In the From fan to co-driver feature, we follow our journalist Eemeli Aho as he embarks on his journey as a co-driver in the rally world. Previous parts have explored topics such as the AKK examinations and pace note practice, as well as Aho’s first moments in a rally car and the events of his debut rally.
You can find all previous parts of the feature here!
Vetomies recce – two long days
The Vetomies competition has become an integral part of Rally Finland. Nowadays, it’s a two-day affair, and for me, it was only my second rally overall. This year’s Vetomies featured eight special stages, with a total of 131 kilometres of competitive driving.
Before the rally, it was clear that the recce sessions would be much more challenging than what I had previously experienced. The Vetomies stages were significantly longer than those I had tackled before. The route included a few stages around 20 kilometres long, with the cherry on top being the 33-kilometre Ouninpohja.
Even though it had been two months since the Rantaralli, we had conducted two long pace note training sessions with my driver, Jarmo Vesterinen, in the meantime. This preparation made the Vetomies recce much easier, as we had developed a good routine through practice.
The recce took place on the Wednesday and Thursday of the rally week, with the Wednesday dedicated to the stages around Jämsä that were to be driven on Saturday. Our rally week began on Wednesday morning with registration at the rally headquarters in Killeri. We attached the recce stickers to our car and headed towards Jämsä. The first challenge was the heavy rain, which turned the gravel roads into a slippery mess. This made it difficult to assess grip, especially if the actual rally would be run in dry conditions.
Knowing that the day would be long, we planned to start with the Ouninpohja stage in the morning. The rally order was set so that Västilä was driven first, followed by Päijälä, and then Ouninpohja. We wanted to give Ouninpohja our full attention, so we began there. After the initial recce pass of Ouninpohja, we completed the Västilä and Päijälä stages, then returned to Ouninpohja later in the day to review our notes.
The world’s greatest stage hits like a sledgehammer
Ouninpohja is often referred to as the world’s greatest stage, and I don’t disagree. I’ve spent many times as a spectator at Ouninpohja, and I’ve driven it countless times in rally games and watched legendary onboard videos. Despite knowing the stage inside out, it still managed to surprise me. This time, it was the rookie co-driver who got caught off guard.
I hadn’t experienced any significant nausea during recces before, and thankfully, Ouninpohja didn’t upset my stomach either. However, the feeling at the end was something else entirely. It was like floating in a daze after being hit on the head. I’ve never been drunk, but my sense of balance after the first pass was probably on par with that of the average nightclub-goer between two and four in the morning.
Fortunately, I quickly regained my composure, and it was time to review our notes. Honestly, I didn’t remember much about the stage we had just driven. Ouninpohja has so much going on that there’s no time for a break during the recce pass. I just kept writing down what I heard, over and over again.
After Ouninpohja, we moved on to Västilä and Päijälä after a lunch break. We did two passes of each stage – first Västilä and then Päijälä. We felt confident that our notes were good, and we returned to Ouninpohja in high spirits.
The review pass of Ouninpohja was also interesting. We found many places to correct, especially on the narrow sections towards the end. Ultimately, we were satisfied with our notes, and we felt positive about the rally week ahead.
For me, the biggest lesson from the first recce day came in the evening. I’m a bit of a perfectionist, and I was too meticulous when cleaning up my pace notes. I got so absorbed in the task that after tidying up two stages, it was already time to go to bed. But my stubbornness wouldn’t let me rest until I had Ouninpohja in the same condition as the other stages.
I ended up spending four hours on the task, finally going to bed at one in the morning. I believe I did one hour’s work in four hours. Not very smart, was it?
Friday’s stages – my first autographs as a co-driver
Thursday was dedicated to the stages to be driven on Friday: Laukaa, Saarikas, Myhinpää, Ruuhimäki, and Harju. The recce plan was made by the rally organisers this time. The Vetomies competitors were divided into two groups, each making their notes while avoiding the WRC event that had already begun.
We were part of Group B, and we started with Saarikas, which was a new addition to the route. I was surprised by how challenging this stage was, with a variety of fast sections, tight corners, and several crests.
In Vetomies, we introduced the term “runki” into our pace notes to describe places that surprised us during the recce or are generally known as potential crash spots. After Saarikas, our notes contained five “runki” spots. Next year, there will be one more “runki” in our notes, but more on that in the next article.
Next, we tackled Laukaa, which as a local, is the most familiar part of the rally route to me. We had a fun moment in Laukaa when a group of about ten enthusiastic young fans stopped us mid-stage, asking for our autographs. When I rolled down the window, one of the boys shouted, “Hi Eemeli!” For a moment, I thought I was famous, until I realised he was the little brother of a friend of mine. Nonetheless, these were the first autographs I’d ever signed, so it was a nice boost to my confidence.
Harju was an interesting stage to recce. It feels very tight during the recce, and I even asked Jarmo if it was particularly narrow this year. He assured me it wasn’t, so I was curious to see how it would feel when we drove it in the rally car the next day.
Myhinpää also stood out, and I was a bit nervous about driving it after making our notes. It’s similar to Ouninpohja, but I find the crests in Myhinpää sharper, with many cuts over rocks and large boulders. These are spots that require extra caution when driving in the ruts.
Watch the video below from our review pass of Myhinpää!
Thursday’s recce day was very different from Wednesday. The organiser’s schedule left us with a lot of downtime in the middle of the day. It was frustrating at the time, but in hindsight, it was actually a good thing, as it gave us some much-needed breaks. Additionally, I learned from the previous evening and was much more efficient with tidying up the notes, allowing me to get to bed earlier.
In the next part of the feature, I’ll share how our Friday stages went. The title of the article should leave you eagerly awaiting the next part: From fan to co-driver: This is what it feels like when a rally car rolls over.
