About 6 weeks before the event, I get a text from a friend in Tennessee. The discussion turns to the Red Clay Rally scheduled for 16-18 October 2020. Having never heard of the event, I decide to dig a little deeper. Not too much info online, just a deliberately vague website and a few videos depicting stuck vehicles, large obstacles and body damage. On the list of required personal items is a tourniquet. “Looks fun to me…I’m in” I text back. The Red Clay Rally takes place over three days in the beautiful rolling mountains of Kentucky and Tennessee. An area I visited last year in the Tundra. And covers about 700 miles of trails, by-ways, technical terrain, freeways and gravel. Basically everything you could throw at a vehicle. And its driver. The question for me was, am I driving The Gear Bunker’s FJ Cruiser down to compete in this event? Or am I co-driving my friends 80 Series Land Cruiser.
2020 Red Clay Rally
An ideal sized team for the Red Clay Rally is three vehicles with two drivers per vehicle. And it definitely is a team event. Especially when complex obstacles and recoveries are on the menu. Jeff informed me that there were already five vehicles on the team he was joining as the sixth. So my decision to pack my bags and fly to Tennessee to co-drive his rig was an easy one. The plan was to arrive at Jeff’s house, finish prepping his vehicle, pack food and drive up to the starting point in Lexington, Kentucky. Once in Lexington, all the competitors met at a local Jeep dealership to check-in and sign the obligatory waivers. Our early morning start times were assigned and we headed off to the hotel for the night.
Day 1
It’s still dark at 0630 as the team discusses what air pressure we feel is best for all the terrain we’ll face in a day. Too low and we suffer at freeway speeds. Too high a pressure and the technical sections will bite us in the ass. We settled on a number and adjusted the tires accordingly. “10 minutes”! The vehicles are forming a line around the dealership. One last comms check and we queue up behind team 10. Our team is a mix of men and women from all walks of life. Most from around the area but a couple flew in from other states. Jeff and I met at Overland Expo 2019 and stayed in touch since then. We’re now the lead vehicle for Team 11 and rolling up to the starting line. 2 minutes separate the teams as they launch onto a busy street and begin navigating the predetermined route. We are in charge of navigating 700 miles for the next three days.
Stage 1 Video
Day 2
My alarm starts buzzing at 0645 in my tiny tent. When I unzip the Nemo Disco sleeping bag, I realize just how cold it got overnight. 31 degrees to be exact. The clear skies and farmers field offered little protection from the nighttime temperatures. My fingers froze as I rolled up the frost covered fly on the Nemo Dagger tent. All I could think of right now was coffee. Not only for warmth, but to kick start my brain and focus on the 299 mile second leg of this rally. A quick caffeine up-take from the GSI JavaPress and we start the Land Cruiser to get her fluids warmed as well. The old 80 Series managed the terrain the way she was intended on day one and remains in good mechanical shape for the rest of the mission. One of our vehicles, a Jeep Wrangler, broke a front sway-bar link yesterday. And will suffer the resulting unstable ride for the next two days. Not enough to stop us though. We’re currently ranked 10th overall and scheduled to start day 2 at 0820.
Stage 2 Video
Day 3
The temperatures were a little warmer when my alarm broke the silence on day three. Our riverside campsite had a large bonfire last night and we all ate well. I even took a hot shower from Jeff’s DIY on-board hot water tank. Well rested and currently sitting in 7th place, the team is eagerly breaking down their camps and starting to prepare for the final push. The finish line lay only 243 miles ahead. All 6 vehicles are mechanically healthy albeit some have gained a bit of visible trail-character. This rally isn’t about being the fastest team to negotiate the course. It’s a time and distance rally. Teams must maintain their speed as close to the race organizers pace when the original route was mapped. Arrive at any of the 4 undisclosed checkpoints scattered along the route too quickly and the team is assessed a penalty. Arrive too late and you’ll suffer the same consequence. The goal is to maintain a steady pace and arrive on time. And we did that very well yesterday.
Stage 3 Video
The Finish Line
After three days exploring Appalachia with our team, I’m proud to say that we managed the route pretty well, managed time okay and finished the rally with all 6 vehicles. Which is really saying something as years past have seen attrition as high as 50%! We made a few rookie mistakes on the final leg that cost us a few spots the wrong direction. Ultimately slipping back to 10th position overall. Quite honestly, my personal goal was to just finish the Red Clay Rally. But what we learned this year as a team will be invaluable while planing our return next season. Probably not with a single 6 vehicle team, but several smaller, more manageable teams.
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