How Rally Time Cards Determine Starting Slots and Stage Departure Times

Managing road sections to earn a stage start slot

In circuit racing, starting slots are determined on a shared track during a dedicated timed session, but stage rallying operates without a single combined grid. Competitors instead navigate public road liaisons under target timing rules, where regulations assign an exact transit duration between consecutive checkpoints. Co-drivers calculate their due time of arrival by adding this allotted window to the timestamp logged at their previous departure. While road liaisons require drivers to obey general traffic regulations and keep below a 30 mph average speed, checking in late or early to an arrival control carries penalties that can immediately alter the competitive order.

Understanding what is the time card rally co drivers hand to officials reveals how crews establish their physical order and release times for high-speed competition. Printed on durable card stock sized to fit within a crowded cockpit, this card serves as the crew's legal running log. When a car reaches the advance yellow board at a Special Stage Arrival control, the driver pauses until their assigned minute ticks over before approaching the red control board. There, arrival marshals enter the exact event clock time onto the document and write a Provisional Start Time that incorporates a mandatory three-minute buffer before the competitive test.

From the start queue to the stop line

That three-minute arrival interval serves as a buffer for the crew to complete safety checks, tightening harness belts, helmets, and head-and-neck restraint systems before joining the queue. Regulations forbid mechanical work in the zone between arrival and the start line aside from clearing headlights or glass. At the line, start marshals record the preceding competitor's number, confirm or revise the Actual Start Time if hold-ups occur, and release the car under automated digital countdown lights.

When the vehicle clears the flying finish beam at full speed, the competitive clock stops, but the physical handover procedure continues. Drivers brake across several hundred yards to a designated stop control, where marshals record the elapsed stage time in hours, minutes, and seconds directly onto the card. Overshooting this line carries strict penalties against reversing, requiring co-drivers to disembark on foot to obtain their timestamp. Rigorous inspection of these entries at each checkpoint protects the crew's standing against administrative penalties and ensures their starting slot for subsequent stages remains intact.

Official reference: FIA 2026 WRC sporting regulations and standard time cards.