DEUS SWANK RALLY DI SARDEGNA 2023

Oct 20, 2023

This year, we lucked out big time with the addition of one heck of a rider in our team at the last edition of the Swank Rally di Sardegna. None other than Mr. Forrest Minchinton hopped on board for an Italian adventure filled with fuel and here's his spin on the tale.

“The Swank Rally di Sardegna is a race for gentlemen and women on modern and vintage two-wheeled machines, either single or multi cylinders depending on what tickles their fancy.

This rally takes you on a wild ride, starting from Milan’s outskirts, and zipping through the streets, backroads, farmland, tiny alleyways, and sidewalks. For who wants to make things a little more spicy, your trusty navigation tool is a good ol' paper roll chart, aka "the roadbook," strapped to your handlebars. It's like trying to read a novel while riding at high rates of speed. If you follow the roadbook precisely, bob and weave your way through local traffic, avoid odd cows, and make the occasional cappuccino stop… the fruit of your labours will be landing on the beautiful Italian island of Sardinia.
It's like time travel to a magnificent era, with postcard-worthy views and vibes around every corner, from olive trees to crystal-clear sea coves.

Now, this rally format is nothing new, in fact, this very race dates back to the 1980’s. The Swank Rally di Sardegna was born from the ashes of the now mythical Rally di Sardegna, the first “African” rally organized outside the European continent. A bygone golden era of rally, a true adventure and one of the events that made up the World Rally Raid Championship of the time, a world championship highlighted by the Paris to Dakar rally, drawing more than 1,000 entrants hungry for adventure. In 2019 Deus Ex Machina and Adventure Riding decided to bring the Rally di Sardegna back to life with the aim of reviving the spirit of the golden era of rallies. Riding on the same routes where the history of motorsport had been made, but this time in an inviting environment that was as much adventure as a friendly ride amongst mates.

My entrance into this story happened with a phone call from our friends at Deus Italy. Giuseppe was on the other side of the Atlantic phoning me from his office in Milan with a friendly invitation to participate in this year's running of the Swank. He knew full well that I had been pestering for a chance to come over ever since they brought the event back to life in 2019.
The catch wouldn't be IF I wanted to attend but IF I could make it in time. I was a few hundred miles deep into the Mexican Baja peninsula racing the Baja 400, which would leave me only 24 hrs to get back home to California and catch the first flight to Europe.
Needless to say, we got the Baja 400 done and I flew straight to Milan. After my arrival, it was straight to the garage of the tallest Italian I know, Mr. Ottavio Missoni. A partner of Deus, Dakar racer and finisher, vintage motorcycle collector, and all-around nice guy who was generous enough to lend me his own motorcycle for me to race a Sherco 450. He opted for his trusty and very cool 80’s Honda XR600 for a go in the vintage class, complete with period correct manual roll chart to boot. We traded out his height-appropriate ape hangers handlebars for my height-appropriate (vertically challenged) bar bend.

We mounted a set of new Metzeler tires before Ottavio gave me a quick crash course of the roll chart system through his local trails to familiarize myself with roadbook-style navigation and it was off to the Prologue at the iconic Malpensa Motocross track.
It was a blast to be surrounded by such a laid-back crew of riders, each cruising at their own pace, but savoring every moment like one big, happy family. And let me tell you, the bikes were a sight to behold. From the modern unstoppable Yamaha Teneré to the beloved classics from the '80s and '90s, like the Honda XL and XR, Suzuki DR, and Yamaha TT and XT. It was a two-wheeled paradise with a flavor for every taste.

Fast forward a couple of days, and I found myself tearing up the Sardinian backcountry trails, covering everything from fast-flowing trails and riverbeds to single tracks and fire roads, with short stints on pavement. This party went on for three days, crisscrossing the island from the mountaintops to the valleys and all the way to the seashore. Each evening, we kicked back at a beach resort, sharing war stories, near misses, and unforgettable moments over delicious food and all the beer we could handle.

The grand finale happened at the ferry port in Olbia, Sardinia, where we loaded our bikes and hit the bar for one last round of celebratory drinks with our new and old pals as we sailed overnight back to the Italian mainland. The final stage ended at the Ferry port in Olbia, Sardinia where we loaded our motorcycles and proceeded to the bar for one last celebratory drink amongst new and old friends as we sailed overnight back to the Italian mainland. The smooth rally course and challenge of navigation was something I really enjoyed, it was such a change to the terrors of the Baja 400 I had competed in just a few days prior.

Although I have always been a sucker for self-induced suffering, this Swank Rally had just the right amount of challenge and champagne. Consider my flights already booked for next year!”

#swankrallydisardegna

words: @forrestminchinton
Ph. @rally.pov

ENGLISH TEXT BELOW

Sabtu pagi, 17 Juni 2023, menjadi hari yang ditunggu-tunggu oleh 250 peserta reli sepeda motor dan 80 kontestan flat track race di Bali. Itu merupakan acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure keempat yang diselenggarakan oleh komunitas pecinta motor trail vintage yang lebih dari sekadar menggemari motor dual purpose era 80-90-an. Dikenal sebagai Trail Asik Adventurer, AKA… Tasik Adventure yang telah menunggu setahun untuk merencanakan dan mengerjakan nya demi tidak mengecewakan siapapun yang ikut berpartisipasi.

Coba kamu bayangkan , ada dua sisi koin berbeda pada event kali ini. Yang pertama adalah Reli. Mereka memberi nama Challenge "Tantangan", menjadikan setiap peserta sebagai "Penantang" Challenger. Jadi, di tempat parkir Sangeh Monkey Forest, sambil menikmati keteduhan pohon jati raksasa yang awet muda, 250 Penantang parkir untuk menerima kode QR untuk etape pertama rute reli. Seluruh perjalanan adalah 3 etape dengan 3 titik pemberhentian. 4 jika Anda menghitung tujuan.

Ada beberapa motor keren di sana, Honda XR, Yamaha DT, Suzuki TS, Suzuki DR, dan beberapa custom modern, motocross dan scrambler. Sekitar sepuluh atau lebih, mereka berbaris di titik start dan memulai rally dari sana. Misi setiap orang adalah menyelesaikan setiap tahap dan berhenti di 3 titik pemberhentian untuk mendapatkan kode QR untuk bagian berikutnya. Keindahan Bali selalu menjadi pendamping, saat kami terbang di sepanjang kombinasi jalan aspal, jalan pedesaan, dan jalan tanah di daerah Tabanan. Kami perlahan-lahan terbang tinggi dan semakin tinggi ke perbukitan dan pemandangan sawah dan hutan akhirnya habis, sebenarnya lebih seperti perlahan menjadi satu ketika kami sampai di tujuan. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF) yang juga menjadi tempat berkemah semalam. Jika Anda mengumpulkan semua kode QR Anda, Anda mendapat medali Rally sebagai bentuk penghargaan.

Sisi lain dari koin yang disebutkan sebelumnya, atau event kedua, adalah balap jalur datar (flat track). Atau dalam hal ini jalur dengan landasan yang tidak rata karena tempat mereka membangun jalur itu berada di atas tempat yang dulunya terdapat dua sawah terasering. Jadi titik start finish lebih tinggi dari jalur lurus pertama dengan penurunan pada tikungan pertama dan sedikit menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Saat kami masuk ke BOF, kami sudah bisa mendengar suara motor flat track dan sorakan penonton yang berkumpul. Kami parkir dan membuat jalur jalur seperti lebah.

Keseruan seutuhnya pada acara, disaat tingkat kesulitan tambahan dimasukkan ke dalam jadwal sore hari menarik perhatian yang sangat luar biasa. Mereka berhasil menarik sekitar delapan puluh peserta, terbagi dalam 4 kelas: Kelas Mesin Horizontal, Kelas FFA 4T Max 250cc, Kelas FFA 2T Max 250cc Flat Track, dan Kelas FFA Big Bore.

Antusiasme untuk balapan flat track sangat terasa. Kegembiraan tumbuh saat kami melewati babak penyisihan dan membangun sesuatu yang luar biasa untuk final setiap kelas. Tidak ada kata menahan, mereka hadir untuk memenangkannya. Pembalap dari setiap komunitas bersaing sengit di setiap kelas. Nama-nama seperti Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, dan lain-lain tak main-main, sebagian besar dari memamerkan skill mereka tanpa mengesampingkan sportifitas dan keselamatan.

Trek dengan permukaan tanah liat merah keras yang kering memberikan tantangan. Di awal, para pembalap disuguhkan dengan bagian menurun pada tikungan pertama, setelah itu mereka memeras gas di bagian trek lurus sebelum berputar ke kiri lagi tapi kali ini menjadi bagian menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Itu memaksa mereka untuk menggabungkan keterampilan balap trek datar mereka dengan banyak teknik motocross. Pada akhirnya, semua pembalap bersenang-senang dengan debu tanah liat merah yang menutupi segalanya dan semua orang.

Saat matahari terbenam ke arah cakrawala, saudara dan sahabat motoran kami meraih pecahan cahaya terakhir untuk mendirikan tenda mereka dan dalam persiapan untuk berkemah malam. Matahari menghilang di balik Gunung Batukaru memberi semua orang pemandangan yang menakjubkan, tetapi segera menyelimuti kami dengan udara yang jauh lebih sejuk dari dataran tinggi di Baturiti Tabanan ini.

Percakapan tentang rute reli dan balapan flat track mengalir dari pintu tenda semua orang yang berkemah, yang lain membaringkan tubuh mereka yang lelah untuk mengantisipasi perjalanan keesokan harinya, perjalanan yang relatif santai ke Pantai Pasut.

Dengan begitu, acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 pun berakhir. Sampai bertemu lagi tahun depan, salam untuk semua penantang, pengalaman yang luar biasa.

Berikut daftar pemenang Kelas Flat Track:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana

Saturday morning, June 17, 2023, was a highly anticipated day for 250 motorcycle rally participants and 80 flat track race contestants in Bali. It was the Fourth Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure event organized by a community of vintage trail motorcycle enthusiasts who love more than fanging about on their dual-purpose motorcycles from the 80s and 90s. Known as the Trail Asik Adventure Community, AKA… Tasik Adventure people had waited a year for the follow up and none were disappointed.

Just so you can get it straight in your head, there’s two very different sides to this coin. The first one was the Rally. They hung it under the banner of “Challenge”, making each partaker a “Challenger”. So, in the carpark of Sangeh Monkey Forest, which enjoys the shade of giant ageless teak trees, 250 Challengers parked up to receive the QR code for the first leg of the rally route. The entire ride was 3 stages with 3 stop points. 4 if you count the destination.

There were some amazing bikes there, Honda XR’s, Yamaha DT’s, Suzuki TS’s, Suzuki DR’s, and some custom modern motocross and scrambler bikes. In lots of ten or so, they lined up at the starting point then let them out for the event. Everyone’s mission was to complete each stage and stop at the 3 stop points to get the QR code for the next bit. Bali’s beauty was the constant companion, as we flew along a combination of asphalt roads, rural roads and dirt tracks in the Tabanan area. We slowly winded up high and higher into the hills and the views of rice fields and forests finally ran out, actually, it was more like blurred into one when we reached our destination. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF), which was also to be the overnight camping spot. If you collected all your QR codes you got a Rally medal as a form of appreciation.

The other side of the aforementioned coin, or second event, was the flat track. Or in this case staggered track because where they had built the track it was over a spot that had once held two rice terraces. So the Start finish straight sat higher than the return straight with a drop on the first turn and an uphill bit on the second. As we were pulling into BOF we could already hear the flat track bikes and the assembled crowd cheering. We parked up and made a bee line track side.

What an absolute corker of an event, the added degree of difficulty jammed into the afternoons schedule made for the most marvelous distraction. They’d managed to attract around eighty participants, split over 4 classes: Horizontal Engine Class, FFA 4T Max 250cc Class, Flat Track FFA 2T Max 250cc Class, and FFA Big Bore Class.

The enthusiasm for the flat track races was palpable. The excitement growing as we whittled down through the heats and building to something of a crescendo for the finals of each class. There was no holding back, they were in it to win it. Racers from each community fiercely competed in each class. Names like Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, and others were letting nothing slip, flaunting their skills without compromising sportsmanship and safety. Mostly.

The track, with its dry hard red clay surface, presented challenges. Off the start, the racers were presented with a downhill section on the first turn, they hit the gas on the bottom straight before spinning left again but this time into an uphill section on the second turn. It forced them to combine their flat track racing skills with a slew of motocross techniques. In the end, all the racers had fun with the red clay dust lay across everything and everyone.

As the sun dipped towards the horizon, our compadres and accomplices grabbed the last shards of light to set up their tents in readiness for a night of camping. The sun disappeared behind Mount Batukaru affording everyone a magnificent view, but immediately enveloping us in the much cooler air of these high grounds here in Baturiti Tabanan.

Conversations about the rally route and the flat track race flowed out of the tent flaps of all those who camped others bedded their weary bodies down in anticipation for the next day's ride, a comparatively leisurely meander down to Pasut Beach.

With that, the Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 event came to an end. Until we meet again next year, greetings to all challengers, what an amazing time.

Here is the list of the days winners:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana