The CoPPERHEAD TSD ROAD RALLY
OCTOBER 12, 2024
The Copperhead Road Rally took place along the beautiful, paved back roads of Jefferson, Shelby, St. Clair and Talladega counties of Alabama on a sunny Saturday, October 12, 2024. This TSD (time-speed-distance) road rally was run in the “Monte Carlo” style format and offered four classes for drivers and navigators:
“First Timer” - neither the driver nor the navigator has competed in an organized road rally of any type (Treks not included) prior to the event.
“Novice” - both the driver and the navigator have competed in fewer than five rallies of any type.
“Experienced” - all teams that do not qualify for one of the other two classes listed above.
“Observer” - more than two adults in the car (non-competitive)
The purpose of this style of road rally is for the teams to follow a set of route instructions that contain directions for the route you travel. You follow the route and pass the checkpoints (some are listed, some are hidden!) at the exact time the Rallymaster calculated based on average speed. You don’t stop at the checkpoints, but you get an audio notification in your Richta Competitor app with a score each time you pass a checkpoint. In theory this sounds simple, but mastering it takes some practice.
The scoring for The Copperhead was similar to golf; all teams started the rally with 0 points and were given a penalty point for every second they were early OR late to a checkpoint. The maximum penalty for any control is always 300 points (5 minutes). The final score was calculated to be the sum of all checkpoint scores.
The rally starting point was Nana’s Kitchen off of Grants Mill Road in Irondale. The finish line was “The Backyard” eateries at the Grand River Shops in Leeds, Alabama. In between, the teams were challenged to a “snake-like” competitive course with multiple checkpoints at varying distances. Awards of 1st Place trophies and gift certificates from our club sponsor, Hamburger Heaven, were presented at the finish line lunch.
Experienced Class:
Andy and Terri Williams (198 points)
Novice Class
1st Place: Jeff and Sheryl Lee (145 points)
2nd Place: Richard Cullum and Sean Moore (197 points)
3rd Place: Aan Wheatcroft and Sid (318 points)
4th Place: Kim Thees and Kelli Eldridge (647 points)
First Timer Class
1st Place: Trey Rush and Ken Bailey (193 points)
2nd Place: Jimmy and Abigail Harris (266 points)
3rd Place: Lisa Rush and Rushton Robinson (297 points)
4th Place: Charlie and Susan Richardson (386 points)
5th Place: Katherine and Tripp Robinson (494 points)
Driver and navigator follow route instructions and try to score a “0” at each checkpoint.
Proving that road rally is a fun activity for all ages, The Copperhead’s youngest navigator competitor was Rushton Robinson at just 15 years of age. Rallymaster, Jim Farris, and our club’s Road Rally Program Director, Andy Williams, managed all of the pre-event course design, registration setup, event day logistics, and arranged for an SCCA member from Atlanta to perform a course safety check. The preparation for a well-organized road rally is significant, and we want to salute Jim and Andy for leading the ALSCCA’s award-winning road rally program. Stay tuned for the next one, possibly early 2025.
