• Registered: 2019-03-05
  • Posts: 5

Topic: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

After looking at the 2022 rally schedule and my own schedule, I came to the crappy realization that I probably was not going to be able to participate this year. That’s besides my point. I think doing one lap of the lower peninsula of Michigan is a fine idea for a Lemons rally. We could start at GingerMan raceway in Southhaven Michigan, I’m sure they would be happy to host a kick off event and hopefully a parade lap. Maybe award extra points for going into the upper peninsula or Canada. There’s good crossings into Canada that one could pick along the route. Then we end up back at GingerMan raceway for awards ceremony and dinner/party. Michigan is known for having some pretty butt terrible roads to drive on, most of them are straight and super boring. This is not the case on the coast. The coastal roads surrounding the lower peninsula are pretty nice. There is plenty of little beach towns and fun checkpoint spots.

I’m just saying

Paul D

  • From: Elverson, PA
  • Registered: 2017-08-15
  • Posts: 1,313

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

That sounds like the outline of a good time

  • Registered: 2022-07-14
  • Posts: 1

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

I like it! Definitely great opportunities for checkpoints due to all of the out of the way locations the shoreline would provide. Crossing the bridge just to turn around for extra points is funny. Maybe make huge extra points haul if they take the ferry to Mackinac island. No one has been in that thumb region of Michigan since it’s founding. So that could be interesting. Keeping to a shoreline does sound much more exciting than a straight blast through the banality of the Midwest.

  • From: Saint Clair Shores, MI
  • Registered: 2021-05-27
  • Posts: 108

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

There are some interesting ruins located in remote parts of the state, and plenty of lighthouses. We also have a lost peninsula, and a few Muffler Men scattered through the state.  A rally route might not be able to include a loop of the entire U.P., but it could still include a pass through Sault Ste. Marie, a stop near Drummond Island, a stop at the northernmost point of Lake Michigan, and back down to the L.P., as they are not too far from the Mackinac Bridge.  Around the Grand Traverse area, including a route up to the tips of the Old Mission and Leelanau peninsulas would be worth it to visit the lighthouses there.  (Even if it means slagging through the horrible US-31 traffic through Traverse City.)  It would also pass through Sleeping Bear Dunes.

If a coastal rally started at Luna Pier or even on the northern border of Toledo, and ended near Benton Harbor, distance would be about 1,250 miles following the coast, so it would probably have to be a four-day rally (since some checkpoints would be off the coastal highways).

A detour into Canada might not work quite as well since some may not yet have passports or enhanced licenses, and there can occasionally be long delays at the border crossings (which might be lessened once the Gordie Howe Bridge opens in ~2024). 

If the loop included the entire U.P., another two days would be needed.  (And I'd include a bonus stop at the highest elevation point in Michigan, as I'm not sure if low-clearance vehicles could drive up to it.)  That way, places like Copper Harbor, Iron Mountain, Menominee, Escanaba, etc. could be included.

Even if it weren't an official event, there's nothing stopping friends from meeting up to do it on their own. wink

--Rudy

Driver of soul-sucking appliances in the Rust Belt.
Instagramz: @thehooptiegarage

The Hooptie Garage's Website

  • Registered: 2022-07-26
  • Posts: 1

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

This is a superb idea. I really like the idea of starting and finishing in the same spot or at least close to it.  Sticking to the shoreline of the lower peninsula, preferably in the fall when the leafs are changing colors would be not only  adventurous but picturesque. I wouldn’t be surprised if this route rallies more cars than any other route.

  • Registered: 2019-03-05
  • Posts: 5

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

I think Judge Eric might be from Michigan or lived in Michigan. Something like that. I am really glad to see that people like this idea. Tell your friends. Maybe we can make this happen. Extra points for a GM or Ford vehicle With rust. The more rust the more points.

  • From: Saint Clair Shores, MI
  • Registered: 2021-05-27
  • Posts: 108

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

For kicks, I was using several sources to look for various attractions around the lower peninsula, and found a handful so far.  I have to give major props to Eric, and anyone else who plans these rallies (like Brett, who planned the Rocky Mountain Breakdown), since finding possible checkpoints and plotting them on a route that makes sense is a lot of work!  And I can see it being an ongoing task, keeping notes as we discover other items (like today, I found a house listed for sale that would make a great checkpoint up north). 

Also, most of the mining ruins I found are in the upper peninsula, along with other attractions, so I could envision a longer version of the rally which adds two days to do the upper peninsula (and calling the whole thing Lap of Michigan...or Di{Lap}idated of Michigan, given our hoopties).  I don't know the attractiveness of a longer rally, though--the upcoming Great River Road pretty much requires someone taking an entire week off from work (for me, it's a two-day drive to New Orleans, and a 12 hour drive from Mpls back home), vs. the shorter 3-day rallies that can fit into a long weekend.

--Rudy

Driver of soul-sucking appliances in the Rust Belt.
Instagramz: @thehooptiegarage

The Hooptie Garage's Website

  • Registered: 2020-11-18
  • Posts: 62

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

I spent way too long looking for this thread on the Lemons Rally Facebook page before remembering it was a Forum thread.  It so happens (as many of you are now aware, I'm sure) that the Round Headlamp Rally is this weekend, and is exactly the kind of rally being discussed here.  I know Keith and Dave do the rally every year, and I would suggest that everyone who's proposing this as a Lemons rally look into doing the RHR in the future.  It looks like a cool way to see Michigan.

  • From: Saint Clair Shores, MI
  • Registered: 2021-05-27
  • Posts: 108

Re: One lap of the mitten. Possible good rally route idea. (Michigan)

I looked at their site.  It looks like a fun weekend, but it has a couple of drawbacks that might prevent me from entering.  First, it appears to be for 20th century vehicles only.  It also requires a navigator riding shotgun. I can understand why (especially since they give out the checkpoints each morning), but many of us have to do these rallies solo. 

I did map out a few things over the past few weeks, as I thought about doing a road/photography trip myself.  A road trip circling the outermost portions of the lower peninsula (following the shoreline) can be done with three days of ~6½ hour/~325-mile drives, not counting stops, and not counting driving back from St. Joseph to Detroit which is ~3 hours.  The upper peninsula can take the same amount of time, if not more. 

I did find over 70 stops so far in the lower mitten that could be checkpoints, although many good ones (mining ruins, for instance) are in the upper peninsula.  I certainly could find a lot more in both peninsulas, so the weaker ones could be weeded out, and others saved for a future run.

--Rudy

Driver of soul-sucking appliances in the Rust Belt.
Instagramz: @thehooptiegarage

The Hooptie Garage's Website