The 2013 BABE Rally is over… It was a fantastic experience, as always. The array of crappy old cars (and one crappy old semi-truck) was staggering, Costume Day the most humiliating one yet, and the parking lot parties in the evenings still the stuff of legend. It also was a bittersweet experience as the 2013 BABE Rally was the last BABE Rally ever.
Dodge (the team’s beloved 1969 Dodge Dart Custom) had few mechanical problems… A broken oil pressure switch caused an oil leak of massive proportions that caused the car to be temporarily re-christened “The Exxon ValDart.” A weepy power steering pump at the start of the Rally degraded over four days of hard driving and threw a tantrum (and all of its power steering fluid) all over the Night 4 hotel parking lot. Dodge’s 44 year old un-rebuilt suspension proved strangely unsuited for off-roading and the car has developed a marked list to starboard. Best of all, after off-roading also loosened Dodge’s exhaust system in its mounting brackets, an unexpected encounter with a raccoon corpse in the road separated the muffler from the downpipe and necessitated a challenging (and icky) roadside repair. However, Dodge came through the ordeal with flying (albeit sun-faded) colors and is awaiting transport to Burn’s New York garage where a survivor restoration (and potentially a turbo-charger re-fit) await.
Team Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse successfully completed four of the five stages of the Rally, racked up 1,250 miles, and raised $1,328 for two great charities – the Hot Rodders Children’s Charity ($682) and Toys For Tots ($646). (The team was unable to complete the fifth stage of the Rally due to a friend’s medical issues requiring the team to return home early.)
The Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse would like to thank StreetSafari, Misfit Toys, Allpar.Com, North Georgia Mopar Club, Year One, Leverage Corporation, Pathfinder Advisors LLC, our (very patient) families, our friends, and all our fans for all their support on the 2013 BABE Rally and those two great charities. It isn’t just that we couldn’t have done it without you… we *wouldn’t* have done it without you.
Though the BABE Rally is no more, Team Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse remains committed to driving beat-up old Mopars in wacky automotive events to raise money for worthy charities. Have a look at Asphault Adventures (www.asphaultadventures.com) and 24 Hours of Lemons (www.24hoursoflemons.com) for hints about what lies ahead for Crash and Burn and look for more details in the near future.
Thanks so much for coming along for the ride… See you on the road!
Two Horsemen of the Carpocalypse 