The Tonneau On-Line, March 2000, Page 6

Rallying: A new turn every mile, A new smile every turn

by Ed Solstad

(Editor’s Note: Ed is one of the most proficient and prolific Rallymasters in this area.)

Looking for something new in motorsport? Something that you can enjoy with your spouse? An activity where you can be as competitive or laid back as you want and have fun and be accepted either way? Would you like to be constantly challenged rather than seeing the same turns every lap? Check out rallying - A new turn every mile, a new smile every turn.

The 2000 Twin Cities rally schedule has something to suit every taste. There are the easy to follow, all paved tour style events, the national course (trap) rallies such as Chippewa Trails and Octoberally, and excellent gravel tour style events such as il Rally Lanciafiamme, the Yucatan Safari, and the 12 hour i1 Diavolo. If you love snow, check out the Winter Rally Series run out of Duluth. For the serious gravel enthusiasts, LOL hosts three Divisional Club Rallies: Headwaters, 10,000 Lakes and Paul Bunyan’s Ride, as well as a National ProRally, the Ojibwe. If you enjoy driving in the company of flapper era Bentleys and Chryslers, Mercedes 300SL's, Renault Dauphines, XK120 Jaguars and 50’s vintage Big Healeys and Alfa Giuliettas, not to mention the series winning ’63 Buick Riviera, the Great Northern Historic Rallye Championship is for you. For those whose imaginations have been excited by reports of the California Mille or the various European historic events, we offer the Great River Road Rally - a two and a half day historic event with St. Paul and Madison starting points converging on La Crosse. Being relatively frugal Midwesterners we bring the GRRR to you for one sixth the cost of the California Mille.

If you’re new to rallying, dig out your March, 1998 issue of The Tonneau and read A short guide to rallying for the uninitiated. If you don’t save your copies, give me a call at 612-822-0569 or e-mail me at esolstad@pressenter.com and I’ll send you a copy.
You don’t need a special car and can start with such minimal equipment as a clipboard, a few highlighters, some Post-It notes, a $7 calculator and a watch with a second hand.

If you’re the adventurous sort that enjoys driving on loose surfaces, we recommend gravel rallies as the most fun. The first event, il Rally Lanciafiamme, - a 130 mi. night rally run out of Red Wing, is coming up on April 1st.

The Lanciafiamme and il Diavolo rallies will use the easy to follow tulip diagram format with all turns mileaged. No Traps!! Just the enjoyment of driving the best gravel roads that the upper Midwest has to offer! If you’re new, concentrate on staying on course and ignore precise timing by driving slightly above the average speed. You’ll have a great time and should be able to get a reasonable score. Next time out, you can pay more attention to timing and do even better.

While course rallying has fallen into a general decline, we are fortunate to have two of the top events in the country right here in LOL: the Chippewa Trails and the Octoberally. Unlike trap rallies of two decades ago, today’s events are sufficiently well thought out so that even if you fall for a trap, you’ll still come into the checkpoint. You’ll probably get a max early or late, but you won’t be left lost and without a clue, never to be seen again.

The third general category consists of the all-paved tour style rallies. While

these are generally open events with no restrictions on age or type of vehicle, many of them run historic classes for older cars while others such as the GRRR are open only to pre-’76 cars or those newer vehicles of particular interest.
If you own a pre-’76 car and are looking for something a bit more exciting than a drive around the lakes, give Historic rallying a try. Don’t own an Austin Healey 3000 set up to BMC Competition Department specs or a Lancia Stratos? Don’t worry about it, the Series winners for the last several years have been Lynn Anderson and Lois Bjelke driving a 1963 Buick Riviera! Other entrants have included the likes of a ’24 Bentley 3-litre, a ’28 Chrysler 75 touring (right hand drive no less), a ’52 Ferrari 25OGT, a ’57 DKW and ’62 SAAB 96 3-cyl, 2-strokes, Big Healeys, Little Healeys, MGTD’S, Jaguars of all types, a VW dune buggy, Renault Dauphines, a variety of Alfa Romeos including 2600’s and a Sprint Speciale. We’ve even had a Citroen 2CV with a speedo reading in whole kilometers come in first in class!

How about an early Valiant or Barracuda, a 260 V8 powered Falcon Sprint or a Fitch Sprint? These cars all had a rally history when new. The older and funkier, the better. If it goes, stops, and handles well, so much the better - either way, it’s a hoot.

Now that we’ve piqued your interest, Why don’t you join us for a great season in 1999. Bring out your daily driver, the ’64 Mustang fastback that has been sitting in the garage for too long or the old DKW ice-racer that you couldn’t bear to throw away. Check the 2000 Rally Calendar for a full listing and give the rallymaster a call.

Tonneau On-Line
2000 Auto Show

Page 8

Copyright 2000, Land O'Lakes Region Last revised: March 13, 2003
| Previous | Next |


Rallying: A new turn every mile, A new smile every turn
by Ed Solstad (Editor’s Note: Ed is one of the most proficient and prolific Rallymasters in this area.) Looking for something new in motorsport? Something that you can enjoy with your spouse? An activity where you can be as competitive or laid back as you want and have fun and be accepted either way? Would you like to be constantly challenged rather than seeing the same turns every lap? Check out rallying - A new turn every mile, a new smile every turn. The 2000 Twin Cities rally schedule has something to suit every taste. There are the easy to follow, all paved tour style events, the national course (trap) rallies such as Chippewa Trails and Octoberally, and excellent gravel tour style events such as il Rally Lanciafiamme, the Yucatan Safari, and the 12 hour i1 Diavolo. If you love snow, check out the Winter Rally Series run out of Duluth. For the serious gravel enthusiasts, LOL hosts three Divisional Club Rallies: Headwaters, 10,000 Lakes and Paul Bunyan’s Ride, as well as a National ProRally, the Ojibwe. If you enjoy driving in the company of flapper era Bentleys and Chryslers, Mercedes 300SL's, Renault Dauphines, XK120 Jaguars and 50’s vintage Big Healeys and Alfa Giuliettas, not to mention the series winning ’63 Buick Riviera, the Great Northern Historic Rallye Championship is for you. For those whose imaginations have been excited by reports of the California Mille or the various European historic events, we offer the Great River Road Rally - a two and a half day historic event with St. Paul and Madison starting points converging on La Crosse. Being relatively frugal Midwesterners we bring the GRRR to you for one sixth the cost of the California Mille.	If you’re new to rallying, dig out your March, 1998 issue of The Tonneau and read A short guide to rallying for the uninitiated. If you don’t save your copies, give me a call at 612-822-0569 or e-mail me at esolstad@pressenter.com and I’ll send you a copy. You don’t need a special car and can start with such minimal equipment as a clipboard, a few highlighters, some Post-It notes, a $7 calculator and a watch with a second hand. If you’re the adventurous sort that enjoys driving on loose surfaces, we recommend gravel rallies as the most fun. The first event, il Rally Lanciafiamme, - a 130 mi. night rally run out of Red Wing, is coming up on April 1st. The Lanciafiamme and il Diavolo rallies will use the easy to follow tulip diagram format with all turns mileaged. No Traps!! Just the enjoyment of driving the best gravel roads that the upper Midwest has to offer! If you’re new, concentrate on staying on course and ignore precise timing by driving slightly above the average speed. You’ll have a great time and should be able to get a reasonable score. Next time out, you can pay more attention to timing and do even better. While course rallying has fallen into a general decline, we are fortunate to have two of the top events in the country right here in LOL: the Chippewa Trails and the Octoberally. Unlike trap rallies of two decades ago, today’s events are sufficiently well thought out so that even if you fall for a trap, you’ll still come into the checkpoint. You’ll probably get a max early or late, but you won’t be left lost and without a clue, never to be seen again. The third general category consists of the all-paved tour style rallies. While	these are generally open events with no restrictions on age or type of vehicle, many of them run historic classes for older cars while others such as the GRRR are open only to pre-’76 cars or those newer vehicles of particular interest. If you own a pre-’76 car and are looking for something a bit more exciting than a drive around the lakes, give Historic rallying a try. Don’t own an Austin Healey 3000 set up to BMC Competition Department specs or a Lancia Stratos? Don’t worry about it, the Series winners for the last several years have been Lynn Anderson and Lois Bjelke driving a 1963 Buick Riviera! Other entrants have included the likes of a ’24 Bentley 3-litre, a ’28 Chrysler 75 touring (right hand drive no less), a ’52 Ferrari 25OGT, a ’57 DKW and ’62 SAAB 96 3-cyl, 2-strokes, Big Healeys, Little Healeys, MGTD’S, Jaguars of all types, a VW dune buggy, Renault Dauphines, a variety of Alfa Romeos including 2600’s and a Sprint Speciale. We’ve even had a Citroen 2CV with a speedo reading in whole kilometers come in first in class! How about an early Valiant or Barracuda, a 260 V8 powered Falcon Sprint or a Fitch Sprint? These cars all had a rally history when new. The older and funkier, the better. If it goes, stops, and handles well, so much the better - either way, it’s a hoot. Now that we’ve piqued your interest, Why don’t you join us for a great season in 1999. Bring out your daily driver, the ’64 Mustang fastback that has been sitting in the garage for too long or the old DKW ice-racer that you couldn’t bear to throw away. Check the 2000 Rally Calendar for a full listing and give the rallymaster a call.

Tonneau On-Line	2000 Auto Show	Page 8
Copyright 2000, Land O'Lakes Region	Last revised: March 13, 2003	\| Previous \| Next \|