Goodyear Rock Crawling Meets 'Culture' in Cedar City, Utah

    CEDAR CITY, Utah, July 9 Drama will be the main attraction
this weekend in this southwestern Utah city known for its summer-long
Shakespearean festivities.
    And the Bard may not be getting all the attention in this Festival City.
Cedar City also will play a leading role in deciding the series championship
for the Goodyear/Skyjacker Extreme Rock Crawling Nationals.
    Seventy off-road drivers are scheduled to visit Cedar City, home of the
world renowned Utah Shakespearean Festival.  This city received a 2000 Tony
Award for outstanding regional theater.
    In the rock crawling series, Gibbon, Neb., farmer Joel Randall is the lead
character here on the last stop before the finals in September.  It's no
Midsummer Night's Dream.
    Series leader Randall and Shannon Campbell, of Gilbert, Ariz., and second
in championship points with 266, are eyeing Cedar City's rugged terrain with
anticipation.
    The third leg of the rock crawling championship series will be held here
July 13 and 14.  Maps will be available at Auto Trim Design on Main Street or
from the American Rock Crawlers Association booth, the sanctioning body of the
series.
    Steve Myers, Goodyear marketing manager for light truck tires, said
Randall and Campbell might be favored to win the championship, but a handful
of other drivers stand in the way here.
    "Cedar City may prove pivotal in deciding the series championship," Myers
said.  "The competitiveness is intense, and we may see a new leader arise
here.  Drama may very well keep everyone on the edge of their seats."
    Myers said he expects many of this city's 33,000 residents to visit the
rocks during the day and attend the Shakespearean Festival at night.