AS a young motorsports enthusiast, I have always been drawn to rally racing. There's something intoxicating about watching World Rally Championship (WRC) teams hurtle through narrow, twisting roads on a range of surfaces — dirt, gravel and tarmac. My own introduction to competitive rally came in 2018 when I took the co-driver seat alongside my friend, Louie Camacho, in the Philippine Rally at Floridablanca, Pampanga. While we weren't strapped into a state-of-the-art WRC Rally 1 car, our trusty 1993 Toyota Corolla E10 gave us all the adrenaline we needed. That experience sparked my desire to become a better co-driver.Part of a co-driver's job is not just navigation and pace-note calling but also managing the timing between control points. Effective communication is crucial, and we learned that the hard way. Without proper intercoms, I spent our first rally practically shouting and flailing my arms to give instructions. In subsequent events, we tried using basic motorcycle intercoms, which constantly disconnected at the worst times.Earlier this year, we teamed up with Jabbre Motocom, a local up-and-coming intercom brand keen on expanding beyond the motorcycle community. Jabbre kindly lent us two of their best-selling Jabbre J4+ intercom systems. Right away, we noticed a significant improvement: pairing was quick and easy, and once connected, the devices never dropped signal. This consistency between stages saved us time and frustration.Beyond stable connectivity, we discovered another benefit: clearer audio quality. The J4+ suppressed the roar of gravel and engine noise, allowing Louie and me to communicate in normal tones rather than shouted bursts. By cutting down on the effort needed to relay and absorb pace notes, we found ourselves driving more calmly and efficiently. It heightened our focus — Louie concentrated on the road, while I stayed sharp on pace notes.The Jabbre J4+ turned out to be a subtle yet impactful upgrade to our racing setup. Reliability, ease of use, and better audio quality helped solidify our chemistry on the stages, culminating in a strong finish in the 2024 Philippine National Rally Championship. Having aced all three events, we can confidently say that improved communication played a pivotal role in our success. We look forward to more rallies — and more triumphs — equipped with the Jabbre J4+.
