What is the difference between a snow-ice baja and a desert baja?
Baja Russia organizers asked this question to Boris Gadasin, two-time FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas winner, the only Russian driver who won the Silk Way Rally, and eight-time Russian Cross-Country champion. Gadasin became the Baja Northern Forest winner four times and studied the issue well.
BE READY!
If we talk about some advice for those who have never tried the snow and ice surface before, then the main thing to be prepared for is that snow, ice and what will be under the wheels at the Baja Northern Forest are absolutely unpredictable. That is, you can drive 100 meters and have an excellent grip – the car holds on to the road better than on gravel. Further you can get into some loose area, and the grip can disappear completely there. Therefore, the first thing to urge the competitors is that they should not assume they have understood the surface from the first kilometers. During the special stage the grip will change from zero to very good hundreds of times. So it is necessary to react precisely to the behavior of the car and not to think that if you have passed two corners and the car is holding on the track, then it will be the same in the third one. Most mistakes and crashes are related to this.
Tips for beginners or what is the difference between a snow and ice baja and a desert baja?
BELIEVE YOUR EYES
Second, it is necessary to practice and try to drive exactly “by sight”. The drivers who have spent their whole lives in the sand are very well oriented and can visually determine what they will find on the next section of the route, determine the density of the sand. The same thing is here – you need to analyze in advance, but it’s easier to do on the snow – dug areas or hard ones are visible on the snow and you need to be ready for them in advance. The same gradation corners must be passed at a speed of, say, 100 km/h, and the same corner with a different surface will have to be driven at a speed of 40 km/h. If you approach a corner and see with your eyes that it is loose and slippery, the reaction should be in advance, since overspeed in a corner is fraught with hitting the marbles. This is what people who have never driven in the snow should prepare for.
ONE MISTAKE AND YOU ARE WRONG
I love winter races because they are not monotonous in turns of pace. You must constantly seek the limit, but at the same time constantly retreat. Unlike the classic rally, in cross-country rallies you do not pass the track in advance and do not know the exact gradation of corners on the baja track – everything happens “by sight”. Rally drivers who can go fast enough often end up in a snowdrift, since it is enough to make a mistake once. The road is unknown, the surface is unknown, you have to react very quickly to what you see, to how the car is behaving.
RUT TO HELP!
If you see a rut on the sandy track, you should try to avoid it, try to go around, since the unduged sand will be denser. Everything is the opposite here – if you see a traffic-compacted road, you need to try to stay in it, since there will be a pressed surface, so the spikes will hold better. You need to change your habits here, remember that you are on the snow cover.
- Tips for beginners or what is the difference between a snow and ice baja and a desert baja?
WINTER AND PUDDLES
Of course, there are fairly standard mistakes that beginners who are unfamiliar with races in subzero temperatures make – driving through puddles or fords. They can be found at the Baja Russia – Northern Forest. In no case I recommend driving into the water at full speed, because the car will pass the water section quickly, but then you will have to stand for a long time and wait for the instantly formed ice on the windshield to melt. Even if the heater is good, you still have to wait, because when there is freezing temperature overboard, when there is a lot of suddenly formed water, it will freeze, hitting the windshield and there will be zero visibility. Many people make this mistake, even at Russian competitions; and people who are unfamiliar with northern races will find it out on the track and it becomes a surprise for them.
- Tips for beginners or what is the difference between a snow and ice baja and a desert baja?
And there is one more piece of advice. Once our Brazilian friends took part in the Baja Northern Forest and Reinaldo Varela, who performed at T3, did not expect that, passing a frozen puddle, there was a section on a level with the ice where the ice was broken and the water was visible. They did not expect that there might be a “subway entrance” – such a deep hole. They drove at a high speed into an area with broken ice, fell with a wheel, felt an unpleasant hard step onto the ice, collected all the ice at full speed, and the windshield broke. It was possible to go around there, but the water beckoned and no one expected and did not understand that if you see ice and somewhere on the side there is a trail of broken ice, then it is better to go this place around, since it will be deep there. It is better to drive around on a hard surface, avoiding such holes with water.
As for special equipment, T1 and T2 class cars have no problems – a normally prepared car has a good heater and the weather does not cause discomfort for the crew. Special equipment is more needed for T3/T4 that do not have a sealed interior.
SHOVELS
Considering that the race goes along a certain route and along a certain road, there is a high degree of probability that someone will pull you out, so if you get stuck too much, a shovel will not help – it is better to prepare a cable here. If the car is hooked a little bit and there are hydropods, as in T1, then all the classic techniques are used – sand trucks, shovels, etc., as in the sands.
- Tips for beginners or what is the difference between a snow and ice baja and a desert baja?
GLASSES
I do not use yellow glasses now, and in bright sunlight I just use polarized glasses to avoid glare. In cloudy weather I rely on my vision without extra lenses.
Good luck! Baja “Russia – Northern Forest” is a wonderful adventure that will give you an irreplaceable experience and improve your piloting skills! See you on the Igora Drive!
Source Baja Russia
2022 is just around the corner and with that also comes the Olymipa Rally 2022 Edition.
Due to the landscapes and historical meaning of the area, the Olympia Rally has become one of the best rallies in Europe.
For 2022 the Olympia Rally will take place from 4th - 9th of April giving the riders 6 days of rally madness, passing through Ancient Olympia to Kaiafas Beach and the surrounding beautiful moutains of the Peloponnese and promising once again amazing rally.
New routes, New scenery, New setup!
Early entry fees are closing soon, so make sure to book early to get your discount.
We will be waiting for you, all you need to do is be there!
Below you will find some usefull links.
You can find all information regarding the entry fees here
Make sure you also book your accomodation, all information is here
If you need logos, they are right here
Source: Olympia Rally
Rosberg X Racing (RXR) and X44 in a title fight that will be decided this weekend Season 1 finale – the Jurassic X Prix – to take place in Dorset, UK from 18-19 December New terrains as the drivers take on one of the most challenging courses to date Jurassic X Prix available to watch via Extreme E social channels and more than 85 global broadcasters listed here GridPlay opens at 0900 GMT on Wednesday 15 December
This weekend marks the final race of Extreme E’s first season and the Championship decider as the nine teams go head-to-head in their all-electric ODYSSEY 21s.
Although RXR has led the standings throughout and currently tops the table on 129 points, Lewis Hamilton’s X44 on 113 points could take Championship victory this weekend. Just behind the top two and in close contention are Andretti United Extreme E (93 points) and Jenson Button’s JBXE (92 points) as they fight to round out the top three spots.
Alejandro Agag, Founder and CEO of Extreme E, said: “Our Dorset race is shaping up to be a thrilling finale and I can’t wait to see the teams battling it out on the course for victory at the concluding race of our first season.
“There has been some epic action on some exciting courses, and the route for Dorset will be no different. With a high chance of rain expected, the drivers are going to face the new challenge of a wet and muddy course, which could really spice things up in the Championship battle.
“More importantly, though, throughout our first year we have raised awareness of the climate crisis facing us all. Our presence in Dorset demonstrates that environmental issues are close to home, and we will be sure to leave a positive impact on the Jurassic coast.”
Challenging courses
The final race will take place at the British Ministry of Defence Base at Bovington in Dorset and as Extreme E closes out Season 1, the Jurassic X Prix will be held on a course that once again provides a completely new set of challenges. A mixed surface of clay, sand, gravel, and mud dominates the course in Dorset making grip, or the lack of it, a key feature for the first time this season. The likelihood of rain only adds to that challenge.
A fast downhill start will allow for multiple cars running side by side, but the wide-open space soon becomes a bottleneck and narrows down to single car width along the tree-lined course, bringing the drivers towards the course’s most striking feature - the 5.4-metre-high 23-degree ‘Knife Edge’ slope.
Enno Straten, Head of Strategy, Analytics & Marketing Replacement Tires EMEA at Continental said:
“The final race of the Extreme E season once again presents teams and equipment with unprecedented challenges. We are looking forward to an exciting last race of Season 1, and are already counting down the days to competing again together in Saudi Arabia next February for the Season 2 opener.”
The Sporting Format
The Jurassic X Prix continues to follow the same format as the previous two races, with qualifying taking place on Saturday 18 December. There will be one session in the morning and one in the afternoon with each team completing the course with a Driver Switch incorporated. The times recorded across the morning session will equate to classification points meaning first place receives nine points, second place eight, third place seven and so on. The same then happens in the afternoon with classification points awarded on the same scale.
The combined total of these classification points provides the intermediate standings, and the remaining races will take place as follows:
The teams will be listed 1st to 9th place based on the total combined points of each team’s two Qualifying runs.
Teams placed in first, fifth and sixth progress to Semi-Final 1, where the top two finishers claim spots in the Jurassic X Prix Final.
Second, third and fourth from Qualifying go through to Semi-Final 2, where again the top two progress to the Jurassic X Prix Final.
The bottom three teams (7th, 8th and 9th) head to the Crazy Race, with the winner reaching the Jurassic X Prix Final.
The Jurassic X Prix Final features five cars.
The ‘Continental Traction Challenge’ was won by Sébastien Loeb at the Enel X Island X Prix, claiming an extra five points for the X44 team. No doubt teams and drivers will be striving for these extra points in Dorset.
The nine teams and 18 drivers for the Jurassic X Prix are as follows:
ABT CUPRA XE - #125 – Mattias Ekström / Jutta Kleinschmidt
ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team - #55 – Carlos Sainz Snr. / Laia Sanz
Andretti United Extreme E - #23 – Timmy Hansen / Catie Munnings
SEGI TV Chip Ganassi Racing - #99 – Kyle LeDuc / Sara Price
XITE ENERGY RACING powered by myenergi - #42 – Oliver Bennett / Christine GZ
JBXE - #22 – Kevin Hansen / Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky
Rosberg X Racing - #6 – Johan Kristoffersson / Molly Taylor
Veloce Racing - #5 – Lance Woolridge / Jamie Chadwick
X44 - #44 – Sébastien Loeb / Cristina Gutiérrez
GridPlay
The GridPlay vote, which puts fans in the driving seat, will open at 0900 GMT on Wednesday 15 December and close at 1700 GMT on Saturday 18 December.
Why Dorset?
Extreme E’s decision to race in Dorset marks a poignant shift from the Championship’s mission to race in remote, far-away places to highlight the effects of climate change.
More and more, the climate issues being discussed are starting to occur closer to home in the UK. The off-road electric series is racing in Dorset to raise awareness of biodiversity loss by supporting The National Trust for this rounds Legacy Programme.
Legacy Programme – restoring biodiversity
Extreme E is partnering with the National Trust in an effort to improve biodiversity, which is critical for human existence, economic prosperity and a good quality of life, and sadly declining at a faster rate than at any time in human history, particularly in the UK.
The project itself centres around beavers that are nature’s water engineers. In 2022, The National Trust, with the support of Extreme E, hope to reintroduce three pairs of free-living beavers to Purbeck, Dorset, from Scotland for the first time in over 400 years.
Once introduced they will open hundreds of hectares of wetlands that have been in ecological decline for decades, restoring freshwater fen and pool habitats for the local wildlife. Soon the beavers will spread beyond Studland and their benefits will spread with them. As they naturalise the watercourses that have been canalised over the centuries they will improve water quality and carbon storage while reducing flood risk.
In addition to releasing the beavers, Extreme E will be working alongside the National Trust to install protective measures to ensure the beavers don’t negatively impact local people and businesses and carry out engagement programmes to educate the public.
Where to Watch
Shakedown and qualifications will be aired through Extreme E’s official website – www.extreme-e.com and social channels (@extremeelive on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Twitch).
The Finals will be shown in more than 200 countries by 85 broadcasters including ITV, Sky Sports, BBC digital channels and BT Sport in the UK, FOX Sports in the USA, Prosieben MAXX in Germany, Mediaset in Italy as well as Eurosport across most European Markets.
More about this news can be found here: Extreme-E
Source Extreme-E
CUPRA heads to the Jurassic Coast, in the south-west of the United Kingdom, for the finale of the inaugural extreme-e season, to fight for the podium in the championship
Teammates Mattias Ekström and Jutta Kleindschmit have built a solid foundation for the ABT Cupra XE team
CUPRA is working hard with partner ABT for next year, and challenge for more podiums in 2022
The ABT Cupra XE team continues its fight for a race victory as it heads into the Jurassic X Prix: the final round of the inaugural extreme-e Championship.
Team drivers Mattias Ekström and Jutta Kleindschmit have built a solid foundation, pushing the ABT Cupra XE team forward in one of the most challenging race series imaginable at the wheel of the e-CUPRA ABT XE1, the team’s 400kW (550PS) 100% electric off-road SUV.
The team comes into the final round bolstered after standing second on the podium at the Island X Prix, which took place in Sardinia (Italy) in October. The result pushed ABT #cupra XE to fifth place in the Teams’ Championship standings, just 10 points away from the podium.
But as the curtain comes down on the sustainable, electrified motor #racing series’ inaugural season, attention begins to shift to next year.
The inaugural season has given Cupra and partner ABT a springboard from which to work even harder for 2022, so it can challenge for the title when the lights go green.
Source Cupra
In 2022 Baja Russia Northern Forest will open the season of international motorsport competitions. The cross-country rally having a long history will take place from 10 to 13 February in the Leningrad Region.
This year the Northern Forest celebrates its 18th birthday, and the event will unite several competitions under one name – racers will be able to apply and take part in the first round of the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas, the first round of the Russian Cross-Country Championship, the first round of the Eurasia Cup for Cross-Country Rallies, as well as in a one-day adventure regular movement rally in B category passenger cars (3rd category rally).
This year in February the world only snow and ice cross-country event was held at an excellent organizational level and was highly appreciated by the FIA observers, who paid special attention to the COVID-19 measures. In 2022 the Baja Russia Northern Forest will once again be held in the status of the FIA World Cup, opening the calendar of the eight-round series. Competitions will be held in Europe and the Middle East.
In 2022 the cross-country rallies will be presented on the world grounds in different racing series: long cross-country rallies and marathons (World Championship) and short bajas (World Cup). The calendar and event locations aligned with the newly created FIA Cross-Country World Championship to facilitate logistics and provide a wide-ranging and challenging season on a number of surfaces for competitors of the discipline.
In 2022 a new project will be implemented and a new racing series will be launched – the Eurasia Cup for Cross-Country Rallies. The winter race has a privilege to open the series, and the competitors of the Baja Russia Northern Forest can also apply and try their hand at the Eurasia Cup. The rounds of the Cup will be the following competitions registered in the FIA zonal international calendar:
Eurasia Cup 2022
Dates - Name - Place
11-13 February - Baja Russia Northern Forest - Leningrad Region, Russia
25-30 April - Rally Kazakhstan - Mangystau Region, Kazakhstan
07-10 July - Baja Kagan’s Gold - Astrakhan Region Chechen Republic, Russia
The world class Igora Drive Sports & Entertainment Complex will again become the title partner for the race (54 km from St. Petersburg) hosting the whole event’s infrastructure: Headquarters, Service Park, Parc Fermé and Press Center. Spectator special stages are laid in a close vicinity to Igora Drive and on its territory.
The Organizers’ main goals are providing comfortable conditions for the Baja competitors and showcasing the ultimate beauty and staginess of a winter cross-country event to the fans. On Saturday, 12 February, there will be an opportunity to watch cross-country competition – spectator areas will be located right on the territory of IGORA DRIVE.
With regard to the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions connected with it, the Organizers in cooperation with the Russian Automobile Federation and the Ministry of Sports of Russian Federation are making their best effort to facilitate the participation for the foreign drivers (assistance in obtaining visas and border crossing support) as well as giving the fans opportunity to follow the strongest racers in safety conditions.
Since 2003 Baja Russia Northern Forest offers its competitors and viewers a unique atmosphere of winter holidays and new formats of the cross-country event holding.
The 2022 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas is confirmed as follows:
11-13 February RUS Baja Russia Northern Forest
17-19 February JOR Jordan Baja*
08-10 July ITA Italian Baja*
22-24 July ESP Baja Aragon
02-04 September POL Baja Poland
28-30 October PRT Baja Portalegre
10-12 November SAU Sharqia Baja*
01-03 December ARE Dubai International Baja**Subject to confirmation by the ASN
Source Autosport Media / Baja Russia
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