Well, we did it: We finished the 2024 Baltic Sea Circle Rally in a 2024 Volkswagen ID. Buzz Pro. We drove nearly 5,000 miles, visited nine countries, and did it all in just 16 days, and in an electric car. It was incredible on so many levels. There are endless stories to tell, experiences to share, and new friendships formed. We’ll be writing a host of articles about this for a variety of publications, podcasts, and more so stay tuned to Crankshaft Culture on Facebook, Crankshaft Culture on Instagram, and Crankshaft Culture on TikTok for more. In addition, we’ll post up daily Reels there and we’ll share them here, too. But this rally changed us—and for the better.

Adjusting To Rally Life

After months of prep and days of packing, before you know it, you’re off to another country to compete in nine countries, eight of which we’ve never visited. Between Mercedes and me, we speak English, German, and a little Spanish; the former two would prove helpful. But there are different cultures, currencies, foods, roads (and laws), and a variety of challenges. But after a couple of days, you start to fall into your rally rhythm. You get used to rally life.

Rally life means, at least to us, getting into the pulse of the event. It’s a different subset of daily existance. We got up early (4:00am–5:00am), and sometimes drove over 16 hours. We assigned ourselves certain tasks. I did all the driving and charging. Mercedes did all the navigating and kept statistics. I did most of the cooking, she kept things organized.

A 16-day rally isn’t a short period of time. Conversely, it’s a long duration to be locked in a rolling metal box with someone for 24 hours at a time. We were together constantly, sans bathroom breaks, for pretty much 384 straight hours. That can be a lot for some couples. And we weren’t without scuffles, quarrels, and arguments. But we made it work like we’ve made our marriage work for 20 years now.

Travel Changes You

When you spend time traveling, it can change you, and sometimes for the better. This trip (including the three weeks after the rally) was the longest we’d been away from home on a single trip. We saw 10 countries (we went to Austria after the event). We had all sorts of different foods. We had to communicate when English didn’t work. From figuring out how to pay for parking in Tallinn, Estonia to explaining to the convenience store worker in Lithuania that you’re just trying to find bottled water (she literally asked me “what’s wrong?”)—these small challenges broaden your horizons. Thankfully, there is Google Translate, and for the most part, people are people no matter where you go. Most people want to help. That’s been our experience.

When all is said and done, either at the end of the day or at the end of your five-week European megatrip, you reflect. We haven’t been home a week yet. Our reflection is just starting. But I feel after overcoming your struggles—whether it’s trying to talk to a Polish campground security guard in a mix of German and English or figuring out how to get onto a ferry to the Lofoten Islands, you’re changed. Maybe it sounds a bit out there; it’s hard to explain. But I look back at all the experiences we had and think—wow. That was a hell of a thing we just did. It was a challenge on so many fronts: charging, navigation, finding a place to sleep, languages, budgets, and even relationships.

But we persevered. We’d do it again.

Travel Is Enrichment.

If you don’t like to travel, hey, that’s fine. If you’re more comfortable staying at home, or in your area/state/country, then you do you. However, when you do travel, you get to see how other people live. You see the differences between folks. It can open your eyes to new things and broaden your horizons. If we all traveled a bit farther than we’re comfortable, maybe we’d all understand each other and our world a bit more.

Take the back road.

Try some different food.

Talk to new people.

Get out of your comfort zone. There’s a whole world out there. Explore it.

“There is freedom waiting for you, on the breezes of the sky. And you ask, ‘What if I fall?’ Oh, but my darling, ‘What if you fly?'”

– Erin Hanson

More To Come

Trying to put an event like this into a short synopsis is no easy feat. We’ll do it, however, here and in other outlets. So stay tuned for more on our trip on the 2024 Baltic Sea Circle Rally.