LeJog: The British classic rally driving experience

Reporting by Kev Howarth

 Report to Gordano Services - 5.00 pm Saturday 7th December 2013

Welcome to the 19th Lands End to John O Groat’s Classic Reliability Trial!

The event started off this morning at 07:45 from the beautiful surroundings of England’s most southerly point. Crews were gently eased into the event with a test in the adjacent grounds, many competitors were straight into their stride with some superb driving skills on show.

This year has seen an entry list comprise of competitors from all over the world, many taking advantage of the HERO “Arrive and Drive” to allow them to compete on this internationally renowned and revered event. Amongst the cars competing is the fabulous Volkswagen Iltis 4x4, direct from the Volkswagen Museum in Germany, this is the actual car that competed in and won one of the Oasis Rallies, pre-cursor to the now famous Paris-Dakar.

Several competitors have had problems prior to and on their way to the event, Andy Lane suffered an engine failure just over a week ago, the cause being a collapsed oil filter. Needless to say, it was good to see this multiple winner cross the start line this morning! Kevin Haselden and David Kirkham’s Mini was a sad site to see leaving on a car transporter with engine maladies.

The mornings events started properly with a regularity section just away from Lands End, north east of Sennen to be exact. Here the roads twisted for approximately 6 ½ Kilometres close to the coast, many crews found this section straight forward, but even at this early stage, it took time from some crews. Moving north Via the A30 brought the next test at Camborne,  and then on via the A3058 to the China clay workings at Stenalees for test 3.

Regularity B was the next offering, starting close by to Temple Fisheries, this tricky section took in the unfenced roads round Carbilly Tor. An early timing point was the order to keep crews on their toes, followed by a run over Treswallock and Harpurs Downs to the second timing point on a tight hairpin left. By-passing Watergate  brought up the third timing point, placed once again to keep crews guessing. Passing Crowdy Reservoir, this “Beast of Bodmin” regularity gave way to two tests in Davidsow Woods, which saw crews taste the first woodlands on this event. A link section took crews through some stunning scenery to the Main Control and Lunch at The Bickford Arms at Brandis Corner.  

Feverish activity with the spanners saw car 9 crewed by David Mustarde and Shon Gosling take some running repairs, with electrical repairs to the headlight system needed by Tony Sheach and Rob Kiff’s TR4. A tricky slot left on a link road saw many crews drop time as they made their way from lunch, this led to Regularity C which started at Highstead, and wound its way through Dippermill, past Upcott Wood  and Alscott, before a triangular loop caught out the unwary at Woolaton. Again, a timing point hidden on a tight hairpin left led the way to regularity finish and Fuel at Great Torrington.

Even as crews were on non competitive sections, the exacting nature of “Le Jog” demands complete concentration, several “long way round” triangles needed accurate plotting and a navigator who is on top of their game.,. Three such controls were situated on Exmoor, designed to constantly keep the pressure on as the rally headed towards probably one of its most famous sections, Porlock Hill. Here saw the first real drama of the day as the ultra steep and unbelievably twisty hairpins caught out Richard Boughton, partnered by Kevin Savage in their BMW, costing the pair a minute in regularity penalties on as they managed to extricate their car from the edge of a steep drop. The Ladies of Porlock once again did the event proud by serving their legendary “Somerset Cream tea” to now tired crews, darkness was approaching and a run out to Bridgewater via RSE and four timing points around Cockercombe. A hop up the M6 to Gordano Services saw the final test of Leg 1, and a brief respite for crews before the night section and on into Wales.

Gordano to Llangollen – 5.00am Sunday 8^th December 2013

 After the rigours of the first leg, Crews were glad of the respite at Gordano Services on the M5 at Bridgewater, Somerset. Two hours gave crews to further plot the route. There was an air of both expectancy and nerves as the crews milled around sharing stories of the days events. Unfortunately we had lost a few crews, Car 65, the Range Rover of Sgt Gary Dunning, L/Cpl Will Reeks and Ben Cheal had called no more, and a sense of despondency was very apparent from these guys. Car 49, the Peugeot 404 of Christian Ruter /Stephan Huber had terminal cooling problems, the crew and car not making it out of the South East unfortunately.

As the results had become available, it was obvious that Lane and Tullie had got the bit between their teeth up to Gordano, rising six places to take the overall lead. Drives of note into Gordano from Lunch were Bricknell/ Johnson in their TR4, the similar mounts of Jarvis/Pickering and Sheach/Kiff were having an epic battle, all three previous trying to overhaul the  BMW 2002 tii of Lane/Tullie. Ladies weren’t letting the guys have it all their own way, The Whyte Sisters were putting in a solid performance in their BMW, tenth overall a credit to their tenacity. Similarly, Claire Nedin/Rachel Wakefield in the Cortina GT were very consistent, interesting to note that both crews were out in HERO “Arrive and Drive” vehicles.

The route out of Gordano took the rally over one of the Severn Bridges, with a test at Aust just prior of the bridge crossing, next up was RSF “Jingle Street” where seven timing points and the steep, twisty lanes round Lovers Leap and Devils Pulpit  found crews ending up to the west of Monmouth. A short link section joined this and RSG “Traders Territory” head north towards famous old sections of The Gremlin and Welsh Marches rallies of old on RS H and I.

 When crews entered Newtown, the demands of the rally were obvious, David Mustarde/Shon Gosling decided to retire their Alfa Giuletta ti with bent steering. Boughton/Savage, still recovering from their excursion at Porlock had mechanicals to repair, as did Lane and Tullie, the competitive nature was put aside as rival crews helped each other and the fantastic on event service crew to enable their cars to carry on. It was apparent the Welsh roads were a test for both cars and crews alike. Ryan Pickering commenting that the toughest was yet to come as the rally was scheduled for a series of 4 minute sections around the Berriew/Llanfair Caereinion area before resting for a few hours in the Llangollen area.

The spirit of this rally has been mentioned many times these last couple of days, none as much as by Mel Hatton and Phillipa Robinson, their Riley 1.5 suffering from half shaft failures. Their support, Peter, has done sterling work. At 5am in Newtown, some spectators helped “Team Bluebirds” / Straight 8 logistics find someone willing to weld their broken half shaft and get them under way. At Llangollen, the car decided “no more” as the repaired part, even though still strong, wasn’t compatible with the axle. The decision was made to run to Carlisle, where a friend of a friend gave the crew an axle and full use of their garage to get them back into the rally without cost. A wonderful and truly sporting gesture!

Llangollen to Carlisle, Day 3.- 8.00pm Sunday 8^th December 2013

After a brief overnight halt in Llangollen where many crews managed just a couple of hours sleep, the Sunday leg of LeJog set off from the services on the A483 at Ruabon, Wales. It had sadly become apparent that some competitors and cars had decided to call time on the event, the strict schedule and nature of the route devised by John Kiff taking its toll and rightly earning the “Toughest Classic Rally in Europe” tag. One competitor from France, Jerome Ambrosini had commented that his navigator, Yves Thirionet had described his brain as being “LeJog Jet lagged”! Unfortunately Jerome and Yves were one of the crews to leave us at Llangollen, their Audi having brake problems.

 As far as the event goes, Sunday is relatively relaxed with a later start, not as many time controls and an early finish. This was greatly welcomed by competitors, a chance to get some much needed rest before Mondays epic run through Scotland to John O’Groats.

After leaving Ruabon, a short link took the rally over the border as LeJog  left Wales, and entered into England via Cheshire. RSJ ( Cheshire Plains) literally started on the border, heading north easterly skirting Malpas, crossing the A41 and heading past Bunbury and Peckforton Hills before its end at Beeston.  No let up though, as the crews were challenged with a test at Beeston Auctions. This wasn’t the last action seen in Cheshire, as a further test at Delamere, close by to the beautiful meres and forest Cheshire is famous for. Leaving Cheshire sprinting north, the next test was in Lancashire, close to the M6 at Longridge, this had lulled crews into a false sense of security, the next regularity was Cow Ark (RSK). For the more “experienced” amongst us, this name is synonymous with Motoring News and road rallies past, although in those days (or nights!) the stunning scenery this section provides would have been lost upon you. Starting off on Longridge fell, the section twists and undulates over the Forest of Bowland, taking in such famous sections as Gibbon Bridge, Inn at Whitewell, Marl Hill and ending up at Slaidburn, where if you were on time, this section took a full hour to complete. Gisburn Forest was the next link section, again a reminder of the MN days and nights as LeJoG wound its way out of Lancashire and on into Yorkshire. Clapham was lunch halt before the weather turned on us and made the afternoon very damp indeed.

Hawes Ropeworks provided the first manoeuvrability test of the afternoon, and with the rain lashing both competitors and marshals horizontally, the rally wound its way over the infamous Butter Tubbs where the blind crests and switchbacks took time off the crews on their way to MC18 at Tan Hill.  Stainmore provided the next, short regularity. It was time for one of the highlights of the rally, Stanhope Ford. Crews watched in awe as the river flowed through, and many competitors shared stories with us about soggy clothes and even soggier cars! Three superb tests followed in an old quarry working at Eastgate which gave those competing real food for thought, it was manned by a small army of marshals who provided a first class series of tests. The final regularity over Allendale saw crews drive back to a well deserved rest at The Crown and Mitre Hotel in Carlisle, where a welcome meal and chance for a good nights rest before the final push through Scotland.

HERO  /LeJog would like to thank the Marshals who have braved the elements and made the event the success it is, without your help and persistence, we would not have LeJoG.

Carlisle to John O’Groats part 4 - Monday 9th December

After a good nights rest at Carlisle, today was the day that the majority of the event mileage would be run. Listening to the buzz and excitement from the competitors at breakfast, the sense of expectancy for this leg was very high indeed.

Also apparent were the stories of competition and camaraderie from competitors and marshals alike. Many had travelled large distances to help out on several controls, often spanning many hours apart in some of the remotest parts of the country. The awe and prestige this wonderful event holds is humbling yet intensely gratifying. It is also wonderful to see and hear people strike up new friendships as well as the seasoned campaigners greeting old pals with warmth.

This section of LE JOG is a marathon, not a sprint, running on time this would take crews 26 ½ hours to complete. The nature of the roads and the way the route is presented would mean that some would take a little longer than this, a true test of skill and determination. From past competitors’ comments, it was decided that more of the final section would be run through Scotland in daylight, the weather had been kind and this ensured stunning views of some of the finest scenery Europe has to offer would be available to those left in the event. At the evening halt at Kyle of Localsh, 49 crews out of the 67 official starters, including tourers, attempted the last sections, but many of these had rejoined at some point. The actual number of cars completing the whole, or vast majority of the event, could be counted on one hand.

So LE JOG left Carlisle and took in three tests, Longtown Cattle Mart, Gretna Gateway and Castlemilk Estate before the days regularities started. It was here that the top crews started the battle Royal for overall positions.. Leaders at Carlisle, Buzzard/Lyne were still holding on, but Lane and Tullie had started to claw back some time to rise to second, Sheach/Kiff were third, with Jarvis/Pickering fourth and Bricknell/Johnson fifth, the TR4 clan were snapping hard at the heels of the BMW and Alfa mounted crews. After the regularity at Annandale Water, a run up to Loch Lomond saw crews take in another test, this time, Lomond Shores was the venue and then a short regularity round Glen Fruin, the not as map road proving tricky to master.

 Then on to one of the most famous sections, the awesome “Rest and Be Thankful” test, resplendent in its new tarmac, this was a superb spectacle as crews battled in turn along this old military road, the steep climb testing both driver skill and car reliability.

HERO events have an enviable reputation now for locating fine food, the stop at Loch Fyne Hotel gave the event time for a breather and to stock up for the run to the Kyle of Localsh, this would be via two tests, one at Inverary Castle, one at Oban Airport and a regularity as darkness started to fall over Appin.

The run into “The Kyle” was via the famous old battlefield at Glen Shiels, here some cleverly placed code boards made sure that navigators were on their toes as some of the location were given approximately meaning crews had to search down whites for the passage check to be recorded correctly.

After a two hour stop at Kyle of Localsh, which gave crews time to plot the night event and enjoy a meal, Plockton airfield provided a test before the meat of the event started. It was here that the event would be won and lost, as crews were to make their way up the west coast via regularities at Bealach Na Ba (pass of the cattle) and Inverbain before a brief stop at Inchbae Lodge in the small hours of the morning. Inverpolly Lodge, Drumbeg and Skerray were the next regularities, taking the crews on the final section at Castletown before dropping down into the finish at John O’ Groats, first over the line were Patrick Burke and Max Behnrdt in their TR4 in the touring class. They were followed by David Bryan and Ian Humpherson in the Escort Twin Cam, the crew doing the event in the memory of David’s Wife, Lynda, who has sadly recently passed away from Cancer. The crew have raised over £1400 towards her memory and for Cancer related charities on this event alone.

As this is written, car 3, the MGA of Curt Wagner and Horst Pokroppa  is the first competing car to cross the line, the piper playing well as elated and emotional crews savour the sunshine and breeze we have here at John O’ Groats. 

This years XIX running of the Lands End to John O’Groats Classic reliability trial has been won by Andrew Buzzard and Robb Lyne in their Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTV. An emotional Lyne was tearful at the finish of this event, the weight and magnitude of this crews achievement easy to see on their faces as they crossed the finish line.

I spoke with Andrew and Robb after the event, I asked Robb to some the event up, “ Epic” was the only word he could say, the tears once again welling, demonstrating what this event meant to win for the Alfa pair. The coveted Gold was theirs

In second were many time winners, Andy Lane and Iain Tullie. The battle between the two crews raged on through the second part of Sunday into Carlisle, and all through Monday into Tuesday, Buzzard had the bit between his teeth, and the slick map skills of Lyne meant that the outcome would only go one way, however, Lane and Tullie were also in top form, receiving first in class and Gold Medal Status.  Third went to Tony Sheach and Rob Kiff in a TR4, they had been in close contention but slipped back on Sunday, their battle was then with fourth place Nick Jarvis and Ryan Pickering, both crews in similar vehicles, the battle royal was wonderful to see, neither crew was prepared to give quarter, Scotsman Sheach partnered by the ultra experienced Kiff emerged on top to claim the upper hand. In fifth, Roger Bricknell/Pete Johnson were superb, Johnson over the moon with their achievement.

However, one of the stories and achievement of the event goes to Simon Harris and Russell Joseph. The Golf mounted crew took a fine 6^thoverall, after leading on the first day. However, their efforts were rewarded with a Gold Medal, the last of the three awarded this year. A stunning result.

Amongst the classes, Phillip Haslam and Peter Fletcher guided their XK 120 to 10 o/a 1^st in class CD, Clare Nedin and Rachel Wakefield took top honours in E1 with a super consistent drive, 17^th overall was also theirs in The HERO “Arrive and Drive” Cortina GT. Sheach/Kiff were top dogs in E3, whilst Seren and Elise Whyte, also in a HERO “Arrive and Drive” car took F1and 11^th overall, F2 was Lane/Tullie. G1 went to Harris and Joseph and the last class, G2, went to father and son Michael and Simon Baker in their Porsche 911 SC. They had a fine run to take 14^th.

This has been a superb event, with a fine entry, the trial has confirmed its status as the toughest Classic Rally in Europe, see you all next year for Le JoG 20!4

FINAL TOP FIVE

1	Andrew Buzzard	Robb Lyne	Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTV
2	Andy Lane	Iain Tullie	BMW 2002 Tii
3	Tony Sheach	Rob Kiff	Triumph TR4
4	Nick Jarvis	Ryan Pickering	Triumph TR4
5	Roger Bricknell	Pete Johnson	Triumph TR4

CHEVROLET CERV II

The Chevrolet CERV II is one of those historical curiosities that, in an alternate reality, could have been as famous as the Ford GT40.

The CERV II (that stands for Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicle) was the follow on from the CERV I, an open-wheeled technology testbed for Chevrolet. The CERV II was designed to be far more than just a technology testbed, the project was the brainchild of Zora Arkus-Duntov – the man known as the “Father of the Corvette”, and it was destined to be the car that took the fight to Ford and the Ferraris.

Duntov had Tom Lapine and Larry Shinoda design the car, their project brief was to design a mid-engined car capable of racing against the Ford GT40 and winning. Like the GT40, the CERV II had a space-frame monocoque chassis, a mid-mounted V8 and made extensive use of aluminium and magnesium to keep the weight as low as possible.

Interestingly, the car had a 4-wheel drive system with variable power delivery. Power would be sent to both the front and rear wheels with a rear-wheel bias at higher speeds, this allowed the four-wheel drive system to contribute greatly to acceleration and handling – making the car a genuine threat to Ford’s all conquering GT40.

Sadly, the bean-counters at Chevrolet nixed the project before it had a chance to race. Initial testing by Jim Hall, Roger Penske and Bob Clift proved beyond a doubt that the CERV II was a veritable beast on the track with a 0-62 time of 2.8 seconds and a top speed in excess of 200mph. The fact that this thing never got a fair fight with the GT40 is one of the great travesties of the 1960s, hopefully one day a billionaire with taste will make it happen. Preferably at Le Mans. In the rain.

If you already have a GT40 and you’d like to set up a racetrack duel you might be interested to know that the CERV II is coming up for auction on the 21st of November 2013. It’ll be one of the headline offerings at the Art of the Automobile auction held by RM Auctions, if you’d like to read more you can click here to view the official listing.

Photo Credits: Michael Furman ©2013 Courtesy of RM Auctions.via SILODROME

Bespoke Royal Enfield by S2 Customs

 

With a population over 1.2 billion India has to be one of the biggest motorcycle markets in Asia, yet only a handful of motorcycle manufacturers have been investing into the Indian Motorcycle market.

Times are changing because India is changing and demanding. The youth in India has had enough of the Indo Jap mixed stock bikes. It’s time for a change and that change comes from a long held desire. Recently we have featured 2 other modified Royal Enfield’s from India. Today’s feature build a Royal Enfield custom aka 535 Panj so Penti is from S2 customs, and is further evidence the custom scene in India has started flourishing.

When it comes to customizing motorcycles in India the Royal Enfield has to the first choice, Royal Enfield has been a reliable motorcycle for Indian motorcycle enthusiasts and it’s Army for decades. This Royal Enfield 535cc is a good first attempt from S2 customs.

Lets take a look at Indian metal fabrication history. You might be surprised to know that the art of metal work in India dates back 4500 years. The beautiful image of a dancing girl from Mohanjodaro bares testimony to this fact. Some of you may heard of the great Damascus sword, what you may not know is that Damascus steel was created from wootz steel, a steel developed in India around 300 BC.

Back to the feature of the day, Manmeet tells us “ Born and raised in the Doaba region of Punjab (Jalandhar), this is my first project and I teamed up with my dad. We had been discussing machines ever since I was a kid and one day we decided to start up a custom motorcycle shop.  We started the shop to beat up the metal hard enough to hear the thump out of it. We will be working on donor bikes from clients as well as our shop owned bikes.

The base for this build was a stock 2000 Royal Enfield 535cc. It took us around 2 months to complete as it was our first build. The team involved for the build was a fabricator/metal worker, a mechanic to take care of the mechanical work and I did the visualization of the bike from the fabrication to the paint job to the final renderings.

The modification work includes 72 spoke rims wrapped in Pirelli tyres. At the front this Royal Enfield custom features a one-off handlebar, Tri star headlight, pair of LED indicators and a single saddle seat. We have also added handle mounted rear view mirrors. The engine had been fitted with a performance air filter. Whilst other modifications includes a custom battery case with ignition switch.

The biggest challenge was to get the rims painted and re assembled, as these are not the regular ones which we find in the Indian market these days. For these I found an elderly retired rim specialist and convinced him to assemble the rims perfectly. My favorite part of this build are the rims off course, I also like the headlight, rear view mirrors and the engine, which looks fab after the paint job and the nickle screws”.

Images by - S2 Customs

via http://motorivista.com

The world champion, relaxing at home! / Le champion « at home » !

French rally fans get two chances to see WRC action: the Rallye de France and the Rallye Monte-Carlo. The former is based in Alsace, home of Sébastien Loeb, while much of this year’s Monte takes place near Gap, where the multiple world champion’s successor Sébastien Ogier grew up. The 2014 champ seems particularly relaxed, despite the added pressure of a home fixture.

Les fans de rallye français ont deux opportunités de voir du WRC : au Rallye de France et au Rallye Monte-Carlo. Le premier est basé en Alsace, chez Sébastien Loeb. Et cette année, le Monte-Carlo se déroule en grande partie à Gap, ville natale de Sébastien Ogier. Le Champion du monde 2014 paraissait relax aujourd’hui malgré la pression.

In Alsace, you couldn’t escape the Loebmania phenomenon. This part of France is a big population centre and the local lad’s rise to superstar status caught the locals’ imagination, even though rallying was perhaps less popular here than in many parts of France.

The situation is slightly different in the case of Sébastien Ogier who stemmed Loeb’s reign in 2013. The new champion comes from a small village (Forest-Saint-Julien) in the remote Champsaur valley, about 20km from Gap which has just over 40,000 inhabitants. It is also the capital of France’s most sparsely-populated ‘department’, Les Hautes-Alpes. It is consequently no surprise that we are not seeing the same hysteria that has been a feature of recent visits to Strasbourg (metropolitan area population: 750,000!) where police escorts were frequently organised to facilitate Loeb’s movements.

Meanwhile, sport in general – skiing and rallying in particular – has long been a way of life in the Hautes-Alpes which also produced the 2006 Dakar winner and skiing champion Luc Alphand, so the contrast between the pre- and post-Ogier periods is not as evident. “You’re talking about mountain folk,” notes Olivier, reporter for the local paper, “so there’s a natural tendency to be more reserved.”

Even so, the ‘rally day’ organised in Gap to celebrate Ogier’s world crown last November was a big hit in Gap where the VW driver performed parade laps round the town in his Polo R WRC, as well as at the municipal skating rink.

The driver himself is playing down any advantage his local knowledge might give him, but acknowledges that it’s a pleasure to be kicking off the 2014 WRC on home soil, with N°1 on the door of his car. “Starting in Gap is a special moment, of course,” he smiles. “In sporting terms, it makes no difference, though, because there are only two stages I already know. All the others are new. That said, my family and friends will be watching and I think I will have of plenty of support, so that’s nice…”

Observing the Frenchman at the service park today, he showed no signs of being under any special pressure and the team has not felt the need to shield him from the public, although a bodyguard has been arranged just in case the crowds get too much. “We’ve just tried to make sure his different PR commitments today pass off without a hitch,” said a VW spokesperson. “We had our usual press gathering this afternoon, then there was an autograph session in town this afternoon, followed by an electric kart race at the skating rink. After that, we want him to concentrate on preparing for the rally like he would for any other event…”

En Alsace, impossible d’échapper à la « Loebmania ». Cette région française très peuplée, où le rallye n’était pas particulièrement populaire jadis, s’est convertie à la discipline une fois Loeb devenu superstar.

La situation est un peu différente pour Sébastien Ogier qui a mis un terme au règne de Loeb l’an passé. Le nouveau champion a grandi à Forest-Saint-Julien, un petit village dans la vallée du Champsaur, à une vingtaine de kilomètre de Gap (40 000 habitants). Gap est la préfecture des Haute-Alpes, le département où la population est la moins dense de l’Hexagone. Il ne fallait donc pas s’attendre à voir la même hystérie qu’à Strasbourg (750 000 habitants) ces dernières années pour le Rallye de France où les organisateurs demandaient une escorte policière pour faciliter les déplacements de Loeb.

Et puis les Haute-Alpes ont déjà sorti de grands champions, de ski bien sûr, mais aussi de rallye comme Luc Alphand, vainqueur du Dakar 2006. Alors le contraste entre l’avant et l’après Ogier n’est pas aussi marqué. « Les gens ici sont des montagnards, d’un naturel plus réservé », ajoute Olivier, journaliste au quotidien local.

Malgré tout, le « Rally Day » organisé à Gap le 8 novembre dernier pour fêter le titre mondial de Sébastien Ogier fut une totale réussite. Il y avait plus de 3500 personnes à la patinoire pour applaudir Seb Ogier faire des « donuts » avec sa Volkswagen Polo R WRC, et peut-être 10 000 ou 15 000 sur le Boulevard principal.

Sébastien Ogier affirme que même chez lui, il ne connaît pas mieux les spéciales que ses adversaires, mais il avoue volontiers que c’est un plaisir de débuter 2014 ici à Gap avec le n°1 sur les portières. « C’est un moment très particulier, bien sûr. Du côté sportif, je connaissais que deux spéciales, toutes les autres sont nouvelles. Mais sur un plan affectif, c’est différent : je sais que ma famille, mes amis et mes fans seront nombreux sur les spéciales à m’encourager, c’est super. »

Au parc d’assistance de Gap, Ogier n’a montré aucun signe de pression et le team l’a laissé déambuler dans le public, même si un garde-du-corps est prévu juste au cas où. « On s’assure juste que toutes ses interviewes et obligations se passent bien », a expliqué un porte-parole VW. « On a organisé notre traditionnel point-presse cet après-midi, puis il y aura une séance d’autographes en centre-ville suivie par une course de karting électriques à la patinoire. Après cela, on veut qu’il se concentre sur son rallye et qu’il le prépare comme un autre. »