Road Rally to the Famous Tail of the Dragon on US Highway 129 in Vonore, Tennessee
June 21-22-23, 2024
Launching from SILO Auto Club and Conservancy 7:30am-9:30am on Friday June 21st.
SOLD OUT
Ticket Sales END Friday June 14th 5pm EST!
Our custom Dragon Rally Event Tshirt that you get with your ticket purchase! *Extra event Tshirts are available here
What is a Rally?
This is an event where we gather as a group and drive to a destination together. This includes our IHR Media Team that will join us on the event and take amazing action shots of your rides!
What is included with ticket?
Each ticket gets you:
1 Vehicle entry into the Rally (passengers are FREE)Entry to the luxurious SILO Auto Club and Conservancy for the launch where you can view the incredibly stunning car collection1 Event T-shirt1 Event sticker1 Event PosterCustom Car Decals for the event to go on your driver’s door and passenger’s door (high quality vinyl + easily removable after event!)Continental style Breakfast at the SILO Auto Club for the launchBeverages at the launch & for duration of the RallyOne Ticket for our Reception dinner on Friday night1 Goodie bagOur Media Team will be along to take photography and videography for the duration of the eventHoosier Performance E85 will be along to provide high performance E85 for those who need it! *Must let us know by June 5th if you require this fuel.
What can I expect at this Event?
This is a 3 day weekend Event that is sure to provide you with an amazing automotive experience! We will be taking the most scenic route we can, with high quality roads in mind, to the south-eastern section of Tennessee where we will drive on the FAMOUS Tail of the Dragon! We won’t only be doing that road, but also a Road Rally into the country-side for an adrenaline-filled drive to see what all that region has to offer.
This Event will begin early Friday morning at our exclusive launch location, SILO Auto Club, where we will get all participants checked-in. At the check-in you will be given your Car Event Decals, Goodie bag, Event T-Shirt, Event Sticker, Event Poster, Breakfast, and Beverages. There will be time for you to view SILO’s Car Collection before the driver’s meeting if you arrive early enough for check-in.
We will start our journey at 9:30am, with approximately a 7.5 hour drive that includes multiple stops for gas and food. We will arrive at our group hotel around 6pm or so, where there will be time for a break before our reception dinner at 7:00pm.
Saturday morning we will meet in the hotel parking lot for a driver’s meeting before we head out for a FULL day of country-side driving! This rally will include not only the Tail of the Dragon, but also a stop at the Biltmore Estates in Asheville, North Carolina and then a dinner option to end the day! The roads we will be taking are definitely ones that will push every limit you have, both personally and mechanically, so definitely be prepared! *None of the rally this day is mandatory, all of it is optional.
Sunday we will do a driver’s meeting before we travel back and forth on the Tail of the Dragon, stopping for lunch and hangout at the 129 HUB. After this, those wanting to head back to Indy are welcomed to rally back as a group, leaving about 1:00pm. We do recommend extending your stay an additional night so that you can relax and take a day off of driving! There’s so much to see in the area! For those that choose to stay an extra day, we will provide you with a list of recommendations if you’d like!
What is “Tail of the Dragon”?
Considered one of the World’s best motorcycle and sports car roads, the tail first began simply as a trail that herds of buffalo wore down and a trail that Native American Cherokee Indians traversed. By 1756 the British trekked through the trail and established an outpost named Fort Loudon, only to be chased out by the Native Americans some 4 years later.
Some point later the Deal Family established a small outpost/store along the trail, only to leave not long after for a less treacherous location. (This outpost is where the name “Deal’s Gap” comes from and what most people call the “Tail of the Dragon”.)
One of the saddest events in American History partly took place along this historic trail, as the Native American Cherokee Indians used this as an escape route to evade the Army sent to capture them during the event named “Trail of Tears” wherein the Cherokees were pushed out of their homes and forced off their land to move further west to Oklahoma.
After even more of a rocky history, to include the Civil War, in 1934 it was finally named US129 when the US merged Tennessee’s and North Carolina’s highways together. And US129 is what it remains.
Today this is a TOP destination for any driver looking to test their driving skills on this 11 mile stretch of road bearing 318 curves. It’s definitely not one to drive on haphazardly! This road requires focus, skills, and then even more focus.
To read more about the history of the area, click here.
