It's not so much that there are jumps on the sweeping roads of Rally Finland - it's more like the earth just disappears beneath you, sometimes halfway through a corner.
The yumps, as the locals call them, would be enough to make the rally one of the highlights of the WRC calendar. That the rally is one of the outright fastest event these top-spec cars ever see is an added bonus.
The WRC limits the power these cars can produce out of their high-strung turbo 1.6 liter engines. All that means is that more of these racing budgets go to incredibly sophisticated suspensions. Let's take a look at them at full droop.
Native Finn Jari-Matti Latvala is possibly the most aggressive driver at the top of the field, and you can see his raw speed here. He ended up winning the event.
Above, he's on the final third day. Below is from the day before. Note the difference in that front lip. The guy has a tendency to hit a rock or two.
Here's Northern Ireland's Kris Meeke in his Citroen on his way to an excellent third place.
Meeke shows what it looks like landing one of these jumps.
Finland's Mikko Hirvonen may have had his Secret Finnish Racing Powers stolen from him by a warlock. Dark magic is afoot in Scandinavia, and the guy who used to be the second best driver in the WRC has been nowhere as of late. Maybe it's just his Fiesta?
Dammit if Hyundai's rookie i20 doesn't look like the best car out there. I'm not sure if this is more like Gulf colors or STP, but either way it's working something wonderful on my brain. Juho Hanninen is driving here.
Now, I've got to go try and find a recap to watch. Or maybe it's time to sign up for WRC Plus.
Photo Credits: AP