Ontario Sweep crew nears 100 career rallies

Posted on 21. Jun, 2009 by Dean in Features

Over 20 years ago,
Bob Boland had a conversation with some Ontario
rallyists and found himself stepping into the role of Sweep – the crew that
pulls out your car after you’ve stuffed it.

 “That first event was
just me,” said Boland. “Now we have five trucks split over two teams.”

One of the first challenges
was earning the trust of competitors.

“We know how much money
these guys have invested in their cars, and we respect that,” said Boland. “I
remember one of the top competitors going off at a rally when the Sweep team
was fairly new, and they opted to get a tow truck rather than use us.”

Diplomaticly, Boland
refused to name the crew, but instead said that the tow truck extraction “wasn’t
pretty.”

 “We learned a lot in
those first couple years,” said Trish Groom, the team’s communication lead and
one of the navigators on Sweep Team 2. “We learned quickly that we had to set
things up right the first time. The assessment part of the pull is huge”

Soon, crews started opting
for the Sweep team, and were so eager to help that they started getting involved
in the extractions. It quickly became more of a hindrance than a help.

“I know where the crews are
coming from, wanting to be involved and make sure everything is ok,” said
Boland. “The thing is, we know what we’re doing, and work so well together that
having extra help can really slow things down.”

 The goal of the crew
is to do minimal damage when they pull out the car. The team has invested in
special equipment and continually look to improve their skills, having taken
special fire response training, first aid and HAM radio courses.

 The trucks have also
become more refined, and most teams have moved onto the third or fourth trucks
due to the wear and tear the vehicles see. Each truck carries thousands of
dollars in gear.

 Boland has recently
fit his truck with a dive tank that means he can more quickly fill a special
airbag used to lift cars. Neither has been used yet, and Boland would love to
see it stay that way.

 “We learned to buy
the same winch for each of the truck,” said Groom. “That way, if we have to do
a double pull, they will go at the same speed.”

 The same winches are
fit with special rope that is easier and safer to work with than rope. One of
the biggest advantages is the rope carries no energy, so if something snaps
(more likely a tow hook), the rope falls to the ground, rather than snapping
back.

 Just like the trucks,
the team members are all equal. Each truck, and each team member play a
distinct role in the entire operation. The team picked up uniforms – fire engine
red coveralls with “Sweep” on the back – to help appear more professional and
make them easy to identify.

 There are differences
in the team members. Each truck has a driver and navigator, just like a rally
car, and except for one truck, each crew is also a couple in their daily lives.

 “The navigators plan
out the entire rally the day before, using the routebooks,” said Groom. “We
always do a new plan for every event, because schedules and roads can change.”

 On thing that usually
doesn’t change is that Team One usually runs the first stage.

 “We like to get a
little extra sleep in the mornings,” grinned Groom, a member of Team Two.

When the Crew showed up at
Defi in 2008, they were heading for the stages when a call came over the radio
that they were all needed at the ceremonial start.

“We had no idea what would
have gone wrong that would need all of us,” said Groom.

When they arrived, rally
organisers announced that the Sweep team was celebrating it’s 20^th anniversary,
and had the trucks drive over the ceremonial start ramp.

“We looked around and saw
that every car in the rally had a special 20^th anniversary sticker
on it,” said Groom. “It was amazing.”

Initially, Quebec events used other
means to extract stuck cars.

“That’s their rallies, and
their choice,” said Boland. “When we were first invited to Quebec, we were floored and flattered. We
have never taken it for granted.”

Oddly, sometimes events
take for granted that the Sweep team will show up.

“We know when rallies are
being held, and sometimes we don’t get an invite,” said Groom. “We’re not going
to assume we’re wanted, because we respect that it’s up to each organiser.”

 The issue is always sorted out before the
event, and competitors have always been able to get their cars out.

In those 20 years, there
have been plenty of memories, and Boland keeps them filed away in a binder. The
cover from every routebook is saved as a memento, and a defacto logbook. Photos
of many extractions are kept as well, and there are one or two where a Sweep
truck was being extracted, rather than extracting.

“You know, we don’t hang
around at the back of the rally, we have to keep up,” said Boland. “Sometimes
we make mistakes too.”

Those mistakes are few and
far between, and in at least one case, the result of a course car that forgot
to tell the Sweep team they were stopping, forcing the truck to dive off the
road, rather than hit the 99 car.

Just like rally teams, the
Sweep crew have a favourite stage – Camp
Brule at the upcoming
Rallye Baie Des Chaleurs.

“It’s the fans, the crowds,
it’s just amazing,” said Boland.

Earning a spot on the team
is no small feat.

“Basically, someone has to
die for a spot to open up,” jokes Groom, “and we’re all a long way from that.”

So how long will the
Ontario Sweep team continue to pull and persuade cars out of the woods?

“I can’t fathom it not
being here, of us not doing it, so long as there’s a team,” said Groom. Future
rallyists should note that a future Sweep team is already in the works – Groom’s
daughter has already helped out at events in the past, learning the tricks of
the trade.

-with files from Inside Track Motorsport News . Photos courtesy of the Ontario Sweep Team.