like i was sayin'... Right now I should be in the garage figuring out how to mount my manual plastic roadbook holder (zip ties should work) but I'm here typing. So... This Friday morning I'm riding out alone from my home with my Giant Loop saddle bags and backpack packed. Almost everything I need for the following 10 days I'll be carrying. Seeing that Mex1k has strong focus on old iron I'll be on the oldest running XR I own, a 2000 650r. I have an awesome '88xr600 but there's no possible way I could have it ready in time. First I'm heading to an area near San Felipe to pay respects to fallen rider friend Jeff 'Ox' Kargola on the anniversary of his passing then up to Mikes Sky Ranch for the night. Saturday I'll see you guys in Mexicali. I'm doing the Mex1k with no arranged hotels, no pits, no support truck, and I'll carry a couple gallons gas when needed and use Pemex stations and ranch house gas. I cant really say I'm totally unsupported because I will send 3 tires and 2 changes of Top 1 Oil down south. It'd be impossible to do this without spare tires and I want to run Top 1. Thursday I'll be leaving San Jose del Cabo with a massive hangover and ride alone back to California. Not sure how many days I'll take to get home but I'll for sure chill in San Juanico and surf a little. I'm on a serious budget couch tour so I hope my friend John is at his Juanico house and that the key i have to a friends house in Loreto still works (southbound). As for riding with no GPS, easy, I'm not taking one. I'll have a plastic Acerbis roadbook holder and stock XR odometer. And I don't know if HogWild is just messing with us but he has me a bit confused on a few things on the course. And I hope Hog's right there will be secret tricky sections to be sure all follow the correct path because in '10 Mex1k I was one of very few who followed it before San Felipe when most just blasted down the whoops, the path they knew, with no penalty. Before during and after the event I will be posting stories or updates on RaceSolo.com or the Race Solo Facebook. Hopefully they will be as entertaining as my stories from Dakar Go and "like" the Race Solo Facebook! Looking forward to seeing ya'll there and making some dust in Baja! .
Would it be ok to put the spotwalla link on facebook, so friends and family can easily find it and follow along?
Does anyone have a satellite phone point of contact for NORRA? It'd be nice to add their contact number to the "Help" message on my spot tracker so someone can call them with a location.
Absolutely! That is my plan as well. However, keep in mind this really cool site is a volunteer non profit sort of thing. Would be great to thank them and help cover costs of the bandwitdh by throwing a few bucks their way: http://spotwalla.com/help/index.php#donate
I didn't make anything up, nor did I provide any known false information. So I was not "messing" with anyone. But I don't know what NORRA will actually do as far as catching shortcutters. They did provide locations of where they want to catch shortcutters, which are identified in the GPS file (seems strange that they would tell everyone where not to cheat). What they ACTUALLY do at those locations is completely unknown to me. So don't blame me if some cheaters are not caught. I'm just the messanger. Almost everything I suggested they do regarding the GPS file, shortcutting, and advantages for the roadbook users was rejected. The answer was always "next year". Which is partly why I came up with a concept for a new, second NORRA event, which they seem interested in. I'm currently calling it the 2013 (NORRA) Diabolical Rally. It's a 5 day rally (race), roadbooks only, possibly moto only for the first year (some parts too hard for most cars), convenient stationary bivouac location, on roads, trails, and open desert almost completely unexplored by anyone here. At the moment it's just under 1000 miles, though that will surely change as the concept and routes are refined. Two of the stages that I already laid out might actually be impossible to get through, so I have to go down there and do some prerunning and recon to see if the Diabolical name is understating the difficulty. If those two stages are very difficult but not impossible, maybe they could be "optional" for the lower-level riders. If they are actually impossible, we'll just give major bonus points for anyone who makes it through! For sure NAVIGATION will be the most important factor on almost all the stages.
Scott, I'm excited about meeting you down there... when do you arrive? I'm on a plane tomorrow morning, and will be traveling with the NORRA officials. Look for me, ok? Anders
I would love to see this happen. Who at NORRA can I talk to to make sure they know there is interest in this?
Just found out that we may have a bit of a situation. Racer20 text'ed me about an hour ago saying the van died on the road in Arkansas. We are looking into options for getting the bikes (#5, #42, #74) and gear to Mexicali Will probably be renting a vehicle to go at least to Phoenix where the rest of us fly into. Not sure what help wer are looking for but just a heads up that we will probably be needing some assistance if anybody is able and willing. At the very least we are probably going to need help carrying some extra gear during the race, assuming we make it to Mexicali somehow.
Would love to meet you too, but I'm not going. Too busy. Got a bunch of roadbooks to prepare for upcoming Jimmy Lewis school, a military training activity, and a 2013 Dakar competitor. Have fun, and be safe! Just tell them all you want them to put on a REAL rally!
I will know tomorrow if we have any extra room in the chase rig if that helps. We are headed through Phoenix Friday morning. -John
WOW.. bummer.. lets post up in regional to see if there are guys in Arkansas to help out.. I would possibly go on to Race-desert.com and also Norra may put a "racer alert" email out.. Good news for when you get there....Its raining in the Mexicali area tonight! Weather for Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico <table style="padding:4px 0 0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td style="vertical-align:center;padding-right:10px" rowspan="5"></td><td style="font-size:140%;white-space:nowrap;vertical-align:top;padding-right:15px;font-weight:bold" rowspan="2">79°F | °C</td><td style="width:5px;border-left:solid 1px #d8d8d8" rowspan="5"> </td><td style="vertical-align:top" colspan="2" align="center">Wed</td><td style="vertical-align:top" colspan="2" align="center">Thu</td><td style="vertical-align:top" colspan="2" align="center">Fri</td><td style="vertical-align:top" colspan="2" align="center">Sat</td></tr><tr><td style="text-align:center" rowspan="3" colspan="2"></td><td style="text-align:center" rowspan="3" colspan="2"></td><td style="text-align:center" rowspan="3" colspan="2"></td><td style="text-align:center" rowspan="3" colspan="2"></td></tr><tr><td style="white-space:nowrap;padding-right:15px;color:#666">Mostly Cloudy</td><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td style="white-space:nowrap;padding-right:15px;color:#666">Wind: W at 16 mph</td><td> </td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td style="white-space:nowrap;padding-right:15px;vertical-align:top;color:#666">Humidity: 35%</td><td style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:5px;padding-right:2px;vertical-align:top">93°</td><td style="text-align:left;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:2px;padding-right:5px;vertical-align:top;color:#666">61°</td><td style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:5px;padding-right:2px;vertical-align:top">81°</td><td style="text-align:left;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:2px;padding-right:5px;vertical-align:top;color:#666">55°</td><td style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:5px;padding-right:2px;vertical-align:top">84°</td><td style="text-align:left;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:2px;padding-right:5px;vertical-align:top;color:#666">59°</td><td style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:5px;padding-right:2px;vertical-align:top">93°</td><td style="text-align:left;white-space:nowrap;padding-left:2px;padding-right:5px;vertical-align:top;color:#666">63°</td></tr></tbody></table>
Just checking in quick before we get a little sleep. Staying in Santa Fe. Spot link: http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0exfJSBjlzZjmrZNn40iJAsTm2OmCvkQl I will try and get linked up on spotwalla tomorrow AM.
I'd bet it shouldn't be too difficult to locate a rental place in Pheonix, Yuma, or El Centro where you can get an extended van or f250 type truck they'd allow you to take to Baja. Not all places allow it. Some people wing it with an Avis (or whatever) but the Baja cops know what's up with rentals and if for any reason you interact with a cop and your rental isn't legal down there you'd be at their mercy. There is a place in San Diego call California Baja Rental (CaBaja.com?) that primarily rents to Baja travelers (even 4wd's). Maybe they can help? Be sure whatever you get is legal and fully insured for down there.
If you want it to happen, _help_ make it happen. I'd start with doing a survey of all the other riders asking questions about what gps equipment and road chart equipment they have, and also their feelings about the different styles. Give them that research and work from there. :-D
