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What a beautiful day we just finished! It had all the ingredients you look for in a historic rally in wintertime. Several tough regularities that seemed easier than they turned out to be: we fell for at least two traps the organisers had set for us, and the police and beginners did the rest!

Several competitors were stopped by concealed policemen and we got trapped behind a rookie car which cost us 4 minutes, but that’s all part of events like these. I just learned that the leaders in the trial class were held up by a lower classed car that decided it needed to put on snow chains: there will allegedly be a red- haired scalp dangling from the front door of the hotel in the morning!

We passed through Germany into Austria, finishing in Schladming at the foot of the ski stadium on a floodlit parking lot. What an impressive facility.

Joost, my co-driver, is a bit upset at himself at the moment for having missed a map reading trick which cost us 15 minutes. However, if you take into account that we only play this game once a year he’s a bit hard on himself. We always remind ourselves of the fact that this is a gentlemens’ game and not a profession. Then we have a beer before dinner and the world looks a different place! Looking at the gorgeous drive we completed today, the sights we’ve seen and the atmosphere in the hotel, you couldn’t find a better place for petrol heads!

Silverado keeps pootling along faithfully and our fuel tank is only leaking mild amounts, so no worries there. The car is so well balanced on the snow and ice, that you can really build trust in the chassis and the power. Just a hoot to drive it hard.

Our friends have all arrived safely at the hotel in spite of some technical glitches, so it’s off to dinner now!