The first rally of the year is in the books. It was a very brisk and breezy morning on the 22nd, but the torrential rains that had been forecast never materialized and it turned out to be a very pleasant day for the nine teams to drive the hills and twists of Clermont County. Our rally masters, EB Lunken and Dick Krehbiel, put together a great course with a good mix of roads, allowing for the occasional stop to search for an answer, ample opportunities for restroom facilities, and “brisk” paced country roads. They did their usual creative job of sprinkling in questions that made you first scratch your head and frown, then say “aha!” Of course, there was the inevitable controversy – is that a rooster or a hen, an eagle or an owl? There were multiple places to buy farm fresh eggs, but as anyone who ran the early rallies will understand, NO egg signs were included anywhere in the instructions.
–Photo courtesy of Jeff Loewe Photography
Everyone completed the course with no complaints of getting lost; we do try to not confuse you….too much. We welcomed newcomers Gary & Brigitte Spicer and Matt & Harry Evans, who had very respectible scores for beginners at 2 and 7 ½ points, respectively. Returning from last year were Terry & Denise Challenger who finished in first position with zero deductions. Congratulations to them! Finishing second were Gordon & Teresa Benson with ½ point deduction. Gordon & Teresa put together our October rally last year and we look forward to their rally this year as well. Scott & Reghan Bitzer (and their passengers) and Brad Phelps & Gary Reckelhoff tied for third with 1 ½ points. Rounding out the field were the Spicers, Mike McKay and yours truly, the Evans team, Brian Walker & Dakota Roeder, and Tim Silver & Sue Malcome. Tim was also awarded the Rally Masters’ Choice Award for the most unusual car. I must say, Mike was at a significant disadvantage having me as his driver. In the interest of fairness, since I had safety checked the course and knew most of the answers to the questions, he was solely responsible for interpreting the route instructions and finding all the answers. But we had a very enjoyable drive.
The next rally is June 17th – Rabbit Hash Revisited. The Rally Master for this event is Lee Grimes, who doesn’t even have to get out of bed to lay out a route on the Boone County roads he is so familiar with. And it will be another winner-no double about it. Now that the general store is rebuilt we will pass by it again this year – the opposite direction. If you didn’t join us for this event last year, you missed a good drive and fun after-party. Put it on your calendar for this year. Visit the rally section of the website for a full schedule and additional information. Registration will be opening soon for Rabbit Hash on MotorsportReg (search rally). There are still opportunities to take on the Rally Master role for this year. Drop a line to cincysccarally@yahoo.com if you’re interested.
