Braille Rally Contact: Pat West 714-841-1249 (t); 714-841-0777 (f) Email: nseandwest@juno.com

Mailing address: 6471 Newbury Drive Huntington Beach, CA 92647-6565

9:00am drivers and navigators meeting with the first car out at 10:01am

It's hard to believe that another year has passed and it is again time for the Braille Rally! For those who have participated in the past, it is an opportunity to renew friendships and rivalries. For those of you who are joining us for the first time, welcome! We hope you become a regular.

The Braille Rally was begun over 30 years ago as an incentive for visually challenged students to study and to grow confident in reading Braille. Each student must qualify by meeting established reading goals before they can compete as a navigator. Up to 60 student navigators from Braille Institute Youth Centers all over Southern California compete in a standard sports car rally, teaming with drivers from sports car clubs, law enforcement, media, and just regular folks.

The actual rally is very straightforward. The driver/navigator team must get from checkpoint to checkpoint at the proper speed to attain the correct elapsed time. The directions are written in Braille or large print and are given to the driver by the navigator. You, the driver, have no idea where you are going; the challenge is for your navigator to read the instructions properly and to communicate those instructions clearly to you.

These students, like any other California teenager, would like the independence of driving their own car. That cannot happen, but in this event, they are more than just a passenger. As a driver, completely dependent on your navigator, you will find a team partner and friend, and a day not easily forgotten.

Rally participants should reach the final checkpoint between 1 and 2 PM. There is a luncheon and awards presentation at the end and the event concludes by about 4 PM. This is a NON-SPECTATOR event. All the attention is directed towards the navigators. They are the competitors. They will receive the trophies and the cheers. We do invite the media so they can report on the activity and the remarkable capabilities of these young people.

PLEASE NOTE: There are some changes this year. Be aware of the new starting location. The Braille Institute Youth Center on Cahuenga has been sold, so the start this year will be at the Braille Institute facility on North Vermont in Los Angeles.

To be a DRIVER, please mail, fax or e-mail a completed Driver Registration/ Information Sheet to the Pat West before July 10, 2004. This form can be found on the www.socalm.org website (below) and in your next issue of The Reward. You will receive an entry confirmation package. This will contain a copy of General Rally Instructions and Sample Rally Instructions. For those donating their time for this event, it is very rewarding to know that the Braille institute reports that this is their primary fun event promoting reading skills. To be an EVENT WORKER, please contact Pat West.

Registration Form, PDF version (8k)