Rebelle U Trials

We’re all settling back into our “normal” lives, but the excitement of the Rebelle U Trials in Ridgecrest, CA still hasn’t worn off!

The last time (which was also the first time) that we were at a Rebelle U event was in August of 2022. It was the first time that Hanna & I took our first steps toward learning some valuable off-roading skills. We had no clue how we would do or if we would even enjoy it. We were 2 girls about to jump headfirst into the world of the Rebelle Rally with no prior training and we were driving a vehicle that was so generously lent to us. Since then, the off-roading bug has definitely gotten a hold of me and I’ve been trying to get as much valuable off-road seat time as possible. Since then, we’ve made some wonderful new friends along the way, gone on some great adventures with the people we love, and had some quality bonding time with Bernard.

This time at Rebelle U, we realized just how much all of that practice has been paying off. It’s so crazy to think that less than a year ago, Hanna & I had never driven off road and never plotted coordinates. We still have so much to learn, but we have come so far in these 10 months, and in 4 months we’re about to put it all to the test!

Day one was a great classroom day where we went over the basics of plotting coordinates. It was a great refresher, and it was amazing to see how quickly Hanna was plotting these checkpoints. She’s a bit of a plotting machine! We also got a bit of practice with taking headings and identifying landmarks to help us make sure that we are headed in the right direction.

Day 2 started off with our Rebelle Enduro Challenge class. This is when I possibly embarrassed Hanna by wanting to be up front and center, giggling fiendishly as I got my calculator warmed up for all the math. Hanna must have been so relieved when they handed out the checkpoints for the second half of the day because she was able take the map to a larger table to plot and walk away from me for a little bit.

For the driving portion of the day, we would get a chance to jump into an instructor’s car and navigate with a few of the other ladies in the class. OR SO WE THOUGHT! I was so excited when Chrissie Beavis told us that we were in her group. I could think of nothing cooler than hopping in a car with my idol and fangirling a bit as we navigate for her. And then…Chrissie informed us that we’d actually be driving on our own, but that she’d be checking in with us with at every checkpoint. There was a tiny bit of stress and panic, because we weren’t mentally (or physically) prepared to navigate without the assistance of some of our classmates. But, I suppose Bernard just refused to be left at basecamp.

This was our first real experience with checkpoint hunting and really putting what we’ve learned in the classroom to use out in the wild. I am blown away by Hanna’s navigating abilities. I expected that she would be amazing, because….well, have you met her? But it is still so very impressive. Another part of getting our first stab at checkpoint hunting was the realization that there is so much teamwork and communication happening that we didn’t really get a chance to snap as many photos as we usually do!

There is something in my little nerd heart that loves enduro math so much. This is why this photo is so big. It’s an illness. Please don’t judge me.

Day 3 was the official Rebelle Trials! We got a little taste of what a day on the Rebelle would be like. We had to be at basecamp at 0600 to pick up our Team Packet which had our checkpoints and our On-time Enduro roadbook. They also gave us our trackers. It was so fun to see everyone at their tables either plotting checkpoints or working on their roadbooks. Once we hit the road, it was exciting to say the least. We were finally getting a tiny glimpse into what we had gotten ourselves into. Months of preparation and practice were paying off as Hanna was guiding us to our checkpoints and I drove Bernard through some rough off-road terrain and some rocky trails. When we laid eyes on our very first green checkpoint and clicked that little tracker for the first time, we were both so giddy.

We learned a lot about the teamwork required. We learned how to communicate with each other and how we each can fill in the gaps when the other needs a little help. We discussed a lot about strategy and time management, which is so important when you’re trying to get to a certain number of checkpoints while also making sure to get back to basecamp on time.

I think that the best part of this journey really has been getting to know each other and learning how to work together. We learned that my overly expressive face can sometimes lead Hanna to think that I am frustrated or upset, but sometimes it’s just my face doing strange things.

And here we are…a Boss, a Bulldozer, and Bernard. We succesfully completed the Rebelle Trials and we’re counting down the days until we see everyone at Tech Inspection at Mammoth! (It’s 120 days away….in case anyone is counting)