We're rested... but what about Team Hall&Nass/

This morning was nice. We got to sleep in, have a late breakfast... very relaxing!

However, this has not been the fact for some of the other teams - particularly for Team Hall&Nass. They are from the Dallas Fortworth area and have just finished two previous rally's ( really, they just got home last night) and are up bright and eary getting their car ready for the Dustball Rally; the third rally for them this month.

A twitter feed from them this morning mentioned that they were busy installing the Rally stickers, and that their Co-driver/Navigator had lost her cookies and passed out in the Texas heat... They are now on the road (11:30 MST) racing their way to make it in time for the drivers meeting at 6:00 (MST).

You can follow them on twitter @teamhallnnass.

Go Dustball!

2011 Dustball 2000 Rally - Preparation

With a bit of anticipation screaming in my toes... We're ready to head off on the 2011 Dustball 2000!

As the name suggests - it's 2000 miles; starting in El Paso, TX, and ending in Las Vegas, NV. However - the route to get there has not been disclosed to us.

Here are a few pics of how we have the car set up.

SPONSORS!
What's a rally car without a bunch of sponsorship stickers? The Dustball Rally Sponsors are not only a "sticker on a car". No - these people are car enthusiasts themselves and are in fact running the Rally in their own cars as well! They are business professionals and automotive enthusiasts as well. Pleas visit them at the main Dustball Rally site at this link. You may find that some of them have exactly what you need!




GEAR!!!

Yes - Every Rally team needs to utilize the latest and greatest technology available to help them navigate their way through the farthest reaches of the galaxy.

Here we have our trustworthy laptop with mobile Wi-Fi (for my co-driver to update her wall on facebook), scanner...

... and here we have the view of our windshield. (We had a nice rain today). Here can be seen our backward pointing camera to record video of our faces (Co-driver screaming at me), Radar detector, and GPS.

Video from the rear.
In the back seat, we will be recording video of the back of our heads and the road ahead. I dare not show a pic of the floor in the back seat... There are wires everywhere! However - to power all of these electronics, we have a 600 Watt (AC) inverter to keep the laptop, and video powered (and keep all the batteries charged).

Keep an eye on us on twitter!

Daughter Killed The Geo Tracker

Well - I decided to take my daughter out to an abandoned parking lot to practice her manual transmission driving techniques...

Cut to the chase - Ripped transmission mount, with a stretched clutch plate...

The Geo is officially out of commission. This makes my co-driver officially grateful; We'll be taking the Mustang on the Dustball 2000 instead of the Geo Tracker....

DBR 2000 2 Months Away

Here it is, May 16th 2011. Are we ready for the Dustball Rally 2000? Short, quick answer? NO!

How we're rolling this year:

1. We have not decided on our decal designs yet!
2. No spirit costumes! (what are those?)
3. We don't have a sponsor!
4. We have not added a fuel cell!
5. Failed to perform any modifications to the Mustang!
   

However - one thing is certain... We are not driving the Geo Tracker; It lacks A/C, muffler, and (oh yeah) speed!

Anne's Arm

One of the greatest car shots of all history - Anne's arm!

Chasing Team GOP (Aston Marting Vantage)

Still compiling video of the 2010 Dustball. In doing so, I came across this short clip of us chasing Team GOP (Aston Martin Vantage) through a tunnel while we were in Denver.

The V8 in this thing sounds absolutely awesome!

Building Explosion

Yes -I failed to post the day of our launch - please forgive me...

I'll get to the driving videos soon, but in the meantime, I came across this; a building being blown up early Sunday morning before our departure back home.

You can see the building falling at this link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/16/denver-judicial-building_n_683049.html

And ground zero video here: http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-video-clips-implosion-txt,0,6432036.story?track=rss

Dustball 1500 Tomorrow

We apologize for the lack of posts recently. We've been procrastinating on getting ready for the Dustball Rally. So we've been rushing hard the last couple of days to get things ready.

Stay tuned! We will be revealing some interesting information tomorrow after the drivers meeting in El Paso!

GO DUSTBALL!

Bad News For Team Hazmatt

Team Hazmatt has experienced problems recently.... we regret to say that our driver (hazmatt) has decided remove necessary components from the exhaust line from the cylinder discharge feed. This has resulted in decibel levels from the car which exceed OSHA requirements.

Team Hazmatt has now experienced problems with setting off car alarms in the vicinity of malls, shopping centers and nearby villages.

If you experience any of these side affects, please alert your nearest hazmat team.

Thank you for your consideration.

Team Hall - n- Nass

Follow Team Hall&Nass at http://teamhallnnass.com/

They are good friends of ours and are actively supporting the world road rally experience! We've submitted ourselves to sporting their coveted Pirate Pig insignia which can be seen above:

2010 Dustball Rally Preparations

Stay tuned! Team Hazmatt has some interesting information coming up regarding the 2010 Dustball Rally! It's going to be awesome!

2010 DBR 500 video coming soon!

Just now going through all the video we shot during the 2010 Dustball Rally 500. We had some serious issue's with the new camera, and I'm not happy with the results. After reviewing the video in real time during the rally, we resulted to using our old camera.

It turned out that the new camera was too heavy for the mount and shook too much. We didn't notice this until we were 3/4 of the way through the rally.

However, I'm currently putting together the best video that we could shoot during the tour.

Dustball Launch!

We launch from the super secret launching point in 1 hour! The starting point was given to us in coordinates last night at the drivers safety meeting - I have a feeling that we've got a wild ride ahead of us!

We're On Our Way To DBR 500!

Let the Gimmick Rally begin!

Polished And Ready!

The Mustang is polished, waxed and ready to go for the DBR500 this Friday! Of course it's now sprinkling here in Northern New Mexico... (grrrr)

Earlier, I totally bombed a text message to my co-driver today, and accidentally sent it through Twitter. Now, Team New Mex Express thinks we're making T-Shirts - And they're RIGHT!

Last Minute Dustball 500 Preps

The Dustball 500 is 5 days away!! We're excited... and broke! All the tech gear is loaded up in the car, and we're ready!

Good luck to all the teams in this years Dustball 500!

Dustball 500!!!

The Dustball Rally 500 is coming up quickly, and we're not even ready for it; at least we're registered!

This event happens June 26th. This will be the second time we've done this short rally, which takes an entire day to complete! It's 500 miles of searching for gimmicks and other clues to help you find your destination.

The rumor for this years 500, is that the strategies we learn in this rally will be more than helpful in the Dustball 1500. In fact, we understand that those DBR1500 teams who do not participate in the DBR 500 will be at a disadvantage.

If you want to participate in this rally, click HERE to register!

Ford Mustang in the Gumball 3000

Puma entered a Mustang RTR (Team #16) in this years Gumball 3000.

You can read more about them here

More on the Mustang RTR here

2010 Gumball 3000

It appears the Gumball 3000 crew are back behind the wheels of their cars after a stint with the German officials!

It seems that Germany banned the Gumballer's from rallying across the country and made them put their cars on transporters to get them out of the country!

Read the news here.

Mustang Back From Don Chalmers Ford

Well, the Mustang is back, but we didn't change out the gears! We left the stock gears in place, but we changed out the exhaust system!

It runs like a dream, and sounds like a beast!

Master Mechanics

Once again, the Mustang is being entrusted to the skilled, professional mechanics of Don Chalmers Ford.

I discovered the rear end has an oil leak coming from the differential. This gives us the opportunity to change out the gears!!

Hopefully it will be finished before the DBR500!

Summer's Finally Here!

.. well, almost. At least it's starting to warm up!

With the warmer weather finally creeping over the Sangre De Cristo's it's time to start getting the Mustang ready for this years rally season!

We are still working the intricacies of our forthcoming tour around the Valle Grande. Working out the details has been a bit more than we had anticipated. It's a long drive, zero cell service, and works the suspension and brakes really hard! Regardless, it's a great drive!

Follow us on Twitter, news may come through there!

Sponsorship?

Greetings from Team Hazmatt!

Thank you for inquiring on the benefits you can gain from sponsoring Team Hazmatt in the forthcoming 2010 Dustball Rally to be held August 13-15.

The Dustball Rally is a gimmick road rally that begins and ends in El Paso Texas; The destination is kept secret from the participants. Gimmicks are in the form of questions and clues which each team must complete accurately in order to find their destination. There is no time limit, and teams are not scored on who finishes first; It is not a race! It's about having fun, and enjoying the open road for the spirit of the drive.

This year will be the second attempt for Team Hazmatt to claim the coveted “Willie Williams Spirit Award” (See http://www.dustballrally.com). In 2009 Team Hazmatt was runner-up for the spirit award and came home with the “Best Protective Clothing Award”, as can be seen in the picture below.


Who we are: Hailing from Los Alamos New Mexico, our 2010 Team consists of: Matt Cover ( Team Lead, Master of Nonsense, and Driver) and Anne Przybyski (Co-Driver/navigator and Master of keeping the driver awake by any means necessary which may include screaming insults at the aforementioned driver for scaring her to death).




Our Costumes: Although somewhat confidential we can safely say we will not embarrass our sponsors with our attire.

Our vehicle: Stock 2008 Mustang GT.

Our Tech: Twitter, Laptop based GPS, in-car audio/video recording, 120VAC inverter, last but not least – trusty Escort 8500 Radar detector.

How you can benefit by sponsoring us: Advertising! The Dustball Rally will cover approximately 1500 miles. Your business insignia can be placed on our vehicle, which will be seen by possibly thousands of people, and at http://www.teamhazmatt.blogspot.com. Our car was not only photographed excessively, but was also featured in the 2009 Dustball Rally Documentary film.

What we need: Any support you can offer is welcome! Especially energy drinks and pre-paid internet air-cards!!

How to reach us: Email hazmatt_nm@msn.com

Thank you again for your sponsorship consideration! We look forward to working with you in the future and answering any questions you may have.

Sincerely,
Team Hazmatt

Declared Hazardous!

If you happen to find one of these on your car; you're one hazardous individual!

Forthcoming Tour Change

After scouting out the run, I had to make a slight change in the upcoming tour. Turns out one of the roads turned into a dirt road... Here's the new map

200+ Miles, approximately 5 hours long. No, a Mustang GT can't make it on one tank of gas.

Preparing For 2010 Dustball Rally

Although the Dustball Rally may still be a few months out, big things (expensive things) are on the horizon for Team Hazmatt, along with a complete costume makeover!

Stay tuned for more information!

Gimmick Rally Turned To Team Building

Came across this site. I wonder if my boss would go for a Gimmick Rally Team Building Event.

http://www.scavengerhuntanywhere.com/index.html

Planning A Drive

Planning a drive when it warms up. Going to try this route.

If anyone is interested post a response.

Dustball Rally Invades 2009 Gumball 3000

I was going through my old Gumball pictures and came across this picture - notice the Dustball Rally sticker on the hood!!!!!!

2009 Gumball 3000

Rummaging through my coverage of 2009 Gumball 3000 in Santa Fe, "Dude - Can I have your autograph?!"

Merry Christmas!

To all of our Petrol-Head followers:
May God bless you with a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

...and of course excessive tire smoking!!!

-- Team Hazmatt

Accepting Co-Driver Resume's

Start sending your resume's for co-driver for the 2010 Dustball Rally.

This is not the type of Co-Driver I'm looking for.......

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3rxc_scared-codriver_auto

Nothing To Do With Cars

Electronica - it never ceases to amaze me, the amount of technology in modern music.

Watch the keyboardest - he's singing the female background vocals

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj28GFMqdqs&NR=1

2009 Dustball Rally 1500 Part 2

SFVCC Rally To Taos

Will be joining the Santa Fe Vintage Car Club on their trip to Taos this Saturday.

Look Ma! No Dents!

Fresh from the body shop!

IT'S DONE!!!

...as you can see from the picture below....unfortunately, I cannot pick it up until after the insurance company has had a chance to review the body shop's work...

Jeremy Clarkson Predicts A Sad Future

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glmWXN0qm7s

Team HnN DBR 1500 Testimony

Team HnN gives their thoughts on the rally, prior to leaving Las Vegas on the third day of the Rally.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6NGUhM8Seo&feature=player_embedded#t=216

Body Work In Progress

She's been ripped apart - yet one Pirate Pig remains.

2009 Dustball 1500 Rally: Part 1

Part 1 of the 2009 Dustball Rally 1500:

Team Hall & Nass Radio Interview of the 2009 Dustball Rally

Click the link below to listen to Team Hall & Nass's Radio interview of the 2009 Dustball Rally.

http://www.burnoutradio.com/podcasts/burnout-radio-episode-60-its-time-for-hall-nass.php

DUSTBALL RALLY 2010

Team Hazmatt is officially registered for the 2010 Dustball Rally. Again - we'll be displaying the #50

Team Hazmatt Featured In Santa Fe Reporter

Special thanks to Dave Maase at The Santa Fe Reporter for the report!

http://sfreporter.com/stories/ride/4968/all/

Where We've Been

Yes - we drove the historical Route 666...

The Dustball 1500 Rally is officially complete. This year we ended up in Las Vegas!

I'll be uploading video as soon as I get some sleep.

Leaving for Dustball 1500

On our way!! Yay! WOOOHOOO!!!

John Paul Of Team New Mex Express Interview

Here's the full version of the interview with John Paul of Team New Mex Express. We were told that if we acted "enthusiastic" on camera - there would be a better chance of appearing in the DVD screening... Thus - the craziness...

Car Sticker'd

Special thanks to Ben Swartz for helping with the stickering!

Starting Line at DBR 500

I just came across this video of us waiting to be called up to the start line during the Dustball 500. There was this white Supra sitting next to us that sounded a bit "wrong". Turns out they broke down approximately 70 miles from the start line.

It's a shame. It was a nice car, and they were neat folks!

Checking For Dents

Due to the recent hail storms we've had, I was curious to see how badly the dents will show up on camera... Actually, can't really tell!! You be the judge!

We're On Twitter

We'll be using twitter throughout the rally.

Feel free to follow us - and help us throughout the rally at http://twitter.com/teamhazmatt

Team Hazmatt It Is!

Team Hazmatt has been officially confirmed as our name for the Dustball 1500.

Our vehicle number will be "50" according to this link

Team Bomb or Team Hazmatt???

Still waiting on the final verdict on what our team name will be.

For those not familiar with the story... There was a misunderstanding regarding the "Team Bomb" name. It was thought that the name "Team Bomb" would not be kindly looked upon by our border patrol personnel... for T-Shirts. We misunderstood that to mean the name "Team Bomb" all together.

Will keep you updated.

As for now, we are listed on http://www.dustballrally.com as "Team Bomb".

The background to the name "Team Bomb" is in reference to our home town - Los Alamos, where "the bomb" was developed.

Stickers Finalized

Click below for a preview of what the stickers will look like. Rumors say that they add about 800 BHP to the vehicle.

http://www.dustballrally.com

Video Has Arrived

Tough trying to cram 10 hours of video into 5 minutes...

Home Safe And Sound!

The DBR 500 was a huge success, and a BLAST!
Will be posting video soon!

Dustball 500 Tomorrow Night!

Latest word from the coordinators:

"Zero hour is upon us!!

We are inviting everyone we know to Hot Rods and Wheels Friday and Saturday night this weekend. See the Dustball Rally 500 teams before and after their Rally beat-down. In attendance will be the novices and the veterans that will battle it out for a Rally Championship!! Friday night Rally teams will be fresh and ready; come back Saturday night to see the toll that the Dustball Rally 500 took on them and their selected rally machines.

Who: 2009 Dustball Rally 500 Teams and all those interested in Dustball!!
What: Dustball Rally before and after beat-down
Where: Hot Rods and Wheels 1510 Bengal Dr. El Paso, TX 79935
When: 7pm Friday night, June 26th, and ??pm Saturday night June 27th


Friday, June 26th at 7pm - Team Safety briefing, inspection and sticker application

Saturday June 27th at ??pm - Teams will roll in after a long adventure with their battle scars and plenty of stories to tell. Awards will ensue after all finishing team tests are graded.

DON'T MISS IT!!"

One Day Until DBR500

The precursor to the Dustball 1500 is this Saturday. However, the welcoming party festivities begin on Friday evening at Hot Rods and Wheels at 1510 Bengal Dr. in El Paso.

Good luck to all the participants!

Welcome To The New Site!!

Due to a slight oversight, the "Team Bomb" name has been retired, and replaced with "Team Hazmatt"

Team Bomb Welcomes Becky Robertson

TEAM BOMB welcomes Becky Robertson as co-driver for the Dustball 500 Rally.

Becky brings a great love of loud muscle cars and fast drift turns on the apex to the team.

She is in the videos below, where she joined Team Bomb during the White Sands cruise.

Dustball Rally Preparations

This week is turning out to be seriously busy. "TEAM BOMB" decals have been ordered through "Fast Signs". I just received the call that they're ready for pick-up. But with the week turning out the way it has, I won't be able to pick them up until Friday.

Here's the current setup in the car:

Radar detector (Escort 8500)
Laptop based GPS
Windshield camera (audio/video)
120VAC 600W inverter
Old fashioned paper maps
Tow rope (for pulling Team New Mex Express out of the ditches)
...more to come.

DBR500 One Week Away

There are still 10 spots left open in the Dust Ball 500 Rally. Click here to register!

More to follow...

DUSTBALL RALLY 500 REGISTRATION OPEN

The Dustball Rally 500 is a go, and we'll be there!!!

Go to deanslist.us, or dustballrally.com to register! It's filling up quick!

"Be sure to come out to the next open event coming up, the Dustball Rally 500 on June 27th! Check out the rates to join the Rally. Sign up early so we can plan ahead! Only $20 for members, $40 for non-members and $50 for new members! Sign-in and Meet and Greet being held at Hot Rods and Wheels on June 26th at 7pm. Come on down and check out the entered cars!!"

Fast Cars by Fast Signs Rally Hosted by Team New Mex Express

It was a beautiful day yesterday!

Grats to Team New Mex Express for putting together an awesome gimmick rally!

I gave up on timing the titles inside the video - I apologize for them flashing on and off so quick.

Fast Cars by Fast Signs

This Sunday (May 24th) join us in Santa Fe for a show and shine - with a cruise!
Hosted by Dust Ball Rally Team "Team NM Express"!

Meet at RealBurger at 9:00 a.m. (2239 Old Pecos Trail).

Cruise will start at 11:00, which will take us Up I-25 to 285, swing through Stanley and back into Santa fe on Highway 14.

End the day with a cold one around 1:00 at the Santa Fe Brewing Company.

hope to see you there!

Rappelz

Although it may seem irrelevant to place this post here - Thanks for the support from Legion of Legends guild on Rappelz

Gumball 3000 Santa Fe Update

It appears the Gumballer's will be spending the night in Santa Fe. According to Gumball3000.com the following is their Santa Fe itinerary:

SANTA FE

MONDAY 4TH - TUESDAY 5TH MAY

16:00 MONDAY UNTIL 09:30 TUESDAY

Santa Fe Plaza at Lincoln Avenue and West Palace Avenue, Santa Fe NM

Cruise To White Sands

Here are some pics and video of the Cruise to White Sands on April 19th.
I apologize for some of the videos... My photographer (crazy kid) apparently had ten cups of sugar and couldn't keep the camera still.

Here we are waiting at the Edge of Texas. Andrew (Porsche) made it but had to head back into El Paso to take his daughter to the hospital!!! Let us know how she's doing Andy!! We hope she's okay!! No - It wasn't car related..

While we were at the Edge of Texas, we met up with a Viper, stopped half way at Oro on 54 to wait up for J*** and Team Underkode.
NICE CAR!!


Here's video of him passing us (reminder - camera girl on a sugar high)


We finally make it to Alamogordo

...And, apparently, my car seat re-ironed my shirt for me along the way....
After meeting up with the rest of the folks from Alamogordo... The cruise takes off (reminder - camera girl on sugar high):




At White Sands..

Spring Snow

So - I waxed the Mustang - 3 times yesterday... and here's what I wake up to!!!!

I'm seriously tired of the snow!!

It's April 11th - and it's snowing!!

I wonder what Al Gore would have to say about this...

One thing for sure - I wish I had a garage!!

White Sands Meet

Team Bomb is joining the Cruise To White Sands on April 19th.

Hope to see you all there!

Gumball 3000

We are hoping to catch up with the Gumballer's as they swing through Santa Fe this May. If anyone is interested in meeting up in Santa Fe to catch up with them let us know!!

On our way to Dustball 1000 DVD Screening

Silly me - I always thought they broke double wides in half prior to trucking them down public freeways!

Came across these two houses on I-25 on our way to the Dustball Rally 1000 DVD screening.

Dustball Rally 1500

Team Bomb is officially registered for the Dustball 1500 Rally