Marcus was 1st Overall in the Winter Championship
2018/2019
Table Top Rallying brings together two of my long-time passions -- maps
and logic puzzles -- and so it is no wonder that I so thoroughly enjoy it.
It is a perfect pastime for winter, or indeed any time of the year.
Each TTR event is divided into standalone legs, which fall into two
general categories. The first of these are 'plotting' legs, where the goal
is to plot the correct route on a map based on the information provided in
a route card, with penalties for any deviation. There is no time limit for
solving these (aside from the end of the overall event), and while some of
them are straightforward navigation, most of them have some trick up their
sleeve that make them into real headscratchers. They vary in difficulty,
and most have hints that you can take (at a penalty) if you get stuck, so
there is no reason for anyone to be scared off. Some of them are solved
through careful deduction, while others require an 'aha!' moment or a bit
of research -- in both cases it is a most satisfying feeling when you
figure it out. I prefer to print out the maps and work plotting legs on
paper, armed with highlighters and pens, though I know there are some who
work them purely online. (The advantage to working online is that you
won't make any transcription errors transferring back from paper to
screen, as I have done a couple of times.) There is always a tense moment
before you hit 'submit' your route, as only your first attempt counts and
you wonder if you overlooked anything.
In addition to 'plotting'
legs, there are also 'real-time' legs. These run for about half an hour,
and the goal is to have your car reach each checkpoint at the right time
by adjusting its speed as it moves along the route plotted on the map
(occasionally the route is pre-plotted, but usually you have to plot it
yourself via very simple route cards), while obeying traffic regulations
and enduring various incidents that may occur along the way. There are
several varieties of 'real-time' legs, but I think my favourite is the
'regularity', where the only information you are given to ensure you
arrive at the right time is the average speed for each section of the
route. It is fun to see how close you can get. With real-time legs,
penalties accrue as you reach each checkpoint, which has on occasion
resulted in me spending so much mental energy beating myself up over some
penalty I just accrued that I have lost focus and accrued more penalties
at the next checkpoint! It is important to remain calm regardless of what
happens.
Per-leg scores and overall scores are both updated in
real-time as competitors complete legs, so if you have a bit of a
competitive streak (as I do), you can see how you're doing relative to
your rivals.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about TTR is that the
whole thing was put together by one person -- the concept, the software,
the route cards themselves. It's incredible! Moreover, the platform is in
active development, and with each event there are a few innovations and
experiments. I'm never afraid to leave feedback, because I know that it
will be welcomed and in many cases acted upon very quickly to make TTR
even better.
It is a pity that thus far TTR is little known outside
of the rallying community, as I have no doubt that it would appeal to any
puzzler or map lover.
