2012 Alcan Winter Regulations
Final 12/21/2011
ENTRY & FEES
  1. The entry fee is $2900 for one vehicle & two drivers. Make checks payable to the Alcan Rally or Rainier Auto Sports Club, Inc. (Mastercard and VISA also accepted).
  2. The additional fee for a third driver is $700. (If there is space in an official vehicle, rides for the press may be available for the same cost).
  3. Organizers reserve the right to impose an advertising waiver fee of $500 per vehicle to display decals conflicting with an overall event sponsor.  (This fee is not retroactive, and would not apply to any team declaring a sponsor before organizers announce a conflicting sponsor).
  4. Entry will close January 10, 2012, or when the field is declared full.
  5. All fees are payable in full by December 15, 2011, but are fully refundable (less $200 deposit) through January 15, 2012.  After January 15 a $500 room cancellation penalty will be retained, and no refunds can be made once a vehicle has left the start line.
  6. A maximum of 30 entries are expected. The organizers reserve the right to refuse any entry without providing a reason, and assign vehicle numbers as they see fit.
  7. Lodging on route has been arranged in advance.  Entry fees include nine nights prepaid accommodation for two people (double occupancy).

DOCUMENTATION & ELIGIBILITY

  1. The rally is open to the general public. Minimum age is 21 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.
  2. Entrants must attend the February 22 driver orientation, and sign an event liability release before participation is allowed.
  3. Entrants must present valid driver's licenses, vehicle registration, and proof of vehicle liability insurance. NOTE: Canadian law requires proof of insurance be carried  at all times. Entrants will also need a passport for border crossings.
  4. Drivers may be changed or added during the event, if prearranged and documented with event organizers.
  5. Trading drivers among vehicles is allowed, but any trade on a TSD or ice race must be approved in advance (this might be allowed for press purposes, but not if it could give a scoring advantage.)
  6. No passengers are allowed in a rally vehicle (except in an emergency) unless they have registered.

SCRUTINEERING & VEHICLE ELIGIBILITY

  1. All vehicles shall be road legal and licensed in strict compliance with their own state or country's regulations.
  2. Vehicles must be equipped with OEM seat belts for all as a minimum.
  3. A VHF 2-way radio is required (see RADIOS & COMMUNICATIONS below).
  4. A roll bar is required in soft top vehicles.
  5. A tow strap, 5BC minimum fire extinguisher, and highway flares or DOT triangles are required, plus tire chains for 2 wheel drive vehicles.
  6. A maximum of four forward facing lights may be added, and all lights must dip to low and/or fog beam with a single switch. Forward-facing door or roof mounted lights may not be used.
  7. Studded tires are allowed, but only with standard road-legal studs in OEM moulded holes. Tire modification is prohibited (except for microsiping), and teams are limited to the use of six tires except to replace a failure.
  8. No fuel cans are allowed inside the vehicle, and any additional fuel tank must be an OEM or otherwise certifited installation. NOTE: Secured fuel cans are allowed in a truck bed,or the rear bumper, hitch,or roof of any vehicle.
  9. Each vehicle must carry emergency supplies including water, food, and a sleeping bag or heavy clothing for each occupant.
  10. Vehicle modifications are discouraged, and any increase from OEM tire width and suspension height is strongly discouraged. Note: Narrower tires are better in winter!
  11. A vehicle may be excluded from the rally at any point due to unsafe condition or the actions of the occupants.  (This includes violations of these rules, citations, reckless driving, and acts that endanger the general public or discredit the event).
  12. Any participant cited for reckless driving will not be allowed to drive for the remainder of the event, and/or cause his team to be moved to touring class.
  13. A "buddy system" is required.  This means entrants must declare driving partners ("Buddy groups" of 2 or 3 vehicles) before the event start, and keep track of each other throughout each day. Note: A buddy doesn't have to stay behind for non-emergency problems, just notify an event official as soon as possible.

CLASSES

   Class 1 - Passenger cars, using unlimited navigational equipment and computers.
   Class 1E - Passenger cars, meeting "Equipped" standards:  Navigational equipment and computers are free with these exceptions: 1) Computing devices have no real-time distance input, and there is no connection between odometer and computing device.  2) Computing devices may not be connected to GPS during TSD's.  3) Purpose-built "A box" rally computers are not permitted, even with distance input maually.
   Class 2 - Trucks and sport utility type vehicles, using unlimited navigational equipment and computers.
   Class 2E - Trucks and sport utility type vehicles meeting "Equipped" standards (see I E).
   SOP - Any type vehicle, limited to SOP equipment.  SOP is defined as original equipment odometers in the stock location, plus a slide rule, Stevens wheel, and/or electronic calculator. GPS  is also allowed, but laptop computers and Curta calculators are NOT.  A laptop may be carried if not accessible during TSD sections, and a "B-box" clock/odometer combination is allowed for timekeeping as long as the odometer does not run during TSD's (mileage must remain "0", and display covered if separate from clock).
   2WD - Two wheel drive vehicles, with unlimited navigational equipment and computers.
   Vintage - 1984 and older vehicle models, limited to SOP or vintage navigational equipment. Vintage entries are accepted with the understanding they may not be allowed on more extreme partions of the route such as the Dempster Highway (organizers will make a final determination at the end of Day 3).
   Touring - Will not compete or be scored, but must adhere to the same basic route and schedule as other teams.  Also eligible for the "Arctic Award" (see below).

AWARDS

Arctic Award: To each team who complete 100% of the route under their own power and enter all scored controls.
Isuzu "Go Farther" Award:  Perpetual trophy sponsored by Isuzu. Awarded to the team who best exemplifies the spirit of Isuzu's "Go Farther" slogan.  It is also intended to recognize the efforts of our many private entries who compete successfully with factory teams.
Team Award:  A Team is defined as three or four entries, including at least one "rookie" vehicle where no occupant has run or worked Alcan (past cycle entrants may qualify as winter "rookies").   Each entry on a team will be given a score factor, which is the ratio of their score to the winning score in their class. The winning team will be the one with the lowest average score factor.  Teams must be declared by 8 pm February 22.

SERVICE & VEHICLE REPAIRS

Absolutely no service crews or exclusive pre-arranged help is allowed at any location except the start and finish.  With this exception, help by outside parties is OK.

STARTING ORDER

Vehicles will be started at 1 minute intervals in numerical order. As the event uses a "perfect time" format cars will be due in this sequence and interval throughout: The route instructions include the perfect time for car #0 at the start and finish of every section. Each car is in turn due at this time plus the number of minutes given by their car number.

ROUTE INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Most instructions are supplemented by an official mileage, which will take precedence. If a sign or reference is missing, use the mileage.
  2. In the absence of a route instruction, the obvious main road should be followed. Redundant instructions may be used to clarify the main road.
  3. All roads used are public, through roads unless otherwise specifically indicated in the route book.
  4. There are no course following traps on this rally!

DEFINITION OF SECTIONS

TRANSIT: A time and mileage will be given for the start and finish of a Transit, and controls will be located only as designated. These are touring sections, and competitors may proceed at their own pace as long as they enter these controls at the correct time.

TSD: In these sections teams must maintain average speeds shown in the route book. A time and mileage will be given for the start and finish of a TSD and controls may be located at any point within the section. Practice is not allowed, and vehicles may not enter before the designated time.

DIY: In these sections teams will use average speeds shown in the route book to calculate their arrival times. A time and mileage will be given for the start and finish of a DIY and controls may be located at any point within the section. Practice is not allowed and vehicles may not enter before the section is open.

ICE RACE:  One-car-at a-time "solo" sections on a closed course. A DOT or Snell approved helmet must be worn and no passengers are allowed.

CONTROLS & TIMING

TSD CONTROL: May be visible or hidden, and located at any point within a TSD section. Do not stop at these controls, as the exact passing time of each vehicle will be recorded. TSD controls will open 5 minutes before the ideal passing time for car #1 and close 5 minutes after the last car is due.

DIY CONTROL: Will be visible, and located at any point within a DIY section. Do not stop, but at the appropriate reference record your time (as HH:MM:SS) on the scorecard provided. DIY's will open at the time designated in the route book and close 5 minutes after the last car is due at the final control.  The route book will designate a scoring location just after the end of a DIY: you have 5 minutes to turn in a completed scorecard to officials there, and no communication with other teams is allowed during this time.

PASSAGE CONTROL: Control location plus opening & closing times will be designated in the route book, and cars may enter at any time while the control is open. The organizers may extend control closing time at their discretion.  Some Passage Controls may be noted in the route book as "Extreme" - these are optional but have a small penalty or reward defined in advance.

MTC (Main Time Control):  A passage control used at overnight halts.  Location, time, and other info will appear in the route book.  Attendance is important as the MTC's purpose is to account for all teams, disseminate new information, and address questions or concerns.

ICE RACE: Locations and time will be clearly designated in the route book, and cars will be started at the direction of event officials. Each team will be allowed four timed runs (no more than two per driver), and the fastest two runs per vehicle will be scored. Vehicles will be timed from a standing start to flying finish, with at least a 1-minute interval between vehicles.

PENALTIES

TSD & DIY CONTROLS: 1 point per second early or late, maximum penalty of 60 per control or 200 per TSD. 200 points for entering a section before it's open, driving it more than once, or driving in the reverse direction of rally traffic (except very briefly to capture a missed turn or reference).  As a trial this year, one control on each TSD will be timed in tenths of a second, with .1 point penalty for each tenth of a second early or late.

ICE RACE: Each vehicle will receive .1 point per tenth of a second slower than the fastest in it's "category". (Used for ICE RACE scoring purposes only, these categories are 2WD, 4WD without studded tires, and 4WD with studded tires. If there is only one entry in a category, for successfully completing all events they will receive an ice race score equal to the overall ice race winner).  Maximum penalty per venue is 5 points for each of 2 scored runs, calculated by comparing first the best run for each vehicle, then all "second best" runs.

PASSAGE CONTROLS:  200 points for missing a scored passage control or MTC, "Extreme" controls are 10 points.

ASSISTANCE (requiring fuel, extraction, or towing): 10 points, or a $10 fine payable to the crew assisting. Any team which has needed excessive assistance may not be allowed to take the Inuvik and/or Tuk side trip.

UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT (including illegal service): First offense 50 penalty points, a second offense might cause disqualification.

NO FAULT SCORING

No scoring queries will be considered unless there is an obvious control log error or they describe a situation common to a number of vehicles. Instead each entry will have their worst TSD control score subtracted at the end of day #1, day #4, and at the finish (from score accumulated during each interval).

FORCE MAJEURE & FORCE HOMME

* Once the first official car has passed through a section it is considered open and will be scored barring an accident or safety problem. No control will be scored, however, if less than 20% of the vehicles still competing are able to reach that control within 30 seconds of their ideal time.
* In order to eliminate any pressure for illegal behavior, an additional allowance will be made for delay due to official action such as construction or road closure. If less than 80% of the vehicles still competing are able to arrive within 30 seconds of their ideal time at a subsequent control due to such delay that control will not be scored.

QUERIES & PROTESTS

The organizers will attempt to deal promptly and fairly with any query received. These must be presented in writing to the next MTC after the incident in question, and will be answered in writing before the next morning restart unless a meeting must be arranged to investigate details.

RADIOS & COMMUNICATIONS

  1. A VHF business band 2-way radio operating on 151.625 MHz is required in all vehicles for safety. A hand-held unit is acceptable if connected to vehicle power and a roof-mounted antenna.
  2. VHF radios are available for rent or purchase through the organizers if arranged in advance.
  3. CB radios are allowed, but will not substitute for required VHF equipment.  Officials will monitor VHF.
  4. Most Alcan staff are licensed Hams, others are encouraged to bring their equipment.
  5. NO two-way radio transmission is allowed during any TSD section except in an emergency.  (Monitoring 151.625 is encouraged at all times).

GENERAL

  1. Maximum planned distance between fuel halts is 250 miles, but a range of 300+ miles is recommended for safety, insurance, and peace of mind.
  2. Fuel is the final responsibility of the entrant and the failure of any advance arrangements will be considered force majeure.
  3. The rally was measured with an AlfaPro odometer from the left front axle of a 2004 Volvo XC70.
  4. Any situation not covered by these regulations will be ruled on at the discretion of the organizing committee.
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