When I used http://www.vtunnel.com/ to get around their "firewall", I found that the next day my computer would no longer log-on to the hotels Internet system ..... Probably just a concidence! It's a shame because they are really nice, genuine people.
Where do I start?
Day 1 - The Great Wall to Daihai
As you all know, on Day 1 the timed stage was cancelled and we had an extended travel day to the city of Daihai. During the night I was eaten alive by mosquitos, even though it's apparently not the season and the price of beer was increased by 400% as the night went on.
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| Amazing wildlife out here .... |
So when I got out of bed on the morning of Day 2, I felt about 5% and was itching all over, even though Ces said "You´re just making a fuss!"
Day 2 - Daihai to Erenhot
The 2nd day was yet another travel day, this time to the city of Erenhot. Today was all about racking-up the miles needed as we headed to the wilds of Mongolia ....
The hotel on the night of Day 2 was brilliant! It had air-conditioning (it's still 27 degrees here at night and if you open the window, my little biting mates come in) and a strange pillow filled with dried beans ( I must get one!) .... The smallest things matter when you're so tired.
Day 3 - Erenhot to the Chinese border
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| Hotel Car Park - Morning of Day 3 |
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| Getting Ready on Day 3 |
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| Just about ready - Day 3 |
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| China-Mongolia Border - only 2 hour wait |
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| Waiting to cross into Mongolia ... totally chilled out ... good acting, eh |
Timed Stage 1 went really very well and I felt that we would be holding our own against my team mate and nemisis, Steve Hyde.
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| Fangio Chevy Team Mates |
Onto Timed Stage 2, where again we were flying .... not so hard as to break the car but fast enough across such rough terrain. While we were tootling along at about 104 kph, the car just died. It was as thought the ignition had been turned-off. I checked the fuel filters, the fuel lines and then finally the sparkplugs. They were dead!
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| Checking the fuel filters |
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| F.I.I.K. what the problem is ... (or else snoozing in the shade) |
I worked through the ignition system starting at the points and then changed over to my spare coil.... still nothing. At this point I knew I was beaten and I called for mechanical assistance. To cut a long story short, the coil had failed and the spare in the car was also a dud!!!
We eventually got the car started and, after 2 hours lost time, we continued on the stage, knowing that yet again fate had dealt us a poor hand. (I seem to recall the old motto of PPPPPP ... Peter) But what I have learned from another race competitor (Jon Nicholson) is never give up, not until the chequered flag is waived.
We were permitted to enter the final stage of the day, Timed Stage 3, but the sun was setting and we were racing due West. I am not making excuses when I say that I could see nothing, just brilliant sunshine and sand dust. I pushed as hard as I dare, but I was also aware that in Timed Stage 2, our radiator has broken a top mounting and there was a real risk that it would fall back into the metal engine fan! I decided that for us, the day´s racing was over so I picked a careful route through the potholes and ruts so that we would live to fight another day.
The accommodation for the night of day 3 was in tents beside the Trans-Monglian rail line. Of course, given the shenanigans reported earlier, not to mention the 40-minute incorrect detour into the desert, we arrived at the campsite in total darkness. Ces and I were relaxed and calm ... not a angry word was spoken in our car ... in fact, no words were spoken ... but quite a few were screamed!!
On the positive side, the showers were brilliant, as was the warm beer. Maybe I could have even enjoyed the novelty of the tents, but not the bloody racket made all-night-long by these 1-kilometre-long trains!
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| Just in case you were wondering who´s on top ... |
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| They never stop ... |
Day 4 - The Campsite to Ulaan Baatar, Capital of Mongolia
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| Ready for Day 4 ... albeit with a broken radiator mount |
Despite cable ties keeping the radiator in place, we made all three Times Stages today. I was just a little chuffed, so I breathed a sigh and relaxed ... just for a moment. This provoked an instant response from the gods. The rear offside tyre exploded at quite high speed. I discovered that losing a tyre at 80 mph in a 70+ year old 2-tonne car is nothing like the same in my XKR, but we stopped OK Clearly the gods were giving me a warning, not a ticket. BTW, I had been told in the UK that I´d be unlikely to find a 16" tyre in these parts, so this leaves us with one spare to cover the remaining 15,000kms ....
When we arrived at the hotel in Ulaan Baatar, a local mechanic was there attempting to pick-up some impromptu business! So for USD300, he agreed to supply and fit 2 new coils and a new 16" tyre! The coils are from Russian trucks and the tyre will be from who knows where, but to be honest, who cares! (be careful, Clive, the gods are watching out for counterfeiters ... or is this a marketing lead? ... Peter).
He's also taking me to his workshop the re-weld the radiator. I tell you, these people are great and very service-oriented ... no wonder their economy is taking off!
As I write, we're about to go to dinner in our 5-star hotel. Upon arrival, Ces was given a ticket for a cocktail party in our honour tomorrow evening ... the ticket clearly stated "Please wear a gown". Hmmm, how to transform grubby Castrol overalls into a gown ... that would be a challenge even for Trinny and Suzannah ... perhaps their next series could be entitled "What not to wear to a Mongolia Ball!".
Tomorrow (Tuesday) is a rest day and we're waiting for today´s results. At the moment we've been placed in 41st overall postion and I think 13th in class but this relates to our breakdown day so, from now on, it's push, push, push.....
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| And now for a word from our sponsor ... |
I'll let you know how dinner goes and how the repairs pan out!
CD & Ces
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