Road rally navigation

Rally in the Rain

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 18 May 2009 19:26:00 +0000

Rally in the Rain

This weekend, I ran the Georgia Sports Car Club May rally. I partnered with Robert Harvey and drove his BMW.

Read how we fought the elements to win first place and why I did not bring home the trophy....

GPS Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:02:00 +0000

Here is an interesting story about a GPS rally for Jeeps. Sounds like it was a fun event.

http://www.bc4x4.com/tr/2009/hot4x4-gps/

Ways to loose a rally.

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 20:26:00 +0000

This weekend I ran a trap distance only event with the Georgia Sports car club. It was fun to see every one but since I am not a big fan of these types of events I tried the navigator seat for a different driver to shake things up a bit.

Having two drivers in the same car was not an advantage as neither of us was really prepared. Normally I let my navigator read the generals so neither one of us was really paying close attention. We did read enough to know that all rail road tracks were named Bob.

When I run with my normal rally partner, we have set rule for checking spelling traps. The driver reads the sign letter for letter and the navigator reads the route instructions letter for letter. If we both read the sign it will always match so we missed that Quiktrip was spelled differently on the sign than in the route instructions. We got the Bob part right but still maxed the leg by missing the Quiktrip stuff.

We did really good at measuring the mileage using just the stock odo. Both of use are used to using a computer so the stock odo is a bit of a novelty to us. My driver managed to read a 3 as an 8 once but luckily it was on a leg that we had already bit the trap on so we did not have an extra added score.

Also, I made a very novice mistake of not noticing that an instruction was numbered and not lettered and I repeated it eleven times instead of doing it only once like the instructions said.

All in all we had a fun day and gave someone else a chance to take home a trophy.

Bell Buckle Parks Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 20:34:00 +0000

On the Fourth of July I ran the Bell Buckle Parks Rally. I took along several friends so I had to drive my GMC Suburban. We entered int he "Car Load" class. I asked if they had a prize for the most people in a car.

We had fun running the rally as usual and ended up with our mileage score being only .01 off the correct number. That tied us for first overall and we won the car load class.

After the rally we were treated to grilled hamburgers and hot dogs provided by the town of Bell Buckle. There were also lots of home made side dishes and deserts to go with the meal.

After the score were announced, we had another treat!

The Bell Buckle thespians took a break from their presentation of a Mid Summer nights dream to present a spoof about RC and Moon Pie's romance called a Mid Summer Nightmare.

The play was very funny and very well presented. Thanks to all who worked to do that show.

Once again July 4th in Bell Buckle was huge fun!

NEXT Road Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:31:00 +0000

Mark your calenders and get out your rally equipment!

The NEXT group is planning an event for September that looks like huge fun!

They are currently accepting applications for the North Eastern Extreme Travel Road Trip Rally of 2008.

The Road Rally will begin on the morning of September 14th, every participant will be provided with a map leading them on the route our crew has meticulously planned to be scenic, engaging, and fun.

I'll post more details as I get them but for now go to http://www.nextroadtriprally.com/ to learn more and sign up for this road rally.

Update: See this article for more info on the next road rally: http://mikestrawbridge.com/nextroadrally.shtml

2008 Bell Buckle Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 13:03:00 +0000

There will agian be a rally in Bell Buckle, Tn July 4th to benefit the parks and recreation program. Be at the park around 10Am Central time to run.
From the Bell Buckle Web site:
For more information, contact:Rally Masters: Bill Bingham 931-389-6944 or Charles Cooke 931-389-9551
Choose Your Category1. Never been on a rally2. Have been on a rally3. Car load-2+ adults in car4. Lost as An Easter Egg
Schedule 9:00am--10:00am Rally Registration10:15am Safety Briefing10:40am Rally begins(Cars leave in 2 minute intervals)12:30pm Awards Presentation
General InstructionsEntry Fee: $20 per car (lunch included)Each car has a driver/navigatorUnder18 Needs parent/guardian
GuaranteeThe Tri-Lakes Sports Car Club is so confident that you will enjoy the rally they will refund your entry fee if you are not satisfied after completion of the Rally!
From the Tri Lakes web site:

Rally 'Round The Park JULY 4th, 2008 to benefit the Bell Buckle Park Starting location:Peacock street, Bell Buckle TN. Classes: 1,Never been on a rally, 2.Have been on a rally, 3. Car load 2 or more adults in vehicle. Registration is 9am - 10am, 10:15 saftey breifing, Rally starts at 12:30. An awards presentation at the end of the rally. Entry fee $20.00 per car, lunch included. Each car has a driver and navigator. Under 18 needs parent/guardian.

Great Race in Chattanooga

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 23:48:00 +0000

The 2007 Coker Tire Challenge, presented by Great Race is scheduled for September 21 – 23, 2007 in Chattanooga, Tenn., home to Coker Tire’s international headquarters.

For more information see:

http://greatracegarage.com/wpmu/2008news/2007/07/27/the-coker-tire-challenge-is-the-%e2%80%9cnew%e2%80%9d-fall-classic

GSCC Rally September 16

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 23:45:00 +0000

To Be or Not to Be
Rallymaster: Fred Hollinger
Registration begins at 9:00 AM in the Target parking lot on West Park Place just south of US 78 (Stone Mountain Freeway Exit 9).
First car off at 10:00 AM.

The rally is about 75 miles and should take less than 3 1/2 hours including a mid-rally break. The rally will end at the rallymaster's house, about 2 1/2 miles from the start.

Food and beverages will be provided. Usually the pool is still warm enough for swimming in mid September.This is a relatively easy trap rally. All of the traps are based on recognizing whether or not roads, signs or intersections exist.
ALL TRAPS ARE FAIL-SAFED.

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 01:27:00 +0000

Comments from a first time ralliest on the Bell Buckle Parks rally July 4 2007:

I had SOOO much fun Wednesday at my first road Rally in Bell Buckle,TN. I went with my best friend Mike and his wife Janice. It was different going somewhere with adults rather than kids!! For those that know me I rarely EVER go out and if I do my kids are with me. Not this time!! I had such a blast I just wish it would have lasted longer. Mike and Janice were such a hoot on the way there and back home although Mike was the one getting most of the attention. Mike got the tires he needed to get Scuffy II back off roading again. Mike was sooo happy to get those tires. It was so funny though to see peoples reactions as they passed by us after reading the sticker on Janice's jeep: Jeep girls do it in the mud! I'm still thinking about getting that wig for Mike.....

Jennifer

Tennessee Back roads Heritage rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 14 May 2007 22:19:00 +0000

Last weekend we ran the Tennessee back roads heritage rally in Middle Tennessee.

The course following navigation was a bit tricky in that they used an old set of general instructions and made the rally fit rather than the other way around. Complicating the course following was that route instructions might follow the main road or they might not. We made one bad turn that caused a .2 mile off course due to reading too much in to the pre event verbal instructions. However, we quickly recovered the route by simply following the instructions as written.

There was no time keeping other than an overall time limit for the event. Our strategy was to start early - we were the first car out of the parking lot - and to drive briskly on the twisty back roads.

We took time to read every sign and note the name of every side road along the route.

Our strategy paid off with a first overall finish and we finished well before the time limit so we had time to tour downtown Lynchburg while waiting for the results to be announced.

Rally Tennessee

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 14 May 2007 22:14:00 +0000

A tarmac rally in the US? In Perry County Tennessee no less?

Yes, the world converged on Linden, Tn again this year for a very unique event in US motor sports.

While tarmac rallies are common in Europe, there are very few of them in the US.

This year 26 teams brought cars from all over the world to race the twisty backroads of Perry County Tennessee. And adding to the fun this year was an experimental class of Rally Moto bikes.

No one was really sure how the off road bikes would take to the tarmac but all the riders seemed to have a huge time on the roads.

Georgia Irishman, Shamus Burke took first place in a hard fought battle.

For more info see: www.rallytennessee.com

Bell Buckle Park Rally July 4th, 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 14 May 2007 22:10:00 +0000

Here is the inside scoop for this years Bell Buckle Park Rally:

The route will be a recreation of a historic route taken by an adventurer form around the turn of the century. Since thing have not changed much in the last 100 years in Bell buckle it may not be too hard to follow.

Charlie tells me that the route instructions will be in the form of a story about the old man and his mules.

The Bell Buckle rally is always a fun adventure and this year's concept sounds like a fun new twist.

GSCC Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 14 May 2007 22:07:00 +0000

The next Georgia Sports car club rally is May 20. The rally master is Robert Harvey so expect accurate mileage measurement and correct calculations for the times.

Course following should be relatively easy with every thing spelled out clearly in the general instructions. No mind reading required.

For more info see: http://www.mindspring.com/~gscc/

Spring Tour VSunday May 20, 2007The start and end will be at Johnny's Pizza on Ga 20 just east of Ga 400 (in front of Lowe's). The rally will be a simple, straight forward, non-trap, Time-Speed-Distance rally. Registration: 9:00AMDriver Meeting 9:40AMFirst car out 10:01AMEstimated finish 2:30 PMRallymaster is Robert Harvey

100 Acre Wood Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 17:25:00 +0000

I was Event Steward at this year's 100AW rally.

Read my trip report here....

Tri Lakes Rally Schedule for 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 13:43:00 +0000

May 12 - Rally begins at Motlow State community college south of Tullahoma

July 4 - Annual Bell Buckle Park rally starting in Bell Buckle at the park.

November 10 - Motlow

for more information on any of these rallies contact Charlie Cooke at 931-389-9551

http://www.cafes.net/tlssc

Rally in the 100 Acre Wood

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 20:08:00 +0000

I served a Event Steward in the Rally America championship event in Salem, Mo - the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood.

the 100Acre wood rally has a long tradition beginning many years ago as an SCCA rally. I have run the event as both a driver and a navigator.

Also, during a few years when regulations prevented the running of a Rally Race, I competed in the TSD rallies that were run on the same roads.

This years 100AW was the best I have ever been involved in. Due to the relatively large area of the rally, logistics are always a challenge. This years committee really did a good job of handling those challenges.

They had things so well in hand that the long time organizer and Rally co driver Kim Demonte actually got to navigate in the event instead of working. He looked much happier in that role.

I took very few pictures due to my busy schedule and the rain on Saturday. However, it was a very enjoyable experience to work the rally this year.

100 Acre wood rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 19:09:00 +0000

I am headed out for the Rally in the 100 acre wood. http://100aw.org

This performance rally is based in Salem, Mo.

I will be acting as Event Steward for Rally America.

GSCC / BMW rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 00:46:00 +0000

Here is a note form Robert Harvey of the GSCC:

This past Saturday the Georgia Sports Car Club organized a question & answer rally for the Peachtree chapter of the BMW Car Club of America.

The event was a great success. We had 39 cars to run the rally.

In fact, the event was such a great success that they have asked us to do another rally. The tentative date is Saturday May 12th. Please note that this is the Saturday of Mother's day weekend.

Nasa Rally Sport Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 15:37:00 +0000

I just got the NASA Rally Sport newsletter. Looks like Anders green is taking on more of a leadership position in the club. I expect only good things from him in his new position.

Cherokee Trails is not on the schedule again this year. I guess the best rally roads in the world are just too hard to access these days.

Rally Tennessee will again be in Linden so I am expecting another Tarmac event. I hope they can continue to race safely there.

Tri Lakes Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 18:00:00 +0000

Bill, Frank and Charles of TLSCC present a car rally for your pleasure . This will be an easy navigation rally in which you must know your T's and Opp's. It will last about three hours with a midpoint pit stop. This is a good rally for beginners. The route is on paved roads between Tullahoma and Shelbyville, Tn

Nov 11
Registration:
Motlow College
10:00 to 10:30 Am

Entry fee: $20 per car

End point: Pickin Parlor in Wartrace ,Tn

For further info call:
Bill - 931-580-6944
Frank 931-389-6322
Charles 931-389-9551

Great Race Chattanooga

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 15:09:00 +0000

The Great Race is coming to Chattanooga. And they need check point workers.

http://www.greatrace2008.com/index.php/regional

Get an up close look at some amazing old cars and watch them arrive at control just seconds off their perfect time even with no computers or even and odometer.

If you enjoy rally, this is a great opportunity to see some highly skilled teams compete in some really cool cars.

Jeeps at Targa Newfoundland rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 12 Oct 2006 20:03:00 +0000

Jeep entered a couple of competition vehicles in the Targa Newfoundland rally this year. There is an entertaining report of both vehicles at the following link.

http://www.drivesrt.com/en/targa/race_log.html

Crow Mountain Hill climb

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 00:27:00 +0000

This past weekend I had huge fun working the Crow Mountain Hill Climb.

While it is technically an SCCA time trial event, the fact that they use a section of public road that is closed for the timed runs makes it operate like a single stage performance rally.

Because of my Rally experience, I was asked to assist in the function of course marshal.

This job consists of monitoring the safety and security of the course during the event. We also had Bill Perry's Jeep equipped with sufficient supplies to qualify us as a first response vehicle.

If anyone had an incident on the hill, we could respond quickly and determine the best course of action - like getting a wrecker or ambulance if needed or simply towing them ourselves if that was possible.

Our biggest surprise of the day was when turn nine reported unknown debris on the track. We were dispatched to investigate and discovered that a 44 inch timber rattler had made it on to the course and had been fatally struck by one of the race cars.

Sadly I swept the remains off the road. But after the event, I recovered the snake and mounted him on the front bumper of Bill's Jeep to show the unbelievers in the paddock area.

We used wire ties instead of duct tape so we don't really qualify as rednecks.

A photo is posted here.

Review of Fred's Rally

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 16:43:00 +0000

The last Rally of the GSCC was very well executed by rally master Fred Hollinger.

Robert and I won first place by getting all the traps right except the last one.

Robert and I had switched seat s for this event with him driving and me navigating. My time keeping skills are not as good as his as was shown by our scores. Marty and Tom who got second, beat us at time keeping, but we got more traps right which is what a trap rally is about anyway.

Fred started us off with a pause at a sign that was on a truck. Since signs on vehicles did not exist, that one did not count. We still got a poor score on that leg because we failed to set out computer clock correctly.

Later Fred gave us an instruction to turn at a road sign. The sign was obvious, however since the road ahead was a dead end, the sign was not at an intersection so we had to wait until later to execute the instruction.

He hit us with a lettered instruction follow in the middle of a control. If you did not pay attention you would start the leg at the wrong out marker. We almost fell for that one as we were rushing to make our out time. We had to start the leg late and make up the time. Luckily there were some pauses later one that allowed us to catch up.

Fred got us on the last leg of the day on a trap he set up two years ago. For the last two years, we have gone into a checkpoint in front of his house based on the road existing as defined in the generals. This year he misquoted the sign and we were supposed to take the long loop. We did it like we have the last couple of years which was wrong this year.

Good Job Fred!

GCSS Rally Announcement

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 16:01:00 +0000

Georgia Sports car club rally September 17

Annie Chandler and Leather Stockings

Registration begins at 9:00 AM in the Target parking lot on West Park Place just south of US 78 (Stone Mountain Freeway Exit 9). First car off at 10:00 AM. The rally is about 75 miles and should take less than 3 1/2 hours including a mid-rally break. The rally will end at the rallymaster's house, about 2 1/2 miles from the start. Food and beverages will be provided. Usually the pool is still warm enough for swimming in mid September.

This is a relatively easy trap rally. Mostly numbered route instructions with a few lettered route instructions. A description of the traps is provided in the Generals. ALL TRAPS ARE FAIL-SAFED.

Rally Master is Fred Hollinger

Hope to see you there.