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Black Ice instead of White Snow. (Upd. Results)

It is hard to get across how a pre-war night rally really is, without getting into the usual clichés about brave man, bitter cold and roaring machines. For months these guys and girls have been preparing their cars, their clothing, their lighting for a mere six hours of motoring under adverse conditions with antique electronics to fight all that. The first year we saw pouring skies all night long. Last year we only had snow and nowhere tarmac under the tires. This year conditions looked as if it was going to be a walk over with an almost pleasant afternoon when the first cars rolled in. A nice tour in the dark in the countryside. How wrong can you go with a Dutch December... The wheathergods gave us a fresh and partly sunny second part of the afternoon just prior to the rally. The start gave a small warning with sudden strong showers mixed with hail and wet snow. But this was all short and most cars left for the center of Amsterdam with big grins on their faces. Yet after that came the darkness of the countryside. With endless meandering roads that slowly changed into a black icefloor forbidding anything that comes close to speed. No photos to document that.  The cars crawled their way back to civilisation. Unforgettable was the sound of the mighty Talbot in a sleeping village.  More short notes to follow.  

(Results published at The100Miles.com )

Tuesday, 20 December 2011

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