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This year’s version of the annually-presented automotive event will move a bit further up the Maine coast than in the past to explore new territory and sight different lighthouses.
This year’s rally will start at the Holiday Inn in Bath, Maine and head down the Phippsburg peninsula where distant views of Seguin Island Light, Pond Island Light, Squirrel Point Light and Doubling Point Light can be enjoyed.
The route then proceeds north of U.S. Route 1 to the lunch break in Gardiner, Maine. Afterward the course reverts back to Bath where rally participants may munch on appetizers at the Kennebec Tavern while swapping tales of their adventures that day. This establishment, which is located along the shores of the Kennebec River, features a lighthouse in its logo - so you know that it has got to be good!
Here’s a description of what a road rally is, in case you’re not familiar with this sport: A time-speed-distance (TSD) road rally is an automobile tour contested on public roads by teams (each made up of a driver and a navigator), obeying ordinary traffic rules. Just about any kind of vehicle is suitable, so long as it’s street-legal.
The object is to stay on course, as described by a set of route instructions, while maintaining specified average speeds. A rally is not a race! Each vehicle is timed at checkpoints found along the course at locations unknown to contestants beforehand.
Penalty points are acquired for arriving either early or late at each checkpoint. Scores are figured by comparing a team’s actual time of arrival against the pre-calculated perfect target time. Low score wins.
No prior rally experience is necessary to compete. A novice rally school will be held on the evening before the event to provide guidance to those new to the sport. A separate novice class is offered, so beginners won’t have to compete against rally “veterans.” No special equipment is needed to run. All that a team needs to bring is a watch that reads in seconds, a basic pocket calculator, a clipboard, paper, pencils, pens and various-colored highlighters.
The event sponsor, Lighthouse Depot, The World’s Largest Lighthouse Gift Store of Wells, Maine will again be donating attractive awards to the top-placing teams in each class of competition and tee-shirts to all participants.
Great prizes will be won in a special raffle drawing after the event which will benefit the American Lighthouse Foundation to help in its efforts to save lighthouses.
The rally entry fee will be $45.00 per car, which includes a hospitality party the night before the rally, appetizers at the Kennebec Tavern, souvenir T-shirts and a donation to the American Lighthouse Foundation. Make this a complete lighthouse weekend by visiting the Lighthouse Depot while on your travels, the store and museum are definitely worth the side trip!
If you’re interested in signing up to run the rally, please contact the event organizer Patti Mikkelsen, e-mail: mikks@megalink.net or by phone: 207-926-5660. Alternatively you may check out the rally page of the following website: www.cumberlandmotorclub.com for more details. Pre-registration by September 4th is encouraged.
This story appeared in the July 2001 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
All contents copyright © 1995 - 2003 by Lighthouse Digest®, Inc. No story, photograph, or any other item on this website may be reprinted or reproduced without the express permission of Lighthouse Digest. For contact information, click here.
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