Pre race day and its at a busy pace. STill suffering from Jet lag but getting there. 13 hours is definitely hard to adjust. Up and off to breakfast. Received a lovely picture from our grandson. He won't remember, but for us it is so special.
Then off we raced to bus barely getting coffee down. This is such a lovely hotel. It is special when the waiter knows what you like for breakfast and how your coffee should be served.
On to bus and 1 hr and 15 mins later arrive at pick up for car. Again inside the compound very civiled and well organized. Coffee and tea and water await and we are whisked through the pick up process. Well done Cars.
In to hot hot hot cars and the first rumbling of engines starting. Tony turns her over and ‘voila’ she sings. Others weren't so lucky and a few had some issues but thankfully we are OK. Everyone testing their much needed horns and like us some have installed them on the passenger side too.
We move to gate behind a few others and slip out of the compound into the the slipway and onto road. First stop petrol and onto to crazy Indian roads. We have our tulip map and zero our MONIT. 5 minutes later a few big bumps and Monit quits. OK now lets estimate how far we have come and how far to gas station. Oh -on again -next bump- off again.
Find gas station a few kilometres, later fiddle with wires on Monit, seems like something minor but will wait until we get to hotel. Back on to highway well, a Highway with cars going in every direction The construction in India is amazing must have passed 50 huge cranes. Apartment buildings everywhere half done. You can't really drive fast you go with the flow but aggressively. Hand on horn, its a way of life here. It is bizarre to see a car coming straight at you on the highway, and lanes just don't exist, you share single lanes. People try to cross the highway. OH my!
Make it back to hotel, in one piece with a few reroutings and errors. Vapour lock and misfiring a bit in the centre of the city where we literrally don't move and sit in 37 C temperatures. Car gets hot. We are surprised to see we are one of the first back at hotel and we are lined up out front of the hotel . Now off to grab a drink. We are soaking wet, the drink is much needed and a cool hotel. Back out later for scrutineering and watch the group limp in. A few old Bentley’s roll in spewing water out of radiators. A few others with minor issues but all in all we all made it back. Safety equipment is checked and we do the final registration. Pick up our cell phone chips and mini oxygen bottles and sign in officially to receive our maps and details of the route.
BAck to hotel room to go through papers, check car and tulip books and then to meeting with crew, doctors and organizers, then opening night dinner. Lots to do...
Off to bed-
