#MAMA26SR: The Annual Reality Check

So…it’s another year and another Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally…

OK, don’t think that George and I go to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, Road America, and the Osthoff Resort every year just for fun alone. It is not just about putting in the grind of content creation while mixing and mingling with our automotive media colleagues and industry contacts for the heck of it. 

It is work. Work laden with opportunity and experiences that we bring to you towards engagement and interest.

At this point, I’ve officially lost count on how many times we – collectively and individually – participated in the MAMA Spring Rally. OK, this is George’s fourth one and my umpteenth one. I believe my first one was in 2013. I have skipped a few years in the process. 

Being members of MAMA, we are given these opportunities through our membership to experience a slew of vehicles in various situations – on the track, in the countryside, on an off-road course, and on an autocross course (on the karting course). It is because of these opportunities that we take back to our home “proving grounds” – or, wherever we roam – for the purpose of understanding how the latest offerings in the automotive market will hold up in places they are intended to be driven.

Granted, this is our 15th anniversary year. We should be celebrating something. If one thing, we had our best MAMA Spring Rally last year, despite the weather. There, we produced the fastest growing long-form video by viewership ever, thanks to Scout Motors bringing their Traveler concept to Elkhart Lake. In perhaps a year, it may eclipse our most viewed long-form video on our platforms. Not to mention, the short on the 2025 Lexus RX 500h F Sport – the one I took to last year’s Spring Rally – is now the most viewed video on our platforms, period. 

Which brings us to the 2026 MAMA Spring Rally. 

Before we dive into our experience at Road America, there are a couple of things to bring up. One, I posted something on social media to the effect that I was not planning to attend the MAMA Spring Rally. It was at a time when I didn’t think I was going to heal my left foot in time to go. The good news was that I was given the go ahead by my care team to not only attend this event, but to get rid of my cam boot and wear both shoes – for the first time since being put on the wound vac back in December of last year.

This would have not been possible if it weren’t for George encouraging me to stick to a healthy routine towards healing my left heel and being able to walk upright again. 

The other thing to parse out is more for you – the readers who happen to be mutual friends and family members of the late automotive enthusiast and “BMW Whisperer”  Erik Berger. A few of you told me that he had a memorial bench installed at Road America. An inquiry to the track pointed me to his bench. I knew that I had to find it, then chronicle it. 

It was on the Race Walk, across from the Paddock Shop. I saw it, walked up to it, and cried. Then, cursed his assailant. What happened two years ago in April still stings for some of us. 

Between my left foot and seeing Berger’s memorial may have challenged my experience at the MAMA Spring Rally, Yet, the work must be done. 

We were treated to partly sunny skies after some rain fell across the state. It was a welcomed blessing compared to prior years. 

It also yielded some new experiences for us. Dodge set up the main straight as a drag strip for their Chargers. On “Acceleration Lane,” Dodge demonstrated how these powerful Stellantis/Mopar machines can rock the quarter mile. It sounded like fun. 

A new manufacturer showed up, as well. CanAm is known more for powersports, ATVs, and UTVs. However, they arrived to reach out to us journalists/content creators to see if we can cover their Rotax-powered machines. It is quite tempting, since they have a fleet based in Minnesota. They also sponsored some experiences for us to enjoy, especially a more concentrated off-road course. 

The rest is the usual fare. Track runs on Road America’s four-mile-plus road course, street drives in the countryside, karting and autocrossing at the Motorplex. Not to mention networking opportunities and so forth. 

One impression that I got out of this event has been the constant churn of human resources across our business. Friends and associates found themselves on the wrong side of corporate reshufflings and similar situations. This is compounded by the realities of an unstable economy, rising costs of everything, and the current political environment.

In addition, we are caught in an evolution of content creation. This is also coupled with a drive towards determining whom the manufacturers want to represent their vehicles, in particular, those who have many followers across multiple platforms. 

Even in the face of the evolving change in social content and engagement, George and I will continue to deliver our work in our own way. 

Talking with a few manufacturers encouraged us to go forward with our work. Relationships may change, We should be ready that. 

What keeps us going is our passion for the automobile and telling its story. Whether it the past, present or future – along with adjacent topics – are what brings you to this website, our YouTube channel and our social media platforms. With that, we move forward despite the looming clouds of attrition and devolution. 

I suppose we should talk about what we drove…we do so every year. 

There is a list of vehicles to go through. Perhaps too long. We drove models from Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, GMC, Honda, Lexus, Lucid, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Toyota, and Volvo. Please check our YouTube channel and our social media platforms to watch the content coming from this event. We are also working on some other content for this site, as well. 

If there is one place annually where we can catch up on the machinations of this industry at every angle, it would be this Midwest Automotive Media Association Spring Rally at Road America. The conversations, the trends, and the realities of this business converge. It also provides some incentive to try to deliver quality and solid content to you. Ideas turn into action. At least, one would hope that they do. 

Why do we go is to this media event every year? Not just to fulfill our membership. It is bring home what our next steps to take towards staying relevant in this competitive and volatile game. 

DISCLAIMER: All travel was by Victory & Reseda. All logistics were provided by the Midwest Automotive Media Association and their sponsors

All photos by Randy Stern and George Torline