After a short introduction and briefing given by the Chief of Beijing Traffic Police, we were duly given our Chinese driving licences and local car registration plates. I particularly liked the fact that we were properly saluted ... twice ... by a Senior Office.
We were then transported by coach to collect our cars from a warehouse facility near the airport.
As you can see the warehouse was jam-packed with all our cars and some 40 minutes after arriving I was able to pull forward and out of the fume-filled hangar.
As I did so I could see from the looks on the locals' faces that something was wrong with Fugly ...
I can only assume that during transit the bottom radiator hose had worked loose because, as I queued to exit the warehouse, Fugly promptly dumped the entire contents of his radiator. After an initial surge of panic and scanning the block for a crack, I saw the bottom hose hanging off. I re-attached the hose, scrounged a huge amount of water and we were away into the Chinese traffic ... hoping that all would now be well.
We're now back at the hotel. Along the way, we were waved at by most of the population of Beijing. These are the most welcoming and friendly people that I have ever encountered on an Endurance rally .... Let's hope this spririt of friendship continues throughout the entire route!
We are now off to a cocktail party with free drinks, which is good because my initial calculation of 65 pence per pint turned out to be £6.50. (Bloody Nora!! ... Peter) My British army t-shirt and quick-dry trousers are a sight to behold!
Tomorrow is scrutineering and then final prep before the rally proper starts on Friday. My hope is that we have already suffered our quota of mechanical mishaps for the entire trip!
CD & Ces
All good so far then !
ReplyDelete