SCCA's RoadRally Challenge heading to Alaska

One of the Sports Car Club of America's oldest forms of competition is RoadRally. These rallies take place on public roads with drivers and navigators following directions set forth by the event's rally master. There are several kinds of RoadRallies, from time-speed-distance (the goal is hitting a target time) to gimmick (which requires a keen eye along the route). If you want to win in an SCCA RoadRally, you need to have a good driver, a smart navigator and you need to work well together under pressure – especially at the United States RoadRally Challenge.

The USRRC is one of SCCA's most anticipated annual rallies. Each year, the event travels to a different part of the country with competitors driving or flying in. The USRRC is generally a three-day affair and sees competitors cover significant ground. This year, the USRRC is being hosted in Alaska – yes, The Last Frontier – on Sept. 15-17, 2017, and there is quite a buzz.

While route information is, for obvious reasons, still being kept close to the chest, organizers have said that on Friday competitors will travel from the Anchorage Hillside to Girdwood, the Hope Highway and then lodge in Seward. Saturday will see teams traveling to Homer before the event ends on Sunday in Kasilof.

"The route selected for the 2017 USRRC uses the available roads to their maximum potential, and provides those attending the event the opportunity to explore some magnificent vistas and the possibility of seeing wildlife, including moose, eagles and even bears," Peter and Joanne Schneider report. "On the pre-check we saw all thee, [plus] puffins and sea lions at the Seward SeaLife Center."

As part of the organizational committee for this year's USRRC, the Schneiders headed to Alaska on June 5 for an initial run-through of the USRRC, ensuring everything was in order for the big event.

"Unlike rallying in the lower 48, road choices are very limited," they note. "The majority of the roads available are either state highways (between population centers, used as transits), in town developments (paved and unpaved) or roads (paved and unpaved) leading to recreation areas (lakes, state parks, national parks and wilderness areas). After a quick review of a map of the Kenai Peninsula, south of Anchorage, you will understand the situation, as many of the towns lay between the mountains and the sea and [are] surrounded by federal or state land."

But while the point of the USRRC is competition, the organizers understand – and encourage – the fact that this year's event is a destination like no other "The committee is building in time along the route and at the end of each day to take in what Alaska is all about," the Schneiders report. "This event is truly a destination rally, and for those traveling from out of state, it is a small sample of the natural wonders that traveling in Alaska provides."

More information about SCCA RoadRally can be found here, with detailed information and registration for this year's USRRC here.

And if you've never participated in an SCCA RoadRally, there's no reason not to jump in with the USRRC. The fact that the USRRC is in Alaska makes it the perfect rally to start with because if you get lost, you'll do so in incredible surroundings.