| UPCOMING EVENTS |
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| Written by Andrew | |
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REGISTER FOR 2011 DUSTBALL TODAY!! <----- CLICK ON 'Join the Rally!' TO THE LEFT FOR DETAILS!! 2011 Dustball Rally will travel approximately 2000 miles, starting in El Paso, Texas and ending in Las Vegas, Nevada. Driver's safety briefing on Tuesday, July 26 is in El Paso, and is required to attend for ALL teams. Entry fee covers most everything except food, fuel, booze, or any legal encounters such as traffic citations, etc. It does include hotel stay (but not room service), selected DBR apparel, vehicle graphics, film and photo crews, awards, rally setups, and much more. The schedule for the 2011 Events are as follows: Tues, July 26 (El Paso, TX) -- Driver's Meeting and Safety Briefing Wed, July 27 (El Paso, TX) -- Launch from El Paso, TX and arrive at Destination A Thurs, July 28 -- Launch from A and arrive at Destination B Fri, July 29 -- Launch from B and arrive at Finish line (Las Vegas, NV) Sat, July 30 -- Day of Rest/Awards that evening (at host hotel in LV) Sun, July 31 -- Return home at your leisure. (Non-rally day) The Dustball Rally is NOT a race. It is a non-timed street-legal rally. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **IMPORTANT*: MOTORFEST HAS BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL SEPTEMBER. DUSTBALL VEHICLES ARE ALSO INVITED TO ATTEND MOTORFEST WHEN THE NEW DATE IS SET. TEAMS THAT WISH TO DISPLAY THEIR CARS AT MOTORFEST, PLEASE CONTACT DUSTBALLRALLY @ GMAIL.COM VIA EMAIL ASAP FOR DETAILS AND REQUIREMENTS. ****CONGRATULATIONS**** TEAM HAZMATT - WINNERS - 2010 CHAMPIONSHIP GIMMICK RALLY  TEAM PROSTIN' - WINNERS - SPIRIT OF THE DUSTBALL 'WILLIE WILLIAMS' AWARD!!!  2010 TEAM TESTIMONIALS #97/#59 Team Costa: This year’s Dustball Rally was by far the best and most intense yet. The route was extremely well planned with a great mix of open roads and mountain twists, with gimmicks thrown in to provide some commentary for the towns we were traveling through. And don’t forget the entry into Denver on the main party drag. We were all instant celebrities coming into the city. That’s one for the memory books. This year brought some great social action as well. Most of the teams this year had already known each other from the previous few years, which added a level of camaraderie and competition that added to the excitement. Even the new teams got into the mix, and made a fine showing in true Dustball spirit. Whatever you’re here for—stunning drives, legendary competition, a world-class party crowd—Dustball has it all. It’s simply the most fun you can have with an automobile. Fun doesn’t even begin to describe it. With the 35 teams there are 35 unique stories to how the Dustball played out for them. There were teams that had navigation errors, bad judgment, internal team issues, mechanical failure, and those that partied too hard the night before. Everybody was tested and I think all came out on the other side much better. Pitting yourself against the Dustball makes your strengths and weaknesses instantly apparent, as any truly challenging activity should. Personally, I’ve learned so much from running with experienced drivers that I feel I’ve become a better driver myself, and learning experiences like that are fleetingly rare. In short, Dustball was the most intense, engaged, and energizing experience I’ve had all year. I could do this for the rest of my life. I can’t wait for next year. #02 Team Shake 'n Bake II: Discman's Revenge: Wow, what an experience, 2 years down and I can’t wait for the next Dustball. It’s amazing to see so many gear heads in one place and even better coming back for your 2nd Rally as Team Shake n Bake did this year. We were clearly more mentally prepared for the rigors of the Dustball, and yet still found ourselves severely challenged and fatigued at times. I would recommend this “Auto Therapy” to anyone. The best part is clearly the camaraderie and friendships you develop in those 3-4 days. In this modern online age, you end up staying in touch with each other and a year flies by and people pick up where they left off. We felt more comfortable, far from shy “rofl” and much more willing to push ourselves mentally and physically. You get home and it’s an exhausting week after surviving a Dustball, but you just can’t seem to shake that feeling of wanting to do it all over again. It was a good feeling establishing yourself as a Dustball regular, and the mutual respect that all the teams show each other is quite impressive, considering the diverse group that makes up a Dustball. All in all, I’m hooked, and will be involved in one way or another each and every year for as long as I possibly can………..Go Dustball……..That Just Happened!!! #00 Team New Mex Express: "The 2010 Dustball Rally was, and is the premiere event of its kind in the world, if you ask me. The event this year added a much needed element, night time driving, into the mix. For rally purists, this type of driving offers drivers and teams a challenge that you cannot prepare for, unless you mount additional rally lights. The teams also stepped up their game in their attempts to bring their own gimmicks to the rally, a tradition we are glad to see catch on. All teams did this in good spirits and nobody caused any damage or sabotage to the other cars. This run in the AMG was more comfortable for my team and we didn't have to overextend ourselves or the car and still did ok at the end. Was nice to see a podium full of veteran teams. The field was diverse and most teams survived. For Team New Mex Express this was a rebuilding year. New car, new team, fresh outlook. We went in with no practice as a team and shared our fair share of struggles both in and out of the car. We could not have asked for a better learning day that day 1 of the rally. The two part rally really through the new members for a loop, they had not been in such an endurance event before, and by Alamosa they began to crack, after a quick stop, forced by me, we had dinner and watched a few weary teams drive by. This made us feel at ease and also uneasy knowing we had a while to go. Once back in the car we began to make that ETA shrink, minute by minute we anticipated our arrival to the warwick hotel more and more. Arriving exhausted we got the first real sleep in days, knowing we gave it our best shot. The gimmicks this year were a challenge because most were not available online, if they were, they differed from the signage at the site. We also encountered getting lost, due to a high speed pass at a directional change. We all learned from this and had a good time catching up on our home turf. Once we reached the santa fe plaza we took a moment to reassess our roles and pressed on, once we caught back up to you (thanks for waiting for us in alamosa) we knew we were going to be ok. Running into (literally) cyprus hill in the elevator was fun too. Day two (rest day) we grew as a team, my team mates expressed displeasure with the late drive, but had to be reminded of the challenge, I told them that day 1 is the test, both mentally and physically to shake you to the core. Day two would feel better, we made adjustments, mainly our music selection and reassignment of tasks to make the trip back more enjoyable for the team members. We also used the late night out as an opportunity to unleash our brand of gimmick on the parked cars. You may have seen them. I enjoyed this rally on a whole other level,I played peace keeper and coach to my team mates, they shined in their duties and that was all the accomplishment I was hoping for. A treat for me, was to run against and get to meet Mr. Williams, He really pushed the envelope on rally spirit and him and Matt set the benchmark for winning very high. We feel a best as we have in many rallies about the answer sheet, and even found a couple bonus stickers, when we stopped to look.. I have no complaints, its the one week a year i look forward to, an escape from the evils of the world, a chance to let it all loose and drive like a cannonball run event. Keep improving it as you have each year, keep the vision Willie has instilled in you, it may not please everyone, but if it gets one more team involved, thats all that matters. they will be hooked on it." 2009 TEAM TESTIMONIALS #95 - Team Dark Lord "I would say " Its a hell of a lot of fun". The different people that you meet from all different walks of life. The different cars that you see. The great places that you get to go to. You will never have another experience like you do being in the Dustball. Its three days you can go through many different feelings. You can go from feeling like a Rock star to a criminal. I loved every minute of it. You will make connections with people that may help you in the future. Dust Balling is like karaoke. You do it once you will never wanna stop." #97 - Team Costa "Great people. Awsome route and destination. Fast driving. Safe driving. Gnarley cars- especillly liked the GTR, the "Mad Max" black Dodge and of course the 911. Excellent dollar value for a 3 day Rally. Lots of fun. What else could you ask for except mabey a new 2010 GT-3." #77 - Team New Mex Express "For teams and individuals that are unsure about entering their vehicle in the rally because they see a wide spread of exotic and modern muscle, don't be discouraged or intimidated. The biggest thing needed to compete in the Dustball Rally is knowledge of the capabilities of your car and teamwork. We often get questioned on why we bring a much older vehicle than other teams to the rally, and our answer is simple, if we can sit in the car for many hours at a time then we are confident we can finish the route successfully. Your team is often the biggest advantage you will have over other participants and not soley based on what type of car you drive. This rally is for everyone. There is not anything to dislike about the Dustball Rally, sure teams, including ourselves get stressed out about installing stickers and many late nights are spent preparing, but the staff always does their best to ensure we are taken care of a prepared, you wont get that with most rallies. This event does not compare to anything I have participated in. I have participated in quite a few rallies and other forms of motorsport. In those event you know where you are going and how you will get there. With the Dustball Rally, you have no clue where you are going and what is ahead of you. They work hard at ensuring a complete route with just about every variable imaginable. The gimmick portion of the rally is often the most fun and challenging aspect of the rally, it can nearly tear a team apart and finding the clues is like a drug, once you get it down, you feel a big sense of relief. The knowledge you gain about your surroundings about the communities you pass through is amazing and eye opening. Your team will be competing with other teams, weather, and the road for 1500 miles. If you are on the fence about joining the rally, we encourage you to get off the fence and see what it is all about. It is one of the best experience you can have behind the wheel of your car." WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? |
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