Monte Saager's Rally Blog

Back in the Saddle Again

Monday, June 16, 2008

It had been more than a year since we last ran a competitive event. However there we were on the starting line for the CSCC June Friday Night Road Rally entitled Rats in a Maze trying to remember what to do. In fact it had been so long since we had run an event we didn't even experience Victoria's typical ODO panic attack. We refer to to it as her 'boss Hijack' moment for those fans of the eternally confused.

And it even started off quite well with me talking Victoria out of the protection trap and scoring a zero on leg one. Just like old times!

Leg two fixed our wagon when the NRI TURN at "NEWLAND RD" was given to me without the extra information that it was a sign. We turned right on Newland, the road, but missed the turn to the left previous to it at the pre-marker. We should have turned left at the sign, not right at the road. However, everyone else was equally un-observant. We took a 70 on a 69 point penalty. At least the computer was still accurate...

Up next was a "transit" through the rat maze. A 30-minute trip through a small city where we toured down alleys, had to imagine if a parking strip was a road or not - well, it does have a Route Control on it - and finally got tested on which side of the street we parked on. It was a little strange. But we escaped with only a minor penalty. And once again, where we slipped up for a 50 point penalty, everyone else did too. I think it was one of those "protected" parking strips.

Leg three had an easy trap: R 1st OPP, R 2nd OPP. The trick is to start counting again after the first opp so that you count a total of three, one for the first, two for the second. We scored a 2 for this leg.

Leg four was some sort of mystery to me. We did the trap right and scored a zero but Victoria would never tell me what was going on, just what to do. Times like that make me extremely nervous.

Leg five had an onto that appeared just after a turn. We did that part correctly but somehow managed a 5.

All in all, it was fun event with a lot of traps - just the way we like 'em. Maybe we'll do this again some time. But for now, it's back to course marshaling.

Ducks in the Road - a Friday Nighter Report

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The local Cascade Sports Car Club rally season got off to a smooth start in the Portland area when twenty six teams embarked on our March Friday Nighter.

Since it was the first event after rally school, we kept it simple using a good route and a number of the more common traps that area has seen in the past. There was also almost no course following.

We started with our same old odo trap:

1. L at "STOP" MBCU. Begin odometer calibration TRANSIT zone. You have 35 minutes to complete the next 15 NRIs.

Since you just finished NRI 1, the next 15 would end with the completion of NRI 16.

But of course, to mislead even further, NRI 15 is:

15. L on FAIRVIEW BLVD, End Odometer Calibration TRANSIT zone. CAST 20. Introduce NOTE BUMPS: PAUSE .10 minutes at second "BUMP"

Of course nothing says that the end of the odo and the alloted time block have to end at the same location, And of course they don't.

The time block ends at the conclusion of the next NRI:

16. L on SKYLINE BLVD, PAUSE .25 minutes

And since your time is based on conclusion of the NRI, you don't execute the .25 Pause either. It's already included.

We usually make that pause a little longer for added pain but it's the first rally of the year, we were being nice. However, this simple trap that we repeat again and again still causes problems for some.

Once past the odo trap, it was a short, easy drive to the first checkpoint while counting "BUMPS". In fact, the entire leg after the odo was less than 2 miles.

Let 2 started innocently enough with NRI 28 offering a .25 penalty for using the NRI redundant with following the main road at a T.

28. L on SKYLINE BLVD, PAUSE .25 minutes ITIS

NRI 30 was similar only this time the NRI was executed since the main road went to the right at the T by Protection.

30. L at T. PAUSE .25 minutes ITIS

Along the way, came the theme of our event, a duck sign with a mother duck and two baby ducklings. Well, actually the one we put in the route instructions showed three ducklings. Love that Photoshop. Yes, we took a picture of the real sign and then edited it.

Complaints of playing with signs were rampant.

So let me ask you this: would you turn at "SMITH" when looking for "JONES"? It's the same thing. Tsk, tsk.

As it turns out, there are not only duck signs with the correct two ducklings but also signs displaying three! So now what do you say? We say you used the wrong one!

Four miles after the second checkpoint was encountered another spelling/sign trap was offered:

33. L at "ELLIOT" ITIS

The sign actually reads "ELLIOTT" but no one seemed to complain about this one. Even those that did it wrong. Must have been too obvious.

NRI 36 seemed to offer a dilemma for some.

36. CSD 3 one mile prior to "ENTERING WASHINGTON COUNTY"

So how do you know where to CAST? You don't and you don't need to.

First, you must travel more than a mile prior to reaching the sign or you can't do the NRI at all. But once you do, a quick comparison of the speed factors will tell you how much to pause to effect a CAST change one mile prior to the sign.

And for a little more fun in leg three, there was a simple mileage trap.

38. L on PHILLIPS RD, CAST 40 watch for rally traffic next 1.25 miles

39. L first OPP, CAST 25

40. DIYC at "CASCADE SPORTS CAR CLUB". (Comes up quick!) Watch for rally traffic next 1.25 miles. Introduce NOTE NOT NOW: PAUSE 0.70 minutes at "RXR".

If you used NRI 39 prior to traveling the 1.25 miles while watching for rally traffic you ended up at the wrong DIYC location.

However this also causes a slight dilemma. Teams are now ending at two different locations. How to square up time in the next leg?

Well, that was the purpose of the Note. On course cars would see the reference after the DIYC but prior to reaching the 1.25 miles and refuse it while off course cars would see it after the mileage and use it. That amount of time was the exact difference. Problem solved with elegance.

So some said, "yes, but this was an extra trap on the on course side". True, but since the on course cars had reached the correct DIYC via a mileage trap, seems they should be able to do another one correctly upon leaving. I actually expected one complaint about this and he came through with flying colors.

The final leg had an old Protection trap - the one at the T at the Rock Creek Tavern with a resulting ITIS.

43. L on GERMANTOWN, PAUSE 0.25 minutes ITIS

On course teams used the NRI at a side road, off course refused it at a T. From there, it was a short and sweet ride to the finish at Godfathers Pizza in Bethany where we determined both the winners and the whiners.

A big thanks to our checkpoint crews for a job well done. We hope to see you all next month.

Related Links:
Download the rally files
Cascade Sports Car Club

Here Comes the Rally Season!

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

As spring approaches and blossoms start to form we start to think of new beginnings. Victoria's little plant starts are starting to come up and March is on the horizon. It must be time for rally school!

And that makes this a good time to think about getting a jump on the upcoming rally season by attending the Cascade Sports Car Club road rally school on Saturday, March 1.

The school will feature classroom instruction from long time rallier Simon Levear followed by a short road rally to put those skills to the test.

Here's just a few reasons you might want to attend a rally school:

never been to a TSD road rally
confused by TSD course following
keep getting caught by tricks and traps
brush up on skills prior to the first event

Whatever your reason, it's always a good time and we'll hope to see you there.

For more information, click here.

The Luckiest Man in Earth

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

This has nothing to do with car rallies, nothing at all. But today, I released this announcement to my online baseball league for my last-place team:

In an attempt to spice up their offense, the Geralds are trying to obtain the services of ace lead-off man Eddie Gaedel. The teams manager told reporters that what the team really needs is another big bat and no one makes it look bigger than Eddie.

Reached later at his grave site, Gaedel responded with: "Today I am the luckiest man in earth".

A real baseball fan should find this hysterical. The rest of you can stare open-mouthed, it's ok.

Those Tricky Relationships

Monday, August 27, 2007

An actual conversation from a checkpoint located somewhere along the route of the Beaver Cleaver:

Driver: "Tell me again why I do this?"

CP Worker: "Chicks dig it."

Navigator/Wife: And why do I do it?"

CP Worker: "Chicks dig it."

And there you have it.

Easy To Be Hard

Thursday, August 16, 2007

I've never had trouble creating an event that was tricky in nature. Why some days the road rally tricks and traps probably roll out the door here faster than you could write them down.

In spite of that, it's amazing how hard I have to struggle to get started sometimes. I feel like I have no new ideas. There's just no place to get started.

then a few months later I look back and there it is - 20+ legs of trick and trap finery bursting at the seams and just waiting to be tested.

Of course I basically do this for my own enjoyment and that's where it gets hard. For you...

I've never enjoyed a calm, casual drive through the country. We call that boring. I more prefer to be driving down the road while working on 5 variable MRD's, 2 route instructions with a few notes going on. That's when I feel calm - plenty to look for and no idea of what may show up next.

Yes, it's easy for me to make an event a challenge.

However, this year we also decided to write a touring event. What? Monte writes a dull tour? Yes, indeedy. I would say dull was probably the keyword there. At least that's how the checkout crew gently put it to us. "My navigator kept falling asleep!"

Well, you don't have to hit us with a shovel to get the idea.

So, we re-tooled.

As we like to say, "when we make a rally hard, it's deliberate!".

Now I wouldn't describe the Northwest Passage National Tour as hard since it's a tour - there are no traps. But you won't be bored either.

We've added a few well-chosen automatic route instructions (think NOTEs locally) that should keep things interesting.

No one will call it boring now. Guaranteed. Better hurry and get those registrations in. The fun is only a little more than a week away.

And speaking of fun, Victoria and I went out the other night and took in Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine on his Farewell Tour. What a great act. Everyone needs a little Dick now and then...

Learning To Fish and Other Thoughts

Monday, June 18, 2007

This past Friday night we worked one of the checkpoints on the CSCC June Friday Night rally, the appropriately named Spider Rally since it did have eight legs.

It was designed as a simple tour with no traps but a few mild surprises. The first one occurs while sitting at the out marker for leg two. The next checkpoint is about .25 miles straight ahead. Total time to the control: .67 minutes. Roughly 40 seconds. The second mild surprise was that since the course would return to the same control, they would see the same exact leg two more times.

What I was interested in was this; since you had been given the exact time and mileage to the control the first time through, would you use that information the remaining times?

Simply put, since they had given you the slip once, you could reason that with the same CAST, it would once again take 40 seconds to reach the control.

So if you leave the out marker exactly on time and have the navigator count down from 40, all you have to do is cross the line at zero and you should get a pretty good score.

Looking at the scores, different strategies may have been employed.

It reminds me of a day in DC when my navigator Jimmy Hathcock saved a leg by employing a similar approach - gleaning important information from the CP slip.

We were having a trying morning since we were usually over-matched at this point yet we had finally worked our way back through the course and were in the midst of doing an Aristotle-trapped leg correctly.

When we arrived at the Control, the worker handed us a slip and told us he was closed. YIKES!

We informed the worked that the RM at the previous control told us they would keep the controls ahead of us open so we could catch back up.

He said that would be fine but he had turned his clock off. Would we like to declare an in time?

Without missing a beat, Jimmy looked at the slip, added the leg time to our out time and declared a perfect in time.

The worker thanked us and wrote it down. Off we went headed for more disaster but with at least one zero on the day due to Jimmy's quick thinking.

Go ahead and check out the CSCC results to see how the other quick thinker's handled a rally course so easy even a slot car racer could do it.

Goodbye to the Mark Timing System

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

It's a rally joke, see. We refer to it as the "Mark" timing system. It goes like this:

A car drives past the sign. The checkpoint worker looks at the clock, pushes the button, waits a few seconds for effect and then loudly proclaims "mark!".

We won't be using that joke any more as this past Friday we tried our new timing line/clock interface box with great success.

The new box allows us to time cars hands-free by connecting the output from the timing lines through our conversion box and directly to the checkpoint clock. So as cars drive across the line, the clock automatically records the exact in time. Just like it should be.

Remember, make sure you cross the line!

Now then, if anyone has a good lead on about 3000 feet of wire...

Silly ODO Tricks

Sunday, May 6, 2007

This past month, it was our pleasure to be the RallyMasters for the Cascade Sports Car Club April Friday Nighter.

Since we are Type A course ralliers, it's also one of our pleasures to use a trap somewhere in the odometer calibration section. No sense waiting any longer than necessary.

We typically use this one:

0.00    1. L at "STOP" MBCU. Begin odometer calibration TRANSIT zone. You have 40 minutes to complete the next 18 NRIs.

So in this example you have to realize that the next 18 ends at NRI 19, not 18. The calibration section ends at NRI 18 naturally enough, but the time ends at NRI 19. We've used it for so long that even Nanook can do it right. So this time we threw them a slight change and it's surprising how many teams were caught. It went like this:

0.00    1. L at "STOP" MBCU. Begin odometer calibration TRANSIT zone. You have 40 minutes to complete NRI 18.

And NRI 18 looked like this:

15.901    18. End odometer calibration TRANSIT at "STOP", then R on THOMPSON MBCU, CAST 30, GAIN 0.25 minute next 1 mile.

So, not only did you have to drive to the 15.9 mile mark to end the calibration portion, but you also had to go right on Thompson AND travel one more mile (the gain) all within 40 minutes. Yes, you have to complete the GAIN to complete the NRI.

Here's what you can do wrong:

Decide the gain doesn't need to be finished before executing the next NRI.
Start working on the gain when you leave the end of the odo.

In the first case, teams used the next NRI (R AFTER "500 FEET") too soon and took the off course loop for a two minute penalty. It was easily hidden since there were two "500 FEET" signs on the same road a few miles apart.

In the second case, teams took the correct route but still received a two minute penalty for being one mile behind when they finished the 40 minutes.

The lesson here is simple. Don't get ahead of yourself. Finish what you're working on before you go on to something else. I can hear my mother now...

"Monte, finish your route instruction, there are navigators lost in Europe!"

Thanks, Mom. Happy Mothers Day.

Here Comes the Rally Season

Monday, March 12, 2007

It's that time again when spring is just around the corner and rally is in the air. And this year we get an added bonus as daylight savings time has been pushed up far enough that the first rally should actually include some daylight driving.

This year the Bad Mood Rising rally team will be mostly non-competitive as we work with the local rallymasters to insure some quality control. You can rest assured that all CSCC Friday Nighters this year will be Saager-approved.

This past weekend the CSCC rally school led by Professor Simon Levear instructed about 40 members of the future-lost in the fine art of TSD featuring plenty of time on rules and course following. After the nearly three-hour classroom session, the students were loosed on the course with most finishing.

This coming Friday night begins the counting events with the first one being Jill and Jeff Zurschmeide's The Wrong Side of the Tracks. We've already seen the course and can tell you it will be entirely paved, about 2.5 hours long and tough, but fair with a finish at Chili's in Wilsonville.

Come on out, we'll see you there.

Hey, we win again!

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Was it just last year that Oregon's drivers were declared the cream of the American road crop? Well, we're back atop the recently released list once again making the road a safer place for all.

Congratulations to us and our neighbors to the north, a fine second place state.

Sinisterly Stalking Slippery Signs

Tuesday, November 7, 2006

It's was Saturday night and we were in the midst of the CSCC Ghouls Gambol Halloween Road Rally when Victoria said "It's just the Halloween Rally, it doesn't really matter". And in a way, she was right. The result wouldn't add to our season point total which was already enough to insure a first place overall in our class. But there was still a sign out there and I wanted to find it...

Two hours earlier we had left the start in SE Portland headed toward Washington County and a tour of the local cemeteries. Sounds easy enough but since cemeteries don't get a lot of night traffic, their signs aren't designed for night-time viewing and that's where our problems would start.

Using skill and strategy, we snuck through with a one on the very short first leg. But on the second leg we missed a non-reflective side-facing cemetery sign and started taking points. Nearly two-hundred.

On the next leg we found one hard to see sign only to learn on the CP slip that there had been two! Then on the next leg, the RM made a slight mis-step in the NRIs and where he counted one sign, we actually found two. Fortunately, counts are usually always corrected and with a little prodding, such was the case here and we saved a half-minute penalty but probably gave one to everyone else.

And that brought us to the last sign hunt.

The task was to find and pause at the Phillips Cemetery sign. Well as luck would have it, I knew just about exactly where the sign was since I had seen it a number of times going the other direction always wondering what I could use it for on a rally. So I should be able to spot it.

We drive by the location where it should be and I can't see it. We drive up to the Stop sign. I know we have to have passed it so I tell Victoria to just put the computer in park and we'll go back and find it. On the way back, I still can't find it. How hard can it be to find a sign?

We turn around in the middle of the road, since there aren't any good spots nearby, and drive back toward the stop sign. I ask for the flashlight and shine it out into the field where I think the sign should be. I can see what looks like a sign, can't read it. Looking around, we find a small access road and pull in. By moving the car around we eventually get the hi-beams positioned to read the sign and it says: "Phillips Cemetery". HA! Knew it. However, how they really expect anyone to find a sign like that in the dark is beyond me.

We add in our pause time and a three and a half minute time allowance for the extra time spent sign hunting and proceed to the finish a little happier for our efforts doubting anyone else would see it as well.

And after the leg times were corrected for the extra sign we had found, we moved into first in our class, second overall just squeaking past the Unlimited team of April Smith and Marcus Song.

Congratulations to the first overall team of Leah Ferber and Anndrea Wiesner from the SOP class. Good job!

Complete results can be found here.

Adopt-a Road Clean-up and other stories

Monday, September 18, 2006

It's always nice to clean up. With that in mind, we joined a few members of the rally community for the Cascade Sports Car Club's bi-annual Adopt-a Road roadside clean-up.

You occasionally see the Adopt-a-Road signs around the countryside where different groups have taken it upon themselves to clean a section of the public roadway.

As road ralliers, the Cascade Geargrinders adopted an appropriate section of road just off NW Phillips Road, notably the loop between Dick and Valley Vista. It's a nice section that has seen many rallies travel beneath it's scenic trestle.

While we were walking along casually cleaning our side of the road, to our amazement, along came a train. In all my years of being in that area, this was the first train I had seen so we stood under the trestle while the train rattled by.

We were finished in a little less than two hours or slightly less than your average Friday Nighter. We had about six to eight large garbage bags filled with trash, beer bottles, a few car parts, and a few items that are best left to your imagination.

After such a taxing morning, the crew retired to the Helvetia Tavern for drinks, burgers and rally talk like 'how about that Friday Nighter'.

Thanks to all the ralliers that made it out to help: Brandon Harer, Mike Olson, Steve Walker, Rene and Marius Damm - all pictured below. Victoria Saager - not pictured.

The only thing better than a Sunday morning clean up is getting to clean up on Friday night. And that brings us to the most recent rally...

This month's Cascade Sports Car Club Friday Nighter was Simon Levear's Bum Steer II. The original Bum Steer was put on some years ago and was known as a clever use of instructions as there was only one page, one control location and each leg started over at NRI 14. There were some traps, it was entertaining, we missed the on course Route Control and we won.

Bum Steer II would feature many of the same things as its predecessor. There was only one page of instructions and only one control, and each leg re-used the instructions from the previous leg. There were no real traps, save missing a NOTE or two and it was entertaining. Now here's where the difficulty begins...

Each leg re-uses the same set so it offers a rather complex instruction set. Since an NRI could be used on multiple legs, many of them are either ITIS or OR instructions. On a typical event, this would be the marking of traps. On this event it just helped separate which leg your were on. For instance, on the first leg you might use the A side of NRI 17 but on leg two you might use the B side. On leg three, you might use the NRI 18 ITIS while it may have been skipped on all the other legs. There were no traps. With this much going on, who needs traps?

For us, the difficulty of the route instructions is pretty standard fare. The SCCA events are far more difficult and they DO have traps.

So without saying much more we'll just say that our total of five points for four legs pretty well blew away the rest of the field. And leaving the end of the odo ten minutes early didn't hurt...

Afterwards, Karen thanked us for showing the rest of the folks that the course did indeed work.

Thanks Simon, we're already looking forward to Bum Steer III.

September in Seattle

Monday, September 11, 2006

Once again we ventured north of the mighty Skookumchuck for the NWRC Friday Nighter: The No Trap Double Cross. This month the event was hosted by not a single club, but the entire NWRC. It was explained at the drivers meeting that there would be a variety of checkpoint signs used and no traps. At least that's what they said, we'd just see how that would hold up...

Coming in at just about 75 miles and 8 CP's, it was a rather lengthy event that didn't see us reach the finish until close to 10pm. It was busy too with 49 speed changes and 15 pauses spread over 55 NRIs. Yikes!

Typical of Seattle events though, it never seemed very hurried on my side of the car.

And trapless wasn't entirely correct depending on your definition. There was an observe for a Yellow Submarine ITIS we refused since it wasn't signed. WRONG! Good thing there was no time penalty attached to it.

Late in the event we left the 6th control heading for what looked like a do-it-yourself control. On the way to the last NRI - for the DIY - we pass both a horse xing and a school xing at just about the same point. I think to myself, ahhhh, a double cross, clever. It was just about that time that we found the manned control prior to the DIY! However, we had anticipated such a "trap" and were traveling on time at CAST.

Our final score of 8 points over 7 scored controls - one was tossed - put us in second position behind the team of Mannisto and Gibson who had a great run with 4 points.

Next up on the schedule is the CSCC Friday Nighter. We'll see you there.

It's Time for the Rose City Challenge!

Friday, August 4, 2006

Ok friends, only one week left until the start of the 2006 Rose City Challenge hosted by the Oregon Rally Group. Do you know when your start time is?

And yes, Virginia, there is still time to register.

Here's why you should.

1. You will enjoy a 100% paved experience for two days in the gorgeous countryside surrounding the Chehalis, Washington area.

Not as hard as it sounds as almost all the roads in this area are already nicely paved. All the areas are scenic. Mountains abound. Temperatures are moderate. And best of all, lots of intersections. This IS a wonderful area to conduct two days of rallying. Traffic on the rally roads in most areas is virtually non-existent. Occasionally the train runs through that early morning dawn just to leave that ol wailin sound. (Ok, name that tune!)

2. You will be able to enjoy your first day's course following based solely on modern scientific principles, perhaps a first in the TSD rallying world.

Basically, as we have all come to know, scientists divide all things in the world into three groups: Animal, Vegetable and Mineral. Our new, fresh, Animal-Vegetable-Mineral main road concept will take you where other main roads have failed. Oh, the excitement! The suspense! The conflicts! Dont miss this scientific first

3. Tour scenic spots previously undisturbed by rally traffic

You'll see fabulous scenery and roadside attractions like friendly Indian reservations, the only tavern in town, and the World's Largest Egg, while fulfilling exciting navigational challenges like watching for Peacocks on the way to Sears. The traps will surprise and confound you with their simplicity.

4. Endure diverse mathematical challenges courtesy of the Huskie Beaver.

That's right, he's out there, he's on your tail, and he absolutely, positively will not stop! So what are you going to do when the meanest, cleaverest Beaver in town catches up with you?

For further updates, downloadable general instructions, news and information, or current entry lists, not to mention online rally registration, please visit the official web site: http://www.tsdroadrally.com/rcc

You'll laugh. You'll cry. You'll probably howl at the moon.

The Rose City Challenge 2006 coming to a road near you soon…