Whoa, where have I been!?
Quoting from Monty Python's Holy Grail:
TIM: I warned you! But did you listen to me? Oh, no, you knew it all, didn't you? Oh, it's just a harmless little bunny, isn't it? Well, it's always the same, I always--
ARTHUR: Oh, shut up!
TIM: --But do they listen to me?--
ARTHUR: Right!
TIM: -Oh, no--
KNIGHTS: Charge!
[squeak squeak]
KNIGHTS: Aaaaugh! Aaaugh! etc.
KNIGHTS: Run away! Run away!
TIM: Haw haw haw. Haw haw haw. Haw haw.
(
http://www.rit.edu/~smo4215/monty.htm#Scene%2021)
Yeah, well, hee hee, you wouldn't be allowed in the Lanark, except as a navigator or a volunteer. Try one of them winter events, and wear your diapers! You'll get 'educated' inside of 25 km.
Certainly, not all TSD rallyists are 'into' these 'hardcore' drivexes, many prefer the challenge of a good, slower, navex. They can be frustrating at times, but I can tell you, they are a real fun, and if nothing else really get you into the 'press on regardless' mode of operation at times, something that would serve you as a stage rally competitor in the future.
Rallying covers a broad spectrum of styles and challenges, but they are all related, and my belief is that dismissing any part of the rally spectrum, especially before having tried it (!) is not a valid approach. Guys like John V., Ryan H., etc., and countless others worked hard at winning navigational championships, putting in a LOT of road miles to gain rally experience on the cheap. You know, between rally stages, it's a little like a TSD, even for those WRC fellows. So, best not to get lost on your first performance rally 'cause you couldn't read a simple routebook, or didn't understand some simple abbreviations. The now defunct OVAC club, organised some "TSD" rallies around Silver Lake (where the Lanark runs out of), and guess what, they went on to organise the 74 Rideau Lakes (a "WRC" event!!).
Here in Ottawa, more than once, I've heard the same thing from newbies. TSD, too slow, boring, bleah bleah bleah. They do their first rally, a winter drivex (one that we ran that I wouldn't even consider very brisk or technical) and they withdrew just after the halfway mark, and I never saw them ever again. It was too much for them.
Well, I could keep rambling on an on, but maybe you get where I'm going with all this. Hope to see you out to some TSDs!
Craig
Organiser,
Lanark Highlands Rally (it's barf-a-rific!)