What the heck is a RallyCross?
by Todd Erickson
It’s a race, but not like NASCAR or Formula One. Imagine a flat area of dirt, gravel, grass, or snow and ice. Add some orange pylons (traffic cones) snaking out a course through this flat area. Now imagine people driving their cars as fast as they can through the winding course without hitting any cones.
Don’t the cars get damaged?
A vehicle in good condition is unlikely to receive any more damage than it would driving up a long gravel driveway. The course is laid out in such a way that speeds are kept low- most drivers barely make it into second gear and speeds rarely pass 35 mph. Courses are laid out such that there are no jumps or high speed corners. A safety steward monitors the condition of the course, and reroutes it if it gets too rough. In addition, cars race against the clock- one at a time. They simply aren’t given a chance to hit each other.Slow speeds and one at a time- is that really racing?
Yes! A RallyCross is all acceleration and deceleration, throwing cars around tight corners and keeping a car right on the edge of control. You know it’s safe, but when you see gravel spraying from the wheels or mud splashing ten feet into the air, you have to wonder if maybe these drivers aren’t crazy after all.
Just wait until you’re in a RallyCross car. Whether you’re competing or just riding along, it seems like you’re going twice as fast as you are. The corners come much too quickly, and you can feel it every time the car starts to slide. For just a moment you could imagine yourself as a real rally driver, hurtling through the forests at truly insane speeds, waiting for your co-driver to
tell you about the next corner - but don’t get ahead of yourself, it’s "only" a RallyCross.
Would my car be competitive?
This isn’t a full on Rally. If you enter a Civic you won’t be running against a turbocharged all-wheel drive Rally monster, you’ll be competing against similar cars. There are four classes of vehicles, which means that a Civic would be in with Golfs and Neons. When the Rally drivers bring their Rally cars, they enter into the same classes as everyone else, except that they get bumped into a "prepared" class. Everything from full race-prepared cars to Mazda 323s with 210,000 miles on them have entered our RallyCrosses. That Mazda even took an overall victory at one event.
Where is this Gravel Pit?
The Gravel Pit is near Cannon City, and not far from Faribault. Driving directions from the Twin Cities are available at http://www.rallymn.com
Come to compete. Come to spectate. Whatever you do, get down to the Gravel Pit for hours of RallyCross action - the perfect way to unwind after spending April 15th filling out hundreds of pages of tax forms. It’s only $20 for SCCA members to compete, and $25 for everyone else. Spectating is FREE once you’ve signed the waiver.
Find out more information at http://www.rallymn.com or contact SCCA-LOL RallyCross chairman Todd Erickson at 612-425-3150 or RallyXMN@aol.com
Event Dates: April 16th Tax Brake RallyCross, June 11th, July 23rd, Aug 24th !!! (triple caution) RallyCross in conjunction with the Ojibwe Forest ProRally to benefit the Autism Society of Minnesota, Sept 10th, Oct 29th The Dirty Jack-O-Lantern
PS. Looking for "Names" for the other events in the pit. Suggestions?
The Tonneau is the official publication of the Land O’ Lakes Region of the Sports Car Club of America. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Land O’ Lakes Region, its members, officials, or board of directors. Letters to the editor are always welcome. The Tonneau staff reserves the right to edit letters for length.
Editorial staff
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Contributing Editors:
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Tonneau On-Line May 2000
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Copyright 2000, Land O'Lakes Region Last revised: March 13, 2003
