Hi Guys
Sorry for the delays but pressure of work etc has led me to drop the rally
reports for a few days.
In the meantime the rally is now within the USA. In Alaska to be precise.
The London to Peking event is over and so some more competitors have left
the event, only the diehards stay with the rally back to London.
So what has been going on? Well if you think that finding parts is hard work
in the USA try finding a stub axle for a Aston DB2/4 in China!!!
No problem, a man who knows a man will make you one for the price of a meal
and letting him put a copy of the Aston logo outside his shop (just in case
another few Astons go by looking for stub axles!)
The Astons are generally having a hard time with suspension breakages, so
much so that if the event has an Aston in it they would do well to look at
this area of the car.
Fuel quality, or the lack of quality is giving most of the engines a rough
time of it. Even the speed six Bentley with a 5.1 compression ratio! The V12
Phantom Rolls had to dump a tank full it was so bad.
Tire and rubber mount problems has plagued everyone with stories of broken
mounts and shredded tires over the rough terrain. The MGB is not having any
problems at all it would seem. The tire it is using are 14" 8 plies (seems
like a good idea that has paid off!) The Rolls has 21" tire and needed them
badly but the hotel manager sent them away by mistake, it took the
intervention of the British Embassy to get them back and delivered to the
hotel in time for the car to continue, without those tires the car was out
of the event!!!
The Porsche 356 got a tow to a checkpoint after a breakdown (against all the
rules) but was let off with a warning. The Facel (Team Healey car) has
trashed the front shocks and bashed the sump up into the crank so that the
crank hits the sump all the time, repairs were made locally in Baotou.
In Zhangjiakou it would appear that a great party developed and ended with
the Dutch Bentley crew dancing on the tables after a Melon fight, this
amused the Chinese so much that they joined in. It is rumored that a film
crew is offering a cash reward to anyone that will talk to them about the
incident, nobody is saying anything but they get lots of smiles when they
ask questions!
The very same Dutch dancer also had a very verbal argument with the
officials after his Bentley was stolen whilst he was taking a pee behind a
tree. Now for those of you that don't know a Speed Six Bentley is not a car
that just anyone can get into and drive away (If you ever get the chance ask
Gerhard Berger of F1 fame, he had the same problem on in Monaco once!
Another story for another time!) So another Bentley driver was the chief
suspect. Just the Bentley boys at play.
Some results for you.
London Peking
The 1914 Rolls Ghost won the Against all odds trophy, a well deserved win
fort such an old lady. The Spirit of the rally award went to the table
dancing Dutch crew of WallenKamp and my old friend Foppe D'Hanne.
The event winner was the Browns Bentley MX with the Roll Phantom in 2nd
place.
The classics were led by yes you guessed it the Japanese crewed Datsun 410
!!!!!!!! with the Peugeot taking second place and the Jones Jaguar XK140
third, the Alvis missed the class win by only 4 seconds. The MGB finished in
9th place and the Morgan 21st.
All the cars and crews are no in Anchorage waiting to start the USA section.
I will give you a breakdown on the standings as soon as possible.
Regards
John J Black
Waterloo Drivetrain Systems
http://www.waterloo-dtr.com
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