Located in front of the company’s Välsviken home and garden improvement store, SS BAUHAUS provides the first timed test for FIA European Rally Championship stars and their cars on Thursday 13 June. It also serves as a prelude to two spectacular days of flat-out driving on the Värmland region’s loose-surface stages.
According to the BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia organisers, “the dream of driving a stage around the BAUHAUS store in Karlstad was ignited last year, and since then, work has been under way to bring the project to life.
“In the initial version of the proposal, there was a spectator area right in front of the main entrance. However, that proposal had to be put on hold as it was difficult to find a solution regarding all the logistics involved in building the arena, in combination with visitors to the department store and its merchandise transports.
“But a solution has been developed, and SS BAUHAUS can now be run with a unique rally arena right in front of the department store's main entrance”.
Johan Saxne, BAUHAUS marketing director (pictured right), said: “As the title sponsor of the Swedish leg of the FIA European Rally Championship, having the opportunity to organise the official opening and the first stage in front of the gates to our newly opened department store here in Karlstad feels absolutely fantastic; the whole idea is just crazy enough.”
Glenn Olsson, CEO of BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia (pictured left), added: “For us as organisers, it has been important to create a really good rally stage and arena in Karlstad where the audience can easily and closely experience the rally and the party. At the same time, it’s almost unreal to be able to tie our partnership with our title sponsor in this way and make the store a part of the competition.”
Olsson continued: “For television, passing through the store would probably have been an exciting thing. But for the audience and visitors on-site, the set-up with the main arena in front of the entrance is quite clear; now we have the opportunity to do what we wanted from the beginning.”
SS1 BAUHAUS is due to begin at 20:05 on Thursday, 13 June. But there will be plenty of activities before then with a line-up of the competing cars, driver interviews, autograph sessions, live performances and an official opening ceremony all part of the timetable 17:30. Food and refreshment stalls, exhibitors and activities for fans to try will be available in the arena.
A free bus service between Karlstad city centre and Välsviken will be in operation, while the new-for-2024 Royal After Rally will be held from 13 - 15 June at Olssons Bazar in Karlstad harbour. For more information go to: https://ercroyalrally.com/en/
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