RTG Espana Daily Dispatch - mid-res - Flipbook - Page 12
24 April to 5 May 2022
Day 5
Segovia to Salamanca (335 km)
29 April 2022
Photos: gerardbrown.co.uk
As we tucked into breakfast today we could see
that clear skies and full sun were definitely on the
menu today as they shone through the windows of
the old cloisters which make up our hotel.
Alan and Tina Beardshaw, 1965 Aston Martin DB5
Stanley Gold and Brant Parsons, 1965 Porsche 911
Tonight we’d be in Salamanca, another UNESCO World
Heritage Site, home to the oldest university in Spain and
the fourth night halt in a row beginning with ‘S’. Before
we’d see our beds there was some serious mountains to
negotiate and some amazing countryside to drive through.
An ascent of the Sierra de Guadarrama was the first
obstacle for the rally to overcome and a Passage Control,
Puerto de Navacerrada, was set at the highest point of the
rally so far at 1860m with views back down into Segovia.
Stubborn banks of snow clung to the roadside verges and
a satisfyingly long downhill followed this early morning
transmission test on the way to the first Regularity at the
Puerto Arrebatacapas (1068m) which was simply superb.
In the words of our Rally Director it was “probably the best
of the entire event”. Anyone who was in any doubt quickly
understood these sentiments as the road rolled beneath us;
16km of full sun and hills thick with parasol pines, this was
a lovely drive on amazing tarmac.
The morning coffee halt and Time Control was in the
Restaurant Burguiyo and gave everyone time to reflect on
Fred’s pastoral idyll but, perhaps more importantly, prepare
themselves for what was to come. A beautiful section along
the Rio Alberche led us into the Sierra de Gredos and the
second Regularity over the Puerto de Mijares, which took
us to 1577m over an impressive climb with an unrelenting
gradient. Blue sky, wildflowers and snow capped peaks
made for a picture postcard scene although two timing
points in 27km kept the crews more focussed on the job
in hand.
The lunch Time Control in the Parador de Gredos came
not a moment too soon. It has been a busy, yet fulfilling,
morning which showcased the very best of this part of
Spain, but now everyone was hungry. The lunch of cod,
according to Andrew Laing amongst others, was delicious although he wisely cautioned the late arrivals to watch out
for the bones!
The afternoon session was slightly less hectic yet equally
impressive. The third Regularity over the Puerto de Peña Negra
www.rallytheglobe.com