Paris Rendezvous...… Day 37 Troyes to Paris Finish

OCTOBER 16TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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Pioneer category victors Charles and Nellie Bishop - Vauxhall 30/98

The Peking to Paris rally ended on Saturday with a parade through the streets of Paris celebrating the end of this remarkable 10,000 mile event.

A large crowd including many friends and family greeted the cars when they entered Place Vendome after roller skating marshals cleared their progress round the Arc de Triomphe and down the Champs Elysees.

It is 37 days since a total of 98 cars set out from the Chinese capital, coming from 26 different countries, thought to be a motorsport record.

With ages ranging from the oldest, a 103 year old six litre Itala to a 1970 Vauxhall, the competition was divided into three leaderboards.

Winner of the Pioneer category for pre 1926 models is Charles and Nellie Bishop in a Vauxhall Prince Henry, who overhauled early leader Max Stephenson in a similar model in the final stages. Winner of the Vintageant Category was Steve Hyde and Janet Lyne in a 1938 Chevrolet Fangio Coupe who led from the start and beat all the later cars on the time trials.

The Classics Category saw a remarkable effort by the oldest driver in the event, with Australian Gerry Crown, driving a 1974 Holden, wining in convincing style. At 78 years old Gerry was regarded as too old to be given a Chinese driving licence so his navigator, 33 year old Matt Bryson, drove the first few days. Matt is the son of John Bryson who accompanied Andrew Cowan to several Australian rally wins including two victories on the Southern Cross.

Second in the Classics category was the former Turkish rally champion Ahmet Omgun, with Erdal Tokcan, in an Anadol 1600 ahead of third placed crew, Andrew Godsen and Andrew Honeychurch, in a much more powerful Aston Martin DB5.

William and Victoria Medcalf - Bentley Super Sports - celebrate at the Paris finish

Since leaving Beijing every crew has lived and accumulated a lifetime of memories… fraught and frustrating border crossings… the remarkable friendliness and hospitality of complete strangers… the pain and despair of breakdowns and the triumph of miracle repairs and camping under star-laden skies in Mongolia where the Organisers, the Endurance Rally Association, ran a fleet of petrol tankers and trucks to provide a Dakar style back up of chefs cooking meals each evening.

"This has been beyond doubt the hardest event we have ever staged," said organiser Philip Young.

Almost home... Day 36 Aix les Bains to Troyes

OCTOBER 15TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Rudi Friedrichs and Lennox McNeely - Alvis Speed 20

Paris is just a few more miles away and the bar in the Hotel Mercure in Troyes is once again buzzing after another great day on the road.

The route for the final full day of Peking to Paris 2010 left Aix-les-Bains along the shores of Lac du Bourget before striking north into the hills of the Bugey through classic rallying terrain en-route to the Circuit de Bresse for the day’s only Time Trial.

Watched over by enthusiastic local spectators, competitors enjoyed a 2-lap test around this great circuit. To add a little spice to the competition William Medclaf and Rudi Friedrichs entered into a private wager over who would take best time… with a bottle of champagne at stake for the winner. Results will be announced tomorrow evening but the rumour is that they were separated by hundreths of a second.

After the circuit, crews enjoyed a relaxed run on fast-flowing, traffic free roads basking in the glow of the late afternoon autumn sunshine. Many arrived into Troyes after dark having spent a couple or hours exploring the fine collection of cars and historic airplanes at the Chateau de Savigny, site of one of the day’s Passage controls. Others wiled away a few hours over a leisurely 7-course lunch…..

With all crews now within striking distance of Paris, there is a mood of eager anticipation tonight ahead of tomorrow’s arrival in Place Vendome from 1pm. As the Official Timekeeper of Peking to Paris, we will be welcoming the brave and passionate participants of this historic rally in the pop-up Frederique Constant VIP Area on Place Vendome. This promises to be a unique experience! In the evening, together with our guests we attend the exclusive Peking to Paris Gala dinner at the InterContinental Paris-Le Grand.

Live your Passion!

Crossing Italy....… Day 35 Viareggio to Aix les Bains

OCTOBER 14TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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Clive Dunster and Cecilia Agger - Chevrolet Fangio Coupe

A glorious day in bright sunshine saw the Peking to Paris drive from Italy into France over the classic mountain roads of Italian Championship rallies.

There were four time trials held over some of finest tarmac roads in the hills overlooking the Mediterranean coast, organised with enthusiastic help of local motor clubs.

Narrow tarmac tracks threaded between trees all on the turn with sunlight dappling the yellows and golds up and down steep mountain climbs.

Clive Dunster in his blue Chevy Fangio Coupe was going great guns, keen to close the gap on David Park ahead and by the end of the day he achieved his goal, rising to 9th place in the Vintageant category.

The roads started off misty and damp but warm Autumn sunshine soon revealed a stunning landscape that saw the event thread it's way through numerous tiny villages out of Italy and into the French Alpes.

George Howitt and Monique Rombouts - Rolls Royce Phantom I

Aix les Bains, known in the 1950s as “Aches and Pains” by British rally crews, is just two stops from our finish in Paris. The excited buzz in the hotel bar this evening is a clear indication of a memorable day of rallying for the competitive crews and just how close we are to Paris for those whose primary aim is to cross the finish line.

Cars will enter Place Vendome on Saturday and drivers will turn off their engines for the last time at 1.00pm when they line up in front of the Ritz Hotel. As the Official Timekeeper of Peking to Paris, Frederique Constant will be welcoming the brave and passionate participants of this historic rally in the pop-up Frederique Constant VIP Area on Place Vendome.

Best performance on the time trials today was achieved by Rudi Friedrichs who blasted his Alvis round the tight mountain roads, more than 2 minutes quicker than the next best.

Crossing Italy....… Day 34 Ancona to Viareggio

OCTOBER 13TH, 2010



Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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Werner Meier-Cavaliere and Arnold Meier - Packard Convertible

This could have, should have, been a glorious day.

We were set to drive across Tuscany, taking in three gravel Time Trials, in a route plan that has received lots of pre-planning. All of this had to be tossed aside earlier today as the ferry from Greece arrived late – it was 12.30 before the cars ran down the ramp into the streets of Ancona. Superfast Ferries had proved to be Superslow, and changes were therefore inevitable.

Cars had a main road route to Viareggio, and we are in two very grand hotels on the sea-front, the Principe di Piemonte, and the Grande Royal Hotel…luxury on a hot-tap, but there is no hiding the disappointment that once into mainland Europe we had hoped that re-routes would be a thing of the past.

We are off to Aix les Bains tomorrow, with four Time Trials set up with the help of additional marshals who have come out of the UK to strengthen the team.

Acropolis Country… Day 32 Istanbul to Thessaloniki

OCTOBER 11TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Bill Shields and Daniel Day - Dodge Coupe

We crossed into Greece this morning – delays at the Turkish border when the computer system crashed meant we all got started into the first Greek Time Trial later than planned. A short tarmac blast around a headland with sea-views and it was on towards Thessaloniki. We then took in a further two tarmac mountain climbs before dropping down to this sea-side resort.

Now we are in Europe, we are running our test sections at an average speed of 50 kph, (up to here, the national motor-sports authorities until now have helped organised our time trials slightly faster), and a good many crews found the targets well within reach, including the Hickling’s MG SA, the Manner’s Oldsmobile, and the de Sousa MG Magnette were among those who were able to clean one climb.

We set out in bright sunshine this morning but rain began to fall by later in the afternoon, this caught out the Turkish duo in the fibreglass Anadol, which understeered off on one wet corner, and required a tow back to the road by a local farmer – a scary moment, but they have built up a big cushion of time in second place overall in the Classics Category, ahead of the Aston Martin DB5 now going really well exploiting twisty tarmac to the full, and sounding glorious in the process.

One of the rising stars of the Time Trials is the big Dodge Coupe, Car 70 of Bill Shields and Daniel Day, who have put in some impressive times in a big car which seems to like nothing better than romping up steep climbs, exploiting its low-down torque to the full. On all three test sections the Dodge made light work of it all.

The Roberts in Car 88, the Sunbeam Alpine, went well today, having had a new differential. The little 1955 Peugeot 203 of Pierre-Yves Maisonneuve arrived into town tonight on the back of a truck with clutch problems.

Simon Hope and Adam Singer - Bentley Speed Six

Geof Robinson in Car 9 has sorted the problems of the Vauxhal and hopes to join us tomorrow at the ferry terminal for crossing to Italy. Someone else who is driving again are Australians Reg Toohey and Antoon Spanjers, who had to go to Tehran after having their passports stolen.

Two who are now off trucks and running again, are the Lagonda pair of Nigel Gambier and Hugo Upton, who have repaired their broken oil pump… and Chris Lunn’s Lagonda is now back running again, having been fixed at the garage of Anadol driver Ahmet Ongun, whose team were briefed by a London specialist on the phone step by step as the garage fixed their first Lagonda timing-chain transplant. They can now add a sign outside the workshop: “Anadol and Lagonda Specialists”.

Talking of Hugo Upton…we hear that he stole two policemen’s hats, and whistles, today, in order to direct traffic at the border. This begs the question: Will they now let him out of Greece?

We are now on our way over some classic Acropolis hunting-ground, our third test coming up is the Kalambaka stage, filmed in a James Bond epic, this is the place where monks built monasteries on the top of tall pillars of rock, and where access is only possible by basket on a rope. Sound’s an ideal challenge for Hugo.

We have now had four excellent hotels of a high-standard in a row, and tonight’s meal was particularly noteworthy, in a modern hotel yards from the sea. Surprised hotel receptionists greet oily handed competitors lugging into the reception area batteries for re-charging overnight in bedrooms.

Tomorrow night we are on an overnight ferry from Ingoumenitsa to Ancona. Nothing concentrates minds quite like the deadline for a ferry crossing.

Coupe des Alpes... Day 13 Border to Belokurikha

SEPTEMBER 22ND, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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Border frustrations before a long drive to Belokurikha

Now for something different. We left Mongolia today, and after hassles with the borders for the exit of Mongolia, and rather longer frustrations with the entry into Russia – some cars were in border-land for most of the day, despite the prior planning with all the information customs and immigration officials could require supplied well in advance – we finally left Mongolia behind.

We were welcomed into Russia by the local motor-club, who had a roadside display of Volgas, Moskovitches, and other Russian classic cars, dating back to 1949, including a Russian 4x4 jeep powered by a pre-war Model-A engine. More important, a modern van racked out in the back with rally service items and a small trailer, and, in addition, 50-kms further up the road, a truck capable of carrying a vintage car. They have thought of everything to ensure we had full back up for our two days in Russia, and we are to enjoy this kind of support all the way to the Kazak border.

The road changes dramatically once into Russia, we found ourselves driving on smooth tarmac. The scenery was also changing fast, leaving behind the dry barren landscape of Mongolia, and now we were driving down roads lined with trees all changing into autumn colours of yellows and golds.

It could have been the Dolomites, or the Alpine Rally. Lofty craggy peaks, snow-capped mountains, mountain streams, twisty roads that climbed and dipped, it was a dramatically different day.
Driving the Impossible

A money changer swaps Mongolian notes for Russian

Alas, we were given a re-route by officialdom which added an extra 120 kms to an already long day, now making it well over 700 kms, on top of the border delays, so by the time cars reached Belokurikha, a spa resort, the chefs were having to keep the buffet heated for late-comers expected to be arriving at well past midnight.

Among the first to arrive, Max Stephenson in the Pioneer Category Vauxhall, David and Karen Ayre in the Itala, George Howitt in the Rolls Royce, and the Vauxhall of Nellie and Charles Bishop.

We heard that the last car left the Russian border at 5.0pm, but car 6, the La France, and car 60, the Chevrolet Speedster, were still in no-man’s land, playing catch up, and the crew of car 99, the Vauxhall Viva, had taken over the driving of their truck in order to get it through to the border of Russia, and were now pondering the question of how to get the Viva onto a Russian truck, and how to return the Mongolian truck back to Mongolia, all on a single-entry visa.

We saw Tim Scott for the first time in what seems like ages today – the solo motorcyclist was in good spirits, sitting in the sun on a grassy bank by the roadside, his 1923 FN Motorcycle having seized a piston due to the strain of a long mountain climb. The rider seemed unfazed, “I’ve got a spare, all I need is a workshop.” He is with friends, as it’s just the sort of job the local motorclub will relish.

So, a demanding, frustrating day, and as this is being tapped out there was even more frustrations for George Howitt, having parked his Rolls Royce he has walked into the hotel with a bottle of whisky under his arm, but no glasses can be found… so he has to drink it all on his own.

The first car is due to leave here at 7.0am tomorrow morning for the drive to the Kazakstan border – and yet another round of adventures on the long road to Paris.

Farewell Mongolia... Day 12 Khovd to Border

SEPTEMBER 21ST, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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A stunning view for David and Sarah Rayner - BMW 321 Coupe - on the final day in Mongolia

Our final full day in Mongolia, and the scenery has been breathtaking, one of the finest days rallying since we left China. The punishment has been relentless, and the Volvo PV544 of Nicholas Pryor and Lesley Stockwell are limping into camp with axle failure.

Several crews are staggering on to the Russian border as “walking wounded”. We know that Car 6, the big La France, is on a truck, so it car 3, Daniel Ward’s 1919 Lancia Theta, The Shooter’s Ford, Car 29, lost its gears today and is on a truck but spares are lined up later down the route, the Renault 4CV, Car 89, had a temporary fix of its front suspension but it didn’t last long. The Vauxhall Viva GT has suffered electrical problems, diagnosed as a failed condenser.
Driving the Impossible

The handsome lead achieved by Gerry Crown in his Holden was maintained today, despite the fact that Gerry has finally decided that driving one-handed is just too much. He has his left wrist in a splint, and he is on doctor’s orders to give the arm maximum rest... he reckons its just an old war-wound of too much gearchanging in too many past rallies, so today, he handed the steering wheel over to young Matt Bryson, his navigator.

We suspect this meant that Matt had to work the GPS, on top of driving. Matt looked as if he was under pressure when we pulled our tent-pegs out of the frozen grassland first thing this morning. The son of John Bryson, top Australian navigator who sat alongside the likes of Andrew Cowan to win the Southern Cross Rally more than once, Matt was realising he had rather a lot on his shoulders.

Michael Thompson and Andrew Davies - Chrysler 75 Roadster - splash through another river crossing

However, he rose to challenge by setting the best times on all three tests, and delivering an extended lead in the Classics Category for the Holden over the second placed Anadol of Ongun and Tokcan. This unusual car was made in Turkey with the help of Reliant – it has an “over heavy” Reliant chassis, according to its driver, a fibreglass body, with a rear design similar to a Gilbern or Alfa GTV, and a Ford Mexico Kent engine of 1600cc.

Today’s final run to our camp site consisted of several glorious valleys with far reaching views, some horrendous roads, and five river crossings. The final Time Trial had a maze of roads wandering off at angles to the main track, and at times, looked totally confusing, as nothing was very clear which was the main track….the navigators for sure decided the best results on this one, as it took an agile ability to mix trip-meter with Tulip road book and GPS while trying to read the road to chose the best course.

Tomorrow, we are off to the Russian border. Another country, and another stack of adventures in store, now awaits. At 9.0pm, all are accounted for, except that the Rolls Royce of Richard Auchincloss is on a tow-rope with Simon Ayris in attendance, and the Volvo is awaiting a similar rescue. Their dinner is going cold…

Moon River... Day 11 Khovd - Rest Day

SEPTEMBER 20TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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Rudi Freidrichs carries out rest day repairs to his Alvis

A “rest-day” today, camping here on a grass plain by a wide crystal-clear river, mountains in the far distance, with pasta on the bubble for lunch. However, for some, it’s anything but rest.

As Betty Banham said, it’s better described as frenzied activity as it’s a chance to get cars fixed for the final two days of Mongolia. Broken engine mountings, snapped shock-absorber mountings, radiator mountings, the job list for the sweep-mechanics has gone on and on, with some cars going off into town to visit a welding shop for repairs to cracked chassis, and more.

Car 59, the Alvis of Rudi Freidrichs and Lennox McNeeley, was looked like a dragon-fly without its wings once its wheels were off and various bits stripped out on the grass. This car had set second best times on the Time Trials coming into here, and the story is now emerging of the car achieving this after a make-shift repair to a broken king-pin. The Wilkinson’s supplied a spare they were carrying, but it was a size too small, so a sardine car was cut up to make a shim, and the whole lot put back together again, good enough to set a second-best time.

Mending and making-do out of bits and pieces has been going on all day. The Volvo PV544 of Nicholas Pryor and Linda Stockwell has had major surgery to its rear end, with shockabsorber mountings re-made, an engine mounting made, and the eyelet mounting of Bilstein shocks strengthened with added welding. Robert Kitchen in one of the sweeper-trucks has attended to various electrical problems. There are river crossings ahead, and good water-proofing will be vital.
Driving the Impossible

Rest Day entertainment - Nigel Gambier and Hugo Upton join in the local display of Mongolian wrestling

The 1954 Sunbeam Talbot Alpine of David and Joanna Roberts is in town having a cracked chassis welded up. They are not short of company. Car 28, the Lagonda with Dutch crew Maarten Hoeben and Jan Bruintjes, have put their open two seater on the back of a truck for a long haul to the Russian border, having suffered a broken axle half-shaft.

For those not attending to repairs, the locals have put on an afternoon display of archery, wrestling, and horse-riding, culminating in archery on the back of horses at full gallop.

The sun dropped quickly over the far mountains, to be replaced by a full moon tonight… it’s been a bright blue sky all day which suggests tonight could be a cold one.

The High Plains Drifter... Day 10 Teel River to Khovd

SEPTEMBER 19TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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William and Victoria Medcalf currently hold Vintageant Category third place in the 1925 Bentley Super Sports

Gerry Crown retained the lead in the Classics division today. He started the day with a comfortable lead over young Garry Staples Jnr. and Gernold Nisius in the VW Beetle Cabrio. While the sun was making up its mind what sort of day we would get as we broke camp at Teel River, these two were already turning on the heat.

Alas, too much red-mist in the drive west saw the VW sidelined with rear suspension bothers, something the Banhams were unable to fix in the middle of the desert, so it was destined to end the day on a truck.

Gerry Crown with Matt Bryson is a veteran of the first Peking Paris Retrospective of ’97, and Gerry is the only drive on the event to have tackled all three Peking Paris Challenges. He is listed on the entry list as a navigator. The reason for this perhaps needs some explanation. Aged 78, Gerry was considered too incapable, too incompetent, to qualify for a Chinese driving licence, so, he is listed as a navigator with Matt Bryson as driver. That gets round Chinese red-tape and since getting behind the wheel Gerry has clearly enjoyed proving to those in authority that they have got him wrong. He has been rallying since 1963, his first event being Australia’s prestigious BP Rally, driving an 850cc Mini, which ended in something of a disaster as he rolled it down a hillside. A minor diversion: Gerry was rescued by the legendary Gelignite Jack Murray, who towed the Mini for over a hundred miles through a forest, forgetting the Mini was there, and Gerry Crown reckons he is the first person to ever see 100 mph on the clock of a rallying 850cc Mini…certainly at the end of a tow-rope.

Long in the tooth he may be, but he seems to have the measure of the Peking Paris, although he fails to get the measure of this camping lark and reckons he is past playing Swallows and Amazons, so chooses to sleep in his car. He will no doubt sleep soundly tonight in the knowledge that he now has a 13 minute gap over the Turkish Team’s Anadol, now in second spot. Adrian Gosden and Andrew Honeychurch have no rear shocks on their Aston Martin DB5, but they are up to third in the Classics Category now. Greg and Liz Newton in a Holden are fourth, and the Sunbeam Talbot Alpine of David and Jo Roberts are fifth, despite a lot of sand somehow entering the sump.

We have driven another glorious day across tremendous landscapes, with two Time Trials for good measure. It suited William and Victoria Medcalf in their Bentley as they set fourth best time on the first Time Trial and second best on the second timed-to-the-second blast of the day. Top Vintageant on both tests was Steve Hyde and Janet Lyne in their yellow Chevy Fangio Coupe. Rudi Friedrichs and Lennox McNeely also had a good day and the Alvis is now 5th in the Vintageant Category, behind the Wilkinson’s Alvis.

The repair shop in the nearby town of Khovd is going to be busy on our day off tomorrow, David and Sarah Rayner had the subframe off the BMW Coupe this afternoon and trucked into town for welding up, in order to be first in the queue.

The Vauxhall Viva GT is on the back of a truck today, but is not alone, the Peugeot 203 broke its front spring for the third time today. There is welding equipment here at our riverside campsite – everyone is in good spirits.

Tranquillity Base... Day 9 Uliastay to Teel River

SEPTEMBER 18TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Maarten Hoeben and Jan Bruintjes - Lagonda - need a helping hand to escape a patch of soft sand

“Mongolia has the best scenery in the world.” That’s the summing up of Catriona Rings, navigator in the pretty red Alfa alongside Alastair Caldwell, who has probably rallied in every country with a road worth rallying. And it sums up the mood of the event as we struggle with hammer and tent-pegs yet again, beside another fast-flowing river.

We have just driven 300 kilometres and just as we had all thought “the scenery surely can’t get any better” today has proved to be absolute stunner, and the best so far. Many are saying it’s been the finest driving-day of their lives, even your Syd Stelvio reckons today makes it onto a short-list of three of the world’s greatest roads.

We have crossed a vast open plain, beneath big skies, with a line of mountains on either side, and not seen a soul. Not another car. Not another shepherd, most of us have not ever seen an animal, although a few claim to have seen a herd of camels.

Where else can you begin the day on a sandy, gravel road, so unused there is grass growing up the middle, and run up and down valley after valley, and every time you crest a hill, have your breath knocked away from you by yet another vast prairie. You discover just how it must feel to be a single-handed oarsman rowing the Atlantic when you realise you are looking at horizon that displays the curvature of the earth… and when you get there, you crest a hill for another far horizon. On, and on, and on…and finish up beside a river without one kilometre of tarmac, and, joy oh joy, not a single pot-hole.

In case you are wondering where this treasured spot of utter tranquillity exists on the map and plan a parachuting holiday, check it out on Google Earth at 48.29137°N 93.48999°E only don’t bother with the bathing costume as Andy Inskip says the water in these parts is icy-cold.

So, it’s been a great day. Not easy for the navigators, as some found themselves going off route and skirting round the back of a mountain before realising they now had some real navigating to do to plot a course across country to get back on route.

Confronted with a Y-junction, a lot of cars swung left as it seems the main track to take, as Rupert Marks and Simon Mackenzie-Smith said at on arrival in their Ford Model-A at the campsite: “We got lost with the lads in the Lagonda, Car 25, we went 7km off track, Nigel Gambier said “it's just the other side of that mountain”, got a puncture driving over the grassland looking for the correct track, our first one, cracked front cross-member, but what stunning scenery – this is the day we entered this rally for!”

The beer tent is doing a roaring trade, the sun is setting, so a Sundowner has obvious appeal, and the chefs are chopping up a small mountain of raw cabbage for a coleslaw salad, there is distinctive smell of barbecued chicken coming out of one kitchen tent… and there are log fires under several large rusty drums of water for hot showers. The team of campsite workers are hard at work… and so are the roving mechanics.

Chris Elkins and Ed Rutherford have gone off in their Vauxhall Fronterra to rescue some ten cars that are reported bogged on the side of a very sandy hillside about 12 kilometres away, so while today was planned as a short day, and with no timing – a chance for everyone to recover from the rigours and hardship of the appalling roads of the last two days – it looks like some will still be in late tonight.

Alastair Caldwell broke a gear-lever today, as well as a shock absorber mounting, and is under the car. Catriona is passing him paper cups of what looks like either brake fluid, or, a slurp of red wine. But given she is sipping her own, it’s surely just another bottle of Australian Cabernet. Not that this matters a jot – the Alfa has been without brakes for days.

The Struggle for Survival… Day 8 Tariat to Uliastay

SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Among many with problems on Day 8, Daniel Schlatter & Rabia Tarzi have a broken differntail on their Bentley

What’s the best way to end a terrible day? A row of square cubicles has been set up on a river bank, overlooking another vast open plain, and it’s here that you can snatch a hot shower. Burning logs under a large round drum heat the water and it comes out the shower head at just the right temperature. After a day of grinding over back-jarring pot-holes, deep ruts, and washaways, this has been the hardest day so far.

Max Stephenson in a Vauxhall, competing in the Pioneer Category, started his day with two broken front springs. These were fixed in the morning, Charles Bishop lending one, and the car was soon on its way. It’s been so punishing today even the La France has been in trouble – a cracked chassis and a holed radiator, but it made the camp site under its own steam.

Rachel Vestey and Susie Harvey in a Plymouth had made a good start, up to 15th in the Vintageants, but today were sticken with sheared shackle pin in their rear suspension, it was bodged up enough for them to limp on for a bit and they have yet to make camp as dinner was served… it sounds as if they are in for a long night.

Bill Bolsover in a Chevy had been up with the leaders but today hit mechanical maladies. David Rayner was performing brilliantly in the little BMW Coupe but suffered steering failure due to the rough roads this afternoon. Hugo Upton and Nigel Gambier in the Lagonda have changed the clutch thrust bearing, and there was sad news for Garry Staples Senior in the white VW Beetle who collected a 12 hour lateness penalty after mechanical problems, which dumps him right out of contention for the time being in the Classics Category – his son, however, had a great day, arriving at the final time control bang on his minute, and beaming that it had been a wonderful day, driving his VW Cabrio.

The two MG SAs from Australia took it steady today, the crews arriving totally exhausted but both cars sounded far healthier than most.

Marco Rollinger in a Bentley suffered gearbox failure, and was being towed in. Ralph Auchinshloss has had a torrid time with electrical bothers with his Rolls Royce, they came in last night with no lights. The pretty silver Tatra Coupe air-cooled V8 disappeared off the radar after a timing chain came loose, causing enough chaff to damage a big-end, but this was repaired in Ulaan Baatar and re-joined us this morning, having got to the camp at around 3.0am…. we hear however they have been in trouble again during the day.

Saddest sight of the day was the pretty little blue Renault 4CV, which was parked forlornly on a truck with the front nearside wheel missing, having suffered suspension failure again.

We have driven through some truly fantastic scenery, the sort of stuff you only see on a film set for epics such as Lord of the Rings, but for most of us, we have bigger things on our minds. Such as our quest for reaching the far side of the Moon.

The Land That Time Forgot… Day 7 Kharakorin to Tariat

SEPTEMBER 16TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Chevrolet Fangio Coupe bow wave - Steve Hyde and Janet Lyne leading the Vintageant category

The landscape had regained its clear sharp colours by the time the final crews tumbled down the wooden steps of the old village hall where breakfast had been hastily served. The line up for a cauldron of hot porridge, with salads in the centre, and fried eggs and omelettes coming out of two frying-pans at the far end of the queue had started at 5.30 am.

At this time of the morning, the horizon was nothing more than a brown smudge where the far mountains join the sky, changing gradually to a purple streak as the rising sun climbs over the dark summits, presenting yet another big sky across a vast plain. Like a shoal of iron filings being pulled by a mysterious magnet, we seem compulsively drawn further and further down into Middle Earth. By the time the first car fires into life, the dusting of frost across 500 miles of grass begins to thaw.

Robert Kitchen and Alan Page in one of the mobile-workshops were bracing themselves for another hectic day. Their final job before finding their bed before midnight had been to fix two punctures. Earlier they had sorted out a small electrical fire in Car 81, Jean and Anne Stenhauser’s monster La Salle Cadillac, and rebuilt the valve-gear of the pink Chevrolet Coupe of Toby Kilner, who happened to have a spare rocker arm…just what you need when you’ve just broken one.

Highlight of today has been three river crossings. The first was a real sort-out, as it was wider, and deeper, than anything found on the original route survey due to recent freak rains. The day was shorter than the last two days at a mere 320 kilometres, and contained two Time Trials – sections timed to the second, otherwise known as Selectifs, on dirt tracks.

We continued our way down a vast wide valley fringed with mountains on either side, and ended up pitching our tents beside a large tranquil lake. The final run into camp was an appallingly rough road and it was enough for Daniel Ward’s Lancia Theta to again break a front stub-axle. We hear he has managed to find a local blacksmith to weld the two halves back together again.
Driving the Impossible

Chevrolet Fangio Coupe bow wave - Steve Hyde and Janet Lyne leading the Vintageant category

Others, however, have bigger problems. Car 101, Frank Bird from Australian in a Holden is back in Ulaan Bataar, engine parts have arrived and they hope to catch us up by Sunday. Tim Scott on the motorcycle is on a truck and hopes to meet us at the Russian border. Bruce Washington from New Zealand in a 1929 Chrysler has failed to sort the big-end problems so they hope to buy a local car and catch us up to tour the route, and Roger Allen and Maggie Gray have bought a local car through a local mining company, and also plan to play catch-up having given up on their La Salle. The Stutz of Andrew Bailey and Micky Gabbett ran out of petrol at the end of the day today, succeeded in getting a tow to the petrol station they had missed, only to find that all supplies of petrol had run out. The second Stutz of David Berks and Bob Bradfield hit one of the river crossings with just too much gusto, causing the fan to be pushed through the radiator. This becomes the second incident of a stuffed radiator caused by a fan. The Rolls Royce Phantom of George Howitt arrived at the camp site with a broken front spring and an exhaust downpipe squashed flat – Andy Actman and Ian Langford of Lenham Sportscars are grafting in a section of fresh pipe. The spring can wait, says George, until he finds a village. Leaf-spring repairs by local “trucksmith” are everywhere.

The last half of today has been down appallingly rough roads. It seems to have suited the big La France with its tractor-like tyres on big wooden wheels as it was the 10th car into the camp tonight, arriving ahead of the Porsche 356 of American Steve Harris.

Steve Hyde in the yellow Chevy needed a tow out of a river and dropped a lot of time, but made up for it by setting good times of the two Time Trials to retain his lead in the Vintageants. Michael and Anne Wilkinson in their Alvis SA are second with the Chrysler 75 of Michael Thompson and Andrew Davies in third.

Gerry Crown leads the Classic Category but Garry Staples Junior in the red VW Beetle Cabrio took some time off the Holden, and was ten minutes quicker than his dad – the white VW however arrived at the camp looking immaculate, their only problem being a missing hubcap.

Where Eagles Dare… Day 6 Ulaan Baatar to Kharakorin

SEPTEMBER 15TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

Gerry Crown and Matt Bryson - Holden EH - took over the lead of the Classics category today

Rarely are rally-starts as bizarre as this. We all gather in large parade ground in the centre of town, larger than Trafalgar Square, for a grand send off. After months of planning by the town council, what could possibly go wrong?

The brass band lined up and just as cymbals clashed, big base drum banged, clarinets, flutes and trombones adding to the general oompah, the rare Anadol – a fibreglass car once made in Turkey with the help of Reliant, powered by a Ford Cortina engine, made its way down the main street of Ulaan Bataar. It was heading to the main square to be flagged away by the Mayor, crowds lined the roads, with several hundred spectators taking time out from their journey to work to watch the spectacle.

Then there was an added crash. The Anadol ran across a grill in the middle of the street, which promptly cracked underneath the car, and the rear wheels dropped down into the hole. Had this happened to a Bentley, or a Veteran, the big wheels would have laughed it off. But a 13 inch Minilite wheel falling into a 18-inch hole is an easy fit. The car’s rear axle now rested on the tarmac.

Above the sound of the brass band, the sirens of the fire-brigade hurrying through the streets to rescue a startled Amet Ongun, now worried that he might be collecting penalties points for being late for the Start.

Once out of town, we climbed steadily, and the morning sun burnt a large hole in the grey sky. We were heading for a long, dusty Time Trial, over 40 kilometres of bumpy strips of sand with tall grass growing up the middle, crossing a vast plain. The only company once off the main road was a herd of some 100 wild horses, who oblivious to the noise of approaching rallycars, made mobile chicanes by taking it in turns to gallop across the track, with eagles circling overhead. Drivers needed all their wits about them for this one. Several cars beached themselves struggling to traverse the high central mound, with an option of a different tracks suddenly emerging, testing times indeed for the navigator crouched over the Tulip route-book, Garmin GPS, and trip-meter.

Best time among the Classics Category was the Holden of Gerald Crown, the 72-year-old Ozzie Veteran with young Matt Bryson on the clocks put up a steady, consistent run to set a 25m29s time. Making up for its dramatic start back in town, second best was the Turkish Team in the now flying Anadol, with 26:16, pipping the Staples Junior VW Beetle Cabriolet on 26:33. Best in the Vintageants was the Thompson/Davies Chrysler 75 Roadster from New Zealand, who set a fourth-best time of 26:34, with the Clive Dunster Chevy Fangio Coupe 12 seconds behind.
Driving the Impossible

David and Karen Ayre achieve an excellent Time Trial result in their 1907 Itala

Generally smooth, with just the odd washaway to catch out the unwary, with long patches of soft sand, it had sufficient corners to suit the agile Alfa Romeo of Alastair Caldwell and Catriona Rings, who were 6th, with a time of 26:53. Among the pioneers, the 14-litre La France was well up the leaderboard on 37:22, and David Ayre’s Itala was on 37:38, a time good enough to beat a Volvo PV544.

Tonight, we are all in Yurts, the white round portable cabins made of thick layers of horsehair and cashmere carpeting which is wrapped around a basket-weave construction, we all have little log-stoves in the centre and a chimney with a generous hole in the roof. As darkness falls across this vast open plain at Bayanuur, a chilly air is rolling down the hillsides that flank this remarkable valley, and most of us are digging out of sleeping bags for extra covering on the camp beds.

We have dined out on bowls of chicken stew, lamb stew, rice, chips, bean salad, and a choice of two soups for starters. A lack of tables and chairs meant a crowded dining hall, with several crews sitting on the floor… the atmosphere is remarkably good humoured and rare does any rally experience such a united sense of camaraderie as this.

Batten down the hatches, and chuck more yak-dung on the stove. Winter arrives early in Mongolia, and we look like being in for our first freezing night.

What a difference a day makes… Day 5 Ulaan Baatar - Rest Day

SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2010

Peking to Paris Motor Challenge update. More about the race here

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One of many UB repairs - new engine bearings are needed for #49 the Chrysler 75 of Bruce & Ben Washington

The Peking Paris has taken a breather after the battering of driving the roads to the capital… a chance for most to catch up on much-needed fettling. The garages around the city have been busy, the Mercedes dealer had 15 cars, and one motorcycle, dominating the workshop floor this morning.

Who will re-start tomorrow? Answer: We are not entirely sure, but most seem satisfied that they are up for more punishment. Two are going to be left behind to await spares, the black Chrysler of Bruce Washington with big-ends gone needs parts flown in, and the big Austin Sheerline of Norman Brice needs a crankshaft flown in, and he intends to wait a few days for this and play catch up somehow. We understand the Holden of car 101, Cecil Bird, is also waiting for engine parts.

The rest are lashing things together, re-packing, and will be at the Mayor’s parade in the centre of town tomorrow morning. Even the tiny blue Renault 750cc 4CV that limped into here yesterday on the back of a truck and looked like going no further is sorting its fuel-pump issues and will be back on the road tomorrow.

Tim Scott was beaming this morning, up early and sorting out his problems with the FN motorcycle, and reckoned “nothing was as bad as I had first feared.”

The initiative and ingenuity of the Mongolian workshop mechanics has helped solve most of the problems.

The weather was bright sunshine when we entered Mongolia, but today has been cloudy, and there was a shower of rain early this morning. The worry now is that this might be falling as snow on the higher passes as we head deeper into Mongolia on our Westward travels. It’s been a welcome day off, a chance to do some washing, sort the car, and go shopping for emergency-rations and in-car supplies…what a difference a day makes.

The organisation has not stopped, no rest for them - it’s been a manic day for the sweep-mechanics, with Betty Banham marshalling together steadily growing list of demands. Heidi Winterbourne spent most of the day running constant battles with a lethargic hotel staff to badger them into a minimum sense of service, after a few crews arrived to find that their rooms had at first been sold on to locals. Few see the cracks, however, and the spirit remains quite remarkable.

We are now off to a cocktail party with two hours of free drinks – that should ensure we start tomorrow morning with thick heads.