for not to be nervous myself))

We started, made the first turn correctly, the surface is extremely slippery – it is normal, but it is spring already and I got out of the “ice” habit.

I turn the wheel softly, help myself with the handbrake – that slow dance lasts and we go through the second turn, go to finish, I make the turn wider a little bit to show ourselves to the audience… But there were not so many people, I made an exit, straightened the car and went to the start podium. We did good, but not excellent – that was my conclusion. We got the gifts: books about rally by ALM publishers, Rally Masters Show 2012 plates, after that we went to the service zone. Ira shouts in a stately manner: “We are the 4^th, no, we are the 5^th in an absolute and we showed the second time in class!” But nobody was impressed except us.

Girls will , actually, drive the first difficult kilometers together. Among their rivals, there are eight “top” pilots from Baltic and a very difficult road. Inessa’s assistant is a girl from Lithuania, Irina Yankovskaya.

The road is not “mini” – it is very uneasy technically as for a navigator and also for a pilot, of course. It would be extremely hard to drive, because it is easy to drive with the wrong direction, if the navigator is not so accurate, that is why to be lucky is not enough to drive well through that road. In addition, this is the first gravel rally of the season.

P.S. Thanks to the Universe for all it does for me.

Inessa Tushkanova

Not only men have participated in the past on 21^st of April Rally Masters Show 2012, but also one crew that was noticeable among all participants – it was Inessa Tushkanova and her navigator Irina Yankovskaya. From the start of the first special part the girls were able to outrun the eminent champions, for example, Swedish racer, the champion of Sweden rally in 2006, the champion of Russian rally in 2009, vice-champion of the World in P-WRC of 2010 Patrick Flaudeen, the silver prize holder of WRC stage Evgeny Novikov, multi champion of Russia Sergey Uspensky, champion of Estonia Caspar Koytla. As a result, Inessa had the 5^th absolute place and the 2^nd place in her class – nobody expected that. The result could be chance, but Inessa drove accurately and well, and it is not the first time when Inessa shows an astonishing time on ice – in Europe she outran the Baltic champions Vitautas Swedes and Saulus Girdauskis on WRC car. Her secret is simple: she is training hard all the winter on her EVO 8 and with the old tyres.

At the 2^nd and the 3^rd special parts Inessa made several mistakes and finished as 14^th out of 52 eminent crews of racers. On this rally Inessa had Irina Yankovskaya as a navigator – her friend from Lithiuania. Girls are planning to be in a big sport world, and they have all the chances for it.

The beauty will save the world!

Another sexy photo session with a sport car – the adornment on the May cover of XXL Russia magazine. The session was held in the service of Uspensky Rally Technics company. Andrey Razumovsky has realized all dreams and wishes of our pilotess in pictures – you may appreciate the final result at its true value, and to read the exciting interview.