Sep16

Written by:Steve Hart
9/16/2009 7:38 PM 

Just returned from a quick dinner after a 13 1/2 hour day driving and it was a great time.Tom and I left for the arena for our breathalyzer (we passed) and to pick up our can at 6:45 am. We departed for Davidsville and had a 50 km transit drive to our first racing stage. It was a 5.5 km drive at 90 Kph (fast), however because it was raining and the course was wet the race committee changed the course to condition 2 which lowered the speed by 5 kph. Right after the first stage there was a 7 km drive on a gravel road to stage two. We did not realize that the committee changed to condition one, therefore we were a little late. We then had a 40 km transit stage to Musgrave Harbour.That was a fun fast 90 Kph stage over 6 Km  with a section in town that was designed to slow you down. It did but we were determined to get back to target speed and in doing so we slid around one corner in town with our tires squelling in front of a big group of spectators. We lost a few seconds in that stage but we had a blast. After some more transit stages and doing well on a racing stage we drove to Barbour Historical Site for a delicious lunch served by the locals in historic dress. After lunch Tom took over the driving and we had a short slow stage that we finished too fast. We only lost a few seconds but we had to slow considerably before the finish. We then had a long 200 km transit to the next racing stage. The next stages were great runs, however there were amendments to the racing book changing them because of road construction. A village that the stage was going through was disappointed because they would not see the cars running fast, so a decision was made that the competitors would run fast through the village even though it was not an official stage. It was a blast with no pressure, The locals in each of the villages has been great hosts and it has been great experience meeting them and learning about their way of life. They all seem to love their island. Finished the last stages and unofficially blasted through the town on our way back. Had a 160 Km transit back to Marystown where we parked all the cars in the hockey arena for the locals. Time for sleep !!

PS Too tired to check for errors, so hopefull there are not too many.