Herald - Issue 397

Page 62 • The HERALD • 29th October 2020 v THE HERALD - INDEPENDENT AND PROUD OF IT v 145 Long Lane, Holbury SO45 2NZ Tel: 023 8024 3300 NOWOPEN SUNDAYS FROM 10AM-2PM FOR ALL YOUR MOTORING NEEDS LOCALLY • Free fit batteries (most cars) • Free fit wiper blades • Battery chargers • Oils • Braking • Service parts • Tools/tool hire • Car paints • Engine management diagnostics/reset • Towing accessories • Number plates • Exhaust systems • Steering/suspension • Haynes manuals W: www.cobramotorcomponents.co.uk E: sales@cobramotorcomponents.co.uk 0800 028 7878 • 07866 041192 www.chipsaway.co.uk AUTOPAT A Family Business Established since 1982 PROMPT & EFFICIENT v Servicing v Mechanical Repairs v MOT’s - Petrol & Diesel v Air Conditioning Service Unit 3, Hardley Ind. Est., Hythe 023 8084 0163 Peking to Paris Motor Challenge – Pt. 2 by Michael Eatough, Press Offer and Secretary, Austin A30 and A35 Club 8th June Today, for the rst 90km we were greeted by glorious tarmac, which is rare, as Mongolia is dreadfully themselves to bits. ere were four stages in total, averaging 70kph, which was plenty fast enough! Again, on our way to camp we drove past several broken rally cars with drivers dropping out of the competition like ies. One thing is for sure – this event is not for the feint hearted. We arrived safely at camp, high up in the mountains, freezing as the minus temperatures set in. ere is a wonderful social side to rallying and we are fortunate tonight to have dinner with an old rally pal, who I rst met in 2012 whilst competing in the Trans Am from New York to Alaska. Gerry Crown is a modest, ex-professional rally driver and astute businessman. e most remarkable thing about Gerry is that he, at the ripe age of 87, has twice won Peking to Paris and is most certainly the best driver here. As I write this, he is ranked in rst place so far. 9th June Having driven for 51 years I am certain today was, by far, the most gruelling driving day of my life. To add to the 350km of o road driving we also had to content with ve water crossings. Mongolian roads are horrendous with deep divides, gravel, large stones, steep hills, and gorges. 350km took more than 10 arduous hours to complete. e beauty of the landscape is quite a sight with rolling hills and snow-capped mountains. Sadly, we did not have time to pause as the priority was to get my old Merc (Reggie) to the next camp. Reggie su ered today, grounding many times. e sump guard has long dents, and the exhaust silencer assumed a at shape a er being battered so many times. e main casualty though was the middle exhaust section which fell free only 2km from our camp. Fortunately, Marcus managed to bolt it back on and we both settled in for the night, hoping for a better day tomorrow. 10th June We were being spoilt today as the rst 200km drive was on tarmac – bliss! But this dream-like state had to end, and yet again we found ourselves on the familiar dusty tracks of the desert. As we drove high into the mountains, we were greeted again by the washboard surface which was having a good go at shaking the cars to bits. Due to a torrential downpour the second test was cancelled - e route was torturous but the views spectacular. We drove through deep gullies and steep hills with the Fintail ghting for grip. We were the fortunate ones as many cars needed to be towed. We arrived at camp, with tired bodies and a broken exhaust to nd that only 69 out of the 105 cars are still running. Our camp was at Achiit Lake, on a sandy shoreline, it had the most fantastic view but millions and millions of insects everywhere. 11th June Le our base to join the desert sand. Spotting a stony section, I span to avoid the rocks however I misjudged and the Fintail got stuck up to the axles in sand, leaving us grounded - even the sand ladders we were carrying were useless. en out of nowhere three local rally spectators turned up to help. Assessing the situation, they returned within minutes in a dark green ex-Russian military 4X4 and within minutes they had towed us out to safety. With handshakes all-round and a few US dollars we were back in the race! Making up some lost time we eventually hit the Mongolian border. ere were only 25 cars there, but it took 2 ½ hours to do the necessary checks and formalities. At last we were o and nally driving towards Siberia. We had lots of visitors that evening, everyone so very friendly and hospitable. is part of Russia is unbelievably beautiful and the snow-capped mountain ranges have le a lasting impression. We settled down for the evening, sharing a Yurt with two New Zealanders, Garry Boyce and Ken Williams driving a Mercedes like ours but a coupé - ese guys quickly became our friends. 12th June An 8.55am start and already we have a detached part of the exhaust travelling in the boot with us for a long impoverished. We were heading west, not far from the Russian border. Our rally Garmin tells us we are no more than 50km away, but a er driving through a small town and onto our rst rally stage the conditions changed dramatically. e desert track is dry, sandy, and deeply rutted. With a washboard surface caused by lorries churning them up during wet weather and then drying rock solid in the sun. e cars were bouncing along and vibrating Continued on page 63