The Dirt #003: DMOS x Rebelle Rally – Team Fueled by Chocolove

At DMOS Collective, we live for all things badass. We breathe adventure, we flourish in the unknown, and we thrive in the search for excitement. That’s why we support the Rebelle Rally, and why this is the second year our founder, Susan Pieper, has competed. 

This year’s 76 participants were from six different countries, including the United States, Canada and Japan, as well as, for the first time, Australia, South Africa and Norway. Although the Rebelle is still in a self-described ‘start up mode’ it impressively hosted its largest OEM participation to-date this year with Ford, Honda, Jeep, Lexus, Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Rolls-Royce all fielding vehicles. Not to be outdone, Rebelle competitors also brought the largest Toyota presence this year to the rally with a showcase line-up including our very own boss lady Susan Pieper and her TOTAL CHAOS and CBI Offroad Fab 4Runner. Needless to say, the 38 women that made up this year’s Rebelle were creative, diverse, unique, and generally badass. 

Kristian Rene, manager of her family’s chocolate company, Chocolove, and an aspiring filmmaker from Boulder, Colorado, competed this year with her college best friend, Chelsea. The team, called “Fueled by Chocolove”, took part in the Rebelle Rally for their first time together. As a team that openly expressed their interest in moving toward a zero-waste lifestyle, they fit right in with the Rebelle Rally way of life. Partnered with Tread Lightly! in a commitment to environmental responsibility, the Rebelle Rally encourages that participants do what they can to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Team “Fueled by Chocolove” went above and beyond.

Not only did they vocalize their passion for the reduction and reuse of resources and materials, but they even built a reconditioned 1992 Mercedes Benz G Wagon, made from 80% remanufactured/recycled parts for the competition. Unfortunately, when the time came to race, the G Wagon simply wasn’t ready, so, instead, team “Fueled by Chocolove” competed in a diesel Volkswagen Toureg, which ran entirely on a biofuel made out of waste chocolate. Pretty rad, right?

But, like any vehicle (biofuel or not), the Toureg still got stuck from time to time. Traveling with their DMOS Stealth Shovel and DMOS Delta Shovel, the duo got stuck six times in wet sand, buried up to the axle of the car. Kristian says, “In approximately 1.5 hours of active dig time, we moved 29.60 cubic yards (799.20 cubic feet) of sand. That’s 82,880 pounds of sand. Sink into that for a moment… We moved the mass equivalent of 7 full-sized elephants from under our vehicle in less than two hours with two shovels that never failed”. After braving the competition with DMOS shovels in hand, Kristian now swears by them. She says, “The ergonomics of the shovel are unparalleled. By that I mean that you do not own and cannot buy another shovel that will leave you feeling like you didn’t just have your ass handed to you. Digging is hard work. DMOS made it easy. We dug without gloves and didn’t suffer a single blister. We went on to complete 8 hours of competition with minimal fatigue or discomfort”.

The tool that left her feeling most impressed, however, was the DMOS Delta Shovel, the dirt tool that launched on Kickstarter just four months ago, this year. She says, “The Delta Shovel specifically is one of the smartest designs we could hope for, not only for scooping the sand, but doubling its load as an efficient backhoe. This is the end game for shovels. If you only need it once in your life, you now hold in your hand the ability to self-rescue. They say that luck favors the prepared mind, while success and even survival favors the prepared woman”. After this year’s Rebelle Rally, Kristian knows she will never leave the driveway unarmed. A Delta in tow at all times, she is confident she will be able to take on almost anything that comes her way.

Until next time.


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