Rallies - Format and Rules

MAJOR CHANGES TO COMPETING ON OUR 12 CAR RALLIES

The governing body Motorsport UK have introduced a requirement that all drivers and navigators need to have a competition licence for 2020, to compete on any event. Although the entry grade licence (RS Clubman) is free, anyone planning to compete on the 12 Car Rallies (Driver & Navigator) must make sure they obtain one in advance. It is very straightforward to do online (if you are 18 or over) at www.motorsportuk.org/2020-rs-clubman-licence/, or via a paper application form for under 18’s and those that don’t quite meet the basic requirements. Please help the organisers by applying well in advance.

Format for CT organised Rally Events 

The 12 Car Rallies that Club Triumph run are standardised in the format that they take.  The aim of this is to create some parity between the different 12 Car Rally events we run, to encourage new entrants who may only want to participate and drive the route with a marked map, and to try and ensure that entrants know what to expect when they enter.  The following is a template that the 2015 onwards Club Triumph 12 Car Rally events will conform to. 

12 Car Navigation Rallies - There will be 3 classes in which you can enter: Beginner, Novice and Expert.  All entrants, regardless of class, will drive the same route. 

Beginner Class - The Beginner class is a non-competitive touring class and is for those wishing to participate in the event without having to work through the navigation clues. Anyone can opt to run as a Beginner. Beginners will be given either a marked map or a list of map references to plot on their own map, and the individual organiser will decide with you which of these you will use. The route will be exactly the same as the other classes, and driven in the same direction. To add interest there will be questions given to you to answer as you drive the route, or you will simply note down the code boards along the route the same as the other classes; this will be decided by the organiser. No competitive Championship or Challenge points will be awarded in the Beginner class, but you will be given start and finish points as appropriate. 

Crews who normally run as Expert or Novice can opt to run as Beginner if they wish, but will not gain any points for use in Championships and the Challenge, except start and finish points as above.

Novice Class - Novice clues will be different to the Expert clues and they will be simple and straightforward with no tricks. If needed, you may be given general discretionary help with plotting or specific navigation queries. 

Expert Class - Expert clues will be a significantly harder and may include a small number of very tricky (but still workable) clues, and reasonable measures to stop Experts from having excess time to drive alternative possible routes. 

Clues for Novice and Expert classes will be very clear in their meaning with no scope for different interpretations. For example, terms such as "best not to" and "try to" will not be used and terms such as "must", "mandatory", "must not" or "forbidden" will be used. 

Additional route proving information may be used, as well as additional information on code boards. For example, the number of bells at the "?? Bells Pub" could be a question for Novices. The same question given to Experts could also provide the 6th digit of the map reference of the next navigation clue, as could an additional character to be found on a code board. There may also be bonus points awarded for these answers which will help provide a tie break, if required. The use of such navigation questions and additional code board information is up to the individual organiser to use or not, and its use will be clearly stated in the Final Instructions. 

Scoring will remain as is currently used for Expert and Novice classes, and as stated in the Final Instructions.  Beginners will be given a score within their own class, based upon their accumulated points, purely for their own interest and enjoyment. Experts and Novices will have any bonus points used for tie breaking purposes, if this method is being used by the organiser. 

Championship and Challenge points for Experts and Novices will remain as is currently used. Beginners will not be awarded competitive Championship and Challenge points, only start and finish points where appropriate.

Dummy code boards may be used and it will be made clear to entrants that they may be encountered, and the fact that they may see a code board does not necessarily mean that they are on the correct route. 

Panic Envelopes will be used so that Experts can continue the event if they fail to find or work out the answer to a next-junction dependent question, and in case Novices get really stuck with the navigation or become lost. The envelope will only contain the location of the next control.  The penalty for opening will be such that entrants would not open it purely to gain an advantage; normally 3 fails per envelope. The Final Instructions will state the penalty given. 

Promotion - A navigator will move up from Novice to Expert once he or she has had 3 wins within the current class in CT 12 car events, or in similar events with other clubs. A driver will run at whatever class his or her navigator is currently at. 

Final Instructions will include a clear statement of what format the event is going to be and be very clear on how the scoring, bonus points, and tie-breaking will work for the event. 

Crew members will be limited to 2, even for the Beginner class, to comply with the MSA 12 Car Navigation Rally permit. 

Entries will open with publication on the CT Forum, Comps website and (where possible) within Club Torque.  There will be a 10 day period in which Expert and Novice entries will take precedence over Beginner entries. This is to allow entrants who are trying to gain points in the Championship or Challenge a better chance of a place if there were to be a high number of entries for the beginner non-competitive touring class.