August 2025 Newsletter
August 28th, 2025
Less Than Two Months to Go: A Decade in the Dirt
Ten years, thousands of miles, and it all begins again in Mammoth Lakes. We love kicking off in Mammoth for its stunning scenery, mountain-town energy, and a community that always makes us feel at home. On Wednesday, October 8, the Village at Mammoth will host Technical Inspection, and friends, family, sponsors, and fans are all welcome to see the vehicles, meet competitors, and share the excitement.
And for the first time ever, this year the Rebelle Rally will feature eight full days of scored competition plus the Prologue. Year ten calls for more miles, more challenge, more stories to tell… and a competition that just might hold a few surprises along the way.
In this month’s Rebelle Dispatch, you’ll get rally prep tips from Nick “Nickgyver” Cimmarusti, our Head Mechanic leading the Pennzoil Mechanics Program. We’ve also got one final chance to train in the dunes of Glamis. Spots are limited, so if you are planning to join, now is the time to sign up! Plus, we catch up with automotive journalist and Rebelle competitor Kristin Shaw, spotlight longtime staff member, pro driver, and Rebelle U instructor Matthew Johnson, share why Mountain House keeps our teams fueled, and more Rebelle news waiting to be uncovered.
The countdown is officially on. See you at the start line!
The Rebelle Team
Top Ten Tips for Rally Vehicle Prep
As part of our year-long Top Ten series celebrating the 10th Rebelle, we are handing the mic to the people who know the rally best. This month, it is all about vehicles.
When it comes to the Rebelle, it is not just about your maps and mindset. Your vehicle has to be ready for eight days of dirt, dunes, and surprises.
That is where Nick Cimmarusti, our Head of the Mechanics Program by Pennzoil, comes in. Also known as Nickgyver, he can make just about anything work out on course. Nick has seen it all, from quick fixes to big saves, and knows the small details that keep a team rolling.
Here’s a preview of his Top Ten Tips on Prepping Your Vehicle:
- Know your vehicle. Get familiar with it inside, outside, top, and bottom so you notice when something looks out of place.
- No major last minute mods. That shiny new part you bolted on the week before? Leave it off.
- Driver over vehicle. Cars don’t crash themselves. Sharpening your skills will make the biggest difference.
And that is just the beginning! Tires, inspections, and why less is more all made Nick’s list. If you’re heading for the Rebelle or chasing adventure in your 4×4, Nickgyver’s top ten is the cheat sheet you did not know you needed.
Where Are They Now: Kristin Shaw
Kristin Shaw dove into her first Rebelle Rally at age 51 and quickly found herself on an adventure that changed everything.
Since then, Kristin’s career has shifted into high gear. As an automotive journalist, she now writes for Popular Science, Edmunds, Car and Driver, and Road & Track. Automakers regularly invite her to push their vehicles to the limit off-road, a job she calls “living my dream come true.”
Through the Rebelle, Kristin learned she could drive for eight straight days, handle freezing nights, and face unexpected challenges with confidence and humor. Most importantly, she discovered that mistakes are part of the adventure and that friendships made in the dirt last a lifetime.
This month’s Where Are They Now catches up with Kristin, who continues to kick up dust and chase her next great adventure!
Rebelle U: Dunes Driving Intensive – September 6-7, 2025
The dunes don’t wait, and neither should you. Our final Rebelle U of the season is a two-day, hands-on sand driving intensive on September 6-7, 2025 in the legendary Glamis dunes, the Rebelle Rally’s playground for the past nine years. Designed for 4WD and AWD, this course focuses on the skills that matter most when the sand gets soft: reading terrain, choosing the right lines, managing throttle, safe recoveries, and working seamlessly as a team.
It is the kind of training that pays off in every mile of the rally, taught by instructors who know this course and these dunes inside and out. Spots are limited, so if the dunes are on your mind, now is the time to make it happen!
Staff Spotlight: Matthew Johnson
Driver. Instructor. Live co-host. This month’s Staff Spotlight Matthew Johnson has been part of the Rebelle since 2016, and he has worn just about every hat possible along the way. He has navigated the course as a media driver, once chauffeured media in a Rolls-Royce Cullinan, and taught future Rebelles at Rebelle U presented by Pennzoil. These days you will also find him on camera, bringing the event to life as co-host of the Rebelle Rally LIVE presented by Toyota.
Nearly a decade into his Rebelle journey, we caught up with him to talk dream vehicles, wild rally moments, unexpected on-air surprises, and the craziest places his work has taken him.
Whether he is behind the wheel, behind a microphone, or behind the visor of a helmet, Matthew Johnson keeps the Rebelle spirit rolling. One thing is certain: if Matthew is around, the stories will be as good as the driving!
Rebelle Selects: Mountain House
If you’ve navigated even a single mile of the Rebelle Rally, you already know Mountain House freeze-dried meals aren’t just food, they’re fuel. Every meal matters out on course, and Mountain House is what we reach for when performance counts.
Why Mountain House? Because they’re dialed in to exactly what our teams and staff need, offering options for gluten-free, vegetarians, and hearty classics everyone craves (shout-out Breakfast Skillet and Rice & Chicken!). After hours spent plotting and conquering terrain, nothing feels better than a hot, delicious meal ready in minutes.
Reliable nutrition that powers us through the toughest days, we’ve been trusting Mountain House for as long as we can remember because it always delivers. Plus, let’s be real, there’s nothing quite like a meal that tastes like home when you’re miles away from anywhere!
The Rebelle Rally’s toughest tire test is back for its third year—this time with the debut of Pirelli’s all-new Scorpion™ XTM All-Terrain alongside the proven Scorpion™ All-Terrain Plus. With 19+ teams confirmed, the challenge will push drivers, vehicles, and tires across 2,500+ kilometers of unforgiving terrain.
In The Press & News: Garage Talk
Rebelle Rally founder Emily Miller recently sat down with Cory Fourniquet at Garage Talk for a wide-ranging and fun conversation on the rally’s past, present, and future.
From her background and why she started the Rebelle to the history-making launch of the Electrified Program in 2020, Emily shares insights you will not want to miss, including why automakers send their own engineers to compete and how the very first Rebelle was an experiment that set the stage for everything that followed.
As we head into year ten, it is a full-circle conversation, part history lesson, part storytelling, and an all-around great listen.
In The Press & News: Forbes
You just read about Kristin Shaw in Where Are They Now, and now you can read her byline in Forbes. Kristin has been part of the Rebelle as a competitor and continues to share the story of what makes it so unique.
In her latest piece she takes readers behind the scenes, from 5 a.m. cowbell wake ups to long days in the dunes and nights at basecamp, all the way to the final gala prepared by Michelin star chef Drew Deckman. She also shines a spotlight on the partners who make it possible, from Pennzoil and Pirelli to Toyota, Ford, and the outdoor brands that support every mile.
August is the sweet spot for dialing in your systems before the rally. Use your next drive, whether it’s to work, the trails, or the store, as a mini training session. Practice smooth throttle control, deliberate braking, and scanning for terrain changes. Keep your navigation tools close and in the same place you’ll use them on course. Little habits built now will feel automatic when the clock is running. #LongMayWeDrive
The 10th Rebelle Rally begins October 8, 2025 in Mammoth Lakes. From October 10 to 18 you can follow the action live with every competition day, every challenge, and every story at rebellerally.com/live, on our YouTube, or on Facebook Live.
Parting Shot
“The highs can be some of your highest, and the lows can be some of your lowest. At the end of it, you realize how awesome you feel about yourself. It gave me a purpose. I forgot how great that can feel.” – Laura Hardesty 2018/2019 Rebelle, New York Times
Photo Credit: Regine Trias