viajeros4x4x4
Adventurer
En route to Bacalar from Puebla... if you want to find the Cockroach and get some extra points, follow the oil drops on the asfalt!
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Where are you now? OFFICIAL MAYA RALLY In Progress thread!
- Thread starter aka rover
- Start date
grahamfitter
Expedition Leader
Good stuff, all. I'm kind of jealous I'm not there. We bussed from Palenque, Mexico to Flores, Guatemala today via an interesting border crossing by boat.
Definitely topetastic out here. The best vehicle to absorb them would be a dirt bike!
Definitely topetastic out here. The best vehicle to absorb them would be a dirt bike!
Well....the Rally (and the world...) is coming to an End. About 5-6 teams have arrived already and a few more are expected today. We are having a "last" dinner starting around 4pm.
it looks like we have lost a couple teams too...but not as many as I would have thought! there are a tons of stories to share, including one of my favorites - something I believe a typical overlander would not have ever done. Find an exhibition of Lucha Libre (in Oaxaca), talk with the wrestlers, help them build a ring and then practice your skills...hopefully one of teams who did that will have an entry blog to share all the details!
The last stretch from Palenque to Bacalar was extremely fast (at least for us....) - a straight road in very good condition with little traffic.
The 4Runner was struggling to keep up with the 1974 V8 of the Benz....which btw has been running like a charm - the only thing Mark did was to get the A/C fixed in Palenque....$1800 of pure fun, thanks to Ebay!!
If anyone wants it, they are now thinking of selling it here!
it looks like we have lost a couple teams too...but not as many as I would have thought! there are a tons of stories to share, including one of my favorites - something I believe a typical overlander would not have ever done. Find an exhibition of Lucha Libre (in Oaxaca), talk with the wrestlers, help them build a ring and then practice your skills...hopefully one of teams who did that will have an entry blog to share all the details!
The last stretch from Palenque to Bacalar was extremely fast (at least for us....) - a straight road in very good condition with little traffic.
The 4Runner was struggling to keep up with the 1974 V8 of the Benz....which btw has been running like a charm - the only thing Mark did was to get the A/C fixed in Palenque....$1800 of pure fun, thanks to Ebay!!
If anyone wants it, they are now thinking of selling it here!
Driver-Navigator
Explorer
Almost done already! I'm looking forward to the post-rally write-ups and photos... After the hangovers have subsided, of course! :sombrero:
dangerbus
BryDanger
Heres our post about finding the luchadores and other stuff Oaxacan! :sombrero:
http://www.thedangerz.com/maya-rally-leaving-oaxaca/
http://www.thedangerz.com/maya-rally-leaving-oaxaca/
Well, the World hasn't ended yet, but I am afraid the Rally is done. I can't describe how great of an adventure it's been!
We have heard so many great stories from each team.
For those who are curious, we started with about 24 teams and about 14 teams made it to the finish line.
And for the final results....
4WD CATEGORY
TEAM ASTRID!!!! (LandCruiser FZJ80)
2WD CATEGORY
TEAM DANGERZ (VW Bus 1967)
MOTOCYCLETA CATEGORY
Tad and his wife Gaila (BMW 800GS and 650GS)
We have heard so many great stories from each team.
For those who are curious, we started with about 24 teams and about 14 teams made it to the finish line.
And for the final results....
4WD CATEGORY
TEAM ASTRID!!!! (LandCruiser FZJ80)
2WD CATEGORY
TEAM DANGERZ (VW Bus 1967)
MOTOCYCLETA CATEGORY
Tad and his wife Gaila (BMW 800GS and 650GS)
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Driver-Navigator
Explorer
WOOOOOOOOO!!!!! COngrats to all but especially to my good pals at #teamASTRID. Way to go!!!
jeepin_idaho
Adventurer
Right on! I can't wait to get Anthony on Skype for another interview about the adventure!
Dan
http://the4x4podcast.com
http://facebook.com/the4x4podcast
http://twitter.com/the4x4podcast
Dan
http://the4x4podcast.com
http://facebook.com/the4x4podcast
http://twitter.com/the4x4podcast
Most teams stayed one extra night at the fabulous campsite by the beach in Bacalar. It gaves us an extra day to relax, exchange stories and take a few last pictures.
I am extremely grateful to Matt for suggesting this location as an alternative to the initial plan to go to Guatemala.
On the last day, there was a tour planned at 7am with Luis, our local guide, and surprisingly despite the copious amount of alcohol and food being consumed, more than 15 people joined the tour to see the light of the sun coming through a specific hole at the Maya site - a very rare and specif event.
I have tried to find words to describe how great this adventure has been, but it's near to impossible. It really went beyond my expectations, and my only wish would be that more people could have the chance to live this experience.
The 2 judges (Persephone and Jorge) who spent hours listening to every team stories and watching tons of images and videos are probably the luckiest of all.
After they saw and heard how every team tried to gather points on this crazy journey, they were totally impressed by their creativity and originality.
Regardless of who got the most or the less points, every one really end up a winner this time.
Not only they got to see a different side of Mexico and do things that most overlanders wouldn't dare, they also gathered incredible new friendships.
Also in our thoughts were the few teams who unfortunately did not manage to get to the end - Ross (LandCruisers 100) and Steve (FJ Cruiser) had to turn around, and it appears that Chris/Liz (Lada Niva) and Andy (Honda 250 Torpedo) are MIA. We heard they may have joined a Mezcal cartel in Oaxaca...
So here you have it - the last 15 teams who drove until the end. Hopefully our parts will cross again and good luck on the rest of your journey.
I am extremely grateful to Matt for suggesting this location as an alternative to the initial plan to go to Guatemala.
On the last day, there was a tour planned at 7am with Luis, our local guide, and surprisingly despite the copious amount of alcohol and food being consumed, more than 15 people joined the tour to see the light of the sun coming through a specific hole at the Maya site - a very rare and specif event.
I have tried to find words to describe how great this adventure has been, but it's near to impossible. It really went beyond my expectations, and my only wish would be that more people could have the chance to live this experience.
The 2 judges (Persephone and Jorge) who spent hours listening to every team stories and watching tons of images and videos are probably the luckiest of all.
After they saw and heard how every team tried to gather points on this crazy journey, they were totally impressed by their creativity and originality.
Regardless of who got the most or the less points, every one really end up a winner this time.
Not only they got to see a different side of Mexico and do things that most overlanders wouldn't dare, they also gathered incredible new friendships.
Also in our thoughts were the few teams who unfortunately did not manage to get to the end - Ross (LandCruisers 100) and Steve (FJ Cruiser) had to turn around, and it appears that Chris/Liz (Lada Niva) and Andy (Honda 250 Torpedo) are MIA. We heard they may have joined a Mezcal cartel in Oaxaca...
So here you have it - the last 15 teams who drove until the end. Hopefully our parts will cross again and good luck on the rest of your journey.
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TeamAstrid:
I have known Anthony for a couple years now and met Bryon at Sema a few months before the event. Some of you know about Anthony's wife battle with Leukemia, so their participation on the Rally meant a lot for multiple reasons. Bryon's strong competetiveness also added an extra edge to the rally as it forced other teams (and the organizer/judges too) to work a bit harder...
But not only they managed to complete almost every single task and accumulate the most overall points (after a very painful hangover-induced recount for the judges), they also provided us with a lot of great images through out the Rally.
They also had fabulous sponsors supporting them (TAD GEAR, WARN, LED LENSERS) - thanks to all these companies that stepped in.
You can see/read more about their stories here:
http://statigr.am/tag/teamastrid
http://www.overlandnomads.com/
http://www.exploringelements.com/
I have known Anthony for a couple years now and met Bryon at Sema a few months before the event. Some of you know about Anthony's wife battle with Leukemia, so their participation on the Rally meant a lot for multiple reasons. Bryon's strong competetiveness also added an extra edge to the rally as it forced other teams (and the organizer/judges too) to work a bit harder...
But not only they managed to complete almost every single task and accumulate the most overall points (after a very painful hangover-induced recount for the judges), they also provided us with a lot of great images through out the Rally.
They also had fabulous sponsors supporting them (TAD GEAR, WARN, LED LENSERS) - thanks to all these companies that stepped in.
You can see/read more about their stories here:
http://statigr.am/tag/teamastrid
http://www.overlandnomads.com/
http://www.exploringelements.com/
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dangerbus
BryDanger
The best apocalypse ever!
We are so thankful to Christian and Persephone for pulling this event together and so excited to have had the chance to made this journey and so many new friends along the way.
Completely crazy event, but so worthwhile in every regard!
Now it's time to rest, get the bus back to somewhat working order and figure our where (or when) we are heading next...
Heres a few photos of the amazing end of the world party that christian threw for everyone (and that we are all still recovering from):
We are so thankful to Christian and Persephone for pulling this event together and so excited to have had the chance to made this journey and so many new friends along the way.
Completely crazy event, but so worthwhile in every regard!
Now it's time to rest, get the bus back to somewhat working order and figure our where (or when) we are heading next...
Heres a few photos of the amazing end of the world party that christian threw for everyone (and that we are all still recovering from):
Team DangerZ
I received an email out of the blue from Bryan about an eventual participation in the rally, to coincide with their journey South. I knew about Bryan journey with the VW Bus as he had already posted some stories on Expedition Portal. I tried my best to reassure Bryan that the pace would not be too fast for the capability of his 1966 VW bus, but honestly I couldn't ever imagined that they will not only accomplish every single task of the Rally, but be the first ones to arrive at the final location.
There is no doubt that the Rally would not have been the same without their participation.
Bryan and Jane's stories did not fail to entertain the audience every time, which are obviously numerous when you are driving such an old vehicle at high speed through Mexico..
You can read more on their journey's south here:
http://www.thedangerz.com/
I received an email out of the blue from Bryan about an eventual participation in the rally, to coincide with their journey South. I knew about Bryan journey with the VW Bus as he had already posted some stories on Expedition Portal. I tried my best to reassure Bryan that the pace would not be too fast for the capability of his 1966 VW bus, but honestly I couldn't ever imagined that they will not only accomplish every single task of the Rally, but be the first ones to arrive at the final location.
There is no doubt that the Rally would not have been the same without their participation.
Bryan and Jane's stories did not fail to entertain the audience every time, which are obviously numerous when you are driving such an old vehicle at high speed through Mexico..
You can read more on their journey's south here:
http://www.thedangerz.com/
Team Tad and Gaila
If it wasn't for them, there would not have been any participant left in the motorcycle category! And they weren't even registered to start with!
Tad and Gaila is one of the 2 teams we managed to recruit in Guanajuato. I am pretty sure they had no clue what was going to happen to them when they arrive at the campsite in Guanajuato before any of us were there. After a little bit of peer pressure at the starting dinner, they decided to join in and ended up with many great adventures, even escaping a protest blocade with their bikes.
You can follow more of their adventures here:
http://www.overlandnow.com/
If it wasn't for them, there would not have been any participant left in the motorcycle category! And they weren't even registered to start with!
Tad and Gaila is one of the 2 teams we managed to recruit in Guanajuato. I am pretty sure they had no clue what was going to happen to them when they arrive at the campsite in Guanajuato before any of us were there. After a little bit of peer pressure at the starting dinner, they decided to join in and ended up with many great adventures, even escaping a protest blocade with their bikes.
You can follow more of their adventures here:
http://www.overlandnow.com/
Team Joel, Steve and the mysterious extra passenger!
Joel was our local expert...as he lives nearby the final destination!!! He enlisted 2 newly made friends and drove up to Guanajuato to start the Rally with us, which for him was basically a drive back home! It was great to have them all with us and their knowledge and jokes always appreciated!
Joel was our local expert...as he lives nearby the final destination!!! He enlisted 2 newly made friends and drove up to Guanajuato to start the Rally with us, which for him was basically a drive back home! It was great to have them all with us and their knowledge and jokes always appreciated!