Authors note: My intention was for this to simple article sized post, my attempt at refining my writing as a real author. I can't do it. There is too much information, too much story. Instead it will be several posts and lots of pictures.
"Offroading in the dark, having fun."
I shot off a text to my wife as I waited at the bottom of a hill outside Bastrop Texas. This was partly to reassure her that I was ok, and partly so that she might have a nice set of last words from me, just in case. I was behind the wheel of a lifted Subaru Imprezza and the hill in front of me was steep, slippery, and had a washout big enough to swallow a full size truck. From the back seat, Dallas, the car owner and builder yells "Now we're gambling! Send it!" and up we go.
The Gambler 500 is a series of similar events held all over the country. Rules are loose, buy something for $500 or less, make it capable and safe, and spend the weekend doing a road rally with it. The original Gambler 500 was held in Oregon in 2014 with 14 entrants as a test of how far $500 vechicles can go and it set the tone for all future events by using a questionable definition of "road". Enthusiasm for the event quickly spread and a series of loosely affiliated events sprang up all over the country. A quick internet search for "Gambler 500" will bring page after page of video. Jacked up cars on mud tires doing things that they clearly shouldn't be doing. Ten minutes of watching will either convince you that you need to join in, or stay far away. I'm heavily in the join camp, so when Dallas casually dropped "I'm building a Gambler car" into a conversation, I knew I needed to weasel my way in.
I decided to be the embedded journalist. To observe and participate, to get the full story of what this event is and who the people are that do it. The world is filled with proper motorsport, both on road and off, so why Gamble? Why put time and effort into cars that are right on the edge of being worth more as scrap than as a car? The car I spent the weekend in is 1996 Subaru Imprezza L Wagon named Busty LaRue. It's powered by the very unloved single cam 2.2 and that power flows though a vaguely selected five speed manual transmission and very functional AWD. Modifications include a four Subaru Forester struts, and a set ot 225/75R15 Goodyear Wrangler TrailRunner AT tires. If you try this with your own Imprezza you'll note that these tires won't fit without considerable sheetmetal removal and hammer bashing that is sure to bother your neighbors. The worlds cheapest offroad LED lights were bolted high and low, a skid plate was added, the rear sway bar was disconnected and all of the neglected regular car type maintenance was caught up after two years of being left for dead in a field. The car drove over 800 miles, served as sleeping quarters for two nights, and was flawless. If there was any problem with the car, it's that it provided no drama. To properly Gamble implies that you're taking a chance, that you might not make it, but Busty was a sure thing.
The rest of the field.....well.....I'll let pictures tell most of that story. I didn't catch every competitor, merely a cross section. You'll note that there were plenty of cars that fall outside the $500 rule. The Gambler aims to be inclusive and doesn't turn people away. Instead Gamblers choose to lead by example. Showing up in something that is too capable simply makes you want to go home and shop for something worse next time. People don't go home from an event and shop for Jeeps, they go home and shop for Chevettes. It's the way of the Gambler.
