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(Above) Rally cars are parked bumper-to-bumper in Marina City’s private driveway, on August 29, between Hotel Chicago (left) and House of Blues (right). (Click on images to view larger versions.) Midwest road rally passes through River North 2-Sep-15 – Drivers participating in a two-day, three-state, Minneapolis-to-Chicago-to-St. Paul rally last weekend got a break from back-country roads when they got to River North, spending their first night of the event at Hotel Chicago. About 100 teams paid $1,000 each to take part in the 2015 Central Crown Rally. Organizers emphasize the event is not a race but the challenge is to find the quickest route, passing through checkpoints, the location of which are secret until the team gets to the previous checkpoint. Roads selected are generally “interesting, challenging, and scenic.” 
(Above) Looking south with Marina City’s east tower in background at left. (Below) House of Blues in background. People commenting on the event’s Facebook page say they saw rally cars on Interstate 94 as well as smaller highways. Each team consists of a driver, navigator, and as many as two additional crew members. They are trying to match the average speed and number of miles traveled by a Porsche 911 pace car that drove the 750-mile route one week earlier, obeying speed limits and other traffic laws.
(Above) A rally car built by Patrick Heinen of Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, sits in Marina City’s east tower parking ramp. On its website, Central Crown describes rally participants as “owners and enthusiasts of a myriad of cars, including sports, luxury, super, and hyper-exotics.”
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