Tour Britannia

Tour Britannia and my MX5                        September 2010

 

Now Tour Britannia is for classic cars built before 1981 and the rally is a bit more of a concentrated mix of races and special stages [as fast as you can over a closed road], held over three days in North East England and Wales.

 

I only got in as I met Alec Poole in France as he was looking for entries at the French Tour Auto where I was to navigate for my brother. The long and the short was that Alec was prepared to try a new Targa class for modern cars and so it was that a racing Aston Martin Vantage and my racing MX5 entered the rally [the only two ion the Targa class]

 

The historic cars were truly magnificent. All much loved, but were owned to be driven intended as opposed to polished and wheeled out of the garage when there was no rain! They were driven well and hard. Amongst them was my brother Mark and Andre.

 

The first day was taken up with checking cars and papers and then at lunchtime we got away to a special stage at Aintree and then on to the racetrack at Oulton Park.

 

Day two was an early start and a full day. The first was a special stage in the Welsh hills. It was a very steep learning curve for us as we ground the underside of the car up this rocky track that even a land rover would slow down for. We were horrified!! Some modifications to the car were made by the track and we must make some of our own such as a skid plate underneath!!

Then on to Anglesea and the race track there which is again beside the sea and a very good track.. We were looking out for brother Mark as I was driving  and did not want to passed more than once on the race track by him. We never saw him and wondered what had become of him.

 

The next special stage was much more fun, over 4 miles long, very scenic and very testing, The Great Orme at Llandudno which is a single track going around a great rock promontory. As we started the stage we saw the undamaged Cobra which was clearly out of the rally; so Mark and Andre were safe. Duncan drove brilliantly around the narrow track around the Great Orme and I have to admit I never thought that I would have to swim but it did wonder if we would meet the wall or cliff face!!

 

From then on we went to stately homes with drives that seemed to be more than a mile long with a stately home in the far distance, military training grounds and no more rocky farm tracks thank goodness. We did two runs on each stage and every time we got a faster time except when I was driving.

 

The last race was at the Mallory Park. We, in the Targa class, [the Aston Martin & I ] started 30 secs after the Competition class had left and I was immediately on my own,

but the car and I were going well and after 3 laps the 3.4 Jag was on the horizon.

We set off in pursuit and after a further lap we were closing fast.

 

Now I well remember our Weimeraners would always chase rabbits unsuccessfully for years, until one, Flora I think, actually caught up with the rabbit and was at a complete loss as to what to do next. At the time I laughed!

 

BUT that was me!! Duncan and Andre were screaming encouragement and just as well that I could not hear as it went to despair as I held on to his tail for 3 laps and then hesitated and declined to try to pass on a sharp hairpin.

Anyway relief came for them when I got the inside line on the long sweeping right hander and got away!!!

 

I was almost as fast as anyone on the corners and you would have drawn away on the bends, but the straights were a different matter.

 

It was a memorable rally and enormous fun

 

We will be racing the MX5 against exactly similar cars at Snetterton and at Croft and are entered into a two driver race at Brands Hatch under the team name of 'Carpe Diem' which you will know from you Latin [Horace and Ovid] means 'Seize the Day'

 

17^th September 2010 

Austrian Tirol

Austria

While the MoT group went North we set off South on motorways
following SatNav, a written route with a map as well.

The miles sped past and our eta was 430pm.

Then we left one motorway turning right for the next. The sat nav kept
saying do a 180 but we believed the instructions, which said turn
right, and we had. When you think about it there are not many Left
turns on a motorway on the Continent! We turned Right off the motorway
on to an over pass and straight up North at high speed. Some time
later I became restless, as it did not seem correct.

I could hear Marks voice saying 'I need to know where we are! What
towns are we looking for. What are we NOT looking for. Are we going N
S E or W?'

I could then hear my reply of 'I am doing my best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'

We did our 180 and cruising speed increased from 80 to 90 and rose
steadily to the ton, 110 and for a while 120. Our eta was now 5.55pm
but we made it by 5.30.

The hotel is old world Austrian Tirol. Wooden beams, etc etc but
nice and welcoming. Ehrwald is a big village now, a long
way from the hamlet we knew in the 1950s when we came out as a family
to learn to ski. The nursery slope is still there but now there is a
ski lift all the way up the Ehrwalderarm, a little valley, which we as
kids used to walk up, eat out packed lunch and ski down.

We took the lift up and walked down in the drizzle and then went and
walked around the nearby lake again in drizzle conditions. Not much
view at the moment.

Still either drizzling or raining. So we went to see Ludwig II's
castle just over the border in Germany. I think that he must have been
quite mad as he spent a fortune in 1870 building a medieval castle on
a hill top that has little practical use [other than for the tourist
trade, but I don't think that he was thinking of that]. It is easy to
see where the plots of 'Prisoner of Zenda' and 'Chitty chitty bang
bang came from.

After a most charming evening in the hotel where we were entertained
by accordion, zither and Tyrolean songs we discovered on the following
day that we were to move on to the Dolomites we managed to get
everything into the half pint car and were on our way.

No navigational problems this time!!

The Nordschleiffe

Nurburgring the Nordschleiffe

A baptism of fire asphalt, grease, rain and a swarm of bikers

 

We  went with Mazda on the Track in a group of some 20 cars, mostly MX5s and a diverse bunch of enthusiasts.

 

On arrival at the ring we were twice fully briefed on the North Loop; it can be dangerous, extremely expensive and you can NOT learn the track in one or two days. 100 circuits before you can think of knowing it.

In short only drive at 80%, stay on the tarmac, concrete or even the paint. Avoid the barrier and the red mist at all costs and have fun and PLEASE go home in a car that is the same shape as  it is now!!

 

One or two went on the track on the day of arrival but most of us rested after our elastic convoy across Europe.

 

The track was closed unexpectedly on the Saturday only opening at 1300hrs. we were there in good time and it eventually opened nearer to 1400!!

 

Tina had been resolute on NOT coming on to the track, but then relented if she went with an expert [Al]. Privately I told Al to go SLOW as my future depended upon it.

In the end she chose to die/come with me!!

I went moderately only, but could not go too slowly as that was dangerous due to other cars and the swarms of bikers. She was trying to brake all the while. I do not think that the metal in the foot well bent, but she did try.

Then we went again and this time she was more relaxed and I went faster but not on the limit of grip!!

I don't think that I frightened her too much.

 

The fast cars were extremely fast but stationary when compared to the bikers!!

 

So no sooner had we started on the Saturday when the track closed at 1530 hrs. Bad accident. Multiple pile up. 5 or 6 cars involved. Ambulances, cutting gear, 2 helicopters.

Then we learned that the lead car or 'cause of the pile up was a British car and a friend of MoT. His engine had blown as it went over the crest of the hill [at speed] and oils rose in the engine and bang. Rods through the side and oil on the track. The procession of following cars was estimated to be worth £800,000 and demolished. The police were investigating who was to blame. The track is a public German toll road. The track stayed closed all day.

 

Rain that night and many of us were ready for the track when it opened again on Sunday. I took a very nervous MX5 driver as a passenger as he had not driven on it yet. Still recovering from the pep talk!!

The track was particularly greasy and my speeds were 10 to 20 mph slower and my passenger could feel the car move. It was brilliant and no panic, Armco or barriers.

I then did the rest on my own and gradually the racing line dried out BUT still I never knew what was around the corner. Do you take the corner flat out or beware a 270 corner.

 

One of out party was sick going around!! Not nice.

 

The ring is 13.?? Mile around and some were timing themselves. However as one could not do continuous laps and had to come in each time – slowly I think they all timed themselves at the start and to advantage at the end!!

 

Later in the afternoon the track closed again as a car had done a circuit spewing oil. This time it was one of our team leaders who caressed the Armco at speed and ended up with 'trouble' on the back axle and work to do on the bodywork. He had 3 passengers in his RX8 and had time to give them a running commentary as they spun!!

 

The track opened again and I did the last of my laps resisting the urge to 'do one more and try a bit harder.'

 

So that was the Nordschlieffe. Great fun if you like that sort of thing

 

Well where was the paint – On the track loads of it some graffiti and some done by experts extolling the virtues of BMW etc. Mercedes, BMW, Aston Martin and even Nissan have test facilities here.

 

Lastly the fire was and excellent dinner we had at the pistonhaus a reknown hotel resteraunt where the steaks are served on a block of red hot lave, that stays hot for you to cook the steak as you like it. Very scenic and there was smoke everywhere and all fire alarms went off. Anyway an Aussie who had had too much beer fell asleep and nodded off on to the red hopt lava to the amusement of all. He woke up rather fast!!

 

The MoT group proceeded North and we turned South for Austria