Welcome

Welcome to the 2006 Ontario Winter Rally.

The Competitor Guidelines are now available.

16 Feb 2006

Now only two days to go until the 2006 Ontario Winter Rally and counting down. We are at 59 entries with a very competitive field. I assume you have been following the website at www.mlrc.ca While there, also check out the Message Forum.

WEATHER & ROAD CONDITIONS

The weather is presenting a really interesting scenario. Two days ago a fresh snow left absolutely perfect winter driving conditions – pure white, snowy roads with good snowbanks. But now a heavy snow is forecast followed by a mess of freezing rain, followed by extreme cold, so who knows what conditions will result? At the moment I have no plans to go over there today or tomorrow, but if my curiosity gets the better of me, I may wander over tomorrow (Friday) afternoon. If I do, I will definitely send a report to you Friday evening.

REGISTRATION & STARTING ORDER

We have posted the Start Order on the website. Any entries coming in after this can expect to run at the back. If there are any missing details or changes in your Registration information, please contact Kym, our Registrar, at kym@tallpinesrally.com At Registration you must present your vehicle registration papers, proof of valid insurance and a valid driver’s licence. If you are using a borrowed vehicle, you must present a letter of permission from the owner.

Cash rebates will be given out a registration - $10 for any team where both members are current MLRC members. Proof of membership is your responsibility.

To reduce pressure, Registration will open at 7:30 PM. Drivers’ Meeting will be at 9:35 and first car leaves at 10:01. Teams will receive their Route Instructions 10 minutes prior to their Start Time.

TRIANGLES

Reminder – every team must carry at least one reflective triangle. It must be 40 cm (16 inches) and self-supporting. Every team must show their triangle at Checkpoint One before being allowed to continue (no time allowance).

QUIET ZONES

There will be some Quiet Zones in the rally marked as BQZ (Begin Quiet Zone) and EQZ (End Quiet Zone) in the Route Book. This year we have made those zones much more conspicuous in the instructions. These are areas that are sensitive for the OWR and Tall Pines. Please cooperate. While in a Quiet Zone, you must DIM YOUR LIGHTS (no auxiliary lights on), follow the lowered average speed precisely and run as quietly as possible and generally be unobtrusive. There will be Quiet Zone “police” out there checking (with radar). Violators of any of the QZ requirements will receive a minimum of a FIVE minute time penalty.

PARKING & GAS

Be sure to fill up with gas at Wood’s Gas Bar in Coe Hill before the Start. They will have lots of regular and premium gas. The new owners, Duane and Loriann, are staying open late for us and are very excited about the rally. They are planning to have some simple hot food and coffee available. Please try to patronize them and be friendly. The relationship we have in the community is extremely important to us (and you).

Parking at the Limerick Community Centre is limited. Please conserve space as much as possible and park so as not be block any other cars. I suggest that you form a ring first around the perimeter with your car facing in to the centre. Overflow parking will be on the shoulder of the road. The rally starts off heading WEST (toward Coe Hill) on Hwy. 620.

Workers are requested to park on the road.

There is ample parking at the two mid-rally stops at M & M ESSO in Bancroft. Please move your vehicle away from the gas pumps as soon as possible. You will speed up the process by paying in cash.

MID-RALLY BREAKS

There is one mid-rally food break at the Pine Star Restaurant at the end of Leg A (same location as the gas stop ). They are preparing a rally special, which will consist of soup, sandwich and drink for $7.50 (tax included – but not the tip). Again you will speed up the process by having the correct change. They are aware of your time constraints. On the second time in at the end of Leg B you can get drinks and snacks at the gas station. There are also washrooms there.

SNOW SPEEDS

In the instructions two sets of speeds are provided – the regular speeds and “snow” speeds. You will be told at the Start which speeds we are running on. Please understand that this is a winter event and the regular speeds are set anticipating snowy roads, some ice etc. i.e. normal winter conditions. The slower speeds will only be put in effect in the case of extreme conditions.

MINI RALLY SCHOOL

Robert Roaldi will conduct a mini rally school for anyone with questions about the event, timing etc at 7:30 PM.

NUTSY-BOLTSIES

Normally we issue a package with lots of details re the running of the event – kind of a competitor’s manual. Most of you have received that booklet several times. In the interest of paper conservation, I am going to send it to you later today by e mail. There is a lot of important information in there that we expect you to know. Please read it carefully.

COMING PREPARED

Please heed the warning in the Supp. Regs. Read it again now. You will be in very remote areas. Come prepared. Also – check things like spare tires for air and jacks. It was very unfair last year for a couple of the event workers to spend hours assisting a team that did not even bring a spare tire.

EMERGENCY

In case of emergency here are some numbers that might be helpful –
Wood’s Gas Bar, Coe Hill – 613-337-8754
M & M ESSO, Bancroft – 613-332-5474
Bancroft O.P.P. 613-332-2112
Ross Wood (cell phone) – 647-224-1492 (coverage spotty in the rally area)

See you Saturday.

Ross Wood, OWR Coordinator

13 Feb 2006

Some photos of today's (Feb 13) road conditions:

8 Feb 2006

Last night Doug Hollands (Chief Control Marshal) and I did a pre-greencrew run of the 2006 Ontario Winter Rally. We found spectacular winter driving conditions - cold, clear, freshly plowed snow roads and huge snowbanks. The forecast is for very cold weather in the Bancroft for the next week, so we are hoping for great conditions for the rally.

We found one piece of road that has numerous large frost heaves. A local guru tells us that is unlikely to change before the rally, so we have made some route changes to eliminate one pass of that section of road and to drop the speed very low when we do go there - basically we are making it a slow transit. I do not believe in asking competitors to beat their cars up unnecessarily - we have lots of other great, competitive roads. The one negative consequence of the changes is that it makes one Leg longer than planned; it is now 175 km. between gas stops. That should not cause anyone problems, but I wanted you to know in advance. Be sure to fill up immediately before the rally and at each gas stop. BTW our main gas stop in Bancroft now has two premium pumps.

One of our best pieces of road has a 4 km. section that is not plowed by the local municipality. We are very fortunate that a local resident and strong rally supporter, Mr. Thompson, has been keeping it open with the plow on his ˝ ton pick-up for a nominal fee.

The odo check is now posted online. Be sure to calibrate your odo before the rally.

We are now at 57 pre-paid entries - very close to our cut-off of 60. The starting numbers for those who qualified for the top 20 should be posted by tomorrow. The remaining starting positions will be posted by early next week.

So get that car ready and finalize your plans. Remember that every car must carry at least one reflective triangle (see Supp Regs for details). We will be checking on route.

For further information about the event contact Ross Wood at ross.wood@sympatico.ca To communicate with Kym McIntosh, our Registrar send your e mail to kym@tallpinesrally.com

Looking forward to seeing you on February 18.

Ross Wood, 2006 OWR Coordinator

7 Feb 2006

The odo check is now online.

Supp regs are now online. More information and updates will be posted on a regular basis. We are looking for marshals - please contact the organizer at owr.info@mlrc.ca if you can lend a hand.

Thanks for your support.

5 Jan 2006

On-line registration for the 2006 OWR will be up and running by the weekend. Just go to www.mlrc.ca and follow the cues.

We are pleased to welcome Clearwater Design Canoes & Kayaks back as a sponsor. They will giving a kayak to one of our workers this year.

For your convenience secure on-line payment by credit card is featured again this year. Almost all entrants used it last year. When you complete the process, you will receive confirmation that payment was successfully processed. If you are paying by cheque, please send it immediately in the mail. Remember that your registration is not considered complete and you will not be assigned a Car # until we receive your payment.

Those of you who wish to request a Top 20 start position must do so by contacting Ross Wood at ross.wood@sympatico.ca or by phoning 705-887-1130. To qualify you must have finished in the top 10 overall of a previous Ontario Winter Rally, any Yokohama/Subaru Winter Rally or by special consideration of the organizer. Requests will be accepted beginning Saturday, January 7th at noon until January 25th at midnight.

Beyond the top 20, Car # will be set in order of receipt. Special exceptions may be made by the organizer.

The odometer check will be posted on-line in about ten days.

For further information about the event contact Ross Wood at ross.wood@sympatico.ca To communicate with Kym McIntosh, our Registrar send your e mail to kym@tallpinesrally.com

Looking forward to seeing you on February 18.

Ross Wood, 2006 OWR Coordinator