(ARA NEWS – McKee, KY – August 5, 2025) ~ One of the newest events in the American Rally Association (ARA) East Region Championship is set to welcome a host of top-tier talent next weekend as teams descend on McKee, Kentucky, for the third annual Boone Forest Rally, running Aug. 8–9.

Classified as an ARA Super Regional, Boone continues to grow in popularity, with the 2025 edition attracting a record 33 entries across all six ARA classes.

Among those entered are ARA National Champions Lia Block—ARA’s youngest-ever class champion and daughter of rally and extreme sports icon Ken Block—Patrick Gruszka, and Seamus Burke. They, along with ARA National Championship Presented by Kubota regulars including Conner Martell and Michael Hooper, will take on Kentucky’s twisting back roads, evoking the daring spirit of the region’s moonshining past.

The organizing committee, Backroads of Appalachia, has prepared a two-day, 12-stage itinerary covering 74 high-speed competition miles through the iconic Daniel Boone National Forest.

Festivities begin Friday, Aug. 8, with a parc exposé in downtown McKee, before SS1, “Turkey Foot,” kicks off at 2:17 p.m., followed immediately by a second running of the same stage.

After service, teams will head back out to run “Hale Ridge” and “White Ash” back-to-back, each run twice, before ending the day with a second parc exposé in Beattyville.

On Saturday, teams begin with a parc exposé in Livingston before heading out for two runs each of “Poplar Gap” and “New Hope Tower.” After mid-day service, they’ll finish the rally with “S Tree Tower” and “Mill Creek,” then wrap up the weekend with an awards ceremony and parc exposé back in McKee around 7:45 p.m.

With a mix of national stars and local favorites on the entry list, the Boone Forest Rally is shaping up to be one of the standout regional events of the 2025 season.