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  • Road Rally along the LA&L

  • Discussion pertaining to the past and present operations of the LAL, the WNYP, and the B&H. Official site: LALRR.COM.
Discussion pertaining to the past and present operations of the LAL, the WNYP, and the B&H. Official site: LALRR.COM.

Moderator: Luther Brefo

 #667279  by blownb310
 
For those of you who not only enjoy this great shortline, but also enjoy their automobiles, there is an event that may interest you. The Finger Lakes Region SCCA will be holding a 60 mile "social" road rally along the LA&L coming up this May 24th. For those unfamiliar with what a road rally is, it's not a race but a precision driving event. The idea is to follow directions properly and arrive at the check points on time [trying not to be early or late]. Here's the write up from the organizers:

Take a nice Sunday afternoon tour with the Finger Lakes Region SCCA around the towns and countryside that make up the home territory of the Livonia, Avon & Lakeville Railroad. Starting from Tom Wahl’s in Avon, we’ll follow the track­age of this local shortline, take in the sights of spring, and enjoy the area back roads. This is a TSD­-style social rally, with the route under 60 miles, using closed controls and tulip­-style instructions.

Registration from 12:30 to 1:30
Novice school 1:00 to 1:30
Drivers’ Meeting: 1:45
First car off: 2:01
First car finish: ~3:30

Start & Finish:
Tom Wahl’s Restaurant Rallymaster:
Rts 5&20, Avon, NY Rick Barnes
 #673573  by blownb310
 
Is anyone here from the boards going to join us this Sunday?

Only a few days away now. A rally of this nature is perfect for our "fair weather" type summer cars. Classic cars are always a bonus at social rallies too. What a great excuse to shine up your pride and joy and take a ride out in the country with it.

See you there,

Mike
 #674862  by BR&P
 
How did the rally go? It sounded like fun but too many things to do. And I have not used tulip boxes for so many years I would have wound up in Pennsylvania! Hopefully they were able to throw in a few railroad-related route clues to raise awareness of the line.
 #675135  by blownb310
 
BR&P wrote:How did the rally go? It sounded like fun but too many things to do. And I have not used tulip boxes for so many years I would have wound up in Pennsylvania! Hopefully they were able to throw in a few railroad-related route clues to raise awareness of the line.
Thanks BR&P,

The rally went great. Some of the questions on the route were how many times we crossed tracks [no matter if it was at a grade crossing or under/over and bridge]. The correct answer was 10. We also had to note and record the color of the bumper on a siding near a plant and the road name and number on an ATSF caboose, etc. No worries about the tulip notes, no one got lost. The one tricky part that caught everyone out was the question that said "What is the total net mileage that the rally route travels on Rt.15 going north." The key word in that question is "net." Like everyone else, we simply added up our mileage while travelling north on Rt. 15 but, did not subtract the mileage when going south on Rt. 15!

We had twelve cars particpate and all had a great time. My navigator and I finished in the runner up spot in my '77 Datsun B210. The burgers and socializing at Tom Wahl's drive in [before and after] were terrific too.

Mike
Last edited by blownb310 on Tue May 26, 2009 6:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
 #675141  by BR&P
 
Glad it went well, a bigger turnout would have been nicer. I was going to say too bad it wasn't on a day when there was some actual rail activity to see, but then if you had happened to encounter one of the days LA&L ran a lengthy freight, I can see a whole lot of "Max"s at the next checkpoint, not to mention all 12 cars doing a banzai to the checkpoint as soon as the last car cleared the crossing! :-D

(Did you get an Operation Lifesaver handout along with the instructions?)
 #799284  by blownb310
 
BR&P wrote:Glad it went well, a bigger turnout would have been nicer. I was going to say too bad it wasn't on a day when there was some actual rail activity to see, but then if you had happened to encounter one of the days LA&L ran a lengthy freight, I can see a whole lot of "Max"s at the next checkpoint, not to mention all 12 cars doing a banzai to the checkpoint as soon as the last car cleared the crossing! :-D

(Did you get an Operation Lifesaver handout along with the instructions?)
Thanks for humorous the reply. You're right, we didn't see any action on the rails last year at the event. The good news is that rallymaster Rick Barnes has three more railroad themed road rallies planned in the same general area of NY for 2010. They include these dates and railroads:

Sunday, May 16th - Rochester & Southern RallyRoad
An afternoon rally with trivia-based scoring. Planned to start/finish in East Rochester, making a loop around the area.

Saturday, July 17th - Geneva & Southwestern Rallyway
This event is a winter-series style evening TSD, starting/finishing in Geneva. FCO will be around 8PM, so even though its relatively short, it'll still be after dark. This route will use extensive seasonal and dirt roads. I will avoid car-breaker roads, however folks with lowered autoX cars should be wary.

Sunday, October 17th - Avon, Geneseo & Mt. Morris RallyRoad
A fall foliage tour, hopefully as successful as Genesee & Wyoming was last year. This will start/finish in Avon (probably Tom Whal's). This will be a photo rally.


More details here: http://www.flr-scca.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=779

Mike
 #799825  by Tadman
 
Got any pics? I'm a fast car junkie - I wrapped an M3 around a tree about five years ago if that tells you anything...
 #799853  by blownb310
 
Tadman wrote:Got any pics? I'm a fast car junkie - I wrapped an M3 around a tree about five years ago if that tells you anything...
I didn't take any that day, but the rallymaster's niece did. I have asked him for them and will post them if/when he uploads them. The only thing I could find from the event so far was the event flyer.

Mike