The 2020 e-Bit of BP Rally

Results and comments from the Director…

Dear participant,

Thanks very much for coming on the journey, particularly those that were conned into this as their first virtual COVID rally.

Here are the Results.

Congratulations to those that escaped least scathed. Ross Kelly took his time, but still along with George Davidson managed to get the exit to control 3 virtually wrong, when they got it right in the actual 2010 Old BP!

Good to see that the tie breaker was employed to sort out some of the major placings.

Some of you pointed out that the map was distorted in the east west plane, which shows how much scaling was used to establish the location of mapped features!

Note that if a via or control was missed, then no penalty was applied for incorrect entry or exit, as that would be a double jeopardy.

A few brief comments are provided on the vias that copped most issues:

1/3 The roads in the vicinity of Galah are not well mapped. The TJ to the west of the via is least arguable, so worked from there.

1/4 “bend in the road” is the clue. This one copped a heap of WDs into Geoff Hale/Alan Baker in the 2010 Old BP as has been discussed on facebook in recent times.

1/8 The kink in the east west road is actually smaller than mapped so the junction is after, not at the bend.

1/9 Most southerly of two junctions is on bend in road.

1/10 Many got within 100m, but not from correct direction. Otzen, Craig McKenzie, Wallis and Brain picked evidence of mapped road in the ploughed paddock.

1/14 Mt Gray is not a prominent point in a generally flat landscape, but can be picked up.

1/15 The junction is a good 400m south of prominent bend.

3/3 The junction is around the bend, not at it. The exit road is not obvious but “visible enough over sufficient distance to be discernible”.

3/4 The exit road is a little difficult to pick up under the mallee trees.

5/4 The map fold did not help, but it is easier to locate working up from the south than from the north.

5/5 Many were just over 100m too far to the south east. The entry road is realigned, and the exit road is discernible.

5/7 The realignment of Mt Jenkins Tk and new track to Kelleys Lookout, don’t help, but the mapped crossroad is there if look hard as seven of you did.

I have contemplated running another one of these if the lockdown continues too long. Could stay in the Mallee, but just to show how diverse the BP was, we could go into the mountains where the tracks are harder to find under the thick forest canopy!

Thanks again for participating
Ross

An armchair Old BP Rally, Saturday 8 August 2020

This introduction extracted from Ross’s news release:

“The e-Bit of BP Rally” will follow a similar format to Geoff Byron’s recent e-Xperts, with maps provided with controls and Vias pre-plotted, and only control and via locations and direction of entry and exit required to be submitted on Google Maps. Not even any pesky shortest map routes to be plotted.

Some Mallee sections from the multi day 2008, 2010 and 2013 Old BP Rallies will be replicated, but as navigation is a lot easier with an aerial view of where you are going, and no threat of becoming bogged in sand if the navigator wants to pause briefly, a few extra more testing vias will be thrown in to be correctly located.

The philosophy of the above events was to employ no fancy tricks, just keep finding on the ground those points marked on the map, and the e version will be no different.

Something I have come to love about the Mallee from organising rallies and a lot of motorbike exploring, is that unlike in the east of the state, roads on old maps do not disappear under thick scrub and trees growth, but they can become a little harder to find amongst the grass or saltbush, or after being ploughed up for a grain crop.

The event will start and finish in Ouyen, so we can picture ourselves after the event, as we did on the balcony of the Victoria Hotel on the George Derrick Tour last October, enjoying a relaxing, socially distanced convivial drink after a satisfying virtual tour of the amazing Mallee countryside.

Regulations are on the RHS of this page

The event will start at 7:00 pm Saturday 8 August, with the posting of Route Instructions and Map, also on the RHS.

Ross Runnalls