rally new england event coverage

Monaro · Aug 6, 2013

well, i've returned from the biggest road trips i've ever done, and one of the best experiences of my life. it was challenging, exciting, frustrating, and the best part, all for a great cause.

rally north america is one of the largest road rally events in the world, and each year they tour a different section of the country and sponsor a different charity each year. every year the RNA nation continues to grow and more teams continue to join the group. this year, over 80 teams participated rasing money for camp sunshine in casco, maine that provides an oasis for families with terminally ill children to vacation free of charge with full medical and hospice services.

this year the collective goal for the group was $80,000. by the end of the rally, we had raised an amazing $94,000 for the camp -- enough for 42 families to receive the services and care of camp sunshine.

i embarked from minnesota by myself on my way to boston to collect my friend and co-driver who would navigate me through new england. living so far apart, that ment for both the trip there and the trip back, i would be running solo across the country to and from the finish line. i looked forward to this actually since the monaro has never really been out of the midwest area and i've been anxious to drive it cross country for quite some time.

upon arrival in boston, the monaro needed a much needed wash, and some dress up. i finally added a rear diffuser that we painted to contrast, as well as a front lip to give the front something a little extra.

the following day, we set out for the drivers meeting at watkins glen raceway and for the starting line the following morning in ithica, ny.

upstate new york is a fantastic place, even from the interstate.

the track was an absolute blast!!

the next day revealed a beautiful but wet starting line in ithica

the drive was nothing short of spectacular. back country roads with fantastic rolling hills and clouds.

our first clue set the tone of what to expect for the check points for the remainder of the event.

the card simply said this:

this car was built in buffalo from 1948 before the company went bankrupt in 1951. find this car in the state of new york.

thats right. find it..."somewhere" in the state of new york.

being a seasoned road rally veteran, i knew the car wasn't in buffalo. so we got crafty with the all mighty google and after about 30 minutes, narrowed down the car and its location to a small museum in upstate new york.

we were one of the first teams to find the car, the 1948 playboy cabriolet. :biggrin:

the next check point was to find this local sensation, a large, secluded waterfall that involved a 2 mile hike to find it. along the way we heard a thud, which we thought was a large bug. it wasn't a bug, but rather a bird the monaro decided to eat.

the hike to the falls was fun, and a great chance to get out of the car. all of the checkpoints are designed to do just that -- its not all just about the driving but the experience of the destinations you're trying to find.

our next checkpoint took us to the historic battle ground of saratoga, and the monument. the checkpoint required a photo from the guys at hagerty in front of the monument.

then it was back on the road again and into our next state, vermont. we were led into the mountains into some of the best back roads yet. our final checkpoint of the day would take us to the highest point in new england. the cars would climb mt equinox, spiking at just over 2,000 feet. this doesn't sound all that high, but its a rather steep climb up there so the cars were working hard. the pay off was incredible views from the top.

on top of the mountain, we lost our stowaway bird passenger after 200 miles. we were hoping the little guy would hang on till canada, but he didn't. so we gave him a viking burial and thew him off the mountain.

day 2 would have the starting grid in downtown rutland. again another rainy morning, all the cars still pretty dirty from the 400 mile drive the first day. the jurassic park crew sported new costumes this day, now in the form of actual dinosaurs.

the first day results had team rental placing first. they beat the living piss out of this thing.

our first stop was devils bowl speedway for some hot laps around the track, drifting, and shenanigans.

after making a new harlem shake video with the dinosaurs and the mustang, it was back on the road again for a new day of challenges.

the route took us through the spectacular white mountain national forest. more excellent mountain roads and waterfalls, eventually leading us to ben & jerry's ice cream factory.

day two finished us off at camp sunshine, the whole reason why we were doing this massive cross country trip. the children at the camp made signs for each of the teams participating in the rally. it was a really touching gesture.

our final day would also be the longest. driving the entire state of maine in search of two lighthouses, a statue, and a further couple hundred miles into new brunswick in search of yet another waterfall and our finish line in market square on the st john water front plaza.

in auburn, we had a beautiful morning launch for our first stop at the track to warm up the tires.

by this time we had decided to team up with team rental in the...

with a few other friends

check point 1

and 2

check point 3 we ended up skipping to run for the border and into canada

and i finally had a legit reason to use the kmh feature on the monaro's cluster

new brunswick was a strange but beautiful place. very sparsely populated but with one of the most beautifully built highways i've ever been on.

our final stop was this tiered water fall before heading into central st john

made it

overall, hands down one of the best experiences of my life. never made so many new friends from so many different parts of the country and had a blast doing it. will definitely be on the team next year for the 2014 event...route 50. ocean city, md to SF, cali

on the way back to MA, my co driver snapped a few great parting shots as i started to depart for minneapolis the following day.

and i made one final post rally stop at niagra falls, and lake erie the following morning for a photo opp.

by the time i arrived back home in apple valley, the monaro's trip computer showed just how much ground i managed to cover over the course of a week, i was impressed.

hope you enjoyed the story/pix

if your ever looking for an amazing experience and a fun vacation, rally north america is where its at. i didn't imagine just how much of the country and significant sights that i'd get to see all in one trip, on top of the great people and memories that we made along the way, all for a good cause.

i can't wait to do it all over again!