Subaru Rally Team USA's David Higgins and Dave Mirra were back in action on the West Coast today in their 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STIs during Day 1 of the Olympus Rally. David Higgins and Craig Drew rocketed ahead to win four of the Saturday’s six stages and ending the day in first place. Dave Mirra and Marshall Clarke in the #40 WRX STI kept on-pace, holding fast to their fourth-place start position and keeping the podium well within reach. Spectators took advantage of a beautiful, sunny day and flocked to the hillsides to watch the rally.

Sadly, reports came in late in the day of a fatal incident involving a competitor on Stage 6. Fellow driver Matthew Marker of Elk Rapids, MI, did not survive injuries sustained in an accident. Co-driver Christopher Gordon of Brooklyn Park, MN was not seriously injured. Due to the accident Rally America decided to end the National Rally at the conclusion of Stage 6.