{"id":6192,"date":"2016-11-22T20:22:59","date_gmt":"2016-11-22T20:22:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/usnomadstudio.com\/usnomads\/blog\/?page_id=6192"},"modified":"2016-12-12T21:15:52","modified_gmt":"2016-12-12T21:15:52","slug":"notes-from-the-road-15-october-2016","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/usnomadstudio.com\/usnomads\/blog\/?page_id=6192","title":{"rendered":"Notes From the Road \u2014 15 October 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"
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NOTES FROM THE ROAD<\/h2>\n
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< more recent<\/a> | 15 October 2016 | older ><\/a> <\/p>\n

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Competition Day One …<\/h5>\n


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The beginning…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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15 October 2016:<\/strong> This morning the competition began with a loop that provided a quick introduction to the challenges and terrain variations of the Rebelle. As we set off into the desert in search of our first set of CPs all the guessing and extrapolating of potential scenarios was finished. The day offered us a menu of 12 checkpoints and a practice “Times.Speed.Distance” (TSD) segment and we set off excitedly to chase down flags. The beauty of the desert itself became “secondary” as we looked instead at the shape of hills and the relative locations of peaks as indicators of our “position” vis-a-vis the points we had so carefully plotted in the early a.m. hours. The first green flag was a welcome sight — signalling success and relief — a confidence booster. From here on, it would get progressively more complex, but we felt ready …
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Getting an early start …<\/h5>\n


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Up before the moon goes down…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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15 October 2016:<\/strong> Woke up around 4am without the alarm clock. We had been forbidden from setting our alarm clocks for earlier than 5am — but despite this many of us were already awake and quietly preparing for the first day. The dark of night hadn’t begun to lift yet. Luckily there was a full moon that spilled light across the desert, which reflected somewhat eerily off the sand, lending a surreal glow to the shadow landscape. In the main tent rally staff were beginning to stir, and by 5am most of us were in line to pick up our CP guide for the day. We got down to the business of plotting our points before the morning briefing began at 6am. The first vehicle would be off the line at 7am, and we were number 16 for start. The teams would be taking off with a minute or two of separation, so that we would not be on top of each other heading down the trail. The ambiance was a mix of anxious excitement. In its way it was a historic moment, the start of the first day of the first-ever Rebelle Rally …
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Heading South and West …<\/h5>\n


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The view across the desert…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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15 October 2016:<\/strong> Today’s loop runs south and west taking us first around the Gabbs Valley Range and then down into Win Wan Valley, across Buckley Flat and through Gillis Canyon towards Walker Lake. The area around Base Camp 1 is fairly stark and arid, with little vegetation, though hearty saltbush on the steep hillsides adds a grey sheen to the terrain. The landscape alternates between flat open stretches of desert and narrower passages through the hills. Apart from some mining and grazing activity, the area is largely empty wilderness criss-crossed by dirt roads\u2026 It is a typical slice of this part of the Nevada desert, which is defined by a seemingly endless series of ridges stretching roughly north\/south, separated by flat alluvial fans. Some areas are characterized by rugged rock outcroppings and dramatic cliffs, while others are defined by large washes. Apart from the power line utility road, most of the \u201croads\u201d here were defined by mining exploration and cross the desert by the easiest route, making the drive nice and smooth. Making our way south in the morning we pass between Chukar Ridge<\/a> and Mount Ferguson. A tall rampart rising high along the skyline, the Chukar ridge is dominated by a peak that sits at 7497 feet. From the top one could see the multiple canyons and craggy ridgelines to the south, but they were mostly invisible to us, as we drove along the base of the ridges, working out way back to the west…
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Team Engage on the Trail — Day One…<\/h5>\n


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Plenty of ups and downs on day one…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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15 October 2016:<\/strong> Team Engage #124 had a tough first day out on the rally course, with a mechanical issue early in the day. The morning had been progressing well until a problem developed that caused the traction control system to kick in and “brake” whenever the Jeep accelerated. The team had to limp along at less than 20mph until by chance they crossed paths with Nena Barlow of Team Squirrel Girls, who did a quick field fix which remedied the issue. From that point Team Engage #124 was back in the game, making up for lost time and picking up the rest of their blue and green CPs, before heading back to base on time. The slowdown in the morning had caused the team to miss a few optional CPs, leaving them in the 7th ranking position at the end of the first day…
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RALLY UPDATE: DAY ONE …<\/h5>\n


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The official update from Rebelle Rally HQ …<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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15 October 2016 Rebelle Rally official update<\/a>:<\/strong> Silt beds, deep sand, fast two-track trails\u2014and roads so rocky you\u2019d be sure your vehicle was on the verge of falling apart. Winds so strong that billboards in the closest town, a few hours away by dirt, blew over and blocked traffic. The inaugural Rebelle Rally is making things clear\u2014it isn\u2019t going to be a walk in the park. Teams had over a hundred grueling off-road miles to cover, and over a dozen checkpoints to clear to earn the maximum amount of points. There\u2019s three different checkpoints, green, which everyone must clear to proceed to the next day and are well marked; blue checkpoints are harder to find, but still marked. Black checkpoints must be found solely using the team\u2019s navigation skills and are not marked. They must be within 150 feet of those designated spots in order to earn the points. A super tight points spread is a sign of the intense competition to come\u2014with an incredible four teams competing the course with 97% accuracy; leaving them with a total of 108 points each, a four-way tie for first place. Second place is currently in a five-way tie, with those teams completing the course with 95% accuracy and a total of 106 points. Needless to say, tomorrow is going to be an exciting day that\u2019s sure to separate the field. Check the live scoring link below to see more. Many teams arrived back at basecamp to find their tents and shelter in tatters, with extremely high winds upsetting everything but the most well-secured tents. Luckily a rain storm which had previously shifted course midday towards basecamp just skirted away to the north\u2014as you can imagine, that would make an already difficult day even more challenging. In true Rebelle spirit, some competitors lent a helping hand to those competitors still out on the course, re-securing and repairing tents so they didn\u2019t blow away. (Photo: Rebelle Rally\/Nicole Dreon<\/a>)…

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