Maramures Off Road Fest

The outskirts of the Ignis mountains in Romania were home to yet another extraordinary festival. Five editions in, each better than the last, the MMOF has become a tradition for off roaders from hundreds (this year, thousands) of kilometers away. 42 off road trucks answered the invitation of Forum Club 4x4 administrator Max (Dan Lupsa). An eight man team set out this year to put together the festival that mud lovers have already marked on their calendars as one of the important events in the year. More than 40% of the cars are not in their first year’s participation on this event. There have been trucks that have not missed an edition, since 2007.

 

“We want to promote the sport of the off road, as well as the Maramures area, with its unique sights and beauties. What sets us apart from other events is the fact that we put a great emphasis on the socializing aspect of the off road, breathing traditional features into everything and offering the possibility for everyone to have a great time”, said Mr. Lupsa.

 

The tracks were comprised of two classes: Standard and Open. The first one, in its turn, was also divided in two sub classes. One of them catered to the needs of those who wanted to participate within the rigors of an official competition: navigating via map, with GPS aid and Checkpoints. The second sub class had a less encountered feature: it was mostly focused on teambuilding and adjacent activities – much like Land Rover’s G4 Challenge competitions.

 

The Open class, unlike the previous ones, was hands on off road. Although a medium difficulty was given, some areas were certainly within the extreme class level. The tracks ranged from 90 kilometers (1st day) to 70 kilometers (2nd day).

Fortunately, there have not been any unpleasant events, although technical issues have been signaled. The tracks were designed so that they would be difficult without being unnecessarily dangerous.

 

“We were prepared for any intervention, at a moment’s notice. The quick response team was fully equipped to resolve matters of technical or medical nature. We’ve managed to recover competitors with damaged cars or who have become lost along the tracks, without too many issues”

 

The organizers promoted a family-type weekend event. Activities were prepared for other members in the cars: adventure parks, tourist sightseeing, children playground, mountain treks and so on.

 

 

 

’The feedback we get each year motivates us to get better at organizing, and gather strength and time to improve our future events. We are looking into creating a 2012 edition which focuses more on a trophy approach. More and more people are getting into this type of adventure family off road, where danger levels are low, scenery intake is high and the off road component is dominant still. We have the local authorities support and solid collaborations, so that we can organize something like this in the area. We make a strong point of gathering all necessary approvals from police, forest rangers, mayor’s office, basically all official bodies”, declared Mr. Lupsa.

 

 

If you think this was an event worth taking part of, the Baia Mare 4x4 Club has huge plans for the following period, among which a Guinness World Record. The forum administrator has made it his mission to gather as many off road trucks as possible, lining them up on the Transfagarasan Highway for homologation. Not only will this be a great way to promote the off road scene but it will certainly draw a crowd on the road that Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson called “The Best Road in The Whole World”