The World of Rally Racing (Part 2)
Europe was not the only place where the phenomenon of Rallying caught on. The biggest event took place in South America, where the racers had to race lengths of 5000 to 6000 miles (these miles were divided into parts). In 1950,
Africa was the host to the very first French run, “Mediterranee-le Cap”. Canada was the host to one of the world’s lengthiest and exhausting rallies. The Shell 4000 Rally was the only one sanctioned by the “Federation Internationale De l’Automobile” (also
known as the FIA) in North America.
Rally Racing has gone through many changes from the time it started. Organizations such as the FIA constantly changed the rules and regulations as an attempt to make Rallying more safer. Perhaps one of the most visible changes
that can be seen in the cars, before World War II was that the cars used in Rally Racing, were mostly stock cars with no modifications done to them. This was due to an agreement between manufacturers so that the field would be more even. However, after the
war was over, cars had minor modifications done to them to improve handling, performance etc. As the public became more involved with the sport, the manufacturers started to bring out special versions of their cars made specifically for rallying. The most
popular car of its time was the Mini Cooper. Some companies, instead of coming out with new cars, paid other companies to upgrade their cars so that they would be in optimum condition for racing. An example would be Renault. Renault paid a small company by
the name of Alpine to take their A110 Berlinette coupe and turn it into a Rallying monster.
Most of the drivers in the rally races of the past were basically amateurs who were paid almost nothing. This changed in 1960, when Erik Carlsson from Sweden became Rally Racing history’s first racer to be paid fulltime. The World
Rally Championship was also born this year. This championship visits almost all the continents. This championship is almost as popular as its more civilized brother, F1 Racing.
Rally comes in two basic forms. The first one is called “Staged Rallies” and the latter “Road Rallies”. Stage Rallies are considered to be more professional of the two. These are races that take place on closed roads with no public
traffic. The courses can vary from mountain passes to the sands of the hottest desert. These races attract more spectators due to the similarity of the rally cars to road cars. The second kind of Rally Racing is called “Road Rallies”. These are seen as the
original Rally Races, held on local highways with public traffic as obstacles. Road rallies stress more on time and navigation rather than on speed.
Another thing that makes Rallying different from other kinds of racing are the courses that they take place on. Rallying does not happen on a circuit. Any surface can be used as a Rally course (gravel, asphalt, snow and ice). Some
courses are set so that the driver can experience all of these surfaces in one race! Rallies also occur any time of the year. This is why some of the top Rally drivers have best control of their car in the world. Most Rally courses are short special stages
and transport stages. The special stage is where the competition actually happens, where as the transport stage is when the driver must drive the car to the next area on its own power.
One tactic that should be noted as unique in Rally racing is the use of pace notes. These are a major and essential part of Rally racing. These notes provide the navigator with detailed notes about the course, which they relay
to the driver so that he or she can plan ahead, thus clearing the route faster. In most races, the drivers are allowed to have a practice run of the course so that they can have the navigator write the pace notes down. This process is known as “reconnaissance”.
Sometimes the drivers are not allowed to have their own pace notes during a Rally. Instead they use “route notes” provided by the organizers. This tactic is fairly new. In the past, the information on a specific course was kept as a closely guarded secret
until the day of the race. Other techniques used by Rally racers are the Hand break turn, heel and toe maneuver, Hill jumping (also known as yumping), Left foot breaking and the Scandinavian flick.
If we personify Rally Racing, it would be the kind of person who you wouldn’t want to get mixed up with. The kind of person who would litter in front of a sign that specifically says “no littering”! Other forms of racing are exciting
and invigorating too, but there’s something about Rally Racing that seems to put it on a level which is way higher than the others. Maybe it’s the thrill of danger, or the feeling of being fast. Whatever it is, there is one thing for sure. Rally Racing is
a sport which evolved from nothing and will keep evolving until the creativity of mankind comes to a halt.
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