The rally begins on October 6.
The Hyundai Santa Cruz will compete in motorsports. Hyundai will hand over the keys to the truck to two auto journalists who will compete in the seventh annual Rebelle Rally, an all-women off-road navigational challenge, later this year. The event begins on October 6 this year.
Hyundai is participating in the eight-day, 1,500-mile event for the first time. Racers will begin in an unannounced site in Nevada before travelling miles of desert to the finish line in the Imperial Sand Dunes of Southern California. Jill Ciminillo and Kristin Shaw, both automotive writers, will pilot the truck in their debut attempt at the Rally.
The Rebelle Rally isn’t a race to the finish line. It’s a navigational challenge centred on direction, hidden checkpoints, and time, with contestants navigating using maps and a compass. They are not permitted to use cellphones or GPS, and race officials gather cellphones at the start of the race to prevent cheating.
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Ciminillo and Shaw will attend a two-day navigation school and a two-day off-road driving school as part of their preparation. The two will receive a crash lesson in off-road driving and recovery skills from the schools. They’ll learn how to diagnose vehicle problems, read and interpret maps, plan routes, and plot longitude and latitude.
They’ll be driving a brand-new Santa Cruz pickup truck with a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. Every Santa Cruz comes standard with all-wheel drive. The pickup has a ground clearance of 8.6 inches, and Hyundai fitted a skid plate and off-road tyres for increased protection in the desert.
“We are ecstatic to be sponsoring our first Hyundai squad in the Rebelle Rally,” stated Dana White, Hyundai Motor North America’s chief communications officer. “We’re ecstatic to be working with Jill and Kristin on this trip, and we can’t wait to see them in action in Santa Cruz.”
The Rebel Rally has become an event for automakers to show off their newest vehicles. Ford took the Bronco Sport there in 2020 and won the X-Cross class, the same class that the Santa Cruz will compete in this year. (Mathemania.com)
Sources: Hyundai, Kristin Shaw / Instagram