Rally spectators get the info they want

Having been to a couple of WRC events in the past, the issue of deciding which stages to see and where on those stages to go can be really tricky. I've got hundreds of megabytes of maps, stage descriptions and video accumulated for that very reason.

Rally Deutschland and this weekend's Vodafone Rally Portugal have attempted to solve that very issue. Not only do they put detailed maps and descriptions online (like a lot of other rallies), but they also post video of the spectator areas so that you can see the view that you can expect. Check out this superb stage overview which shows all the access points, and then go to this example spectator area page from the excellent Portugese spectator guide. There's a video link at the top, which shows a little SUV negotiating the stage.

It was just a bit of a shame that such a well-though-out and gorgeous rally dished up the same old snoozefest on the competitive side of things.