The Countryman Untamed Edition makes its competitive debut on a rally of about 1,500 miles across Nevada, California and Utah, with GPS banned.
MINI makes its first Rebelle Rally appearance with the Countryman Untamed Edition. The start was set for 8 October in Las Vegas, with the green flag at 7am PT. The route covers about 1,500 miles of rugged terrain in Nevada, California and Utah, and GPS navigation is prohibited.
MINI has entered its first Rebelle Rally with a Countryman in its new Untamed Edition, a variant built for adventure driving. MINI announced the entry on 7 October. The green flag was scheduled to drop on 8 October at 7am PT at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and the rally covers about 1,500 miles of demanding terrain across Nevada, California and Utah. BMW Group says the event will test the new model in real conditions over the full distance.
The crew and the car
MINI's team driver is Felicia Killman, who takes part in American Rally Association events, has driven and navigated rally cars, and has campaigned a specially prepared MINI in stage rallying. Her navigator is Erika Ferrer, who works in communications for the BMW Group in Mexico. Ferrer has won three consecutive regional co-driver championships in Mexico and co-drove alongside Benito Guerra, a rally champion, at La Carrera Panamericana.
A BMW Group engineering team prepared the car alongside its normal duties. The company names technical and outfitting partners, among them Thule, Pelican Cases and GoPro, with other suppliers including DealerTire, Morimoto Lighting, Heinlein Racing Development and Peak Design. MINI says the Untamed Edition looks more rugged and has better off-road ability.
Navigation by map and compass
The Rebelle Rally, which BMW Group describes as one of the world's premier off-road competitions for women, requires teams to cover more than 1,500 miles of western US terrain using maps, a compass and a road book. GPS navigation is prohibited. For the crew, preparation included field training across dunes, rocky ground and loose surfaces, along with practice in map-and-compass navigation.
Killman said the pair had prepared for the terrain, the navigation and whatever the rally might throw at them. Ferrer said the event tests judgement and teamwork as much as the vehicle, and that every decision matters once the terrain stops matching the map.
MINI points to its rally history as context, including overall wins at Monte Carlo in 1964, 1965 and 1967 with the original Mini Cooper S, and international success in the Dakar Rally. The company says fans can follow the event through live tracking, daily updates and coverage on the rally's digital and social channels.
