Tennessee Twister: My first rally

#1
If this is not the right place for this, please feel free to move it and/or let me know:

First, kudos and thanks to Lynne Carey who in my opinion, although this was my first rally, put together what I thought was a great combination of roads, requirements, and sights for the Tennessee Twister.

I don’t fancy myself as much of a writer, but I think the perspective of someone who has never done a rally on their very first one, probably has some unique value, so here’s what happened for me leading up to and in my first rally, the inaugural Tennessee Twister held this past weekend.

Planning and Training: When I started thinking I’d like to do a rally, I started by looking for advice with internet searches. I downloaded Garmin Basecamp, and got an old rally book with waypoints to teach myself how to put them into a map and create a route. In the meantime, I bought a Garmin Zumo and for a test run I plotted my Sturgis trip with some 17 waypoints and loaded it in. I learned a lot about the Zumo (hard to read without my bifocals, impossible to read in sunlight, and NOT always bringing me the way I expected/wanted), and then it frigging died halfway into my Sturgis trip! (Turned out to be a bad power cable which was a pain, but simple to fix). Luckily, I had set up my phone/google maps as a back-up (strongly suggested in my readings) and simply used that until I got the Zumo fixed.

Then I heard about the Tennessee Twister. A 10-hour rally where I could start anywhere I wanted outside Tennessee and the finish would be in Crossville Tn. I sent my application and money to Lynne Carey and started fantasizing (lol).

When the rally book was issued, I thought I read it thoroughly (turned out I didn’t read it as thoroughly as I needed to!), got the gpx file into Basecamp, and started looking at routes. I also put all the bonus locations and point values into an excel file so that I could ID the highest point value locations thinking that might be a way to spot a good route. In this rally though it seemed like the big bonuses were mostly way out distance wise and not worth the time it would take to collect them given the 10-hour time limit. This rally also required a visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway and any overlook for 1000 points. *Most bonus locations ranged from about 250 to 500. And there was an “option” to get a second overlook that would be worth whatever the elevation for that overlook was! It wasn’t hard to figure out that would be the diamond value bonus location and a little research led me to the highest point on the Parkway, Richland Balsam overlook at 6,053 ft. After several hours and coming up with what I thought would be a good route I transferred it all to the Zumo, thinking I was done (ROFLMAO).

Basecamp had estimated the route would take 9 hours. I figured with stops for pics and at least one gas stop, that would work well. But when I transferred everything to the Zumo, the time estimate was only 7.5 hours! To figure out which estimate was more accurate, I put all the locations into Google maps to see what it would say. Knowing Google considers traffic, I ran it in Google Friday night, and then ran it again Saturday morning since that was when the rally would be, to try and get the best estimate I could. Google maps said this route would only take 8 hours, so I went back and re-worked the route adding more bonus locations. I Finally decided on a route that bonus locations than I would probably not be able to get to, but they were at the end of the route and I could bail on them easily enough. Basecamp said would take 11 hours, Zumo said 9, and Google said 9.75. Thinking about what I could do if Zumo was off, or if my stops took longer, or something else happened to slow me down, I also looked at how much time I could save by bailing on each of the last 3 bonus locations. Google said, if I had to make up time, I could gain 30 minutes, 15 minutes, and another 10 minutes, respectively by bailing on each of the last three. I was happy, thought I had covered all the bases, made cue cards (one for each bonus location) to keep in the window of my tank bag telling me the address of each stop and the pic requirement. I used Google to find a hotel closest to my first bonus which turned out to be Toccoa, Ga., and suffered through 105 degrees in Atlanta traffic to drive up the day before the rally. Got there safe and into bed early to make sure I got a good nights sleep.

The Rally: I woke up early (I was a little excited) and got to my start position at about 6:20. At the official start time, 7:00 AM EST, 6:00 CST, I topped off the tank and got my receipt. Checking the time on it, it said 6:58! DAMN IT. I went inside and bought a $1 lottery ticket to get my start receipt for 7:01, stuffed it in my pocket and headed out for my first bonus location at the Tallulah Point Overlook. I was supposed to get a pic of the front and a pic of the gorge from their back deck, but the place was locked! I tried to call Lynne to ask what I should do and couldn’t get her so I took pics of the locked gate and got one of the gorge as best I could from the side of the building before heading for my next bonus: Goats on the Roof.

Here I was supposed to get a pic of the “Goats on the Roof” sign on the building, and a pic of a live goat, but the place was closed! I wandered all around the perimeter of the property and saw no damn goats. I found an open gate and went around the back where the barns were, including a sign that said, “Don’t let the goat out, no matter what he says,” making me think maybe they were all locked up in that barn. Poor Lynne. I called her and said, “The place is closed and there’s no damned goats!” She said, “Yes there is. Keep looking. Two other people have already sent in pics from there.” So then I’m thinking, “Great, so not only am I apparently blind, but two people are way ahead of me already!” Then I spotted the buggers. They were on the roof! (Guess I should have figured that out from the name eh?) I snapped my pic and got back on the road to location #3. Getting to and claiming #3 and #4 were relatively simple and I felt like I was getting into a rhythm of sorts… Then disaster struck.

I’m still not sure how this happened. My cue cards said I was going to #5, “Chapel of Sky Valley,” and somehow I ended up at Bella’s Mountain Junction Café, which was supposed to be bonus location #6 for me, but I didn’t realize where I was and that it was a bonus location because I was so frustrated and focused on trying to find the Chapel of Sky Valley (#5). Once I finally found the Chapel, I headed for what Garmin said was my next stop. My cue cards said it was Bella’s Mountain Junction Café (#6), but Garmin took me to #7, Hickory Knoll Methodist Church, 12 miles and at least 20 minutes to the north. I got to the church and was ready to pull my hair out because Bella’s was not there. And again, I didn’t realize this was one of my scheduled bonus locations. I was ready to chuck the Zumo in the bushes, but I plugged the address for Bella’s into my phone’s google maps and took off to find it. Only when I made the turn into Sky Valley did I realize what I had done and that I was now backtracking and losing a lot of valuable time. Then it dawned on me that I had just left the Hickory Knoll Church and that it was another bonus location, without collecting it because I didn’t realize that was where I was!

Once I stopped cussing out myself and Garmin in my head, I calculated that I was losing about an hour and decided that all I could do at that point was to keep an eye on my predicted arrival time and bail on stops I wouldn’t have time for. I thought as long as I could get through my route at least to my overlook bonuses and not be time barred, I’d still have a respectable finish.

The rest of the ride was essentially error free on my part and absolutely gorgeous once I calmed down enough to enjoy it! I’m a Louisiana boy and while I get to ride all year round, there’s not much in the way of hills and twisties, so these roads were pure ecstasy for me! Of course, there was a car show in Waynesville that made it difficult to get to that bonus location, and all kinds of festivals and happenings in Cherokee making it tough to get to the two bonus locations there, but I got there in both cases and even got out relatively easily.

Where I expected a bottleneck, on the Blue Ridge Parkway, was not bad at all! Traffic was actually pretty light and the scenery was awesome with several sections being partially covered by clouds. I collected my big overlook bonuses, and one at the Pisgah Inn, and took off hoping to make up enough time to get at least one more bonus location before bailing on the rest. Garmin said to take Highway 151 so I did, and all I can say is, “WOW.” I’ve ridden the dragon, which is definitely a technical run, but I think this road was even more technical. Tons of genuine 25mph or less corners, no centerline, no barriers on the side, and a descent grade I estimate was right around 10-12%. There was no other traffic on the road, ahead or oncoming, and I had a ball tossing my street glide in and out of the corners. The speed limit signs said 35, but I very rarely got it up to 35, and then quickly had to grab brakes for the next corner. They say the average distance from the exit of one corner to the beginning of the next on the Dragon is 60 feet. I daresay it wasn’t any more than that on 151!

After getting off 151, I headed toward the finish and kept trying to figure out how I could have enough time to get at least one more bonus location in. Looking at my estimated arrival time I was going to have to bail on the last 4 bonus locations! I figured I’d get on the road to Crossville and see if I could make up enough time to get at least one of them in. I had my estimated arrival time going straight to the finish on the Zumo, and on google maps I had the arrival time if I went for the closest bonus location along the way. In the end, the closest I got was google saying that if I went to the bonus, I would get to the finish at 3:52, eight minutes before being time barred. After all the issues I’d had with traffic and the disaster at the beginning, I finally decided it just wasn’t worth the risk and headed for the finish.

At the scoring table I had a heart attack… well, I almost had a heart attack. Lynne told me that the picture I sent in for my mandatory overlook bonus didn’t have my “flag” in it! That meant that my big overlook bonus, 6,053 points, would only count for 1,000! I looked at the pic I sent and sure enough, the “flag” was not in it… but then I checked my phone, and there was the pic I meant to send, with the “flag” in it! Thank God!!!! I did lose my first bonus though. Remember I “thought” I read the rally book thoroughly? Turns out that first location (Tallulah overlook) was only good after 9 AM, and I didn’t realize that and visited it as my first stop at like 6:10 AM. I also lost half my points from the “Goats on the Roof” stop. I had been so relieved to find the damned goats up on the roof, I forgot to get my “flag” in the pic! In the end, I left the table with about 12,300 points. I was bummed that I left so many points out on the road, and a few at the scoring table, but still feeling pretty good about finishing, figuring I’d be somewhere in the middle of the group score wise at the final tally. And the icing on the cake was that I had been on some absolutely gorgeous roads, never really got rained on, and had a ball.

Dinner and awards would be at 5:30, so I hung out and chatted with people for a bit, got checked into the hotel, and then headed over to the dinner with everyone else. We had a long table to accommodate everyone and I sat sort of in the middle. Lynne took a spot right next to me so she could be heard by all and after we placed our orders, she broke out the envelopes and started reading results starting with the last finisher. Because of where I was sitting, I was able to see the points total on each envelope as she picked it up, before she opened it and announced the name. So when she picked up the envelop for the last finisher, I was thrilled to see a points total lower than mine! As she worked her way up the list, I started getting more and more excited. I had scored above the 50% mark of the group! When she got to the envelope for the 4th place finisher, I think I blurted out, “holy shit!” because the total was still lower than mine! I was completely surprised, tickled to death, and pretty much speechless to hear that despite all my errors I had gotten 3rd place!

Lessons Learned:
  • Read the Rally Book thoroughly.
  • After developing a route, Read the Rally Book thoroughly, with special attention to the bonus locations you plan to hit.
  • Transfer the route to Garmin to get the more realistic time to finish estimate.
  • Bring a map or basecamp with you! When I was trying to figure out how to get at least one more bonus in I had the rally book but no map to tell me what my relative position was. That would have helped a lot in making a decision.
  • When Garmin brings me somewhere I think is wrong, don’t just dismiss it as an error, think about why it might have brought me there.
  • After developing the route, making cue cards, and packing the laptop or a map of the bonuses, Read the Rally Book thoroughly.
  • Finally, cry and cuss about errors if you must, but then let it go and enjoy the ride. Whoever said this, they are absolutely right. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.
(Author’s note: My online identity is “Roberto Gonzales,” but that is a pseudonym because of my work. (Ask me in person and I’ll tell you about it). My real name is Bob Storer. Sorry if not knowing that up front caused any confusion for anyone. Like it did for Lynne, who saw this Roberto Gonzales guy posting about the rally and she KNEW she didn’t have anyone by that name in it! Lol Sorry about that Lynne, and thanks again for an awesome experience!)
 

HACKLE

Well-Known Member
#2
Bob, there's an old saying. Always expect the unexpected. This certainly applies to you and your first rally. Congratulations on a totally unexpected 3rd. place. The added bonus, as you stated, being that you rode some great roads. I can see that your appetite has been wetted so to speak, more rallies coming up in the future. A great read on a great first rally. Looking forward to reading more in the future. Cheers.
 
#3
Bob, there's an old saying. Always expect the unexpected. This certainly applies to you and your first rally. Congratulations on a totally unexpected 3rd. place. The added bonus, as you stated, being that you rode some great roads. I can see that your appetite has been wetted so to speak, more rallies coming up in the future. A great read on a great first rally. Looking forward to reading more in the future. Cheers.
Thanks Graham.
"Wetted" hell, the hook has been solidly set! lol
 

cacomly

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#5
Bob, congrats on your first rally and on your finish. If you don't mind, here are a few suggestions for next time:

Note that the point value for a bonus is normally tied to the amount of effort to get it. That could be distance traveled, or what is required. It could also be that the rally master just wants everyone to go there.

Before you start planning your route or loading the bonus locations into your Garmin, rename them to include the point value and availability. That will help you plan, allow you to add a bonus if you have time, or may prevent issues such as you had when you showed up at the wrong bonus

I see you learned about Reading Comprehension. I like to read the requirements in the rally book when I get to a bonus to ensure I got everything, and after I capture a bonus I will read the requirement for the next bonus before leaving. It takes a bit of time, but helps lessen the chance for making a mistake

And lastly, when participating in a remote start rally where you get a starting receipt always check the receipt before the rally to ensure the time is correct. I skipped that step once and the time was 36 minutes late at a gas station, both at the pump and in the store. I got lucky that there was a bank across the street and I was able to get an ATM receipt with a minute to spare.

Note that the Void Rally is Columbus Day weekend and finishes in Fredericksburg VA. They have a 10 hr rally and 32+ hour rally with a start in TN and GA.
 
#6
Bob, congrats on your first rally and on your finish. If you don't mind, here are a few suggestions for next time:

Note that the point value for a bonus is normally tied to the amount of effort to get it. That could be distance traveled, or what is required. It could also be that the rally master just wants everyone to go there.

Before you start planning your route or loading the bonus locations into your Garmin, rename them to include the point value and availability. That will help you plan, allow you to add a bonus if you have time, or may prevent issues such as you had when you showed up at the wrong bonus

I see you learned about Reading Comprehension. I like to read the requirements in the rally book when I get to a bonus to ensure I got everything, and after I capture a bonus I will read the requirement for the next bonus before leaving. It takes a bit of time, but helps lessen the chance for making a mistake

And lastly, when participating in a remote start rally where you get a starting receipt always check the receipt before the rally to ensure the time is correct. I skipped that step once and the time was 36 minutes late at a gas station, both at the pump and in the store. I got lucky that there was a bank across the street and I was able to get an ATM receipt with a minute to spare.

Note that the Void Rally is Columbus Day weekend and finishes in Fredericksburg VA. They have a 10 hr rally and 32+ hour rally with a start in TN and GA.
Thanks Chris.
Looks like I'm too late for the VOID. Website says registration is closed. But I've got some family in that area so maybe next year.