Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

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supasixfo
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Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by supasixfo »

Rally Delaware was supposed to be this weekend but ended up getting cancelled. That's too bad because it looks like our car actually would have been repaired in time for the rally. It would have been all too easy to just wrap up our first rally season there, but it didn't feel right to end on a down note. Looking over the schedule I noticed Gorman Ridge was being run the same weekend, just you know, on the wrong side of the country...

Then I mistakenly let the gears start turning in my head. 3 weeks of planning later, here we are. I'm packing my bags, my dcawd sticker, and my lucky kangaroo scrotum (it was a gift :P?). I'm anxious/excited/a million other emotions, but here's to representin' east coast rallyists on the left coast this weekend. Thanks to all for being supportive and encouraging me to get back in the grind!
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On August 25th 2012, Black Box rally team will be participating in the California Rally Series by carving up the 120 combined miles of gravel roads at the Gorman Ridge rally in Lebec, CA. This will be the team’s first west coast rally.

At the beginning of the month, it was announced that Rally Delaware was cancelled, leaving the team with no rally action for the month of August. “We had folks on the team that had already taken time off, excited to get back rallying since the Rally NY RallySprint. We weren’t prepared to end our rally season yet, especially on a down note, and I noticed Gorman Ridge was being run the same weekend. It was a long shot (no pun intended), but I immediately picked up the phone to see what we could make happen” Driver Alvin Fong said.

One of those calls was to Aaron Laeng at Laengworks. Laengworks, located in Hesperia, CA had a couple rally-prepared evos ready to go. Aaron Laeng recalled:
“When we got the call from Alvin asking if we had a car to rent for Gorman, the answer was an easy YES. Within 24 hours of the first phone call we had made the deal. We look forward to working with Alvin & the Black Box rally team”
Alvin Fong also had this to say:
“Laengworks was extremely accommodating and went out of their way to put together a package to help support all our rally needs. The odds were looking pretty dismal, trying to get the logistics of shipping a car, tools, spares; it was a nightmare. After talking to Aaron, all we have to do now is basically show up and go racing ”
In addition to rally rentals and race support services, Laengworks also provides full race preparation, fabrication, and performance modification services. You can find more information about Laengworks here: Facebook – Laengworks

New to the team for this rally is Marra Estep, who will be co-driving. As the 2009 and 2010 USRC Champion Co-Driver, Marra will be bringing her expert experience to help the team through the event. Marra exclaimed:
“I was so excited when I got the message from Alvin. I definitely need to thank Aaron at Laengworks for making this happen. I am looking forward to helping out the team and introducing the East Coaster to our West Coat stages.”
Alvin Fong went on to say: “I still can’t believe this is happening. Just a few weeks ago, our rally season looked like it had come to a premature end. I have to thank the rally organizers, Laengworks, our crew, and all our supporters out there for pushing us to get back up on our feet, and helping us to overcome all the challenges to make it out to the event!”

If you are in the Los Angeles area, come out to Gorman Ridge rally to check out Black Box and all the rest of the rally teams. Spectator information and live results can be checked here: http://www.gormanridgerally.com.

As always, we’ll post updates throughout the event on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally.
http://www.blackboxrally.com/black-box- ... dge-rally/
Alvin
Black Box rally team
Our blog: http://www.blackboxrally.com
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally
supasixfo
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Re: Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by supasixfo »

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Gettin' it done!

This rally was all about getting my head back in the game. With rny rallysprint behind me, i concentrated on the desert trails, and mountain passes that make up Gorman Ridge. Wow what a difference from forests on the east coasts! On the desert trails, we got into a groove blasting down the faster corners.

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We're working on a video but let's just say Gorman has some of the tightest, gnarliest roads i've experienced. The elevation changes were amazing. Just imagine powering up a a life-size parabola (math reference ftw)...except the top is a completely blind right where if you attack too fast, you literally jump off the side of a mountain.

Going through recce for powerline/wheatfield - these were legit mountain pass stages. Like Pikes peak style rolling off the side of a mountain if you go off kind of legit mountain passes. I wanted to stop driving multiple times just to take the time to appreciate the view.

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...and lift off...
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First 1/3 of the rally we were neck and neck with Bill Holmes/Sean Gallagher in the completely ridonculous SVT Raptor! To give you an idea of the spread, neither holmes, hoche, or I were more than, on average, 6 seconds apart from each other. But, we knew we needed a solid finish here at Gorman to line us up for the United States Rally Championship. We dialed it back a bit, focusing on a consistent pace. Unfortunately, around stage 12, it was looking like we might have dialed it back too much , as Psara, overtook us for 3rd in an open class AWD car. That set us up quite nicely for a battle on the last three night stages. All three of the stages involved carving up the side of a mountain, at night; short technical turns with huge drop-offs - my favorite!

As always, the challenge in rally is to drive consistently. The roads deteriorate as they are run, turning into a thick sandy muck that kind of sucks the car in. Along with the car deteriorating mechanically, and fatigue from racing the last 12 or so hours, I'd argue that setting the same time is actually equivalent to going faster. Well, sure enough that consistency paid off. Psara went off on stage 14, costing him 20-30 seconds or so. We took another 8 seconds off Psara on the last stage.

Special thanks to Laengworks Racing for helping us to make this happen!

Like what you see? Hit the like button our our facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally

More from this set here:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 510&type=3
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 510&type=3
Last edited by supasixfo on Wed Sep 05, 2012 7:13 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Alvin
Black Box rally team
Our blog: http://www.blackboxrally.com
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally
supasixfo
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Re: Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by supasixfo »

Oh right, i guess i should mention that we finished 1st in Production AWD class, 3rd overall :P!

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Photo credit: www.castleislandphoto.com
Alvin
Black Box rally team
Our blog: http://www.blackboxrally.com
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally
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Sabre
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Re: Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by Sabre »

Wow, sounds like it was pretty awesome! Congrats on the finish!!!!!
Sabre (Julian)
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92.5% Stock 04 STI
Good choice putting $4,000 rims on your 1990 Honda Civic. That's like Betty White going out and getting her tits done.
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zaxrex
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Re: Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by zaxrex »

love reading this more than the crashing parts.
Patience is the ability to idle your motor when you feel like stripping your gears
supasixfo
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Re: Gorman Ridge Rally 2012

Post by supasixfo »

Black Box rally team's highlights from Gorman Ridge 2012:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rw1wqwVHeiM&hd=1[/video]
Alvin
Black Box rally team
Our blog: http://www.blackboxrally.com
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/blackboxrally
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