ROADRALLY ON RALLYING
es, there is still winter snow in the
northeast. At least there was in
Barre, Vt., overnight from Feb. 11-12,
2017, when, for the 13th time,
rallymaster John Buffum (JB)
entertained 32 rally teams on his
Winter Challenge Rally. Mark Stone and
navigator Marc Goldfarb were up to the
challenge, scoring just 88 points in their
first Class A and first overall win. Class S
was won by Scott Carlson and his
navigator Phil LaMoreaux with 586
points; just four cars back from the lead.
Frank Beyer, navigating for Mike
Mazoway in Class A, finished seven
teams back from the lead. “Vermont is
heaven for rally people: tight, smooth,
dirt roads through the trees and
mountains, lots of crazy intersections
with unique combinations to keep you on
your toes, especially at night, especially
at speed, especially on snow,” he says.
Goldfarb can’t remember a
first-place score lower than 88 points
in all the years he’s run the event. A
quick check of a few results validates
his observation with winning scores of
365 and 125.2 the past two years.
It’s good to be wary of any
rallymaster who begins their general
instructions with this statement: “The
rally is much easier and more
straightforward than previous years.”
“JB intends the Winter Challenge to
be a challenge for driver, navigator,
and car preparation...reminiscent of
the brisk, winter events of the late
1960s where driver skill, navigator
capability, car preparation, and team
endurance all contribute.”
In addition to the brisk speeds, “all
legal and below posted speed limits,”
and challenging checkpoint locations,
Goldfarb explains that Buffum uses
old ideas to test driver skill and
navigator capability in three distinct
sections of the rally.
“Target fixation traps, road
determinants, [and] variable MRDs have
been used in the past,” says Goldfarb.
“This year the only really trappy thing
was a written instruction scramble.”
The first section was simplified to where
the instructions were out of order and
not all of them were executed.
The event ran from 3:00 p.m. until
3:00 a.m. The second part was a night
map section that “is a format that
occasionally gets used in Europe and
Canada but almost never in the U.S.”
“The last section is a brisk, tulip
format,” says Goldfarb, saying that he
RALLY HEAVEN
Rallymaster John Buffum takes rallyists on an overnight, snowy challenge
with his 13th Winter Challenge Rally | WORDS & MAIN IMAGE Rick Beattie
believes “this section is intended to be
a driver challenge combined with more
challenging checkpoint locations.”
Stone describes it as “Three
differently formatted sections [that], in
my mind, are an homage to the global
post-war history of performance
rallying. Traps, Maps, Tulips [just like a
stage rally]. You run this event and
you’ve gotten a good history lesson.”
“You can run a stock car just fine – but
only if the car has sufficient ground
clearance from the factory,” he says.
Carlson called it “a huge teamwork
exercise,” but there is no forgetting
the part snow plays.
LaMoreaux remembers that, “the
roads have always been a challenge.
Snow is almost always present on the
back roads, which JB tries to utilize as
much as possible. At one point in
2007 or 2008, we were on a seasonal
road that doubled as a snow machine
trail in the winter.”
Carlson thinks, “JB plans for snow
and tough driving every year – I plan
on it! It was snowy enough this year,
but I would have liked a little more
‘give’ to the snow banks.”
LaMoreaux remembers a few snow
banks in the 11 years he’s run the
event. “In general, everyone has a tow
strap ready,” he says. “We have been
extracted from a snow bank in the
past. This year, we paid it forward by
using a TA to extract another
competitor and friend who ‘ran out of
talent’ on a snowy downhill hairpin.”
Beyer’s description of Buffum’s style
summarizes it well. “John and his
workers are experienced and rarely
make an error,” he says. “Mileages and
timing are incredibly consistent. John
manages to comb through the general
instructions, trying to improve the
experience, test the teams, and
challenge the status quo. [He’s] been
doing it for all these years, rewarding all
of us who continue to make the trip.”
SNO W DAY
(TOP) Snow is not
an unexpected
encounter during
the Winter
Challenge Rally,
its simply another
skills test for the
teams. (BELOW)
Rallymaster John
Buffum (left)
presents the
winning team
of Mark Stone
(right) and Marc
Goldfarb with
the award for
the overall win.
