This past December 13-15 in Laughlin, NV, rally enthusiasts from around the country gathered for the JAOS Adventure Rally presented by Magellan. The event was a three-day soft-adventure scenic tour through the desert that went through ghost towns and culminated at the Grand Canyon. Some overzealous drivers however drove the course non-stop, imagining they were on a real rally. In their haste to live out the fantasy they missed out on the Treasure Hunt (but they, that is we, have no regrets). However, the visit to the rim of the Grand Canyon, in the Land of the Hualapai Indians, more than made up for any loss in any game prizes, including some cash awards.
Teams navigated the course using Magellan handheld GPS units (see sidebar on SporTrak). Most of the entrants in the event had an easy time employing the handheld. A few people we talked to were befuddled at first, but a couple of practice runs after the GPS tutorial helped newbies to familiarize themselves with the handheld. In addition to Magellan, other manufacturers supported the Adventure Rally, including Tag Heuer and Mitsubishi. And the Tokico team was there with several off-road vehicles -- if you're into off-roading you know all about Tokico. If you don't, check out www.tokicogasshocks.com.
Held the same weekend, the Ramada Express International Rally featured some terrific racing action, as well as some spectacular crashes -- we won't mention the names of the unlucky drivers here. Rhys Millen/Chrissy Beavis in their Mitsubishi Evo VII set fastest times on all four Friday stages in Leg 1. During the Tokico Shocks Challenge, Leg 2, quite a few teams experienced flat tires and mechanical difficulties. No surprise considering this course spans 35 miles, the longest rally stage in America. Millen/Beavis lost their lead on Saturday as Mark Nelson/Alex Gelsomino, in their AV Motorsports-prepared Subaru WRX STI, made up the time and then some, moving into the lead by 15 seconds. Sunday it was the SuperStage on the 1.5-mile dual course -- it allowed for little error and made for tight competition. Drivers Dan Brink/Troy Robinson, Eagle Talon TSI; Wyeth Gubelmann/Therin Pace, Subaru WRX STI; and Jonathan Ryther/Roger Loeffers, Subaru Impreza, were all pushed to the max and finished within 25 seconds of each other. But in the end it was Nelson/Gelsomino that won First Overall.
For full coverage, go online to www.rallyusa.com. There you will also get details on how you can participate for the upcoming Adventure Rally. Entrants this past year paid a $450 entry fee that covered the cost of the Magellan unit, hotel room for two nights and VIP treatment for the entire weekend. We highly recommend it to people who are tired of getting their rally action from cable while sitting on their couches. Get out there and kick up some dust.
Magellan SporTrak MAP
Text by Martti Silvola
I have been a fan of GPS for some time now. I bought my first GPS just for this rally. Only a week before the event did I get my SporTrak Pro. Adventure Rally participants received a SporTrak Map. The two units are identical except the Pro model has more loadable memory space than the Map model. I used my GPS on the way to the rally, at the rally, and on the way home. Though I had not had any prior instruction on how to use the unit, the basic functions of creating routes and marking waypoints were not that difficult to figure out. I'm sure it would have been easier had I read the owner's manual, but like most people I just had to go play with it.
My SporTrak Pro guided me from San Diego, CA though Needles, CA and north to Laughlin, NV. A cool feature of the unit is its ability to load detail maps from your PC or laptop. On my way to the rally, I was able load the map that I needed to get to the Ramada Express Hotel & Casino. Upon arrival, I loaded the detail map for Laughlin and a couple hundred miles north, east, and south of there. Magellan has available detailed street map CDs and topographical map CDs. I highly recommend these to get the most out of your GPS.
My rally press pass allowed me to enter sections of the stage that were restricted to spectators. Since I had few people from which to ask directions, my GPS came in handy. Knowing the right time is also important in rally -- the Magellan GPS does a good job of that too.
The SporTrak can almost be used as a pace note guide, since the unit tells you where you are in real time. It's not perfect for this kind of use, but it isn't bad either. There may be a future for GPS in rally racing.
Overall, the SporTrak is an accurate and reliable navigation tool. However, you should not solely rely on a GPS for all your navigational needs. Traditional methods of navigation should be exercised and kept available in the event that your GPS unit is damaged or the satellite signals become unreliable.