Rasa has been driving and co-driving First Gen Toyota Tacomas all over the desert southwest for 20 years, mostly while looking for historic airplane crash sites, but also exploring old mine sites, watering holes, cool rocks, and epic campsites. She knows where all 4 tires are planted, exactly what her truck can and can’t do, and how to push the envelope safely and with true mechanical sympathy. Rasa has been wrenching on and maintaining these trucks alongside her husband since they were brand new, so she knows what’s going on under the hood. She’s also a pretty decent navigator, ensuring that when it’s checkpoint time, she can put her head together with LeeWhay to make the best decisions. LeeWhay is an experienced world traveler, physical therapist, and homesteader. She is an expert at reading maps and navigating best routes through unfamiliar territory. She is equally comfortable with map/plotter/compass as she is with GPS for route and checkpoint finding. LeeWhay is an excellent off-road driver herself, and an invaluable asset to Rasa when spotting and marshalling are needed in the toughest terrain. She’s bossy in the best possible way when things go sideways, as they sometimes do. Her recovery planning and execution skills are second to none, and always result in forward movement. Rasa and LeeWhay met and became friends more than a decade ago and have been traveling and overlanding together ever since. Although their rookie Rebelle Rally, in 2021, was the first time they had ever partnered in the same vehicle together. The rally deepened their friendship and their trust in one another, brought them loads of laughter and fun, sparked their competitiveness, and at the finish line, they keep saying, “Yes! Let’s do this again!” 2025 marks their fifth consecutive year of competition together at the Rebelle Rally. They gave themselves the “Most Consistent” award in 2024 after 3 years in a row in 10th place. They’ve upped the training this year, and their very-achieveable goal is single digits this year! Their super-secret goal? (shhh… don’t tell… it’s the podium!)
Jiffy Lube of Sacramento, Total Chaos Fabrication, Hest, Toyota Vintage Trucks, Vortex Auto Films
I think I can officially call myself a Professional Rebelle Rally Driver now! I retired in mid-2025 from aerospace product development leadership (mechanical systems, engines, and avionics systems). I'm taking time to do fun things and long-deferred personal projects before finding ways to put my business and engineering skills to work.
Phoenix, AZ
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Aero/Astro Engineering SB, WP Carey School of Business MBA
"Everything is figure-out—able."
I backpacked Thanksgiving dinner to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for 10 years in a row. And then spent the following day trying to eat or pawn off all of the leftovers so we didn't have to hike it all back out!
Again, again!! I’m so addicted to this competition! I love being pushed to my limits alongside some of the most badass and amazing women I know, and love that we forge lifelong friendships and community, no matter what happens during the competition.
Mentors, coaches, and team-builders. People who selflessly give their time to build people into the best versions of themselves. I am fortunate to have known a few, and I strive to be that for people around me, too.
Marketplace (podcast) by American Public Media
The Silo Series (Wool, Shift, Dust) by Hugh Howey
The Rook/Stiletto/Blitz by David O’Malley
Early retirement! Mondays will always feel different now.
2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
My (our!) objective is for us to be in the single digits this year! We have come in 10th place for the past 3 years, and we've been putting in the work this year to get ourselves higher up the leaderboard. Also, our objective is to be fueled by sandwiches every day. Fewer mistakes happen when you're not crashing off of a sugar snack high!
Things that make me happy (in addition to my husband and crew of adventure kitties): camping, overlanding, exploring, mountain biking, paddle boarding, gardening & backyard orcharding, reading & listening to good books, watching Netflix on my Peloton and ignoring all the classes, and dreaming about learning how to play the ukelele.
I have been a WRC and Dakkar Rally fan for 20 years, does that count? And I have been an avid overlander since before it was cool. I think that makes me a perfect mix of gogogo! and mechanical preservation in the middle of nowhere, as a driver.
I ran a marathon (slowly) and then ran a second one the following year, just to prove the first one wasn't a fluke. And thus ended my illustrious marathoning career... Requiring slightly less energy, I currently volunteer as a cat trapping expert with local rescues and city orgs to help manage feral cat populations via TNR (Trap, Neuter, Return).
My bread-and-butter is driving the flowy desert 2-tracks and swishing down sandy washes (going UP washes is less fun, unless we're making first tracks). I also am at home on faint old mining roads and ledges. But I think the sand dunes will be my favorite this year, now that we're driving a light and nimble, supercharged Taco! Rainbows all day long!
Long transits are a huge challenge for the First Gen Tacomas. Our fuel tanks are small and we don't get great MPGs. I have driven with the fuel light on for more miles than I'd like to admit. It gets really quiet in our truck, as we both listen and wait for the engine to sputter... It never has let us down yet, but I am a nervous wreck almost every transit day.
I don't know if I would say the rally changed me, but it has definitely honed me into a better partner, communicator, driver, navigator, marketer, and sales person over the past 5 years. It taught me to celebrate all the wins along the way, and to quickly move on from disappointments. It reminds me that every day is a new day, and don't stress about curveballs -- they'll come at us and we can handle them.
I knew everything about gas turbine engines (Suck Squeeze Bang Blow!), but nothing about internal combustion engines or cars when I met Craig, my now-husband, in 2005. I started handing him tools in the garage that year and learning by osmosis. Thus began my 20-year "side-career" outfitting and maintaining #PHXTaco, our 2004 First Gen Toyota Tacoma (our now-4X Rebelle Rally steed). We added #SpareTaco to the stable in 2008 when we inherited her from my father-in-law. Also a 2004 Toyota Tacoma, she was a low-miles pavement princess until we gave her a rear e-locker and a supercharger -- then it became clear she needed to rally, too! She'll be our trusty 3rd teammate in 2025!
Per Diem physical therapist at a local critical access hospital. Dog mom. Working to build up a homestead / farmstead / orchard.
Grafton, NH
Springfield College in Springfield, MA. Masters of Science in Physical Therapy
"Salvitur ambulando" is a Latin phrase which means, "it is solved by walking" and is used to refer to a problem which is solved by a practical experiment. It is often attributed to Saint Augustine.
I used to think goats were evil with their horizontal pupils. In 2025, I fell completely in love with them.
The Rebelle is a unique competition that combines challenge, teamwork, beautiful scenery, amazing people, and camaraderie. It's addictive and I'm hooked. Why now? We only live once. And we have the generous support of our partners.
Older couples in their 80's and 90's who look at each other with fondness and love after so many years.
The Mel Robbins Podcast
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell (book)
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande (book)
I consider myself super lucky to have been able to see and experience all the things I have thus far. Picking one? I'm going to go with hiking the Coast to Coast Walk in England. A patient of mine told me about her two favorite treks. One in Nepal and the Coast to Coast. I have always heard about trekking in Nepal, and it's on my list of things to do, but, the Coast to Coast Walk? I had never heard of it. I went home from work that day, looked it up, and two years later, walked the ~200 miles from St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay.
2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
1. Fail faster (this is year two of this objective) 2. Chop chop, be more efficient 3. Pre-make sandwiches at the end of each day (to prevent the "we don't have time for sandwiches" that happened last year) 4. Hopefully the above will help us obtain our goal of a single digit ranking (we have been 10th place for the last three years)
Being outside in nature, exploring, and observing animals brings me joy. Successfully growing food (which doesn't always happen). Oh yeah, and eating really good ice cream.
I do not have a background in motorsports outside of the Rebelle, but I have done vehicle based exploration for 14+ years.
In the past, I have explored amazing places and met wonderful people both domestically and internationally. Over the last several years, I have learned about chickens, goats, sheep, beavers, tractoring (I'm pretty sure that is not a real word), rainwater harvesting, irrigation options, observing weather patterns in our area, harvesting, processing, and using wood as a primary heat source, processing chickens, and composting. I'm not sure people would think these are "cool" experiences, but I really enjoy learning all the things.
The beauty of the sand dunes makes them one of my favorite part of the course, but they also terrify me and keep us on our toes 100% of the time.
At the end of the rally, when a majority of the competitors appear to be turning on their cell phones and connecting with the special people in their lives, I don't rush to turn on my phone. I tend to get a little sad at this point because the person who was "my person", didn't really care about the rally.
I'm not sure the rally has changed me, but I do know that I want to come back year after year for a few reasons. 1. I love my teammate and we both want to improve and do better. 2. The "game" is addictive. 3. The competitors and the staff become family. I look forward to seeing my rally family.
I was raised by my grandparents and my grandmother had a baby blue 1969 Mustang. We were on a trip somewhere, I have no idea how old I was, but I had to go to the bathroom. I don't know if there wasn't a gas station or anywhere with a bathroom around, but I was forced to pee in the center console. Now, that console was not one attached to the car, but a plastic container with two bean bags that held it in place over the center hump in the car. This was traumatic for me back then and that memory has stuck with me through the years. You will all be pleased to know, I have no problem with peeing in nature these days. No center console breaks for me during the rally.
