Dillon Van Way has finalized a deal with co-driver Jake Blattner for the 2011 series.

Blattner, who has been a regular in the Rally America National Championship since 2009, brings a wealth of experience both in an out of the car helping multiple teams achieve their goals.

I m really looking forward to this season, said Van Way. We have made a lot of exciting changes to take this team to the next level and a big one is the addition of legendary snowboarder Jake Blattner as co-driver.

Blattner was a driving force behind Car 54 s race to the Rally America Rookie of the Year title in 2009, continued Van Way. When the team looked at his 2010 season we noticed he ran with four different drivers, despite mechanical DNFs on the first two rounds and sitting out STPR to crew, he still took seventh in the championship. With Ben stepping out of the car we invited Jake to join us at Ojibwe to get a first hand look at his skills, and we were very impressed with the experience.

You can t help but notice Dillon if you ve followed Rally America in the last couple of years, said Blattner. There is something you ve got to respect about a kid who learns what rallying is from a remote control Subaru at 10, keeps the fire burning, and makes it happen the minute he is old enough to drive!

With the 2011 series approaching Dillon invited Jake to Colorado for a snowboarding trip where they had a chance to discuss future rally plans.

I had a great time with the team at Ojibwe and our communication in the car came together quite quickly, said Blattner. I was very excited to get the call from Dillon. I love snowboarding and rallying so I couldn t pass up the opportunity .

Ben Slocum, who served as Van Way s co-driver through the 2009 and 2010 seasons, is stepping out of the car and into a support role for the coming year.

Dillon Van Way is contesting the full 2011 Rally America National Championship in a new car. Details about the competition vehicle will be released in the weeks before Sno*Drift. Team 600 is comprised of 2009 Rally America 2-Wheel-Drive Champion Driver Dillon Van Way and Co-Driver Jake Blattner. T