|
Personal |
|
| Name: |
Kaj Lindström |
| Age: |
** 33 |
| Marital status: |
Engaged |
| Children: |
None |
| Occupation: |
Rally co-driver |
| Place of birth: |
Mikkeli , Finland |
| Country or county where
you live: |
Finland |
| Does your spouse / partner
like rallying? |
Yes she does. She joins
me in some rallies during the season. |
| Any other hobbies? |
Golf, roller skating, cross
country skiing |
|
Your opinions |
|
| Favourite food: |
Pasta food |
| Favourite drink: |
Coffee and Faustino I -red
wine |
| Favourite motorsport paper
/ magazine: |
Vauhdin Maailma (Finnish)
, Autosport, Motoring News |
| Favourite sports person
(other than rallying): |
Tiger Woods |
| Favourite film star: |
Sean Connery |
| Which TV sports programmes
do you watch? |
Of course I watch all the
rallying programs from Eurosport. As golf is my hobby I do watch golf
tournaments from Sky Sports as well. And, as a Finn, Formula 1 is
compulsory. |
|
Starting out |
|
| How did you start out? |
My very good friend asked
me if I was interested to be his co-driver. And I agreed. He and I
did our first driving with car at the age of 11 so I was already used
to his driving. |
| First driver you sat with: |
Ari Himanen |
| First event: |
Savitaipale Rally, national
event near my home town with Mk I Escort, of course! The rally ended
on SS1 500 meters from the start of the stage. Clutch failure. |
|
Rallying background |
|
| Type of licence held: |
International competition
driver’s licence |
| Which motor club do you
belong to? |
MikUA. Mikkeli Motorsport
association. |
| Have you ever driven on
a rally? |
No! I’ve decided to
keep co- syllable in my profession. |
| Did you ever marshal on
events? When and where? |
No I haven’t. |
| How many events do you
get to watch? (eg. per year) |
1-2 |
| How many rallies do you
take part in? (eg. per year) |
** 14 |
| Have you competed abroad?
Where and when? |
Yes I have. We do some
WRC-rounds abroad. |
|
Your opinions (rallying) |
|
| Favourite rally car: |
** SUBARU! |
| Favourite rally driver: |
** Tommi Mäkinen |
| Favourite rally co-driver: |
That is easy - me. (Nicky
Grist is quite OK as well…) |
| Favourite bit of road or
forest: |
Ouninpohja forest in Neste
Rally Finland |
| Do you prefer pace notes
or map reading events? |
Of course I prefer pace
notes, because that is the only type of rally I have competed. |
| Things you dislike about
rallying? |
Crashing is not the nicest
thing to happen to yourself or to anyone. |
| Who do you think will win
the World Rally Championship in 2001? |
Carlos Sainz |
| ... and in 2003? |
** Tommi Mäkinen |
|
Rallying history |
|
| Your current driver(s)
and events or Championships being contested in 2001 |
Reigning British Rally
Championship co-driver for Tapio Laukkanen. In 2001, they
finished 5th overall in Australia with M-Sport Focus.
|
| .... and in 2002? |
Replaced the injured Risto
Mannisenmaki as Tommi Mäkinen's co-driver for Subaru WRT |
| .... and in 2003? |
** WRC with Tommi Mäkinen,
for Subaru WRT |
| Drivers you have sat with: |
Ari Himanen, Taisto Lantta,
Esa Saarenpää, Tapio Laukkanen, ** Tommi Mäkinen |
| Best driver you have ever
sat with? |
** Tommi Mäkinen |
| Best result: |
British Rally Champion
1999
5th in WRC Australia 2001 with Tapio Laukkanen
** WRC Monte Carlo 2002 - winners! |
| Championships contested: |
Finnish Championship, British
Championship, ** WRC. |
| Best Championship result: |
British Champion 1999
Finnish Champion 1997 |
| Best rally memory: |
Of course the championships
have felt the best. |
| Biggest accident: |
In San Remo 1998 with Tapio
Laukkanen. We went off and landed 15 meters lower to the field. Both
our seats were cut off and the whole car was damaged quite badly.
However we managed to continue and finish the rally.
** Argentina with Tommi 2002, 8 and
a half loops.
|
|
Your future in rallying |
|
| Which rally would you most
like to compete in? |
Neste Rally Finland is
my favorite. |
| Which driver(s) would you
most like to co-drive for? |
** Tommi Mäkinen |
| What would you like to
put back into rallying? |
The power of group B cars
joint with the sound of F2 –car. |
|
The future of rallying |
|
| Which up-and-coming rally
driver can you recommend? |
** There are 2 talented
young Finnish drivers on their way up: Hirvonen and Latvala. |
| Which up-and-coming rally
co-driver can you recommend? |
Co-drivers of these drivers. |
| What would be the best
tip you could give to other co-drivers? |
Compete as much as you
can. ASK if you are not sure what to do. Try to improve your work
(notes, preparing to event, etc.) all the time. |
| updated 8/1/03 (items marked **) |
Kaj co-drives
Personal details:
