The dates have been set for the 100 Acre Wood Rally in and around Salem, MO. The Rally will be held on February 26th and 27th. I've been drafted by Ken ("hydrolocked") to help find volunteers.
If you aren't familiar with this rally, this is the kind where the Subaru's and other cars fly down the gravel roads at 100mph! This is a national event, with racers from all over the world and large sponsors, all brought here to Missouri! This event brings drivers like Travis Pastrana, Ken Block, Tanner Foust, etc to our area. See more at
http://www.rally-america.com and
http://www.100aw.orgThe event needs volunteers to help with various area. Most notably for us is a need for Sweeps, Marshal, and/or ham radio operators.
Sweep: The sweeps job is to go through the race stage (one leg of the race) and assist any race cars that have broken down or crashed, by extracting and/or towing their vehicle to a main road where their crew can get to them. Sweeps could also be called on in an emergency to respond to a serious crash to assist also. You should have an appopriate vehicle to extract and/or towing a race vehicle, including at minimum front and rear tow points, a winch would be a plus. Some form of radio (CB and/or FRS) is needed, a Ham radio and operator would be a plus. In some cases, a radio might be assigned to you.
Marshal: You would be positioned along the race stage and ensure closed roads or driveways don't have someone come down them and get onto the race course. Marshals might also assist in crowd control at a spectator point. Some form of radio communication, including CB and/or FRS would be helpful, and a Ham radio would be a plus.
What to expect: The race is broken up into "stages", which is like 12 or so mini-races throughout the day. You will be assigned to a team that works one or two stages per day. You will travel to the stage, and assist in making sure the roads are closed and that the race stage is set up and then wait for that stage to be run. This involves a LOT of driving on the country roads anywhere from Potosi to south of Salem, nearly a 75 mile square area! And, then you will do a LOT of waiting, while the cars finish other stages and get to your stage. If accidents or problems occur, it can delay the races well into the nightime hours.
So, that means you might want/need:
- a reliable vehicle for all that driving
- snacks/food/drinks
- some entertainment (magazines, music, knitting, basket weaving, whatever)
- warm clothing, preferably layers, and rain gear, as the weather is unpredictable
- high visibility vest if you have one
- recovery gear (if you are a sweep), including tow strap, shackles, winch (if you have one), etc
- some assortment of tools
The racing will start Friday afternoon (the 26th). You will need to register and be given your team information, so you need to either go down Thursday night, or try to get there by mid-morning on Friday. Registration will be in Salem, with the location to be announced. Lodging information is available on the 100aw website. After the racing is done on Saturday, there is a party for the volunteers and teams in Salem.
With all that said, please consider volunteering. You will have a good opportunity to see the racing/racers, instead of being limited to a spectator area. It is a lot of waiting and driving, but it is really a great experience.
If you are willing to help, please e-mail the following information to me at
jeepr@mojeep.com .....
- Your name, and names of any passengers you expect to have
- Which days you can work and when you think you will arrive (Thursday or Friday morning)
- Your preference of being a Marshal vs. Sweep
- Information about your vehicle, including make/model, recovery equipment, etc.
- Your contact information, including e-mail address and a cell phone that you will have with you at the event
- Any radios you will have with you, such as Ham, CB, FRS
- Any previous experience working at this rally or something similar
- Other pertinent information such as EMS/Fire/First Aid certifications, etc.
- If you or any of your passengers are licensed ham radio operators, please provide the call sign(s)
If you have questions, feel free to e-mail me or post here.
