Sonora Rally: Open for registration for 2021 race

[advrider]

Despite some question marks raised by the coronavirus pandemic, the Sonora Rally is running again for 2021, with this year’s race scheduled to go ahead in May.

The Sonora Rally runs, as the name implies, in the deserts of northern Mexico. This year’s rally starts and ends in the town of San Luis Rio Colorado, in the state of Sonora. It runs May 9-14. There’s a “rally school” for less-experienced racers at the Sonora event, running on May 9.

Like most desert races, there’s a wide variety of vehicles welcome to the Sonora Rally. Along with the motorcycle class, there are classes for UTVs, 2WD and 4X4 cars, and a non-racing Adventure Raid Class that’s “Open to street-legal four-wheel drive vehicles such as Jeeps, Raptors, and Tacomas.” Because of that, and because of its nature as a five-day rally raid event, it’s often seen as a training ground for the Dakar Rally. Indeed, in previous years, winners at Sonora moved on to Dakar. Ricky Brabec and Skyler Howes both have recent Sonora wins under their belt. It’s only a few hundred kilometres of racing versus the thousands of klicks racers do at Dakar, but as it runs through the dunes of Mexico’s hottest desert, it’s a good way to learn basics, especially as it still uses roadbook navigation. And, since the rally roadbooks are only given out the day before the race, there’s no way for big-dollar teams to gain an edge by pre-running, especially since the course changes every year. For more details on the rally format, check out the Sonoran Rally website.

Currently, there’s a discount on registration until March 1. Until then, motorcycle entries cost $2,500; afterwards, that price rises to $2,900; a late entry fee (after May 1) is $3,300. For more information on the race’s rules and other details, keep an eye on the website. No doubt, with COVID-19 still a public issue, there will be changes to stay abreast of.

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