A sting in the tail - part 1/3: Friday 15 July -Day 34

It was projected to be a tough day with the rally planned as 450 kilometres up and down over the Alps (rally route projected in bold on top picture - strong line does not mean wide road!).I wanted to take an easier route with more motorway and less up and downing (see options on second map highlighted in marker) but Richard was having none of it. A split vote is not sufficient to cause Emerald's departure from the ERA plan (and there wasn't much scope for compromise on account of there not being many options for going from St Moritz to Lausanne. So the tough route it was.

Then at the last minute the route was changed by a handwritten note changing the route for the first 50 kilometres: throw out the first 2 pages of the tulip plans in the stroke of a pen (explanation of tulips for those who thought they were flowers) in part 2.

We began the antepenultimate day after a comfortable - indeed luxurious - night at the Suvretta House hotel in Sankt Moritz. There was full cloud cover but not the freezing cold or even snow that some said had been forecast.

Crossing the Alps to St Moritz: Thursday 14 July - Day 33

Today we crossed the Alps from San Martino Di Castrozza in Italy to St Moritz in Switzerland. It was a day of fantastic views and relief that the sun shone.

Everybody in the rally made the journey. Some followed the official route of some 400 kms taking 10-12 hours (and that was the shortened version after some time trials were cancelled!). A sizeable minority took the more direct route of 250 kms (mostly following Google Maps directions) in 5-7 hours. The schism has become a regular feature of the rally and the number of unofficials grows as the wish to reach Paris becomes more important than seeking prizes from the rally.

It's food for thought on what the rally means to different people and I shall be pondering on it too.

Rain in the Alps: the 2 second video

I'd like to post a longer clip but face some technical difficulties in downloading it so this very short version will havectonstand substitute.
A taster of the torrential rain

Fwd: The Alps in the rain: Day 32

Day 32 was from Ljubljana to the Italian ski resort of San Martino di Castrozza. The distance didn't sound too bad - 380 kms - and 10 hours to do it. But that didn't include the hairpins and the rain. Rain is always a challenge in the Alvis because even with the roof on, water comes through the open sides. If it's heavy you end up with a wet arm. If it's bucketing down, it's wet ankles too as the rain seeps through the engine compartment into the foot well. Yesterday it was torrential and long. Driving up and down Alps all day is hard for the driver: arms hauling the steering wheel round hairpin bends and right foot standing on the brakes as we descend. Add a prolonged rainstorm and it's a tiring - and tiresome - day.

24 hrs of contrast: Wednesday 13 July - Day32

Last posts I've been taking the view that the rally is all but over. Not so. The last 24 hours have shown that the drama is far from over.

The route from Maribor to Ljubljana is 130 kms direct on a good motorway - Slovenia's roads are excellent. The ERA route is about 3 times longer almost all on side roads. So there was a temptation to take the Motorway and have a leisurely day in Ljubljana. Very few did but some must have regretted it.

Our day of contrasts began after 40 kms when, on a test, the fan belt started slipping. A repair in Russia came apart when a metal strut sheered. Half an hour of frustrating work on our own was relieved when Andy, head of the sweeper team turned up and, with successful improvisation sorted it. In thebaking sun it was a long 90 minutes.

By mid afternoon, we were done leaving a part of the ERA course unvisited. Those who did were out until past 7pm - a very long day and somewhat frustrating to Ljubljana's official welcome. We later learned of the problems caused by the final part of the circuit unfortunately resulting in several accidents: no soft ending this day.

For us it was a reviving beer in the sunshine followed by a good dinner at Valvast'ro - a proper restaurant with proper cooking.

On this showing it's hard to beat the attractions of Ljubljana as a stop on this journey - and indeed any tour in the region.

Emerald in Budapest

Budapest Interlude Sunday/Monday 10/11 July - Days 29-30

It's been delightful to be in Budapest for our last rest day. I've said before that the only resting parties on rest days are the cars as the teams scurry round to make them fit for travel: this time (with a few exceptions) there was time after car works to enjoy the city.

Budapest has much to offer the visitor with 19th century elegance and prosperity evidenced by the many stone buildings. There are cafes and restaurants galore and city and river tours. With the city attractions and the British Grand Prix, Wimbledon victory for Murray and the European Football final, there was plenty to do.

I also sensed a change in attitude. Paris is less than 1,500 Kms away - we could do it in a (very long) day. So the end is in sight and people are beginning to talk about returning to normal life. There's still 6 days hard driving to go but the tough tests of Mongolia and Russia are over: the alpine challenge is to be relished or minimised as the mood and the state of the car suit.