Entering rally competition in a rear-wheel-drive car at age 16 is an impressive undertaking. For Lia Block, returning to the race course isn’t just about competition. It’s also about remembering her father, Ken Block, who was killed earlier this year in a snowmobile accident that sent shock waves through the automotive world and fueled the continuity of the Block name in rally racing. Dropped a question in short form.
The stay was indeed brief, as daughter Lia and her mother, Lucy, were both as invested in racing and automotive culture as Kane. Lia Block revealed the new car on her Instagram page, saying, “This year is going to be tough.” “But I’m glad I’m doing what my father loved and what I still love.”
For the 2023 season, Block will be partnered with championship-winning co-driver Rhiannon Gelsomino, who most recently sat on the right for Travis Pastrana. Gelsomino’s husband, Alex, is also a co-driver and has raced with Ken for years. He will race with Lucy Block, also in American Rally Association events.
Block began racing at the age of 15 and made seven race starts in his Ford Fiesta, finishing third in its class. For 2023 she moves to compete in a first-ever RWD car, the Subaru BRZ. A recent social media post showed Block and Gelsomino taking some rear-drive practice at the Dirt Fish Rally School in Washington state.
“It will be fascinating to see how Leah’s clear and natural pace translates into the new car,” Block’s team manager Derek Dauncey told Dirt Fish.
For the first race of the season—the 100-Acre Wood Rally in Salem, Missouri, an event Ken won seven times—Leah paid tribute to her famous father by recreating a snow-camouflage and gold-accented dress, which was He used it for the first time in 2005. A Subaru WRX STI. Ken is fondly remembered by his family and his community, but Block’s name still lives on.
Senior Editor, Features
Like an active sleeper agent late in the game, Elana Sharer didn’t know her calling at a young age. Like many girls, she planned to be a veterinarian-astronaut-artist, and came closest to that last one by attending UCLA art school. He painted images of cars, but did not own them. Elana reluctantly obtained her driver’s license at age 21 and found that not only did she love cars and wanted to drive them, but that other people loved cars and wanted to read about them, which Which meant someone had to write about them. Since receiving the activation code, Elana has written for a number of car magazines and websites, covering classics, car culture, technology, motorsports and new-car reviews.