“If you don’t like the weather in New England, wait a minute.” That statement certainly held true last weekend for the Team O’Neil Winter RallySprint. We woke up way too early Sunday morning to a surprise 6 inches of snow and untreated roads. The drive to Team O’Neil normally takes 2.5 hours, but it was more like 4 this morning. I was paranoid that I was going to be “that guy” holding up the entire event, but it turns out everyone else was caught off-guard by the snow, too. People were still attempting to get into Team O’Neil when we got there.
Elana and I got sent to the finish for the day, and after only getting stuck once on our way to the north end of the facility I set up my new homemade ham radio antenna mast. I’ll spare you the technical details (you can read them at W1RLY, and I’ll likely write a QST article about it too), but suffice it to say it worked perfectly and exceeded all my expectations. Unfortunately being at the finish prevented me from shooting any pictures or video of cars sideways at speed, but I was there to provide radio communications, not as a journalist.
Though many people got stuck in snowbanks during their runs, for the first time I can remember every car that started the event finished it intact. The ice under the snow kept speeds down, and the snowbanks cushioned cars when they slid off the road. It was a good time, and I’m glad my wife was finally able to come with me to a RallySprint for the first time. It was great to introduce her to more of the rally family, and to see several friends earn trophies for the day’s efforts. Rather than rush home to Elana as I usually do, we went out to dinner with some friends before heading home.
Oh, and all that snow that surprised us Saturday night? It melted by Monday afternoon.
Justin Hughes 