I’d like to tell you we know what we are doing. We don’t. I’d like to tell you that we have a plan? Nope. I’d like to tell you we even know where to start. I’d be lying.

So where do we start? I have no idea.

But, the first thing we are tackling is how to get the car to the rally. I figure that with about 5,500 miles to cover total, to the extent I can reduce driving before and after the event, it will make it easier on me, Julie and Charlie.

Here is what we know:

  • The start of the Great Race is less than 6 weeks away.
  • We have to get Charlie, our 1969 Porsche 912, about 1,200 miles to the start of the rally in Warwick Rhode Island
  • After the 2,500-mile rally we need to bring the car 1,800 miles back to Florida.

Enter the Auto Train. Amtrak happens to operate a train from Sanford, Florida, which is less than an hour from where we live. The train runs about 900 miles to Lorton, Virginia just outside of Washington, DC. And the train hauls vehicles. Apparently, it is the only such train in the country.

We went over to Sanford to take a look at how the whole operation works. It is pretty impressive. We also spoke with a number of people that were having their cars unloaded (it runs both north and southbound), and they all had had a good experience.

So the plan is to put Charlie on the Auto Train a few days before we have to be in Warwick, Rhode Island for the Great Race registration. The train also carries people, so we will take the train to Lorton, Virginia, with the car. Each day the train leaves at 4:00 pm and arrives in Lorton at 9:00 am the next morning, a 17-hour ride. Once in Virginia, we will unload Charlie and then drive the 500 miles to Warwick for the rally. So far so good.

The Auto Train costs $258 for the car, and $230 for two coach seats. They also offer a small room, instead of seats, but after going to Sanford and taking a look at it, we decided just to go with seats. Not too bad, considering it knocks about 900 miles off the driving, and with the price of fuel and hotels, it seems in line with what we would spend on that portion of the trip anyway. Also, it saves time. We can relax while the conductor drives straight through the night. We also paid $79 for priority offloading in Lorton, Virginia. We will need to get on the road to Rhode Island as quickly as possible, so I figured it would be worth it. Plus, I am hoping that with priority loading/offloading they will let me drive the car onto the train myself. I doubt it, but, it is worth a try.

How will we get home Fargo, North Dakota after the Great Race? Quite honestly, I’m not sure. At this point, we are planning to drive Charlie home. But, it is a 1,800-mile drive. AFTER the rally. We considered buying a pickup (which I need to buy anyway) in Fargo, and renting a trailer to bring the 912 home. But, I’m not sure I want to buy a used truck from a place where they have so much snow and use so much salt on the roads. So drive Charlie home remains the current plan.

Next steps:

  1. Figure out what we have to do to prepare the car.
  2. Figure out how all of this time, speed, distance timing and measuring works, and then practice, practice, practice.
  3. Figure out how to fit everything for the trip in the car.