Waiting in Kazan - 30 June Day 19

It's a waiting day for us in Kazan. Waiting for the rally to arrive this afternoon and hoping that friends are here early enough to share dinner; watching, slightly anxiously, the progress of Emerald on Vlad's low loader. 

It's a waiting day for us in Kazan. Waiting for the rally to arrive this afternoon and hoping that friends are here early enough to share dinner; watching, slightly anxiously, the progress of Emerald on Vlad's low loader.

We once hoped that he might reach us today but that's not realistic. Tomorrow is fine as long as it's in time for us to prepare the car before the evening as Saturday's departure will be early. He needs to get to Ufa tonight and as I write he's on the outskirts. Anything more is a bonus. 

In the meantime Kazan has been entertaining us well. It's an ancient town on the Volga and thought to have been a key point on north-south trading routes at least since medieval times. At the heart of the historic city is an enormous Kremlin (Russian term for a walled fortress including the one in Moscow but not uniquely so: think Tower of London or Prague Castle with an outer wall enclosing an assortment of buildings.   The Kazan Kremlin is huge with scores of elegant baroque, classical and modern buildings. At the heart is the Soyembika Tower, a dramatic tower associated by many with the pre-Russian Tatar Khanate and dating back to the mid sixteenth century.

The Kremlin also includes a Russian Orthodox cathedral, the Palace of the President of Tatarstan and notable fortifications. Dominating one part of the site is a modern mosque reflecting the traditional  Tatar religious allegiance.

The City has been set up to provide a tourist experience with pedestrianised streets lined by bars and cafes. In the West it would be teeming and even with tourism effectively limited to Russia it claims 1.5 million visitors a year.

On leaving Omsk

Our enforced stay in Omsk while Emerald has received treatment has allowed time to see the city. (It's amazing how little time is available on an ordinary rally day or even a rest day.)

Omsk is an old border city founded in the early eighteenth century whose claims to fame are as the place of exile of Dostoevsky imprisoned 1850-54, and as a closed city (for defence security) in the Soviet era. There is a sprinkling of grand buildings restored but not in public use.

Work is also underway to enhance a striking city centre street lined by terraced nineteenth century buildings in retail use.

The Greek Orthodox cathedral is dramatic but scarcely historical. It is a post Soviet era reconstruction of an 1890s building destroyed in the revolution.

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> There is not, as yet, much capacity to welcome foreign visitors. A majority of restaurants we explored had no foreign language menu and very limited translation capacity. No doubt it will change.
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> Our enforced stay in Omsk whilst Emerald has received treatment has allowed time to see the city. (It's amazing how little time is available during an ordinary rally day or even a rest day.)
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> Omsk is an old border city founded in the early eighteenth century whose claims to fame are as the place of exile of Dostoyevsky in prison from 1850-54, and as a closed city (for defence security) in the Soviet era. There is a sprinkling of grand buildings restored but not in public use.
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Moving day Wednesday 29 June

Yesterday we got the all clear to resume taking part in the rally so today begins the challenge to catch up. The people are easy to move: we catch the dawn flight from Omsk to Moscow Domodedovo and then make an internal transfer onto theology to Kazan. Siberia Airways is entirely efficient and we and our baggage arrive in time for tea.

Meanwhile back East in Omsk, Vlad is picking up Emerald on his car transporter and beginning the trek to Kazan. It may sound crazy but it's the least bad option. With a fair wind we'll be in place to start with the rally for Nizhny Novgorod on Saturday. (And we can monitor Vlad's progress on the tracking facility on the ERA's website (you can too - it's great fun)).

We hope the outstanding issues with Emerald concerning oil pressure will be made apparent through the new warning light and that the new dipstick will enable us to maintain a satisfactory oil level well before the warning system comes into play. But these are as yet unproven and whilst it's a shame for us to miss some of the journey, it makes sense for us and the car to come to the place where the ERA is set up to provide support.

Car breakdown: Sunday 26 June 17.30 : the beginning - part 1

So now it's happened: we've broken down by the roadside: the P254 from Novosibirsk to Omsk to be precise. It all happened so quickly and unpredictably: one minute we're cruising along at 100 kph with almost 500 of the 600 kilometres on the clock. With any luck we'd have been in the hotel in under 2 hours. Then a loud rattle starts in the engine and we're stopping as soon as we can. We know we need help. 

The diagnosis is relatively quick. It's not big end but it's deep in the engine. It's the sort of thing that often requires extensive workshop time so it may be fatal to our involvement in the Peking to Paris rally. On the other hand, the Alvis sump has an inspection hatch and so the problems may be treatable with relatively less effort than for a more modern car. It's all too early say. Today's task is to get it from the breakdown scene to Omsk. The sweeper teams of mechanics all stop stop to sympathise. Their words are comforting but their faces say - "trouble". Fixing is for tomorrow (or perhaps even later tonight) but certainly not now, it's about collecting the car, not curing it.

And connecting is in the hands of the Russian back-up team - Arkady and Nicolay. They have to arrange the truck to pick us up. Will it be a problem on a Sunday night? We have been assured that they are resourceful and dependable. They will text to let us know once the collection truck is within an hour. But the head mechanic has said contact them from time to time to remind them. That doesn't sound so good: shouldn't they be remembering us without nudging? So after a compromise wait of 45 minutes I telephone and am told that the procedure is clear and I should be patient.

So here I sit. It's not a surprise to be waiting at the side of the road and so I'm mentally prepared. I knew it would happen some time - or I thought it would happen sometime and now is as good a time as any. It's a pleasant evening. The ERA know we're here. Arrangements are in hand. 

And yet the uncertainties are great. And it's disconcerting to be exposed to the possibility - still remote at the moment - that no-one will turn up and we'll be out all night. The flies are buzzing eagerly despite several coatings of Deet. 

As to the future, if we can fix the car, then we'll be trying to catch up the column that is already travelling fast. So we'll be pushing a newly mended car without any easy back up: a challenge. And I've come for an adventure so here it is - but it feels like hard work rather than imbued with novelty and interest.

If we can't fix the car...well that's for another day too.

Car breakdown - Heroes part 4

Text this morning at 2am

"You car is repaired. It is fully prepared to participate in the rally".

We salute Reaktor - they have been brilliant.

Moods - surprised, delighted, grateful


Sent from my iPhoneHEROES!

Car breakdown - rollercoaster part 3

Progress zigzagged

9.30 investigation starts - much head shaking. Mood - gloom

11.30 decision made - pin and casing being replaced. Mood - hope rises

4.30 work completed and ready to turn on.
Mood - nervous then elated.

5.30 an hour of testing but it's not right: oil is leaking. Mood uncertain: dissension amongst mechanic team. Time for us to go and let them (and us)? sleep on it.

We seemed to be there but now there's doubt creeping in. Emerald got plenty of attention yesterday . We seemed to have at least a quarter of the staff - including the operations manager (doesn't wear overalls but keeps suit shirt and trousers immaculate: respect) - involved. A somewhat disproportionate share for a facility working on 20-30 cars at a time and probably through putting 100 + a day

Car breakdown - being picked up part 2

The truck driver was efficient and matter of fact taking us on a route round the suburbs of Omsk. I travelled in Konstantin's car but despite being a 'rally supporter' he hated the back roads slowing again and again for potholes. A journey to the garage that should have taken 2-3 hours took 4. We arrived at the garage at 2.30am

At the Reakter garage - a 24 hour facility - the head mechanic insisted on a complete oil change before listening to the engine. Only then would he allow the engine to be turned on and confirmed within seconds (at 4 am!) what we knew by 6pm yesterday.

A few hours sleep at the clean and basic Tourist Hotel and we shall be back at the garage and hoping they do some serious work.We waited by the roadside for 4 hours for the pick up truck. Konstantin - a volunteer helper and English speaker - arrived 30 minutes before the truck to smooth the way.