How To Get Started With Rallies

Although riding a bunch of rallies is by far the best way to learn about rallying, another thing to consider is acting as a volunteer at one or two to get a taste of what they are about. There is a lot to learn about the mechanics of how they work apart from the routing and riding - no matter what the rally design is, there are still a lot of elements in common. It would also afford you an opportunity to talk with riders and find out what works for them and what might work (or not work) for you.

Just my $0.02.

Ira
 
Dave,

There is a lot of wisdom here. Marc is right, don't try to replicate the Starship Enterprise on your first go. I rode the 2012 BigTexRally with a stock GoldWing and my Android smart phone as my GPS and won that rally. In the end, all the gadgets in the world are only assistive tools. You have to plan a smart route and then be able to ride it. Period.

The BigTexRally will be a great opportunity for your to cut your teeth. As James said, the rally clinic Wayne is offering (Labor Day weekend Saturday) is a great tool to help you learn the ropes in an educational, low-pressure environment. I did it in 2012 and it was immensely helpful.

Stephen also gave great advice with the Grand Tour type events. They are less time-restrictive but still give you the chance to route and ride which will help you in any future rally events. With no rally experience, you are correct, the LDX Rally next summer might be a big bite to take into the rally foray if you don't have some experience. Wolfe has numerous Lobo Loco rallies that allow you to do everything from your home area which is significantly easier on your vacation time and pocket book. Just check out Ride Master for the plethora ("Jefe, what is a plethora?") of opportunities. Also consider coming to the Big as Texas party later this fall where you can do a cert ride with pictures and also meet numerous other riders where you can see bikes, share ideas, and learn about what upcoming events they plan on riding and why.

Every single rally rider, IBR finisher, etc on this forum has been a newbie at one point and they all had questions. Never be afraid to ask a question here even though you might expect a snarky reply from time to time.

Last, but not least, you are only a rookie until you ride in a rally, so barring everything else, just sign up for something and go with it. The old 'trial by fire' method I guess. With the right attitude, you'll learn something no matter what. Be like Ben Ernst. His first rally experience was the Heart of Texas Rally clinic Sep 2020. Then he won the 2020 Heart of Texas Rally. Came in 4th on the 2021 Heart of Texas Rally. Then pulled off a 2nd place finish on the 2021 IBR. Proof that being a rally rookie/newbie doesn't mean that you can't kick some serious ass. So go forth and rally.

-PT
 
I have two distinct plans in my head right now.

first, I picked up some info from the Butt LIte Grand Tour: https://www.teamstrange.com/2021/grandtour/index.htm
I looked through the bonus locations. the Butt Lite IX details happen to be close to home for me, so I mapped out a route to 13 of the bonus locations that equate into about a 24 hour route. I won't be surprised that it'll probably take me longer than that. The point to this exercise is to understand the information provided, get a bit of experience at points and setting up a route to follow.

Second, I've registered for the Void rally: https://rallythevoid.org/pb/wp_b5d32459/wp_b5d32459.html
This one is in October and I'm just doing the 10 hour rally. Again, experience in getting the packet and planning a route, but this time, within the timeframe that would occur in an actual rally.

After that, I have BBG and CC50 bucket list items to attend to, but will also start looking into a few rallies for next year to continue to build experience.

at that point, I'll do an assessment of how my enthusiasm is for further pursuit of this insanity! :)

Thanks everyone for your input. it's greatly appreciated.
 
Dave28117 said:
I have two distinct plans in my head right now.

first, I picked up some info from the Butt LIte Grand Tour: https://www.teamstrange.com/2021/grandtour/index.htm
I looked through the bonus locations. the Butt Lite IX details happen to be close to home for me, so I mapped out a route to 13 of the bonus locations that equate into about a 24 hour route. I won't be surprised that it'll probably take me longer than that. The point to this exercise is to understand the information provided, get a bit of experience at points and setting up a route to follow.

Second, I've registered for the Void rally: https://rallythevoid.org/pb/wp_b5d32459/wp_b5d32459.html
This one is in October and I'm just doing the 10 hour rally. Again, experience in getting the packet and planning a route, but this time, within the timeframe that would occur in an actual rally.

After that, I have BBG and CC50 bucket list items to attend to, but will also start looking into a few rallies for next year to continue to build experience.

at that point, I'll do an assessment of how my enthusiasm is for further pursuit of this insanity! :)

Thanks everyone for your input. it's greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...




Good plan
 
Dave28117 said:
I have two distinct plans in my head right now.

first, I picked up some info from the Butt LIte Grand Tour: https://www.teamstrange.com/2021/grandtour/index.htm
I looked through the bonus locations. the Butt Lite IX details happen to be close to home for me, so I mapped out a route to 13 of the bonus locations that equate into about a 24 hour route. I won't be surprised that it'll probably take me longer than that. The point to this exercise is to understand the information provided, get a bit of experience at points and setting up a route to follow.

Second, I've registered for the Void rally: https://rallythevoid.org/pb/wp_b5d32459/wp_b5d32459.html
This one is in October and I'm just doing the 10 hour rally. Again, experience in getting the packet and planning a route, but this time, within the timeframe that would occur in an actual rally.

After that, I have BBG and CC50 bucket list items to attend to, but will also start looking into a few rallies for next year to continue to build experience.

at that point, I'll do an assessment of how my enthusiasm is for further pursuit of this insanity! :)

Thanks everyone for your input. it's greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

See you at the Void finish, first beer is on me.
 
Dave28117 said:
I have two distinct plans in my head right now.

first, I picked up some info from the Butt LIte Grand Tour: https://www.teamstrange.com/2021/grandtour/index.htm
I looked through the bonus locations. the Butt Lite IX details happen to be close to home for me, so I mapped out a route to 13 of the bonus locations that equate into about a 24 hour route. I won't be surprised that it'll probably take me longer than that. The point to this exercise is to understand the information provided, get a bit of experience at points and setting up a route to follow.

Second, I've registered for the Void rally: https://rallythevoid.org/pb/wp_b5d32459/wp_b5d32459.html
This one is in October and I'm just doing the 10 hour rally. Again, experience in getting the packet and planning a route, but this time, within the timeframe that would occur in an actual rally.

After that, I have BBG and CC50 bucket list items to attend to, but will also start looking into a few rallies for next year to continue to build experience.

at that point, I'll do an assessment of how my enthusiasm is for further pursuit of this insanity! :)

Thanks everyone for your input. it's greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

We just completed the Butt Lite Grand Tour as a 2 up couple.

We treated it like it was the real thing. We planned a route the left our house in Washington and arrived in Provo the day before the finish of the IBR. From the time we left we were "on the clock" for 5.5 days. We rode on average 18 hours a day, 900 miles. We were in 11 western states (all but CA, NV, and OR) It allowed us to test ourselves, the bike, the mods made, GPS,, aux fuel, general bike setup and suspension. We did it two up, wanting to get to the point of fatigue and see if we could function safely and still collect bonuses correctly. We had to make rest stops and choices of when to do them. It was a very good time for us. We accomplished our goals, collected 38 bonuses along the way. Even had to make a couple of changes on the fly, one because we would get to the time limited bonus too early in the day. We skipped it, and moved on. Also had the same thing happen on another, and skipped it. The last issue, was the route had us using a ferry to get across Lake Powell. It was our last day on the way to Provo, the re-route was 2 hours and would take too long, so we had to scrap 8 more bonus locations so we could make to Provo by our self imposed deadline of 6PM local. We got in at 3:30PM. Very happy with our plan and route. We had a lot of fun, saw things we would have never gone to before, and experienced riding while tired, fatigued and made good calls when to rest, ultimately arriving safely in Provo.

this is my long way of saying go for it. Maybe it makes sense to try to do 2-3 days and treat as if you were riding a leg of the BLGT as a rally. No real pressure except what you self impose, but forces you to recognize the clock and to be efficient.
 
Thanks. Lots of good info there and I appreciate the knowledge. I actually have a longer bonus route running from my place up through VA, PA and back through WV for a longer test.

Thanks!!!
 
EricV said:
We used to do this stuff with paper maps, highlighters and a bike. The buy in does not have to be large. Go, do, enjoy, learn from the experience.
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Yep. I was away from LD riding for years and got back into it with the 2016 Cal24 Rally. I rode basically a stock bike with just a better seat and custom windshield. No lights, fuel, etc. And I continued to follow The Old Ways, navigating with just paper maps and a highlighter. I still managed a top 10 finish. But I also learned what I felt was really missing from the bike, and the experience helped me prioritize subsequent mods.
 
Ok, so after spending the night and most of the morning reading every post about the IBR21 I feel compelled to try and do a small rally. Dave, I think I'll see you at The Void 10 hour, putting in for vacation days right now! I've just completed a SS1000 and that went well, fortunately it was done on my timetable and I was able to look at weather trends, route options, available daylight and rider/bike condition. After a lot of planning (to the point of overkill) it went off without a hitch, I was lucky! Now looking at a rally, I think that my biggest concern will be passing by points and not maximizing my route effectively, presumably that is an acquired talent and it would take time to develop it. I will be using my iPhone for navigation as it hasn't let me down yet and I can run multiple apps to help keep me on track (and entertained). The only problem I have is the "WATCH YOUR SPEED" announcement at posted limit +9. Hope to see you there! Thanks for starting this post, made the decision to go much easier!!
 
Welcome to the newbie party. I'm planning to use a Garmin and my phone. I did pick up a spot device and have been using it a into get familiar. I have Basecamp loaded on my Surface Pro and can connect the Garmin to it. I plan to load the stops as favorites and use the Garmin from point to point. We'll see what happens. See u there!
 
Shawn K said:
A rider after my own heart. Good on ya!
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Perhaps I should note that one of my main takeaways from the '16 Cal24 was that I really needed to join the 21st century and get a GPS. For example, I remember there was a small bonus in Geyserville. The paper map showed that I'd be riding right through Geyserville on my way to a checkpoint. But once there, the paper map was no help finding a specific address. My options were:

1. Waste a lot of time riding up and down streets hoping to stumble upon the bonus.
2. Find a local who may or may not give me good information.
3. Skip the small bonus.

Is a GPS absolutely necessary? Probably not. But it's one piece of equipment that I'd strongly recommend to anyone new to rallying. If nothing else, it should reduce stress and increase your enjoyment by freeing up mental bandwidth that would otherwise be consumed by time-distance calculations.
 
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