An Invitation To Assist...

2018 Pacific Forest Rally

We have received an invitation to have our members assist at an event. Read on…

My name is Geoff Hill; I am the volunteer coordinator for the 2018 Pacific Forest Rally, the 5th round of the 2018 Canadian National Rally Championship, which is being held on September 28-30, 2018. I would like to tell you more about this event, in the hopes that you or members of your club would be interested in volunteering as Radio Operators.
Pacific Forest Rally is a sanctioned performance driving competition taking place on temporarily closed forestry roads surrounding Merritt, BC. 

The event needs amateur radio operators such as yourselves, who are crucial to the safety and success of the weekend. This is also an amazing opportunity to put your amateur radio skills & equipment in action, and see real cars, on real roads, driving real fast!

What you would be doing:

As radio operators, you would be stationed at the start and finish line of each closed road, or at blocker positions along the route itself, monitoring and controlling access at intersecting roads or high-risk areas. The primary roles of the radio operator are to help the event organizers track the progress of rally cars on the roads, to keep any civilians from entering the road during competition, and to pass along relevant information in the event of a crash or safety incident.

There will be a training and Q&A session for operators just before the event.

What we provide:

To reduce costs to our volunteers as much as possible, we try to provide free shared accommodation at the Best Western, Ramada, or Quality Inn hotels in Merritt. We also provide bag lunches during the event, and free admittance to the awards banquet and post event celebrations. When the budget allows, we do our best to provide shirts, toques, or other free swag to volunteers to show our appreciation.

What you need to bring:

Because this event takes place in late autumn conditions on dirt/gravel/muddy/snowy forest service roads, we advise proper winter or all-weather tires in good condition, a reliable vehicle with reasonable ground clearance, and reliable radio equipment that can run for multiple hours at a time on the power provided by your vehicle. It is good practice to also bring food, fluids, and anything else you might need for an extended stay outside. The event does run after dark, so headlamps and flashlights will come in handy. Finally, warm winter clothing and wilderness common sense are also important to bring along! 

Where to sign up:

The Volunteer registration page for the event can be found here:
https://www.rallywest.com/signup/volunteer/PacificForestRally 

For more information:

Introduction to Rally Volunteering (description of the radio operator role in particular can be found on page 6 of this document)
Pacific Forest Rally Website
Canadian Association of Rallysport (CARS) website
Canadian Association of Rallysport Youtube channel with lots of videos showing rally cars in action.

I humbly request your assistance to inform members of your amateur radio club of this opportunity. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch with me directly.

Geoff Hill
geoff@rallybc.com 
Volunteer Coordinator, Pacific Forest Rally 2018
Director at Large, RPM
Secretary, WCRA