MINI Takes the States 2012

MINI Takes the States 2012 has begun!  After a pre-party at Prestige MINI last night, the official event began this morning at MINI USA headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.  From the press release:

The MINI TAKES THE STATES organisers are expecting several thousand registered participants. Some will be driving individual stages only in their MINI, others undertaking the full 3,903-mile (6,281-kilometre) distance. In store for them is not only an automotive adventure over an extremely attractive route, but also an extraordinary shared experience both on the road and when the day’s driving is done. After New York and Washington, the convoy will pass through Charlotte and Nashville, Chicago, Des Moines, Boulder, Albuquerque and Phoenix, among other places, before crossing California on their way to Los Angeles, the Pacific coast and, most importantly, the venue for the end-of-rally party. A richly varied programme looking at every aspect of MINI will be spread over the stop-off points along the route. Activities include sporting competitions and slalom tests held on closed roads, free from the shackles of the otherwise strictly observed speed limits.

MINI TAKES THE STATES has been held every other year since 2006. As in all previous editions of the rally, a portion of the proceeds from each 30 US dollars participant registration fee will be donated to charity. To this end, a minimum of 10,000 US dollars will be presented to an organisation supported by MINI USA – regardless of the number of participants in the rally.

If you can’t attend the event, the next best thing is to follow along online.  Several social media sites will help:

Facebook | MINI TAKES THE STATES 2012 – Official MTTS 2012 Facebook event page.

Google+ – Hashtag for all MTTS 2012 posts.

Twitter #MTTS2012 – Hashtag for all MTTS 2012 tweets.

And follow the Library of Motoring as we will be attending some events and reporting on others.