The Great Race 2023 Spring Rally took place last month in Auburn, Indiana. I was fortunate to navigate for Erin Stahl-Liberty in her 1962 Chevrolet Nova. We were sponsored by Stahls Automotive Collection of Chesterfield, Michigan. The three-day rally was billed as a tune-up event for the annual big race: The 2023 Great Race, which starts in St. Augustine, Florida on June 24 and ends in Colorado Springs, Colorado on July 2.
These are not speed events. Instead, they are a Time-Speed-Distance (TSD) rally where competitors are charged a penalty for every second they are early or late at multiple secret checkpoints along the day’s route. The objective is to be on course and on time, with the winners being the team with the fewest penalty points (lowest score). Vehicles need to be a 1974 model year or older, and a few 1916 automobiles usually participate each year. Scores are adjusted for the age of the car to encourage entries of older vehicles.
Preparing for the Auburn Spring Rally
Each team consists of a driver, a navigator, and a vintage vehicle. Each of these ingredients needs to be in top form if you expect to be competitive. Erin had driven the ’62 Nova in a prior Great Race event and was familiar with its capabilities. Here she is overhauling the brakes in preparation for the rally.
It had been decades since I competed in a Great Race event, and my navigational timepieces needed to be checked for function and accuracy. My preferred clocks are the black-dial Tag Heuer Sebring analog stopwatch and Master Time clock. However, the stem on the Master Time clock was not functioning properly and is now in the shop. I went with the Tag Heuer white-dial analog stopwatch. Although digital stopwatches are now allowed, I find the analog type conveys much more visual information.
As part of the ’62 Nova preparation, Erin added my name to the side of the car. She sure made me feel special. The #13 decal was leftover from a prior Great Race and was updated to #144 for this event.
The Measured Mile
The first time Erin and I were in the ’62 Nova together was on registration and tech inspection day in Auburn. The event organizers include a set of route instructions called the “measured mile” to allow contestants to calibrate their speedometers. While called a measured mile, it is typically about 10 miles in length. Additionally, competing vehicles are not allowed to have odometers, so instead of referencing various mileage readings along the way, these particular route instructions have interval and elapsed time readings that are based on maintaining a constant speed of 50.00 miles per hour. Yes, the two decimal places are significant.
We completed the “measured mile” in 11 minutes 32.6 seconds versus a perfect time of 11 minutes 47.0 seconds. This was an error of 14.4 seconds or about 2%. We adjusted the Timewise Speedometer calibration factor from 3603 to 3678 to correct for this error. Another run of the “measured mile” was accomplished with a perfect time. The speedometer was now dialed in. We also found a quiet road where we could update the performance tables indicating time lost when performing various maneuvers.
Stage 1 – Dusting Off the Cobwebs
The first stage was all about the driver and navigator learning each other’s process and lingo. The day’s route took us up through the back roads of northern Indiana and into Michigan. It was also a day of executing the nuances of speed changes and timing calculations in the heat of real-time competition. Mistakes were made, and corrective actions were taken. It was a learning experience. We were allowed to throw out our worst leg (13 seconds) and ended the day with a score of 12 seconds. This was good enough for a 15th-place finish out of the field of 65 entries. Respectable, but not competitive.
Note: On stage 2 we had a new worst leg, so the 13-second leg was added back in at that time, giving us a revised finish of 32nd place. See more Stage 1 coverage and photos here.
Stage 2 – Breakdown
Stage 2 took us east of Auburn, through Amish country, and into Ohio. All was going well for us when the ’62 Nova started making an obscene racket, forcing us to the side of the road before we could reach the Ohio border. Within a minute, a neighbor arrived and directed us back to their home. Then, they produced a hydraulic jack, allowing us to see what the problem was. It was a busted shock mount.
The people living in the house we were now at claimed their neighbor Kenny was a classic car mechanic. The next thing I knew, Kenny was under the car with me and said he had the parts to fix it. Less than an hour later, we were back on the road.
If your Great Race vintage vehicle breaks down in eastern Indiana, there is no better place for it to happen than in front of Kenny’s house. A true savior and gentleman, Kenny refused to accept any compensation for his time and effort. As Bill Kerlin, a Great Race staff member said, “Kenny is restoring the faith in mankind.”
Unfortunately, even with Kenny’s help, the 50-minute delay cost us two legs, Additionally, we had to skip lunch in Wapakoneta, Ohio in order to make the after-lunch time-of-day restart. We received two 3-minute penalties for our delay, which eliminated our chances for a competitive finish. We finished 60th out of 65 for Stage 2.
See more Stage 2 coverage and photos here.
Stage 3 – All Keyed In
Stage 3 took us back through Amish country and then we headed north into Michigan. At the end of the day, Erin and I looked at each other with an air of satisfaction. We both felt good about the day and were of the belief we turned in a great score.
We were correct. The team of Stahl-Liberty & Rowland in the ’62 Nova had a 6-second day. However, the winning team had a 5-second day, and because they were in a 1916 Hudson, they also received an age adjustment factor of 0.66, resulting in a 3.3-second final score. Three other teams also squeezed ahead of us, leaving us with a 5th-place finish.
The event photographer captured us in action on the course in Stage 3.
See more Stage 3 coverage and photos here.
More Pictures From The Auburn Spring Rally
I need to extend a special thank you to Stahls Automotive Collection for sponsoring our team. Stahls was also the event sponsor.
Next year’s Spring Rally is going to be hosted at Stahls Automotive Collection of Chesterfield, Michigan. I, for one, am certainly looking forward to that event (and visiting the museum).
Two of the days took us through the Amish country of Northeast Indiana. We encountered more than a dozen Amish buggies on both days. Usually, it’s the modern families that are “checking out” the Amish families when passing through the area, but the Great Race photographer captured this image of an Amish family checking out a Great Race vehicle.
The Auburn, Cord, and Duesenberg Automobile Museum was host to many of the Auburn Spring Rally activities. Here is a picture of the ’62 Nova arriving at the “finish line” on the final day.
While in Auburn, we were also hosted by the National Auto & Truck Museum and the Early Ford V-8 Foundation Museum. All three are worthwhile visits for auto enthusiasts and historians.
1935 Auburn 851 Supercharged Speedster
The museum had many fine automobiles, but this one might be my favorite. Supercharged Lycoming in-line eight, 280 cubic inches, 150 HP, 3-speed transmission, for a price of $2,245,
Bill Kerlin (on the right) and I were in the same cub scout den (many many decades ago) and hadn’t seen each other since high school. He posted something about the Great Race on Facebook and I replied that I participated in that in the late 80s and early 90s. I was looking to get involved again, so Bill put me in touch with Erin Stahl-Liberty (middle), and before you know it, Erin and I were teamed up for the Auburn Spring Rally. I want to say thank you to Bill for putting me in touch with Erin, and to Erin for taking a chance on an old-school navigator.
Great Race clocks, stopwatches, bezels, and rally accessories for sale.
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