Night Magic

You drive along here to get to SS1 & 2!
Picture source: Here

An interesting first-time experience for me yesterday evening. Living in France has a number of advantages, not the least being that here in Haute-Savoie I am just a couple of hours’ drive from the first special stages of the Monte Carlo Rally.

No photos this time I am afraid, as the stages were run in the dark, high up (1000m – 3300ft) near pretty St Jean en Royan in the area known as Vercors. It was very cold, but a couple of cups of vin chaud and a crusty sandwich with classic Savoyarde Diot (a sausage) had a most satisfactory effect.

The wonderful Combe Laval looking towards St Jean en Royan
Picture source: here

It is absolutely stunning to see the world’s best (Loeb, Sordo, Hirvonen, Latvala etc.) lights blazing, come blasting through at speeds that beggar belief, on narrow, bumpy roads. I cannot imagine how they do it: I just accept that they are the best! I suppose it is no surprise that although Dani Sordo won the first stage from Loeb (by 3.9 seconds) after the short second stage, only 17km, Loeb had converted his second place into a 12.8 second lead over his team mate...

What was especially nice was to reflect on the fact that this amazing show is entirely free and even better, this year there were only a few hundred metres to walk to see the first special stage, then a drive of about three kilometres and a couple of hundred metres’ walk to see the second.

Wonderful value and recommended.

À bientôt