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Today the Winter Trial presented us with 5 Regularities, 1 Navigation Test and two speed tests. A true test of grit and concentration. We started the day in corrected 4th position, still in contention for the podium. With so many events in one day and truly icy surfaces to cover the expectation was for a shake up in the classifications. There were too many possibilities to pick up penalties and big offs.

As we got into our rhythm today we had good hopes to stay in the game. The test at Nordring in Austria was mostly covered in thick snow and presented a chance to beach oneself… We just wanted to play it a bit safe to make sure we ended up with a decent time and avoid big penalties when getting stuck in a snow wall. This strategy worked out well and it was on to the next Regularity.

We started the next stage with gusto and confidence. 3/4 through we ended up in a Czech town with the name Bizoc and doubted our direction. We were entering the town, rather than going around it. We decided to return and continue on the next road on the map. As you are supposed to arrive at virtual timing checks on GPS tracking, there is significant time pressure. Standing still or heading in the wrong direction means you need to catch up at an unreal pace to get to the right point in the map at the right time again. Unfortunately our decision was wrong: the first road into town turned out to be the correct one and we lost valuable time on this section.

The schedule was very tight again today and time checks between Regularities were barely reachable in time. So making a mistake early in the day means you’re under time pressure the whole day long.

As we were trying to keep up with the required pace, there was carnage happening in the field. Cars going off the icy roads left, right and center and some of the contenders for the lead were incurring penalties like us. We’ll know tomorrow morning what the result of the mix was, but it was a day of reckoning in many ways.

The day ended with a combined test and Regularity in the town of Svati Jan in the Czech Republic. This town gets shut down once a year for this rally and we run a test through its streets. Usually the town is packed, but tonight we were the very first competitors to start the test. After the finish in town the clock continued to run and it was into a 7,5 km regularity of 50km/h on polished ice into the country side. Silverado was jumping from left to right, scrambling for traction, its Diff working hard, but despite a valiant effort we lost a few minutes on this mission impossible.

Our friends in the red Targa had another off today and the verdict is that they are driving on tires with snow characteristics, whilst regular winter tires would offer a bit more relief on icy roads. Work for the Vredestein boys tonight. They’ve been a great help throughout the event, as have so many voluteers who make this event possible.

It’s on to the finish tomorrow in Bad Reichenhall, across the border between Germany and Austria. We look forward to the final Regularity and test tomorrow morning and to relax before the prize giving dinner tomorrow night.

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