Rallye to Reno 2011

Haven't missed a NAMGBR annual event and even driven an MGB to all of them...really looking forward to next year...safety fast...Larry Henle

Question...For the East Coast participants, is there a return driving schedule, or do most people just form their own 'pack'? Do participants stay in touch by CB or other means? One of the appeals would be support for any roadside issues, of course. It sounds like about 10 days out, and 10 (?) days back, else take 2 weeks off of work, and ship the car back. Does anyone approach it this way?

The Rallye to Reno is shaping up to be THE MG TRIP OF A LIFETIME! Over 150 MG owners from all around the world have now expressed an interest in participating. Everyone is invited to participate in this non-competitive drive across America.

Regarding the previous post from Rick, there is growing interest in shipping cars back East at the conclusion of the Rallye and MG-2011, making it only a two week investment of time. We've already contacted a shipping company and received a favorable quote. Send a note to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) if you're interested in shipping your car to an East Coast destination. The more to ship, the cheaper it will get!

Registration for the Rallye will only be $35, and you do not have to run the entire route. Join us for a day or two as we pass through your neighborhood! Registration will be available at http://www.MG2011.com beginning in December.

Meanwhile, visit http://www.RallyeToReno for the latest updates and to see where everyone's coming from to participate in this MG trip of a lifetime.

We will Rally to Reno with our 1969 MG Midget to celebrate 40 years of owning this car, also to celebrate the 50th year of the first production of the modern day Midget.

Cheers,

Ralph & Allie Brown

We've already registered for this Rally to Reno, but, as an afterthought, why was there a $35.00 registration fee and what do we get for our $35.00?

Bert

Hi Bert,

Glad to hear you and Bruce can participate in this cross-country MG trip of a lifetime. Countless hours have gone into the planning of this trip to make it enjoyable to all who participate.

You asked a great question. What do you get for your $35.00 registration fee?

I want it to be affordable to all, and yet bring in enough revenue to cover the costs of a few amenities for everyone along the way. Five of the thirty-five dollars will go to the online processing fees and MG2011 fund. The remaining thirty dollars will go as far as it can to cover the following:

Mike Jacobsen has volunteered to create a tour book consisting of unique sites along the way and information on various towns and historic occurrences. This will incur printing costs. Dave McCann has designed the beautiful logo, which will be used to provide each entrant a high-quality individualized Rallye Plate. If money and possible sponsorship permits, additional signage for the cars will also be provided.

Hotel selections are being wrapped up now and will be announced shortly, so that you may make your own reservations. We looked hard at the choices available, and selected what we hope will be clean, comfortable, and safe locations without going over the $100 mark, most well below that price. We'll be getting discount rates at each location, and many are offering complimentary rooms for "x" number purchased in our block. These comp rooms will be offered to participants thru daily drawings.

St Louis is shaping up to be a great stop. We're making final negotiations for a great hotel close to the famous Arch. George Merryweather has arranged for special reserved MG parking below the arch and aerial photography of our cars to commemorate this special stop. This will cost about $1,000 for the parking, helicopter, and photographer, and come from the registration fund.

Victoria British is excited to have us stop by their location in Lenexa, KS. They will be hosting an open house and free BBQ dinner for us. Complimentary event T-shirts are also in the works, thanks to V.B.

Moss Motors is very involved in this event as well. They are our official Parts Supplier for the Rallye to Reno, and will be dedicating a direct phone line to ensure anything we need is shipped directly to us on the road. They also have the advantage of shipping out of California, allowing for the latest possible cut-off time. We're also working right now with Mike Hickman to become our official Parts Truck, carrying many of the anticipated parts needed, so we'll have them with right there with us! Also, not official at this time, but Hagerty Insurance is being invited to participate by offering extended towing for participants.

Our Grand Junction location is set to offer a welcome reception including complimentary food and beverages. I'm working on additional hospitality opportunities at other stops as well.

Further amenities, discounts, and perks of running in the Rallye to Reno are very much in the developmental stages. As always, I welcome ideas, contacts, and assistance in making this an unforgettable trip for all.

In today's economy, $35.00 (or $17.50 per person) doesn't seem to go very far. I'm hoping that in this case, it lasts for 3,000 miles. But even more than that, it is my hope that you are provided all the tools necessary to build your own memories of crossing America with the greatest group of car enthusiasts in the world.

And the trip just got a little more fun, knowing you’ll be a part of it.

Thanks for the info about all the perks accompanying this great Rallye to Reno. Thanks to all who are working to make it as great as it sounds!! We're ready & counting the days until June 4th!! Let's SEE THE USA IN AN MGA. RoBERTa Rauch & Bruce

I have registered but not sure where to register for the tour.
I would meet in Carlyle Il if I join the tour. Several may come from Chattanooga,

Gilbert,

If you registered for MG2011, there was a place to add the RallyeToReno on to that registration. If you're wondering when we send info to you, we're working on getting all of that together and we'll send it out as soon as we finish all the details.

I went back and registered for the tour will meet in Carlyle Il.. I may do some side trips as i have relatives in KC and Denver.

Looks like this will be a blast. Is there going to be a published list of hotels and are you going to provide addresses of garages along the way that can repair our cars if required.

We'll be getting the list of hotels out to those who register in the next few days. I'm not sure what we have in the way of a list of garages, but if you register you'll get all the info we're able to put together.

The prospects of this trip have buoyed my spirits through these records snowfalls in New England. I have been mentally preparing for this since it was first announced in November.

Alas...my son's high school graduation is June 4th! I would never be able to catch the pack after a two day head start...I may be able to fly out to Reno for GT-36...but no Rallye for me this year. Bummer!

Good luck!

Rick, you do seem to be behind the 8 ball there. I'd run long and hard for two days to get to St. Louis Monday night, but I know I'm not typical. Also, I've never done that and then driven for another six days after that. Catching up at KC is more reasonable, but still a long haul over three days. But, more significantly, do that and you miss the picture at the Arch. On the other hand, if you fly to Reno you'll also miss the picture at the Arch. Know anyone in St. Louis with a spare garage for a week or two.

maybe with a touring partner, but not so keen on trying it solo.

I have heard that the second stop will be in Cinncinatti. That is where I am planing on getting together with the group. This is a fairly long run from Pittsburgh but from Washington DC it is going to be a lot longer run. What is going to be the travel time between stops and when will we get a copy of the map showing where we are going to stop? I have registered for the trip and have started working on one of my cars to get it ready. The trip looks like a lot of fun and I am looking forward to going. I am also looking forward to collecting on those beers that Dave owes me.

Though my personal rallye will be concluding at Washington DC. I'm still really looking forward to the massed start in Ocean City. It should be quite a photo op.
Since I am somewhat local, I'll be coming DownyO ( as we Baltimorians call journeying to Ocean City) a day early, and would be more than happy to pull together a social event on friday night.

I'd be happy to work with the RtR organizers to coordinate an event. If anyone's interested let me know.

Hello Rallye to Reno enthusiasts!

I appreciate everyone's interest, enthusiasm, and patience regarding the planning of this Rallye. What started out a discussion between Dave and myself of "How are we gonna get to Reno?" has now turned into a worldwide participation of potentially 250 MG cars crossing the United States together!

Dave & I began by gathering information on who would be interested in such a crossing, and then attempted to layout the best plan for traveling reasonable distances each day. But as the interest level grew, we found that some of the smaller towns could not offer the necessary accommodations. So, it took us a while to adjust, and while that was happening, we began getting noticed by companies interested in sponsoring different aspects of the event, such as Victoria British hosting a dinner at their location. While this was wonderful and exactly what we were looking for, it once again required a hotel change so that we could be near Lenexa, KS. We were just about to release the list of hotels several weeks ago, when Dodge City contacted us, thanks to a local MG enthusiast. Dodge City offered a great package for our participants. So, once again we made a hotel change, as it will make for a great evening stop now.

So, this is a long way of saying, we apologize for causing any unrest by not publishing the hotel list sooner. But we really wanted to get it right. And, we've finally got a great list and some great happenings for almost every evening! The complete hotel list went out this morning, via e-mail to everyone who has registered for the Rallye to Reno. If you have not registered yet, I encourage you to do so, as the primary hotels may fill up quickly. In most cases, we do have alternate hotels selected, but the fun is really in staying with the main group. Plus, some (not all) of the hotels will be offering comp rooms for “x” amount booked. So, the more rooms we book, the more comp rooms we will have to give out randomly, or maybe to the winner of “the question of the day,” or maybe the hard luck story of the day...but none of us will have any of those stories, right???

As to the mileage per day, most days are around 300 miles. There are two days of about 400 miles. This will be a "take it at your own pace" type of event. If you drive slow, or plan on making a lot of stops, simply leave a little early each morning.

Moss Motors has stepped up to be a major sponsor of this event, by offering a special Rallye plate, and other amenities. Moss will also be sending spare parts, so that we will have much of what we need, there with us as we travel! There're also offering a special discount on purchase of parts PRIOR to the start of the event, for all MG2011 registrants!!!

The Hoosier MGA Club has offered to set-up a refreshment (and possibly lunch) stop as we pass through a small town in Indiana. This is so cool! How about your club hosting a stop as we pass through your neighborhood?

St. Louis is shaping up to be a great stop too, especially with the display of cars below the arch, and aerial photography to commemorate the special occasion.

As I mentioned, Victoria British is hosting a complimentary BBQ dinner, and providing T-shirts and goody bags to all R2R participants.

And Dodge City is rolling out the red carpet....or tumbleweeds as the case may be....for us to have special guarded parking while we enjoy what promises to be a great evening, western style!

North American Classic MG magazine is hosting a reception in Grand Junction especially for us! Hagerty has stepped up to provide what I call, "A get out of jail free card,” to provide extended towing insurance for our participants. And the list continues to grow!!!

I just returned from a planning trip in Reno. Thanks to the MG Council and Reno dept. of tourism, we’re now developing a grand entrance as we arrive in Reno that Sunday afternoon. This should be spectacular!

Lastly, there were questions about the leg AFTER Reno. For those interested, the Rallye will resume on Friday morning, June 17th and head back to Route 50 and on to Sacramento, where Route 50 officially ends, and on to San Francisco, making it a true cross-country trip for many.

Anyone is invited to join us for any part of this cross-country drive. If you would like to register, it’s only $35, and entitles you to all of the above amenities, plus signage for your car, and a whole lot more. Registration is available at http://www.MG2011.com.

So, as you can see, the Rallye to Reno has required a considerable amount of planning to get it to this point. Dave & I sincerely appreciate your patience and support. We hope that this proves to become the MG trip of a lifetime. We look forward to creating some great memories together this summer, as the Rallye to Reno takes us to the Greatest little MG show in the world....MG2011.

See you on the road!

Bruce Woodson

Dear Bruce,

I have not received the list of hotels for the rallye, as of March 25. Would you please send me a copy.

Cheers,
Ralph Brown

Hi Ralph,

Dave McCann receives registration updates from the MG2011 folks, about every two weeks. Dave then sends the hotel list to everyone who is new on the Rallye to Reno list. If you are an "older" registrant, it is possible Dave's e-mail did not get through to you. I will now ask that we receive updates on a much more frequent basis.

In any event, please send a request directly to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and He will send you the list.

Ralph, I'm glad you can join us. We're already at 75 registered and growing to towards the 250 that have shown an interest in joining our little drive across the USA.